Alexander, Lloyd Westmark -- Theo flees from criminal charges and with his companions travels about the kingdom of Westmark in a dangerous plan to save themselves and the kingdom.

Auel, Jean Clan of the Cave Bear -- Orphaned Ayla's struggles to fit in and survive in the period when Cro-Magnons and Neanderthals existed at the same time on the Earth.

Barrett, William E., Lilies of the Field -- A black ex-GI is soon playing a pivotal role in helping a group of German-speaking nuns realize their dream of building an adobe chapel in the desert.

Bloss, Joan A Gathering of Days -- A fourteen-year-old girl, keeps a journal of the last year she lived on the family farm recording daily events in her small New Hampshire town.

Childress, Alice Rainbow Jordan -- Fourteen year old Rainbow, her mother and her foster guardian comment on the state of things as Rainbow prepares to return to a foster home for yet another stay.

Collier, James My Brother Sam Is Dead -- Young Tim is caught between his brother's patriotism and his father's Tory sympathies, in this classic story of the American Revolution.

Daly, Maureen Seventeenth Summer -- A re-release of a classic teenage love story follows the summertime romance of a college-bound girl and her boyfriend.

Dumas, Alexander The Three Musketeers -- One of the most famous historical novels ever written, it relates the adventures of four fictional swashbuckling heroes who lived during the reigns of the French kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV.

Gordon, Sheila Waiting for the Rain -- This novel shows the bonds of friendship under the strain of apartheid as two lifelong friends, Tengo and Frikkie, come of age amidst the tragedy of South Africa.

Fox, Paula The Slave Dancer -- Kidnapped by the crew of an Africa-bound ship, a thirteen-year-old boy discovers to his horror that he is on a slaver and his job is to play music for the exercise periods of the human cargo.

Greene, Bette The Summer of My German Soldier -- A mistreated Jewish girl befriends an escaped German prisoner of war because he is kind to her.

Hinton, S. E. That Was Then, This Is Now -- Hinton paints a deeply-felt portrait of best friends Bryon and Mark, as they grow up and grow apart.

Holman, Felice Slake's Limbo -- This is the story about survival, and about a 13-year-old misfit's attempts to find footing in a hostile and threatening world.

Hunt, Irene No Promises in the Wind -- A young man struggles to find a life for himself in the turbulent 1930s.

Kinsella, W. P. Shoeless Joe -- Myth, fantasy and baseball are combined in this lyrical novel, which was adapted into the enormously popular movie,Field of Dreams

Kipling, Rudyard Captains Courageous -- After being washed overboard from an ocean liner, a spoiled millionaire's son is rescued by New England fishermen who put him to work on their boat.

Lipsyte, Robert The Contender -- A 17-year-old Harlem boy struggles to become a champion boxer.

Lowry, Lois Gathering Blue -- This companion volume, to The Giver, takes place in a village with only the most rudimentary technology. At the center of both stories there is a young person who is given the responsibility of preserving the memory of the culture--and who finds the vision to transform it.

Margorian, Michelle Good Night, Mr. Tom -- A small, timid refugee from wartime London and a lonely villager who has reluctantly accepted the child form a bond of love and trust that is deeply touching.

Naidoo, Beverly Journey to Jo'Burg -- Naledi and her younger brother travel to Johannesburg to find their mother. There, in the city's ghetto, they discover the painful reality of black African life under apartheid.

O'Dell, Scott Sing Down the Moon -- A young Navajo girl is kidnapped and enslaved by Spaniards.

O'Neal, Zibby The Language of Goldfish – The author draws readers into the mind of 13-year-old Carrie Stokes, a sensitive artist and talented mathematician who is suffering a mental breakdown.

Paterson, Katherine, Jip, His Story -- Orphaned Jip, believing himself to be a gypsy, grows up on a poor farm in Vermont. A deep friendship develops between him and a caged lunatic.

Reiss, Johanna The Upstairs Room -- In this fine autobiographical novel, Johanna Reiss depicts the trials of her Dutch-Jewish family during World War II.

Sanders, Dori Clover -- Clover is a 10-year old black girl from a small town in South Carolina, whose life changes forever when her father dies and she is forced to forge a new relationship with the white stepmother she hardly knows.

Sleator, William Into the Dream -- Paul has a recurring nightmare. When he learns that his classmate Francine has it also, they join forces to solve the mystery before their bad dream becomes a terrifying reality.

Taylor, Theodore The Cay -- Two shipwreck victims' struggle to survive.

Thomas, Joyce C., Ed. A Gathering of Flowers -- Eleven short stories by such writers as Gary Soto, Maxine Hong Kingston, Lois Lowry, and Gerald Vizenor illuminate the experiences of young people representing various ethnic groups.

Verne, Jules Around the World in Eighty Days -- The lively narrative recounts the journey undertaken by sedentary London gentleman, Phileas Fogg and his valet, in order to win a wager.

Wells, H.G. The War of the Worlds -- This ultimate tale of Earth's invasion was published in 1898.

Yep, Laurence Child of the Owl -- This spellbinding tale of the contradictions and special heritage of growing up Chinese-American is set in early 1960s Chinatown in San Francisco.

Zindel, Paul The Pigman's Legacy -- Haunted by the memory of a dead friend, two teenagers join an old man in a series of misadventures.

Arnothy, Christine I Am Fifteen and Don’t Want to Die – The author tells her story about surviving in Budapest during World War II.

Bennett, Lerone J. What Manner of a Man: A Biography of Martin Luther King -- This biography covers the childhood, education and accomplishments of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Blinn, William Brian’s Song -- This is the true story of brotherhood on and off the football field.

Hamilton, Virginia Anthony Burns: The Defeat and Triumph of a Fugitive Slave -- A true account of the 1854 trial that tested the Fugitive Slave Anthony Act of 1850 is told.

Kroeber, Theodora Ishi, the Last of His Tribe --When the gold rush hit California, the white men killed most of the Yahi tribe of the Yana Indians until they hid up in the hills. Ishi was the last one left in 1911.

Lester, Julius To Be a Slave – Quotations, chiefly from narratives by ex-slaves, are embedded in a clear, forceful, and orderly discussion and running commentary on the history of African Americans.

Morison, Samuel Eliot Christopher Columbus, Mariner -- Written in the late 1940s, Morison presents a clear picture of how Columbus came to be a hero, victim and tyrant at the same time.

Parks, Gordon Choice of Weapons -- This is the compelling autobiography of the award-winning photographer and artist who was only sixteen when he moved from Kansas to Minnesota in 1928.

Thomas, Piri Down These Mean Streets -- Thirty years ago Piri Thomas made literary history with this lacerating, lyrical memoir of his coming of age on the streets of Spanish Harlem.

Watkins, Yoko So Far from the Bamboo Grove -- This story tells the true experiences of young Yoko Kawashima, who was forced to flee her tranquil home in Korea for Japan in the closing days of World War II.

Wong, Jade Snow Fifth Chinese Daughter -- Through this memoir of growing up in pre-WWII San Francisco Chinatown, Wong presents a universal story of a child learning to assert her own identity.

NOTES ON SUMMER READING

Use this format for recording your notes on each of the five books you read this summer.

Title:

Author:

Setting:

Major Characters: 

Plot Summary (limited to three sentences):

Theme: 

Personal Reaction/Evaluation: