Summer Prep

Your Literature teachers ask you to write a brief summary about one of the books you read this summer. (There is an annotated selection of books listed below that previous 6th grade students have enjoyed reading. You may choose a book from this list or another of your choice; however, choose a book that you have not read before.)

The summary should be in paragraph form and include the:

• title
• author
• time and place (setting)
• names and details about the main character(s)
• the main problem (conflict) in the story.

You will be asked during the first week of school to bring the summary along with you to Literature class. You will use what you wrote to share the book with your Literature class.

Enjoy your summer and happy reading!

Curtis, Christopher Paul
BUD, NOT BUDDY
It’s 1936 Flint, Michigan. Times may be hard, and 10-year-old Bud may be a motherless boy, but Bud’s got a few things going for him: 1. He has his own suitcase full of special things; 2. He’s the author of “Bud Caldwell’s Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself”; 3. His momma never told him who his father was, but she left a clue: posters of Herman E. Calloway and his band of renown, the Dusky Devastators of the Depression.

Creech, Sharon
WALK TWO MOONS
“After her mother leaves home suddenly thirteen-year-old Sal and her grandparents take a car trip retracing her mother’s route. Along the way, Sal recounts the story of her friend Phoebe, whose mother also left.”

George, Jean Craighead
JULIE OF THE WOLVES
To her small Eskimo village, she is known as Miyax; to her friend in San Francisco, she is Julie. When the village is no longer safe for her, Miyax runs away. But she soon finds herself lost in the Alaskan wilderness, without food, without even a compass to guide her.

Juster, Norton
THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH
This ingenious fantasy centers around Milo, a bored ten-year-old who comes home to find a large toy tollbooth sitting in his room. Joining forces with a watchdog named Tock, Milo drives through the tollbooth’s gates and begins a memorable journey. He meets such characters as the foolish, yet lovable Humbug, the Mathemagician, and the not-so-wicked “Which,” Faintly Macabre, who gives Milo the “impossible” mission of returning two princesses to the Kingdom of Wisdom.

Kadohata, Cynthia
KIRA-KIRA
Katie worships her older sister, Lynn, who takes care of Katie and prepares her for the prejudice she will encounter as one of the few Japanese-American students in their school. When Lynn falls seriously ill, everything changes.

Mazer, Harry
THE LAST MISSION
As World War II rages in Europe, young Jack Raab dreams of being a hero. He lies his way into the Air Corps, where his wartime experiences are more terrifying than he had ever imagined.

Giff, Patricia Reilly.
PICTURES OF HOLLIS WOODS
12-year-old Hollis Woods has been sent to (and running away from) one foster home after another all her life. She is an amazing artist. With descriptions of her drawings, Hollis tells a moving story of a deeply bonding relationship with her newest foster mother, artist Josie, and her dream of a perfect family. This is a 2003 Newbery Honor Book.

Horowitz, Anthony
EAGLE STRIKE
In this fourth installment of the Alex Rider Adventures, Alex finally breaks off from the control of MI6, the British Intelligence and acts on his own. He investigates and attempts to foil the plot of Damian Cray, world renowned pop star. Even more thrilling than the first three titles (STORMBREAKER, POINT BLANK, and SKELETON KEY)

Paolini, Christopher.
ERAGON (Fantasy)
At the beginning of the story, fifteen-year-old farm boy Eragon encounters magic and magical objects and quickly realizes that he is a gifted Dragon Rider. He takes on the dangerous and exciting task in fighting the evil powers that will destroy his Empire. This is Book 1 in the Inheritance series.

Cummings, Priscilla.
A FACE FIRST
12-year-old Kelley was horribly burned in an accident in the car driven by her mother. This thought-provoking novel allows the readers a glimpse into the painful process of rehabilitation of burned victims. An element of the mystery (Kelly does not really remember what happened in the car accident… could her mother be the one who caused the accident?) gives another layer of intensity to the story.

Paterson, Katherine
JACOB HAVE I LOVED
Feeling deprived all her life of schooling, friends, mother, and even her name by her twin sister, Louise finally begins to find her identity.

Jacques, Brian
REDWALL (Fantasy)
When his beloved Redwall Abbey is attacked by a hoard of rats led by the vicious Cluny the Scourge, young Matthias Mouse finds that he has the makings of a warrior and a hero.

Funke, Cornelia. (Translated by Oliver Lastch)
THE THIEF LORD (Fantasy)
Prosper and Bo (12 and 5) are newly orphaned brothers who run away from their aunt and uncle because they plan to adopt the angelic-looking Bo but to send Prosper away to boarding school. They run to Venice, the magical city in their mother’s view. The Thief Lord (a masked young man who acts like a Robin Hood) take these two and some other street urchins under his wing. They live, like a family, in an abandoned movie theater. But the aunt has hired a detective to track the boys down. Will they be captured? Will the Thief Lord’s identity be exposed? And is the legendary Carousel really magical?

