It is 2091, and humans have been living on Mars for twenty years. There are grown-ups who have come from several different countries on Earth to establish the settlements, and there are kids who were brought there as babies. There’s even a cat – Leo – fondly referred to as the “Lion of Mars.” The … Read more
From Newbery-winning author, Kwame Alexander. For middle schools. About soccer. About books. And relationships. Nick Hall is a pretty typical middle schooler. He’s a king on the soccer field, he’s doing well in school, and he’s gearing up to ask out April, the girl of his dreams. However, Nick doesn’t like words. His father is … Read more
Basketball. Competition. Family. Health. Poetry. Kwame Alexander weaves all these all elements together in his Newbery Medal and Coretta Scott King Award winning novel in verse, The Crossover. OH, WOW – DID YOU SEE THAT NASTY CROSSOVER?Now you see why they call me Filthy.Folks, I hope you got your tickets,Because I’m about to put on … Read more
What is life like when you are a seventh-grader who gets picked up from school every day in the family taco truck, lovingly named Tía Perla? Well, what was fun and exciting in elementary school – “corn chips and cold sodas for all my friends” – is now just humiliating. Tía Perla, huffing and wheezing … Read more
This was going to be the worst summer ever! So says Jake as he waits for the ferry to take him to stay with his grandmother, Honey, on Dewees Island in the Lowcountry of South Carolina – very much against his will. No friends. No Wi-Fi. And, minutes after the ferry leaves the dock, no … Read more
“We realize the importance of our voices only when we are silenced.” Malala Yousafzai was raised to stand up for what she believes. She took this to heart as her conviction was severely challenged when the Taliban took control of her formally peaceful town. Despite their tactics of fear and violence, Malala continued to stand … Read more
Brown Girl Dreaming is the memoir-in-verse of acclaimed novelist, Jacqueline Woodson. A book rich in personal memories and unforgettable phrasing, it will be enjoyed by a wide range of students and their families. Growing up in Ohio, South Carolina, and then Brooklyn, Woodson uses a series of elegantly wrought poems to paint a richly layered … Read more
“What we expect rarely occurs; what we don’t expect is what happens.” This simple, realistic truth reveals the essence of this deeply affecting novel. Willow Chance is twelve years old, which can be a tough time for any kid and Willow isn’t any kid. She is eccentric, alternatively obsessed with rare medical conditions, botany, and … Read more
In The Wednesday Wars, Holling Hoodhood, navigates 7th grade on Long Island in the 1967-68 school year, a time of great upheaval both for Holling and the country. At home, his father is absorbed in his competitive architecture practice, his sister is consumed by protesting the Vietnam War, and his mother is trying to maintain … Read more
What better way to learn history than through the eyes of a beloved character as she experiences it firsthand? Esperanza Ortega guides us through her beautiful coming-of-age story in the 1930s. With the effects of the Mexican Revolution and the Great Depression lingering in her hometown of Aguascaleintes, Mexico, the wellborn Esperanza goes from anticipating … Read more
“A step at a time. One problem at a time—just figure out this one problem.” Linda Sue Park tells a story of perseverance, a story of hope, a story taken from recent history. A Long Walk to Water is Salva Dut’s story, but it’s also a story of so many others who are born into dire … Read more
Read to Them is proud to offer the special, moving, magical Wonder, by R.J. Palacio. One of the most acclaimed books of our time, Wonder has swept readers of multiple generations – a wide range of students, parents, librarians, and teachers. It is a title we’ll be talking about a generation from now. Wonder tells … Read more
“How else can hopes go, but up?” Rules is a book that begins as girl caring for her autistic brother. It is heartfelt and witty, a story that celebrates people’s differences and personal introspection and asks the question: What does normal really look like? We empathize right away with the protagonist, Catherine, who regularly has … Read more
How many people get a do-over on life? Can a leopard change its spots? After a fall off the roof lands Chase in a coma, he regains consciousness with a concussion and amnesia. The concussion keeps the all-county running back temporarily off the football team. But the real challenge is the amnesia. Chase has to … Read more
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is a nonfiction title that informs, amazes, and inspires all readers, young and not so young. To call it another inspiring must-read doesn’t do it justice. Yes, it has all of the components of a heartfelt hometown hero story. An unlikely hero? Check. An against-all-odds situation? Check. Tragedy and … Read more
“On the outside, happy and sad often look the same.” What is it like to try to read when the letters seem to move on the page? What is like to be in the room full of people – and still feel all alone? Meet Ally. She’s dyslexic, but she doesn’t know there’s an actual … Read more
“It’s important to stand up for what’s right, but sometimes there’s a fine line between courage and stupidity.” Hoot is the great Carl Hiaasen’s first foray into children’s literature, and he won the Newbery Honor for it. Well known for his adult novels with fast-paced, humorous tales of environmental shenanigans in Florida, Hiaasen hit a … Read more
Three characters; separated by continents, divided by decades, and bound by harrowing circumstances that reach beyond time and place. The journeys of the three protagonists in Alan Gratz’s Refugee are distinct in history, yet they share a common trajectory of escaping cruelty to find freedom. Josef from Germany in the 1930s, Isabel from Cuba in … Read more
Melody Brooks is 11 years old. She has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair. She cannot sit up by herself, walk, or talk. Yet her mind is filled with words, feelings, and ideas that she can’t express: “Words have always swirled around me like snowflakes – each one delicate and different, each one melting untouched … Read more
“The sea, the sea, the sea. It rolled and rolled and called to me. Come in, it said, come in.” Prepare to set sail with thirteen-year-old Sophie as she voyages across the Atlantic Ocean from America to England to visit her grandfather, Bompie. She is accompanied by a motley crew of uncles and cousins, all … Read more
Rob Buyea’s debut novel, Because of Mr. Terupt, features a rookie teacher and seven students, each with their own unique quirks and personalities. The narration passes back and forth between the students – Peter, the class clown; Jessica, the new girl; Luke, the brainiac; Alexia, the manipulator; Jeffrey, the slacker; Danielle, the pushover; and Anna, … Read more
Meet Aven Green. She’s a completely typical middle schooler. She goes to school, plays soccer, strums the guitar, and eats peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. But Aven does have one small difference…she was born without arms. “Growing up, I could do most everything everyone else with arms could do: eating cereal, brushing my … Read more
“We are history. This, right here, is all history ever has been: regular people living their regular lives, making things up as they go, hoping they get it right.” That’s what Caitlyn ultimately concludes about her new school. But it takes moving from New York to Vermont and going to a quirky new school to … Read more
