12

Parents: Help Your Child with Summer Reading

The research is clear: children who don’t read during the sum-mer can lose up to three months of reading progress and that loss has a cumulative, long-term effect.

Don't leave home without it

Have your child bring along a book

or magazine any time they have to wait, such as at a doctor's office. Always try to fit in reading!

Take control of the television

It's difficult for reading to compete with TV and video games. En-courage reading as a free-time activity.

Visit the Public Library

Get to know the librarians in your community and what your local library has to offer. Librarians will help your child locate books that match their interests. While you are there, check out a book for yourself!

*********************************************************

Bailey Middle School Students: Read at least two books from this list or other appropri-

ate books and complete a Summer Reading Summary Sheet to receive EXTRA CREDIT in your reading class, as well as a PRIZE. Give your completed summary sheet to your reading teacher in the first 10 days of school.

1

West Haven School District

Bailey Middle School

Grades 7 & 8

Summer Reading Guide 2014

-

RELAX

AND

READ THIS SUMMER!

"A Book is the Most Effective Weapon Against

Ignorance and Intolerance"- Lyndon Baines Johnson

2

Bailey Middle School Suggested

Summer Reading

Gifted Hands By Ben Carson

Struggling to beat the odds with determination and the love of a mother

and of faith and genius that make him one of today’s greatest life-

givers.

America is Under Attack: September 11, 2001: The Day The

Towers Fell By Don Brown

A straightforward account of the September 11th tragedy, Brown’s re-

strained watercolors and sensitive text focuses on small stories of those

who were in the Towers and the people who responded to the disaster.

Adventures in Cartooning: How to Turn Your Doodles Into

Comics By James Sturm

Join a princess, knight, dragon, and an elf in a humorous adventure as

the Magic Elf uses their cartoon to show them about cartooning basics

from panels to word balloons to thought balloons and more. Can you

draw simple things like trees, fish, and candy?...Then you can be a car-

toonist!!! This book will help show you how!!!' After reading the

book, cartooning seems very easy. Now if only I could draw…

Born On A Blue Day , a Memoir By Daniel Tammet

Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant-journey into one

of the most fascinating minds today who has severe autistic disorders

that keep him from living independently but is able to see numbers as

shapes, colors and can perform amazing calculations in his head.

NON-FICTION

Reading

11

The Power Of Six By Pittacus Lore

Read the Complete Number Four Series.

I am number seven. One of six still alive. We are growing Stronger.

We are starting to come together. We are ready to fight.

We are The Last Defense.

Lionboy By Zizou Corder

Charlie Ashanti, a.k.a. Lionboy, has the ability to speak with all kinds

of cats due to an incident when he was a baby. His ability becomes

invaluable when he finds that his parents, both scientists, have disap-

peared from their home and Charlie suspects foul play. Through a net-

work of cats, Charlie is able to track the scientists.

Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer By John Grishom

A murder has occurred in the small town where 13 year old Theodore

Boone lives. The man accused has now come to trial. Having lawyers

as parents, Theo has learned a thing or two about the legal system. As

the trial proceeds he begins to think something isn't right.

Kissed By Cameron Dokey

Contains Books Belle, Sunlight and Shadow and Winter’sChild

You don’t want to miss the suspense.

Through To You By Emily Hainsworth

Read about this parallel world when Cam discovers that he can bet his

girlfriend back.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

“There is more treasure in books than in all the

pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.”

- Walt Disney

10

Among The Hidden By Margaret Peterson Haddix

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 devel-

opment replacing the woods next to his family's farm, he is no longer even

allowed to go outside.

The Running Dream By Wendelin Van Draanen

When a school bus accident leaves 16 year old Jessica an amputee, she

returns to school with a prosthetic limb and her track team finds a way

to help rekindle her dream of running again.

MORE

FICTION

Travel Team By Mike Lupica

Daniel Walker may be short, but he’s great at basketball. Richie Walk-

er, a former basketball player who’s career was cut short is struggling

to have a relationship with his son, Danny. When Danny doesn’t make

his seventh grade travel team, Richie steps in and forms his own team.

The Mortal Instruments Series By Cassandra Clare

Able to see demons and those who hunt them, Clary Fray is srawn into

the world of the Shadowhunters when her mother slips into a coma and

travels to the city of Glass, the capital of their secretive country, where

she uncovers important truths about her family’s past.

Magisterium By Jeff Hirsch

What if everything you have been told is a lie? What will life be like

when you are all alone and your father is hidden away building a piece

of technology which may just save the world.

