LibraryAware CV Schools Middle School Summer Reading List 2023

Introduction

The Centerville Schools reading lists are prepared by the CCS Secondary School Librarian. Visit the library teen booklist page on our web site at https://teens.wclibrary.info/booklists/ to get more reading suggestions, or visit the school web site at https://www.centerville.k12.oh.us/learning/library.

Several titles are also available in electronic formats. Please check the catalog or ask a librarian for assistance.

Fantasy

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
by Ransom Riggs

After a family tragedy, Jacob feels compelled to explore an abandoned orphanage on an island off the coast of Wales, discovering disturbing facts about the children who were kept there.

The Betrayed
by Kiera Cass

Adjusting to life in Isolte after fleeing Coroa, Hollis must help the Eastoffe family unseat a tyrannical king before war erupts, in this stunning conclusion to the #1 New York Times best-seller The Betrothed.

The Gilded Ones
by Namina Forna

Deka lives in fear and anticipation of the blood ceremony that will determine whether she will become a member of her village. On the day of the ceremony, her blood runs gold, the color of impurity, and Deka will face a consequence worse than death until a mysterious woman comes to her with the opportunity to fight for the emperor in an army of girls just like her.

Graphic Novels

Run: Book One
by John Lewis

This astounding graphic novel tells the story of an often overlooked chapter of civil rights history through the eyes of Congressman John Lewis, one of the Big Six leaders of groups who organized the 1963 March on Washington.

New Kid
by Jerry Craft

Enrolled in a prestigious private school where he is one of only a few students of color, talented seventh-grade artist Jordan finds himself torn between the worlds of his Washington Heights apartment home and the upscale circles of Riverdale Academy.

The Giver
by P. Craig Russell

Presents a graphic novelization of Lois Lowry's novel in which Jonas, a boy from a seemingly utopian, futuristic world, receives special training from The Giver, who alone holds the memories of the true joys and pain of life.

Historical Fiction

Ground Zero
by Alan Gratz

Brandon is visiting his dad on the 107th floor of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 when the attack comes; Reshmina is a girl in Afghanistan who has grown up in the aftermath of that attack but dreams of peace, becoming a teacher and escaping her village and the narrow role that the Taliban believes is appropriate for women. Both are struggling to survive, changed forever by the events of 9/11.

I Must Betray You
by Ruta Sepetys

In a country governed by isolation, fear, and a tyrannical dictator; seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer, but he decides to use his position to try to outwit his handler, undermine the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country.

Lines of Courage
by Jennifer A. Nielsen

As World War I stretches across Europe, five young people face the awful challenges of war as they fight for their dreams, their families, and their very survival.

Refugee
by Alan Gratz

Although separated by continents and decades, Josef, a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany, Isabel, a Cuban girl trying to escape the riots and unrest plaguing her country in 1994, and Mahmoud, a Syrian boy in 2015 whose homeland is torn apart by violence and destruction, embark on harrowing journeys in search of refuge and discover shocking connections that tie their stories together.

Mystery/Thriller

Eyes of the Forest
by April Henry

Seventeen-year-old Bridget is both an employee of author R.M. Haldon and his biggest fan, so when she starts to receive cryptic emails from him after he goes missing, she teams up with her friend to find him.

Girl, Stolen
by April Henry

When an impulsive carjacking turns into a kidnapping, Griffin, a high school dropout, finds himself more sympathetic toward his wealthy, blind victim, 16-year-old Cheyenne, than toward his greedy father.

Queen of the Tiles
by Hanna Alkaf

When her late best friend's formerly inactive Instagram starts posting again during the Scrabble competition, with cryptic messages suggesting that her death was no accident, Najwa Bakri, surrounded by suspects, must find out who's behind these mysterious posts.

The Inheritance Games Series
by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

When a Connecticut teenager inherits vast wealth and an eccentric estate from the richest man in Texas, she must also live with his surviving family and solve a series of puzzles to discover how she earned her inheritance.

Realistic Fiction

Amal Unbound
by Aisha Saeed

Forced to leave school to care for her siblings in accordance with Pakistani village tradition, a disappointed Amal suffers an accidental run-in with the son of a corrupt landlord and is forced into indentured servitude. There she sees her master's nefarious dealings and is compelled to make risky alliances in support of change.

Bhai for Now
by Maleeha Siddiqui

When Ashar and Shaheer meet, they quickly discover they're twins and will stop at nothing to get to know the parent they've been separated from, learning along the way that while they may be too alike, they definitely need each other.

Dinged
by Tom Greenwald

When his dad, a former NFL Superstar and now the town celebrity, starts exhibiting strange behavior, up-and-coming freshman quarterback Caleb Springer must make a tough decision when he realizes the sport he loves may be the cause.

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus
by Dusti Bowling

Aven Green loves to tell people wild stories about how she lost her arms, but the truth is she was born without them. And when her parents take a job running Stagecoach Pass, a rundown western theme park in Arizona, Aven must move across the country with them. There she befriends Connor, and they discover a mysterious room at Stagecoach Pass that holds bigger secrets than either could have imagined.

Places We've Never Been
by Kasie West

With their friendship on the rocks while on a joint RV road trip with their families for the summer, Norah and Skyler are led down new roads to new discoveries as they start seeing each other in a different light.

Shot Clock
by Caron Butler

When the police officer who killed his best friend, a hoops phenom, is back on the job, Tony, the statistician for the AAU basketball team, must deal with his own grief and help his community heal while leading his team to victory.

