Summer Reading List 2015

Pick one of the following books to use for your summer reading project. You may also read more books on this list if you wish!!! You may obtain the book by either borrowing the book from the library or purchasing it on your own.

1. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

“When Alice takes a tumble following the White Rabbit, she finds herself in a world in which nothing is what it is, because everything is what it isn't. But can Alice make sense of the nonsense in the land of the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts and the Cheshire Cat? And will she ever get home again?”

2. Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

“A book for young readers. It involves new kids, bullies, alligators, eco-warriors, pancakes, and pint-sized owls. A hilariousFloridian adventure!

Roy, who is new to his small Florida community, becomes involved in another boy's attempt to save a colony of burrowing owls from a proposed construction site.”

3. Lord of the Flies by William Golding

“This frightening and thought-provoking survival adventure reveals the terrible power of cruelty and the pack mentality at the heart of mankind. William Golding's compelling story about a group of very ordinary small boys marooned on a coral island has become a modern classic. At first it seems as though it is all going to be great fun; but the fun before long becomes furious and life on the island turns into a nightmare of panic and death.”

4. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi Also available in Spanish

“Not every 13-year-old girl is accused of murder, brought to trial, and found guilty. On an ocean voyage of unimaginable

consequences, strong-willed, independent Charlotte Doyle is just such a girl.”

5. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell Also available in Spanish

“The timeless adventure story of a girl who must survive alone on an island in the Pacific Ocean is one of the best-loved young adult novels of all time.”

6. Animal Farm by George Orwell

“In this ruthless satire, 1984 author George Orwell explores the inevitable flaw in all utopian visions—that perfect societies require perfect people.”

8. 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. In this celebration of nonconformity, Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the perils of popularity and the thrill and inspiration of first love.In this story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love, an eccentric student named Stargirl changes Mica High School forever.”

9. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros Also available in Spanish

“The House on Mango Street is the remarkable story of Esperanza Cordero. Told in a series of vignettes – sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes deeply joyous –

it is the story of a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago, inventing for herself who and what she will become. Few other books in our time have touched so many readers.”

10. The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick

“The Last Book in the Universe is a post-apocalyptic science fiction novel by Rodman Philbrick. Set in a cyberpunk dystopia, its protagonist and narrator is a teenage boy named Spaz who suffers from epilepsy.”

11. Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor

“An intimate, realistic, and moving account of an African American family's struggles with the injustices and terrors of segregation in Mississippi in 1940.”

12. Call of the Wild by Jack London

“This pulse-pounding classic about a sled dog's adventures in the Yukon is as exciting today as it was a century ago!”