Summer Reading
Selections
Grades 5 and 6
Goblins in the Castle
By: Bruce Coville
What moans at midnight in Toad-in-a-Cage
Castle?
Toad-in-a-Cage Castle was filled with secrets -secrets such as the hidden passages that led to
every room, the long stairway that wound down
to the dungeon, and the weird creature named
Igor who lived there. But it was the mysterious
night noises that bothered William the most -the strange moans that drifted through the
halls of the castle where he was raised.
He wanted to know what caused them.
Then one night he found out....
Among the Hidden ~ By: Margaret Peterson Haddix
In a future where the Population Police enforce the law
limiting a family to only two children, Luke, an illegal third
child, has lived all his twelve years in isolation and fear on
his family's farm .
Luke has never been to school. He's never had a birthday
party, or gone to a friend's house for an overnight. In fact,
Luke has never had a friend.
Luke is one of the shadow children, a third child forbidden
by the Population Police. He's lived his entire life in hiding,
and now, with a new housing development replacing the
woods next to his family's farm, he is no longer even
allowed to go outside.
Then, one day Luke sees a girl's face in the window of a
house where he knows two other children already live.
Finally, he's met a shadow child like himself. Jen is willing
to risk everything to come out of the shadows -- does Luke
dare to become involved in her dangerous plan? Can he
afford not to?
The View From
Saturday
By: E.L. Konigsburg
HOW HAD MRS. OLINSKI CHOSEN her sixth-grade Academic
Bowl team? She had a number of answers. But were any of them
true? How had she really chosen Noah and Nadia and Ethan and
Julian? And why did they make such a good team?
It was a surprise to a lot of people when Mrs. Olinski's team won
the sixth-grade Academic Bowl contest at Epiphany Middle
School. It was an even bigger surprise when they beat the seventh
grade and the eighth grade, too. And when they went on to even
greater victories, everyone began to ask: How did it happen?
It happened at least partly because Noah had been the best man
(quite by accident) at the wedding of Ethan's grandmother and
Nadia's grandfather. It happened because Nadia discovered that
she could not let a lot of baby turtles die. It happened when Ethan
could not let Julian face disaster alone. And it happened because
Julian valued something important in himself and saw in the other
three something he also valued.
Mrs. Olinski, returning to teaching after having been injured in an
automobile accident, found that her Academic Bowl team became
her answer to finding confidence and success. What she did not
know, at least at first, was that her team knew more than she did
the answer to why they had been chosen.
Savvy
By: Ingrid Law
For generations, the Beaumont family has harbored a
magical secret. They each possess a “savvy”—a special
supernatural power that strikes when they turn thirteen.
Grandpa Bomba moves mountains, her older brothers
create hurricanes and spark electricity . . . and now it’s
the eve of Mibs’s big day.
As if waiting weren’t hard enough, the family gets scary
news two days before Mibs’s birthday: Poppa has been in
a terrible accident. Mibs develops the singular mission to
get to the hospital and prove that her new power can
save her dad. So she sneaks onto a salesman’s bus . . .
only to find the bus heading in the opposite direction.
Suddenly Mibs finds herself on an unforgettable odyssey
that will force her to make sense of growing up—and of
other people, who might also have a few secrets hidden
just beneath the skin.
Out of My Mind ~ By: Sharon M. Draper
Eleven-year-old Melody has a photographic memory.
Her head is like a video camera that is always
recording. Always. And there's no delete button. She's
the smartest kid in her whole school—but no one
knows it. Most people—her teachers and doctors
included—don't think she's capable of learning, and up
until recently her school days consisted of listening to
the same preschool-level alphabet lessons again and
again and again. If only she could speak up, if only she
could tell people what she thinks and knows . . . but
she can't, because Melody can't talk. She can't walk.
She can't write. Being stuck inside her head is making
Melody go out of her mind—that is, until she discovers
something that will allow her to speak for the first
time ever. At last Melody has a voice . . . but not
everyone around her is ready to hear it.