3

Animal Heroes: True Rescue Stories By Sandra Markle

Most of us know how much animals can enrich our lives, but did you

know animals can also save lives? From our pets to farm animals, to

those living in the zoo or in the wild, many animals have risked their

lives to save one of ours. To learn more about hero cows, gorillas, and

dolphins, read the true rescue stories of Animal Heroes.

B. Franklin, Printer By David A. Adler

Benjamin Franklin is probably 'America's Favorite Founding Father,'

but how did he get there? David Adler draws a detailed and authentic

portrait of this great man, illustrated with prints and maps from Frank-

lin's time. When he was young, he signed his name 'B. Franklin, Print-

er'-that is how he most identified himself. Franklin was an inquiring

scientist, inventor and statesman and he also had a wry sense of humor,

often writing sly letters to his own newspaper under a false name. As

an original 'nerd,' he may sound like someone you know.

Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Dep-

uty U.S. Marshal By Vaunda Micheaux Nelson

Bass Reeves was born as a slave in the early 1840's and was well-

known as a sharp-witted and good-natured youngster. But everything

changed when Bass struck his owner during a card game. For a slave

this meant certain death so he took off and lived with Indians until the

end of the Civil War. Because of his strong sense of right and wrong,

he was chosen to be a U.S. Deputy Marshall. For 3 decades, Bass was

the most feared and respected lawman in the territories.

Prisoner B-3087 By Alan Gratz

Based on a true story about the Nazi takeover of Poland.

4

Boys of Steel: The Creators of Superman

By Marc Tyler Nobleman

Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster grew up during the Depression reading

about their heroes Flash Gordon and Tarzan. Jerry also wrote stories of

his own, and Joe loved to draw. Comic books were new back then, and

they wanted to write and illustrate their own. When they were 24, they

created the first and best superhero of all time.

My Everest Story A Memoir By Mark Pfetzer & Jack Galvin

Sixteen year old Mark Pfetzer huddles in his tent at 26,000 feet, wait-ing for his turn to attempt Everest’s summit. Read the fascinating first person account of his experiences up into the high altitude ”Death Zone”. Celebrate the strength that guides him through his impossibly daring dreams.

I am a Seal Team Six Warrior, By Haroward R. Wasdin

Memoirs Of An American Soldier made up of the elite in the country.

This tale tells of how Wasdin overcame the odds to enter the exciting

and dangerous world of U.S. Navy SEALS and Special Forces snipers.

I Have Lived A Thousand Years: Growing Up In The Holocaust

By Livia Bitton-Jackson

Holocaust memoir of a 13 year-old Jewish girl, who was imprisoned in

Auschwitz as a teenager. She describes her terrible experiences as one

of the camp's few adolescent inmates and the miraculous twists of fates

that enabled her to survive.

Anne Frank And Me By Cherie Bennett and Jeff Gottesfeld

A Powerful and affecting story about Nicole Burns as she hears a gun-

shot at the Anne Frank exhibit and is whiplashed through time and

space as a Jewish girl living in Nazi– occupied World War II Paris.

We Fought Back- By Allan Zullo

Teen Resisters of the Holocaust.

9

“Reading is to the mind what exercise is

to the body.” - Richard Steele

A Tale Dark and Grimm By Adam Gidwitz

Follow Hansel and Gretel as they walk out of their own story and into

eight more tales. This book is based in part on the Grimms’ fairy tales.

Faithful Johannes, Hansel and Gretel , The Seven Ravens, Brother and

sister, The Robber Bridegroom, and The Devil and His Three Golden

Hairs.

Legend - Book 1 By Marie Lu

A thriller, set in a post apocalyptic world,

where nothing is what it seems.

Dark Lord By Dirk Loyd

Left Stranded on planet Earth brings the Dark Lord, the Master of the Legions of Dread and Sorcerer Supreme, to be befriended by the world.

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

By Jennifer E. Smith

Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver’s story will make you believe that true love finds you when you’re least expecting it.

Lovely Shoes By Susan Shreve

Can you change something you hate about yourself by changing your shoes. Read how Franny finds peace when she takes a trip to Italy to meet a shoemaker.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower By Stephen Chbosky

A coming –of-age novel, teenager Charlie struggles to cope with the complex world of high school. He deals with the confusion of sex and love, the temptations of drugs and the pain of losing a close friend and special aunt.