INKHEART
Meggie, 12-year-old, goes on a dangerous adventure in which she and her father are pursued by a group of sinister bandits, led by a man named Scorpio. Most intriguing are the identities of the bandits (who were fictional characters from story books) and the magical ability of Meggie’s father who can “read” people, animals, and objects OUT of and IN to books!

Avi.
CRISPIN: THE CROSS OF LEAD
When after his mother’s death, Asta’s son, the nameless boy, found out that he not only had a name, but a noble name. He also found that his life is in danger, being wanted for dead of a crime he did not commit. While running for his life, he encounters Bear, a juggler with a secret and dangerous mission. This exciting, fast paced story set in 14th century England is the 2003 Newbery Winner.

Ryan, Pam Munoz.
ESPERANZA RISING
Esperanza, 13, immigrated from Mexico to California with her mother after her father’s death. Her luxurious life before she came to the States was a stark contrast to her life as a migrant-worker in the 1930’s. Esperanza’s spirit helped her overcome all the harship and find hope and human dignity again. Inspired by the author’s grandmother’s stories, this lyrical novel won The Pura Belpre Author Medal in 2002.

Hiassen, Carl
HOOT
Roy Eberhardt is the new kid–again. This time around it’s Trace Middle School in humid Coconut Grove, Florida. But it’s still the same old routine: table by himself at lunch, no real friends, and thick-headed bullies like Dana Matherson pushing him around. But if it wasn’t for Dana Matherson mashing his face against the school bus window that one day, he might never have seen the tow-headed running boy. And if he had never seen the running boy, he might never have met tall, tough, bully-beating Beatrice. And if he had never met Beatrice, he might never have discovered the burrowing owls living in the lot on the corner of East Oriole Avenue. And if he had never discovered the owls, he probably would have missed out on the adventure of a lifetime. Apparently, bullies do serve a greater purpose in the scope of the universe. Because if it wasn’t for Dana Matherson…Taken from Amazon.com review.

Brooks, Bruce
THE MOVES MAKE THE MAN
Reverse spin, triple pump, reverse dribble, stutter step with twist to the left, stutter into jumper, blind pass. These are me. The moves make the man.The moves make me.Jerome foxworthy — the Jayfox to his friends — likes to think he can handle anything. He handled growing up without a father. He handled being the first black kid in school. And he sure can handle a basketball.

Then Jerome meets bix Rivers — mysterious and moody, but a great athlete. So Jerome decides to teach bix his game. He can tell that bix has the talent. All he’s got to do is learn the right moves…. Taken from Amazon.com.

Lupica, Mike
HEAT
Twelve-year-old Michael Arroyo lives in the shadows of Yankee Stadium, home of his heroes, but a place that might as well be on a different continent since he can’t afford to see the inside. He also lives in the shadows of his Bronx neighborhood, hiding from the bill collectors and the officials who would separate him from his seventeen-year-old brother if they knew the two boys were living on their own. Baseball is Michael’s only salvation, along with his dream of playing in the Little League World Series-until a rival accuses Michael of being older than the league limit. With no parents and a birth certificate that is stuck in his native Cuba, the shadows in Michael’s life grow darker. But that is when heroes emerge, and for Michael, heroes don’t come any bigger than the Yankees. Taken from mikelupicabooks.com

Ihimaera, Witi
THE WHALE RIDER
A poetic blend of reality and myth provides a riveting tale of adventure and passion. An ancient whale ridden by a mystical man rises from the sea, the rider throwing spears that blossom like seeds into gifts of nature. One last spear “-flew across a thousand years. When it hit the earth, it did not change but waited for another hundred and fifty years to pass until it was needed.” It sprouts when Kahu, a girl child, is born to the eldest grandson of the chief of the Maori in Whangara, New Zealand. Koro Apirana is disgusted; he needs a male child to continue the line of descent in the tribe. The years that follow further harden his heart toward his great-granddaughter in spite of the bottomless love and respect she showers upon him. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. —

Curtis, Christopher Paul
ELIJAH OF BUXTON
Eleven-year-old Elijah lives in Buxton, Canada, a settlement of runaway slaves near the American border. He’s the first child in town to be born free, and he ought to be famous just for that. Unfortunately, all that most people see is a “fra-gile” boy who’s scared of snakes and talks too much. But everything changes when a former slave steals money from Elijah’s friend, who has been saving to buy his family out of captivity in the South. Now it’s up to Elijah to track down the thief–and his dangerous journey just might make a hero out of him, if only he can find the courage to get back home. Taken from Amazon.com

Smith, Roland
ELEPHANT RUN
In 1941, bombs drop from the night skies of London, demolishing the apartment Nick Freestone lives in with his mother. Deciding the situation in England is too unstable, Nick’s mother sends him to live with his father in Burma, hoping he will be safer living on the family’s teak plantation.