The Crossover
by Kwame Alexander

Fourteen-year-old twin basketball stars Josh and Jordan wrestle with highs and lows on and off the court as their father ignores his declining health.

Science Fiction

Arc of a Scythe Series
by Neal Shusterman

Forced to become trained killers in a disease-free world where people can only die if eliminated by professional assassins, teens Citra and Rowan reluctantly train under a master reaper who informs them that the one who successfully kills the other will become his apprentice.

The Lunar Chronicles Series
by Marissa Meyer

When Cinder, a gifted cyborg with a mysterious past, becomes entangled with the handsome Prince Kai, she finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle to save humankind from a deadly plague and ruthless lunar beings.

Divergent Series
by Veronica Roth

In a dystopian future-era 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 uncovers powerful secrets and truths about her identity, her family, and the order of her society.

Lorien Legacies Series
by Pittacus Lore

John Smith, one of nine aliens from the planet Lorien, struggles to outrun his past, discover his future, and live a normal life in Paradise, Ohio, as one by one his fellow Loriens are being killed by evil beings.

Illuminae Files Series
by Amie Kaufman

Caught in the crossfire of a megacorporation rivalry in 2575, Kady and Ezra, who have just broken up, flee their home planet on an evacuation ship that is quickly overwhelmed by a fast-spreading plague.

Legend Series
by Marie Lu

Raised in an elite military family in a war-torn nation that was once the Western United States, 15-year-old June embarks on a revelatory cat-and-mouse manhunt for criminal youth Day, who is declared a prime suspect in the murder of June's brother.

The Maze Runner Series
by James Dashner

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.

Project Nemesis Series
by Brendan Reichs

Murdered every two years by the same mysterious person before waking up unhurt with all evidence erased, Min resolves to end the violent cycle before uncovering a conspiracy involving her classmates, a boy who suffers from destructive nightmares, and a giant asteroid on a collision course with the Earth.

The Hunger Games Series
by Suzanne Collins

Set in the cruel world in the Capital of the nation of Panem, the annual Hunger Games pits children against one another in a battle to the death on national TV. When Katniss is ordered to represent her district, she knows an important decision between survival and the love of another will have to be made when she is called to enter the ring.

The Last Cuentista
by Donna Barba Higuera

There lived a girl named Petra Pena, who wanted nothing more than to be a storyteller, like her abuelita. But Petra's world is ending. Earth has been destroyed by a comet, and only a few hundred scientists and their children--among them Petra and her family--have been chosen to journey to a new planet. Hundreds of years later, Petra wakes to this new planet--and the discovery that she is the only person who remembers Earth.

The Selection
by Kiera Cass

America Singer 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.

Thriller/Horror

The Getaway
by Lamar Giles

When Karloff Country, one of the world's most famous resorts, suddenly offers the richest and most powerful families a safe haven from the nightmare outside its walls, Jay and his crew learn just how far they'll go to find out the truth and save themselves.

Nonfiction

Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown
by Steve Sheinkin

In this follow-up to the award-winning Bomb, a celebrated nonfiction author takes on the Cold War, a decades-long showdown that culminated in the Cuban Missile Crisis, the world's close call with the third, and final, world war.

Free Lunch
by Rex Ogle

A sixth grader from an economically disadvantaged family struggles in a new school where he is forced to endure humiliation over his secondhand clothing and public daily requests for his school's free lunch program.

Punching Bag
by Rex Ogle

The sequel to Free Lunch is a searing account of Rex Ogle's high school experience and struggle to survive, reflecting on his complex relationship with his fierce mother and angry stepdad. Through it all, Rex adds moments of grace and humor that bring light to the darkness. Authentically told, Punching Bag is a remarkable memoir about one teenager's cycle of violence, blame, and attempts to forgive his parents-and himself.

Unlawful Orders: A Portrait of Dr. James B. Williams, Tuskeegee Airman, Surgeon, and Activist
by Barbara Binns

Tuskegee Airman and medic James “JB” Williams, whose fight against bigotry on the battlefield changed the course of American history and race relations, shows how he became a doctor and civil rights activist after the war, and continues to push past injustices placed on Black Americans.

Classics/Older Titles

A Wrinkle in Time
by Madeleine L'Engle

Meg Murry and her friends become involved with unearthly strangers and a search for Meg's father, who has disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government.

The Giver Quartet
by Lois Lowry

Living in a "perfect" world without social ills, a boy approaches the time when he will receive a life assignment from the Elders, but his selection leads him to a mysterious man known as the Giver, who reveals the dark secrets behind the utopian facade.

Fahrenheit 451
by Ray Bradbury

A totalitarian regime has ordered all books to be destroyed, but one of the book burners, Guy Montag, suddenly realizes their merit.

Hatchet
by Gary Paulsen

After a plane crash, thirteen-year-old Brian spends fifty-four days in the Canadian wilderness, learning to survive with only the aid of a hatchet given to him by his mother, while also learning to survive his parents' divorce.

The Lord of the Rings
by J. R. R. Tolkien

Presents the epic depicting the Great War of the Ring, a struggle between good and evil in Middle-earth, following the odyssey of Frodo the hobbit and his companions on a quest to destroy the Ring of Power.

The Outsiders
by S. E. Hinton

Ponyboy can count on his brothers. And on his friends. But not on much else besides trouble with the Socs, a vicious gang of rich kids whose idea of a good time is beating up on "greasers" like Ponyboy. At least he knows what to expect, until the night someone takes things too far.