8

Hatchet By Gary Paulsen

13 year old Brian Robeson is on his way to visit his father, flying over

the Canadian wilderness in a single engine airplane when the pilot, the

only other person on board, has a heart attack and dies. Miraculously,

Brian survives the crash and must quickly learn to survive in the harsh

wilderness.

Divergent Series By Veronica Roth

In a future Chicago, 16 year –old Beatrice Prior must choose among

five predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life,

a decision made more difficult when she discovers that she is an anom-

aly who does not fit into any one group, and that the society she lives in

is not perfect after all.

It’s Not Summer Without You Series By Jenny Han

Summer should have ended the way it started at Cousin’s Beach.

Stranded By Jeff Provst

A Massive storm causes a shipwreck and sets kids on a rocky island in the middle of the South Pacific. Can they make it home alive?

His Dark Materials Series By Philip Pullman

In this hit series, a young Lyra Belacqua tries to prevent kidnapped

children from becoming the subject of gruesome experiments; helps

Will Parry– a boy from another world– search for his father; and finds

that she and Will are caught in a battle between the angelic forces of

the Authority and those gathered by her rebel uncle, Lord Asriel.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A Good Book On Your Shelf Is The Only Friend That Turns It’s Back On You and Remains A Friend!

~ Author Unknown

5

Freedom Walkers By Russell Freedman

The story of the Montgomery, Alabama Bus Boycott, the yearlong

struggle, and a major victory in the civil rights movement.

Secret Subway: The Fascinating Tale of an Amazing Feat of

Engineering By Martin W. Sandler

A fascinating story of New York City's first subway. In the 1860's,

New York was a center of manufacturing, transportation, and entertain-

ment. Unfortunately, traffic was so bad that it took hours to go a few

miles. Enter Alfred Ely Beach, an inventor and entrepreneur. He

thought an underground railway, which he would invent and build, was

the only way to relieve the congestion on the streets. Men dug the tun-

nel at night so no one would know what they were doing. This story is

so amazing that you won't believe it really happened.

The Manatee Scientists: Saving Vulnerable Species

By Peter Lourie

Scientists in Florida, West Africa and the Amazon Basin share infor-

mation with the goal of protecting the docile and sometimes elusive

manatee.

Heroes of the Environment By Harriet Rohmer

True stories of people who are helping to protect our planet.

Killer History By Clive Gifford

A Gruesome And Grisly Trip Through The Past

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

“Reading is a discount ticket to everywhere.” -

Mary Schmich

6

Gutsy Girls: Young Women Who Dare By Michele Schuerger

These women follow their passions and cultivate lives that differ in the

details (from skydiving to circus performer) but share a sense of fulfill-

ment and authenticity. The second half of the book gives advice and

motivation for how girls can ready their bodies and minds to be "gutsy"

themselves.

How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous

By Kevin L'Malley

A wildly humorous collective biography featuring horrifying medical

treatments and deaths of nineteen famous men and women, this sur-

prisingly heavily researched compendium is terrific book bait for the

reluctant reader.

Harry Houdini-Young Magician By Kathryn Kilby Borland

The life and exploits of magician Harry Houdini.

7

Fiction—Teen Book Awards

The Fault in Our Stars By John Green

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few

more years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chap-

ter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named

Augustus Waters suddenly appears at the Cancer Kid Support Group,

Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

The Giver Series By Lois Lowry

In the future, society has eliminated discord, converting everyone to

“Sameness” In three linked stories, Jonas, destined to hold memories of

the time before Sameness; Kira, an orphan with a twisted leg; and

Healer Matty must discover the truth about their society and restore

emotion, meaning and balance to their world.

Bruiser By Neal Shusterman

Is it possible to experience joy if you don't experience pain? Is absorb-

ing someone's pain a gift or a curse? Sixteen year old Tennyson fumes

when he learns his twin sister, Bronte, is dating Bruiser, the guy voted

“Most Likely to Go to Jail”, but Bronte insists Bruiser is misunder-

stood. Tennyson eventually befriends Bruiser but the twins notice

something odd. Their cuts and bruises disappear overnight while

Bruiser is a mass of new hurts, somehow taking on the pain of the peo-

ple he cares for.

On My Honor By Marion Dane Bauer

On their way home a friend challenges Joel to swim in the treacherous

river canyon. Both boys have been warned not to go there. Joel doesn't

want his friend to think he is scared so he gives in to his best friend's

request until he realized that his friend doesn't swim.

“Reading gives us somewhere to go when we

have to stay where we are.” - Mason Cooley