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
By: J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany, and Jack Thorne
Based on an original new story by J.K. Rowling, John
Tiffany and Jack Thorne, a new play by Jack Thorne, Harry
Potter and the Cursed Child is the eighth story in the
Harry Potter series and the first official Harry Potter
story to be presented on stage. The play will receive its
world premiere in London’s West End on 30th July 2016.
It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t
much easier now that he is an overworked employee of
the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three
school-age children.
While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay
where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle
with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As
past and present fuse ominously, both father and son
learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness
comes from unexpected places.
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
By: E.L. Konigsburg
When suburban Claudia Kincaid decides to run away, she
knows she doesn't just want to run from somewhere, she
wants to run to somewhere -- to a place that is
comfortable, beautiful, and, preferably, elegant. She
chooses the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York
City. Knowing that her younger brother Jamie has money
and thus can help her with a serious cashflow problem,
she invites him along.
Once settled into the museum, Claudia and Jamie find
themselves caught up in the mystery of an angel statue
that the museum purchased at auction for a bargain
price of $225. The statue is possibly an early work of the
Renaissance master, Michelangelo, and therefore worth
millions. Is it? Or isn't it? Claudia is determined to find
out. Her quest leads her to Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, the
remarkable old woman who sold the statue, and to some
equally remarkable discoveries about herself.
Hatchet
By: Gary Paulsen
Thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson is on his way to
visit his father when the single-engine plane in
which he is flying crashes. Suddenly, Brian finds
himself alone in the Canadian wilderness with
nothing but a tattered Windbreaker and the
hatchet his mother gave him as a present—and the
dreadful secret that has been tearing him apart
since his parent’s divorce. But now Brian has no
time for anger, self pity, or despair—it will take all
his know-how and determination, and more
courage than he knew he possessed, to survive.
Stargirl
By: Jerry Spinelli
Stargirl. From the day she arrives at quiet Mica
High in a burst of color and sound, the hallways
hum with the murmur of “Stargirl, Stargirl.” She
captures Leo Borlock’ s heart with just one smile.
She sparks a school-spirit revolution with just one
cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted.
At first.
Then they turn on her. Stargirl is suddenly
shunned for everything that makes her different,
and Leo, panicked and desperate with love, urges
her to become the very thing that can destroy her:
normal.
Gregor the Overlander ~ By: Suzanne Collins
In the irresistible first novel by the author of The
Hunger Games, a boy embarks on a dangerous
quest in order to fulfill his destiny -- and find his
father.
Young Gregor falls through a grate in the laundry
room of his apartment building and hurtles into
the dark Underland. This strange world is on the
brink of war, and Gregor's arrival is no accident. A
prophecy foretells that Gregor has a role to play in
the Underland's uncertain future. Gregor wants
no part of it -- until he realizes it's the only way to
solve the mystery of his father's disappearance.
Gregor embarks on a dangerous adventure that
will change both him and the Underland forever.
The War that Saved my Life
By: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Nine-year-old Ada has never left her one-room
apartment. Her mother is too humiliated by Ada’s
twisted foot to let her outside. So when her little
brother Jamie is shipped out of London to escape the
war, Ada doesn’t waste a minute—she sneaks out to
join him.
So begins a new adventure of Ada, and for Susan
Smith, the woman who is forced to take the two kids
in. As Ada teaches herself to ride a pony, learns to
read, and watches for German spies, she begins to
trust Susan—and Susan begins to love Ada and Jamie.
But in the end, will their bond be enough to hold them
together through wartime? Or will Ada and her
brother fall back into the cruel hands of their mother?
Frindle ~ By: Andrew Clements
Is Nick Allen a troublemaker?
He really just likes to liven things up at school -- and
he's always had plenty of great ideas. When Nick
learns some interesting information about how words
are created, suddenly he's got the inspiration for his
best plan ever...the frindle. Who says a pen has to be
called a pen? Why not call it a frindle?
