During the summer, you are expected to read:
Please choose titles you haven't read before. You may read other books written by an author who appears on the list.
If you would like to read a book not on this list, please seek departmental approval from one of the English teachers.
Your knowledge and understanding of the summer reading texts will be assessed at the beginning of the school year to establish a baseline of your level in the competencies of reading, writing and talking. Therefore, as you read the books, pay particular attention to the conventions of the genre, e.g., plot, structure, setting, characterization and theme.
We encourage you to read a mixture of fiction and non-fiction, and to read as much as possible!
For students entering Grade 7 in September 2025. Click on the Fiction and Non-Fiction tabs below to view the titles for your grade.
The Terrible Two by
When master prankster Miles Murphy moves to sleepy Yawnee Valley, he challenges the local mystery prankster in an epic battle of tricks, but soon the two join forces to pull off the biggest prank ever seen.
The Selection by
Sixteen-year-old America Singer is living in the caste-divided nation of Illea, which formed after the war that destroyed the United States. America is chosen to compete in the Selection--a contest to see which girl can win the heart of Illea's prince--but all she really wants is a chance for a future with her secret love, Aspen, who is a caste below her.
Beasts and Beauty: Dangerous Tales by
Twelve tales, twelve dangerous tales of mystery, magic, and rebellious hearts. Each twists like a spindle to reveal truths full of warning and triumph, truths that free hearts long kept tame, truths that explore life, and death. A prince has a surprising awakening. A beauty fights like a beast. A boy refuses to become prey. A path to happiness is lost, then found again. Author Soman Chainani re-spins old stories into fresh fairy tales for a new era and creates a world like no other. These stories know you. They understand you. They reflect you. They are tales for our times. So read on, if you dare.
The Maze Runner by
Sixteen-year-old Thomas wakes up with no memory in the middle of a maze and realizes he must work with the community in which he finds himself if he is to escape.
The Sound of Stars by
Two years ago, a misunderstanding between the leaders of Earth and the invading Ilori resulted in the deaths of one-third of the world's population. Seventeen-year-old Janelle "Ellie" Baker survives in an Ilori-controlled center in New York City. With humans deemed dangerously volatile because of their initial reaction to the invasion, emotional expression can be grounds for execution. Music, art and books are illegal, but Ellie breaks the rules by keeping a secret library. When a book goes missing, Ellie is terrified that the Ilori will track it back to her and kill her. Born in a lab, M0Rr1S was raised to be emotionless. When he finds Ellie's illegal library, he's duty-bound to deliver her for execution. The trouble is, he finds himself drawn to human music and in desperate need of more. They're both breaking the rules for the love of art--and Ellie inspires the same feelings in him that music does. Ellie's--and humanity's--fate rests in the hands of an alien she should fear. M0Rr1S has a lot of secrets, but also a potential solution--thousands of miles away. The two embark on a wild and dangerous road trip with a bag of books and their favorite albums, all the while creating a story and a song of their own that just might save them both.
Two Degrees by
When three children endure separate climate change disasters--a wildfire in the California woods, a close encounter with a hungry polar bear in Canada, and a massive hurricane in Florid--they emerge from their experiences committed to changing the world.
Seraphina by
In a world where dragons and humans coexist in an uneasy truce and dragons can assume human form, Seraphina, whose mother died giving birth to her, grapples with her own identity amid magical secrets and royal scandals, while she struggles to accept and develop her extraordinary musical talents.
The Outsiders by
The struggle of three brothers to stay together after their parents' death and their quest for identity among the conflicting values of their adolescent society.
Checked by
To help his dog through cancer treatment, Conor gives up hockey and finds himself considering who he is without the sport that has defined him, and connecting more with his family and best friend.
Schooled by
Capricorn Anderson is forced to live with his guidance counselor after his hippie grandmother falls out of a tree. At his new school, his strange hippie ways attract attention and Cap gets elected to the position of class president as per the tradition of bringing the biggest nerd to office.
No Fixed Address by
Felix Knuttson, twelve, is an endearing kid with an incredible brain for trivia. His mom Astrid is loving but unreliable; she can't hold onto a job, or a home. When they lose their apartment in Vancouver, they move into a camper van, just for August, till Astrid finds a job. September comes, they're still in the van; Felix must keep "home" a secret and give a fake address in order to enroll in school. Luckily, he finds true friends. As the weeks pass and life becomes grim, he struggles not to let anyone know how precarious his situation is. When he gets to compete on a national quiz show, Felix is determined to win -- the cash prize will bring them a home. Their luck is about to change! But what happens is not at all what Felix expected.
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life by
When Rafe Kane enters middle school, he teams up with his best friend, "Leo the Silent," to create a game to make school more fun by trying to break every rule in the school's code of conduct.
I Am Princess X by
Best friends Libby Deaton and May Harper invented Princess X when they were in fifth grade, but when the car Libby is in goes off a bridge, she is presumed dead, and the story comes to an end--except that now, three years later, Princess X is suddenly everywhere, with a whole underground culture focused on a webcomic, and May believes her friend must be alive.
The Blackthorn Key by
In 1665 London, fourteen-year-old Christopher Rowe, apprentice to an apothecary, and his best friend, Tom, try to uncover the truth behind a mysterious cult, following a trail of puzzles, codes, pranks, and danger toward an unearthly secret with the power to tear the world apart.
Wolf Hollow by
Twelve-year-old Annabelle must learn to stand up for what's right in the face of a manipulative and violent new bully who targets people Annabelle cares about, including a homeless World War I veteran.
Boy: Tales of Childhood by
In "Boy", Roald Dahl recounts his days as a child growing up in England. From his years as a prankster at boarding school to his envious position as a chocolate tester for Cadbury's, Dahl's boyhood was as full of excitement and the unexpected as are his world-famous, bestselling books.
Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart by
Tells the story of Amelia Earhart's life - as a child, a woman, and a pilot - and describes the search for her missing plane.
Messy Roots: A Graphic Memoir of a Wuhanese American by
After spending her early years in Wuhan, China, riding water buffalos and devouring stinky tofu, Laura immigrates to Texas, where her hometown is as foreign as Mars--at least until 2020, when COVID-19 makes Wuhan a household name. In Messy Roots, Laura illustrates her coming-of-age as the girl who simply wants to make the basketball team, escape Chinese school, and figure out why girls make her heart flutter. Insightful, original, and hilarious, toggling seamlessly between past and present, China and America, Gao's debut is a tour de force of graphic storytelling.
Steve Jobs: Insanely Great by
Whether they've seen Aaron Sorkin and Danny Boyle's Steve Jobs movie, read Walter Isaacson's biography, or just own an iPhone, this graphic novel retelling of the Apple innovator's life will capture the imaginations of the legions of readers who live and breathe the technocentric world Jobs created. Told through a combination of black-and-white illustrations and handwritten text, this fast-paced and entertaining biography in graphic format presents the story of the ultimate American entrepreneur, the man who brought us Apple Computer, Pixar, Macs, iPods, iPhones, and more. Jobs's remarkable life reads like a history of the personal technology industry. He started Apple Computer in his parents' garage and eventually became the tastemaker of a generation, creating products we can't live without. Through it all, he was an overbearing and demanding perfectionist, both impossible and inspiring. Capturing his unparalleled brilliance, as well as his many demons, Jessie Hartland's engaging biography illuminates the meteoric successes, devastating setbacks, and myriad contradictions that make up the extraordinary life and legacy of the insanely great Steve Jobs. Here's the perfect book for any teen interested in STEM topics, especially tech. A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year "If a picture is worth a thousand words, then this comic tale can hang with the sprawling biographies." --Macworld.com "An accessible take . . . undoubtedly valuable for kids who are growing up using Apple's products but knowing little about the man who created them." --GeekDad.com
Muhammad Najem, War Reporter: How One Boy Put the Spotlight on Syria by
A graphic memoir by young Syrian Muhammad Najem, who rose to international notoriety during the Syrian Civil War due to his on-the-ground reporting using social media.
Radioactive: Marie and Pierre Curie: A Tale of Love and Fallout by
Presents the professional and private lives of Marie and Pierre Curie, examining their personal struggles, the advancements they made in the world of science, and the issue of radiation in the modern world; th Manhattan Project and Chernobyl.
For students entering Grade 8 in September 2025. Click on the Fiction and Non-Fiction tabs below to view the titles for your grade.
The Poet X by
Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking. But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself. So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out. But she still can’t stop thinking about performing her poems.
Children of Blood and Bone by
They killed my mother. They took our magic. They tried to bury us. Now we rise. Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie's Reaper mother summoned forth souls. But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope. Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good. Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.