But as soon as Nick arrives, trouble erupts in the remote Burmese elephant village. Japanese soldiers invade, and Nick’s father is taken prisoner. Nick is left stranded on the plantation, forced to work as a servant to the new rulers…..Taken from Amazon.com

Levine, Gail Carson
FAIREST (Fantasy)
In a world in which elegance, beauty, and singing ability are revered, Aza is bulky, awkward, and homely. Her saving grace is that she can sing and has a gift of voice manipulation that she calls illusing. Through a chance meeting at her family’s inn, a duchess invites Aza to act as her companion and accompany her to the palace to attend the kings wedding. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

ELLA ENCHANTED (Fantasy)
At birth, Ella is inadvertently cursed by an imprudent fairy named Lucinda, who bestows on her the “gift” of obedience. Anything anyone tells her to do, Ella must obey. Another girl might have been cowed by this affliction, but not feisty Ella: “Instead of making me docile, Lucinda’s curse made a rebel of me. Or perhaps I was that way naturally.”

Barry, Dave and Pearson, Ridley
PETER AND THE STARCATCHERS (Fantasy)
This is a prequel to Peter Pan. The early chapters introduce the Peter, leader of a group of orphan boys being sent into slavery aboard the Never Land, and Black Stache, a fearsome pirate who commands a villainous crew. New characters include Molly Aster and her father. Molly, at 14, is an apprentice Starcatcher, a secret society formed to keep evildoers from obtaining “starstuff,” magic material that falls to earth and conveys happiness, power, increased intelligence, and the ability to fly. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Feinstein, John
LAST SHOT, A FINAL 4 MYSTERY
This action-packed mystery is set at the NCAA Final Four men’s basketball tournament. Eighth-graders Steven Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson are aspiring journalists and winners of the U.S. Basketball Writer’s Association 14-and-under writing contest. Their prize is a trip, with press credentials and reporting responsibilities, to the Final Four in New Orleans. While exploring the Superdome, they overhear a blackmail threat leveled at Minnesota State University’s star player. The mystery unfolds…… Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Goodall, Jane
MY LIFE WITH THE CHIMPANZEES (Non-fiction)
Noted scientist and conservationist Goodall provides listeners with stories about her life and her experiences studying chimpanzees in Africa. She talks about her first exposure to animals at a farm near her home and how the book Dr. Doolittle helped crystallize her desire. Later Goodall comments on her first trip to the continent and how meeting Dr. Louis Leakey led to her life’s work, living among the animals, learning their behaviors, and bringing that information to the rest of the world. Though this tape starts out as an autobiography, it focuses mostly on the work of the Goodall Institute and “Roots and Shoots,” organizations created to encourage the protection of animals and their habitats. The author reads her own tale and seems sort of detached even when discussing her interest in saving the world’s animals. The book also lacks depth, glossing over Goodall’s life and telling her story simply, which could make this tedious listening for adults. For public and school libraries. Danna Bell-Russel, Library of Congress Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Brink, Carol
CADDIE WOODLAWN
At age 11, Caddie Woodlawn is the despair of her mother and the pride of her father: a clock-fixing tomboy running wild in the woods of Wisconsin. In 1864, this is a bit much for her Boston-bred mother to bear, but Caddie and her brothers are happy with the status quo. Written in 1935 about Carol Ryrie Brink’s grandmother’s childhood, the adventures of Caddie and her brothers are still exciting over 60 years later. With each chapter comes another ever-more exciting adventure: a midnight gallop on her horse across a frozen river to warn her American Indian friends of the white men’s plan to attack; a prairie fire approaching the school house; and a letter from England that may change the family’s life forever. Taken from Amazon.com.

All of these books have friendship themes, and many of these books are the beginning of a series. It is our hope that you will be captivated by the stories and that you will enjoy your reading this summer. Please also complete the assignments as described below.

Assignment:

Read two books:

• The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
• Any other book of your choice from the list below.

Respond:

• Complete the book response sheet for The City of Ember and your book of choice from the list so you can remember what you have read. Bring those papers on the first day of class, and come to class the first day prepared to interact with others about your books!

• A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
• Airborne by Kenneth Oppel
• Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
• Flipped by Wendelin VanDraanen
• Flush by Carl Hiassen
• Four Miles to Pinecone by Jon Hassler
• Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick
• Hoot by Carl Hiassen
• Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby
• My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
• Scat by Carl Hiassen
• Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
• The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
• The Navigator by Eoin McNamee
• The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry
• The Warrior Heir by Cinda Williams Chima

Your English class summer reading requirement as you enter grade eight is to read two books you find on the booklist here. After reading, you should prepare a book report of roughly 200 words for each book. Your report should briefly tell (in one or two sentences) the plot of the book, describing the WHO? WHAT? WHERE? and WHY? The majority of your report should reveal what you think. Choose one of these approaches if you would like:

• The strengths and weaknesses of the book
• Comparing the book to another similar one you’ve read
• Morals or lessons
• How it met your expectations
• Evaluating the behavior/choices of the main character

Any additional reading you do this summer (whether or not they are titles from this list) may be reported the first week of school and will earn extra credit.