Recommendations
Websites |
Books"It is not enough to simply teach children to read; we have to give them something worth reading. Something that will stretch their imaginations -- something that will help them make sense of their own lives and encourage them to reach out toward people whose lives are quite different from their own."
- Katherine Patterson The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Wonder by R.J. Palacio Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper Divergent series by Veronica Roth Matched series by Ally Conde The Moon Dwellers series by David Estes Holes by Louis Sachar Hatchet by Gary Paulsen Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell Number the Stars by Lois Lowry From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli |
|
Wonder By R.J. Palacio
August Pullman is not an ordinary ten-year-old kid. Sure, he's a huge Star Wars fan, he loves his dog, and he's got a pretty good sense of humor. But August was born with a craniofacial abnormality — a genetic defect that caused his facial features to be severely deformed. His life has never been "normal." Despite his differences, August and his parents decide to transition him from home school to private school now that he's entering fifth grade. It's the start of middle school, they reason, so everyone will be new. But August has to deal with so much more than just being new. Will he make friends? Will he decide to stay at the school? And can the people around him learn to see past his appearance? This brilliant, sensitive story — narrated not only by August, but also by his older sister, his classmates, and other kids in his life — takes an insightful look at how one person's differences can affect the lives of so many others. |
Hunger Games By Suzanne Collins
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before--and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love. |
|
|
Holes By Louis Sachar
Stanley Yelnats has had awful luck his whole life: He's overweight, kids tease him, his family is poor, and now he's accused of a crime he didn't commit! Stanley blames his great-great grandfather, Elya Yelnats, who stole a pig from a gypsy. According to legend, the gypsy put a curse on Elya and all his descendants. |
Matched By. Ally Conde
Cassia has never questioned the "perfect" world she lives in, where every human need is met by the Society, and personal choice has become mostly obsolete. After all, who wouldn't choose to be healthy and happy? Given the choice, why not opt for the perfect job, the perfect life span, even the perfect mate? The Society provides all of these and more, and Cassia's faith in it is complete.At her matching ceremony, when the face of her perfect match is supposed to be revealed on a screen, Cassia is relieved to see the face she's been expecting. Xander is her soul mate and best friend, and if the Society says he's the perfect husband for her, it must be true.But then Ky Markham's face flashes for an instant across the screen. Was it a malfunction, or does her heart hold mysteries too deep for even the most perfect system to explain? Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky and is soon faced with an impossible choice: continue the only life she's ever known, or embark on a path that no one else has dared to follow.Readers won't be able to look away as Cassia discovers two truths as old as humankind—there is no joy without freedom, and love is a mystery that can be embraced but never solved. |
|
|
Divergent By Veronica Roth
The remaining population of postapocalyptic Chicago has rigidly organized itself into five distinct factions, each of which focuses on a particular virtue. At age 16, it's time for Beatrice to decide who she will be. Stunning her meek and selfless family, Beatrice elects to join the brave and reckless Dauntless faction—if she can pass the grueling and violent initiation designed to pit her against her deepest fears and classmates willing to let cruelty take the place of courage.With an infuriating but handsome trainer preparing her for the trials, Beatrice must also decide whether to unleash the secret she has kept all her life, a secret that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society and possibly to destroy Beatrice as well.Beatrice's struggles with loyalty and individuality make her an appealing and easily relatable character in a story packed with suspense and excitement. |