Shadow and Bone by
Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee. Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life -- a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling. Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha...and the secrets of her heart.
Hate List by
Sixteen-year-old Valerie, whose boyfriend Nick committed a school shooting at the end of their junior year, struggles to cope with integrating herself back into high school life, unsure herself whether she was a hero or a villain.
The Hunt by
Seventeen-year-old Gene has passed as a vampire for years, carefully following every rule, but now, just as he finds a girl worth fighting for, he is chosen to participate in the hunt for the last remaining humans among ruthless vampires who soon suspect his true nature.
Projekt 1065 by
It is 1943, and thirteen-year-old Michael O'Shaunessey, son of the Irish ambassador to Nazi Germany in Berlin, is also a spy for the British Secret Service, so he has joined the Hitler Youth, and pretending that he agrees with their violence and book-burning is hard enough--but when he is asked to find out more about "Projekt 1065" both his and his parents' lives get a lot more dangerous.,"Infiltrate. Befriend. Sabotage. World War II is raging. Michael O'Shaunessey, originally from Ireland, now lives in Nazi Germany with his parents. Like the other boys in his school, Michael is a member of the Hitler Youth. But Michael has a secret. He and his parents are spies. Michael despises everything the Nazis stand for. But he joins in the Hitler Youth's horrific games and book burnings, playing the part so he can gain insider knowledge. When Michael learns about Projekt 1065, a secret Nazi war mission, things get even more complicated. He must prove his loyalty to the Hitler Youth at all costs -- even if it means risking everything he cares about. Including... his own life.
Captain Skidmark Dances with Destiny by
This laugh-out-loud middle-grade novel follows thirteen-year-old Will- who hates hockey and loves dancing-as he navigates school, bullies, and his father's expectations. Will is a Canadian eighth grader who hates hockey-and he stinks at it, too. Will is bullied at school, doesn't have any friends, and is generally miserable. When Will's seventeen-year-old hockey-star cousin, Alex, arrives to stay with Will's family, Will and Alex quickly realize they can't stand each other. Then Will stumbles into a local dance school. He fights the urge to cha-cha, but he's good! When Will's dad finds out about the dancing, he basically forbids it. And Alex's dad refuses to listen to what Alex wants to do with his life. Will takes readers on a journey through noogies, awkward conversations, and epic farts. He worries, dances, and makes messes. Filled with humor, nuance, and emotion, this novel asks what makes a family and what makes a man.
We Were Liars by
Spending the summers on her family's private island off the coast of Massachusetts with her cousins and a special boy named Gat, teenaged Cadence struggles to remember what happened during her fifteenth summer.
Hoops by
A teenage basketball player from Harlem is befriended by a former professional player who, after being forced to quit because of a point shaving scandal, hopes to prevent other young athletes from repeating his mistake.
Airborn by
Matt, a young cabin boy aboard an airship, and Kate, a wealthy young girl traveling with her chaperone, team up to search for the existence of mysterious winged creatures reportedly living hundreds of feet above the Earth's surface.
Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by
A brave and beautiful story that will make readers laugh, and break their hearts at the same time. Now with a special note from the author!Steven has a totally normal life (well, almost).He plays drums in the All-City Jazz Band (whose members call him the Peasant), has a crush on the hottest girl in school (who doesn't even know he's alive), and is constantly annoyed by his younger brother, Jeffrey (who is cuter than cute - which is also pretty annoying). But when Jeffrey gets sick, Steven's world is turned upside down, and he is forced to deal with his brother's illness, his parents' attempts to keep the family in one piece, his homework, the band, girls, and Dangerous Pie (yes, you'll have to read the book to find out what that is!).
Lockwood and Co.: The Screaming Staircase by
Follows three young operatives of a Psychic Detection Agency as they battle an epidemic of ghosts in London.
Rayne and Delilah’s Midnite Matinee by
High school seniors and best friends Delia and Josie are two of the brightest stars on TV... local cable TV. When senior year ends, they have to make a tough decision that will test the bonds of their friendship.
Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad by
An account of the Siege of Leningrad reveals the role played by Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich and his Leningrad Symphony in rallying and commemorating their fellow citizens.
An Inconvenient Truth: The Crisis of Global Warming by
This young readers' version of the recent documentary film's companion adult volume cuts the page count by about a third but preserves the original's cogent message and many of its striking visuals. After explaining that his interest in the environment predates even his mother's reading of Silent Spring aloud to him as a teenager, Gore proceeds to document steeply rising carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere, and then to link that to accelerating changes in temperature and precipitation patterns worldwide. Using easy-to-grasp graphics and revealing before-and-after photos, he shows how glaciers and ice shelves are disappearing all over the globe with alarming speed, pointing to profound climate changes and increased danger from rising sea levels in the near future. O'Connor rephrases Gore's arguments in briefer, simpler language without compromising their flow, plainly intending to disturb readers rather than frighten them. He writes measured, matter-of-fact prose, letting facts and trends speak for themselves but, suggesting that "what happens locally has worldwide consequences," he closes with the assertion that we will all have to "change the way we live our lives." Like the film, this title may leave readers to look elsewhere for both documentation and for specific plans of action, but as an appeal to reason it's as polished and persuasive as it can be.
Lighter than My Shadow by
A poignant, heart-lifting graphic memoir about anorexia, eating disorders and the journey to recovery Like most kids, Katie was a picky eater. She'd sit at the table in silent protest, hide uneaten toast in her bedroom, listen to parental threats that she'd have to eat it for breakfast. But in any life a set of circumstance can collide, and normal behaviour might soon shade into something sinister, something deadly. Lighter Than My Shadow is a hand-drawn story of struggle and recovery, a trip into the black heart of a taboo illness, an exposure of those who are so weak as to prey on the vulnerable, and an inspiration to anybody who believes in the human power to endure towards happiness. 'Even at its most heartbreaking it never feels sombre ... Inspiring, plucky and, in the end, consoling, it's hard to put down' Observer
Banned Book Club by
It's 1983 during South Korea's Fifth Republic, a military regime that has entrenched its power through censorship, torture, and the murder of protesters.. In this charged political climate a freshman named Kim Hyun Sook seeks refuge in the comfort of books. When the handsome young editor of the school newspaper invites her to his reading group, she expects to talk about "Moby Dick," "Hamlet," "The Scarlet Letter." Instead she finds herself hiding in a basement as the youngest member of an underground banned book club, and as Hyun Sook discovers, in a totalitarian regime, the delights of discovering great works of illicit literature are quickly overshadowed by fear and violence.
Google It: A History of Google by
Think. Invent. Organize. Share. Don't be evil. And change the world. Larry Page and Sergey Brin started out as two Stanford college students with a wild idea: They were going to organize the world's information. From that one deceptively simple goal, they created one of the most influential and innovative companies in the world. The word "google" has even entered our vocabulary as a verb. Now, find out the true history of Google from its humble beginnings as a thesis project made out of "borrowed" hardware and discount toys through its revolution of the world's relationship with technology to a brief glimpse of where they might take us next. In Google It, award-winning investigative reporter Anna Crowley Redding shares an inspiring story of innovation, personal and intellectual bravery, and most importantly, of shooting for the moon in order to change the world.
Bomb: The Race to Build – and Steal – the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by
Recounts the scientific discoveries that enabled atom splitting, the military intelligence operations that occurred in rival countries, and the work of brilliant scientists hidden at Los Alamos.
Sachiko: A Nagasaki Bomb Survivor’s Story by
Tells the story of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki through the eyes of Sachiko Yasui, who was six when the devastation was wrought, describing her experiences in the aftermath of the attack as well as her long journey to find peace.
My Name Is Number 4: A True Story from the Cultural Revolution by
A powerful and passionate memoir, My Name Is Number 4 is the gripping tale of one girl's life growing up during China's Cultural Revolution. Number Four will have a difficult life. These are the words that were uttered upon Ting-xing Ye's birth. Soon this prophecy would prove only too true. . . . Here is the real-life story about the fourth child in a family torn apart by China's Cultural Revolution. After the death of both of her parents, Ting-xing and her siblings endured brutal Red Guard attacks on their schools and even in their home. At the age of sixteen, Ting-xing is exiled to a prison farm far from the world she knows. How she struggled through years of constant terror while keeping her spirit intact is at the heart of My Name Is Number 4. Haunting and inspiring, Ting-xing Ye's personal account of this horrific period in history is one that no reader will soon forget.
Available for purchase at the LCC Store while in stock.