Things begin innocently enough as Nick gets his
friends to use the new word. Then other people in
town start saying frindle. Soon the school is in an
uproar, and Nick has become a local hero. His teacher
wants Nick to put an end to all this nonsense, but the
funny thing is frindle doesn't belong to Nick anymore.
The new word is spreading across the country, and
there's nothing Nick can do to stop it.
Freak the Mighty~ By: Rodman Philbrick
A brilliant, emotionally charged novel about two boys.
One is a slow learner, too large for his age, and the
other is a tiny, disabled genius. The two pair up to
create one formidable human force known as "Freak
the Mighty".
MAX. FREAK. BEST FRIENDS. FOREVER.
I never had a brain until Freak came along. . .
That's what Max thought. All his life he'd been called
stupid. Dumb. Slow. It didn't help that his body
seemed to be growing faster than his mind. It didn't
help that people were afraid of him. So Max learned
how to be alone. At least until Freak came along.
Freak was weird, too. He had a little body, and a really
big brain. Together Max and Freak were unstoppable.
Together, they were Freak the Mighty.
Number the Stars~ By: Lois Lowry
As the German troops begin their campaign to
"relocate" all the Jews of Denmark, Annemarie
Johansen’s family takes in Annemarie’s best friend,
Ellen Rosen, and conceals her as part of the family.
Through the eyes of ten-year-old Annemarie, we
watch as the Danish Resistance smuggles almost
the entire Jewish population of Denmark, nearly
seven thousand people, across the sea to Sweden.
The heroism of an entire nation reminds us that
there was pride and human decency in the world
even during a time of terror and war.
Esperanza Rising ~ By: Pam Munoz Ryan
Esperanza thought she'd always live with her
family on their ranch in Mexico--she'd always have
fancy dresses, a beautiful home, and servants. But
a sudden tragedy forces Esperanza and Mama to
flee to California during the Great Depression, and
to settle in a camp for Mexican farm workers.
Esperanza isn't ready for the hard labor, financial
struggles, or lack of acceptance she now faces.
When their new life is threatened, Esperanza must
find a way to rise above her difficult
circumstances--Mama's life, and her own, depend
on it.
The Mystery of Rascal Pratt~ By: Robbie Scott
Set on the shores of San Francisco Bay in 1866,
this adventure tale tells the story of twelve year
old Emma Green who finds her world turned
upside down when her father takes his first
assignment as a lighthouse keeper at Point Bonita,
a remote rock on the California coast. Despite
Emma's isolation, she manages to make friends
with the son of a powerful rancher and with the
granddaughter of an American Indian. When a
mysterious shipwreck survivor - a feverish boy
who claims improbably to be a pirate - washes into
their cove, secrets that have been hidden across
generations are threatened. In order to survive
the rifts, the four youths must forge a fellowship
in spite of newly opened mistrusts.
The Boy Who Could Fly Without a Motor
By: Theodore Taylor
Jon Jeffers is the loneliest nine-year-old on
earth. It's 1935, and he's stuck on a tiny
rocky island off the coast of San Francisco
with his mother and his lighthouse-keeper
father. Jon longs for something more. If only
he had a way to escape this forsaken pile of
rocks, he could have some real adventures.
Then one morning the irritable ghost of an
ancient magician appears on the beach and
offers—amazingly—to teach Jon to fly. Jon
agrees, and at first flying seems to be the
answer to his wildest dreams. But then he
flies into some serious trouble. . . .
Loser~ By: Jerry Spinelli
Just like other kids, Zinkoff rides his bike,
hopes for snow days, and wants to be like his
dad when he grows up. But Zinkoff also raises
his hand with all the wrong answers, trips over
his own feet, and falls down with laughter over
a word like "Jabip." Other kids have their own
word to describe him, but Zinkoff is too busy
to hear it. He doesn't know he's not like
everyone else. And one winter night, Zinkoff's
differences show that any name can someday
become "hero."
Paper Things~ By: Jennifer Richard Jacobson
When Ari’s mother died four years ago, she had two
final wishes: that Ari and her older brother, Gage,
would stay together always, and that Ari would go to
Carter, the middle school for gifted students. So
when nineteen-year-old Gage decides he can no longer
live with their bossy guardian, Janna, Ari knows she
has to go with him. But it’s been two months, and Gage
still hasn’t found them an apartment. He and Ari have
been "couch surfing," staying with Gage’s friend in a
tiny apartment, crashing with Gage’s girlfriend and
two roommates, and if necessary, sneaking into a
juvenile shelter to escape the cold Maine nights. But
all of this jumping around makes it hard for Ari to
keep up with her schoolwork, never mind her
friendships, and getting into Carter starts to seem
impossible. Will Ari be forced to break one of her
promises to Mama? Told in an open, authentic voice,
this nuanced story of hiding in plain sight may have
readers thinking about homelessness in a whole new
way.
Witch and Wizard~ By: James Patterson
The world is changing: the government has
seized control of every aspect of society, and
now, kids are disappearing. For 15-year-old
Wisty and her older brother Whit, life turns
upside down when they are torn from their
parents one night and slammed into a secret
prison for no reason they can comprehend. The
New Order, as it is known, is clearly trying to
suppress Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Being
a Normal Teenager. But while trapped in this
totalitarian nightmare, Wisty and Whit
discover they have incredible powers they'd
never dreamed of. Can this newly minted witch
and wizard master their skills in time to save
themselves, their parents--and maybe the
world?
One Crazy Summer~ By: Rita Williams-Garcia
Eleven-year-old Delphine is like a mother
to her two younger sisters, Vonetta and
Fern. She's had to be, ever since their
mother, Cecile, left them seven years ago
for a radical new life in California. When
they arrive from Brooklyn to spend the
summer with her, Cecile is nothing like
they imagined. While the girls hope to go
to Disneyland and meet Tinker Bell, their
mother sends them to a day camp run by
the Black Panthers. Unexpectedly,
Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern learn much
about their family, their country, and
themselves during one truly crazy summer.
The Unwanteds~ By: Lisa McMann
When Alex finds out he is Unwanted, he expects to
die. That is the way of the people of Quill. Each year,
all the thirteen-year-olds are labeled as Wanted,
Necessary, or Unwanted. Wanteds get more schooling
and train to join the Quillitary. Necessaries keep the
farms running. Unwanteds are set for elimination.
It’s hard for Alex to leave behind his twin, Aaron, a
Wanted, but he makes peace with his fate—until he
discovers that instead of a “death farm,” what awaits
him is a magical place called Artimé. There, Alex and
his fellow Unwanteds are encouraged to cultivate their
creative abilities and use them magically. Everything
Alex has ever known changes before his eyes, and it’s
a wondrous transformation.
But it’s a rare, unique occurence for twins to be
divided between Wanted and Unwanted, and as Alex
and Aaron’s bond stretches across their separation, a
threat arises for the survival of Artimé that will pit
brother against brother in an ultimate magical battle.
small as an elephant ~ By: Jennifer Richard Jacobson
Ever since Jack can remember, his mom has
been unpredictable, sometimes loving and fun,
other times caught in a whirlwind of energy and
"spinning" wildly until it’s over. But Jack never
thought his mom would take off during the
night and leave him at a campground in Acadia
National Park, with no way to reach her and
barely enough money for food. Any other kid
would report his mom gone, but Jack knows by
now that he needs to figure things out for
himself - starting with how to get from the
backwoods of Maine to his home in Boston
before DSS catches on. With nothing but a
small toy elephant to keep him company, Jack
begins the long journey south, a journey that
will test his wits and his loyalties - and his
trust that he may be part of a larger herd
after all.