Book List – Honors 7th Grade
BIOGRAPHY/AUTOBIOGRAPHY
My Life With the ChimpanzeesGoodall, Jane
Renowned for her stunning National Geographic films, Jane Goodall travels to continue her important work with animals. This book takes the reader through a journey into Africa to share her experiences with the chimpanzees of the Gambia. It is illustrated with many photos of the author's childhood and years in Africa-- a tale of adventure and commitment.
*Autobiography of Malcolm XHaley, Alex
Malcolm X's searing memoir brings blistering honesty with which he recounts his transformation from a bitter, self-destructive petty criminal into an articulate political activist, the continued relevance of his militant analysis of white racism, and his emphasis on self-respect and self-help for African Americans.
*Warriors Don't Cry : Searing Memoir of Battle to Integrate Little RockBeals, Melba
In 1957 Melba Pattillo was one of nine teenagers chosen to integrate Little Rock's Central High School. She shares the cruel taunts of her schoolmates and their parents, the threat of a lynch mob's rope, her terror as she dodges lighted sticks of dynamite, and her pain as she washes away the acid sprayed into her eyes. Ultimately you will learn about Melba's dignity and courage as she refuses to back down.
Death Be Not Proud Gunther, John
Johnny Gunther was only seventeen years old when he died of a brain tumor. During the months of his illness, everyone near him was unforgettably impressed by his level-headed courage, his wit and quiet friendliness, and, above all, his unfaltering patience through times of despair. This deeply moving book is a father's memoir of a brave, intelligent, and spirited boy.
The Story of My Life Keller, Helen
Helen Keller’s story of struggle and achievement is one of unquenchable hope. From tales of her difficult early days, to details of her relationship with her beloved teacher Anne Sullivan, to her impressions of academic life, Keller’s honest, straightforward writing lends insight into an amazing mind.
*The Greatest, Muhammad AliMyers, Walter Dean
An introduction to Ali's life from his childhood to the present day, focusing on his career and the controversies surrounding him. Both his talent in the boxing ring and his showmanship earned him international fame, while his refusal to accept the stereotypical role of a black athletic star in the 1960s and his membership in the Nation of Islam brought him notoriety.
Under the Eye of the ClockNolan, Christopher
Deprived of oxygen for two hours at birth, Christopher Nolan almost died, but he lived to write, at age twenty-one, this award-winning autobiography, told as the story of one Joseph Meehan. Nolan's birth injuries left him quadriplegic and completely unable to communicate, so for years no one suspected that his mind, though imprisoned in an inert body, was burning to express his innermost thoughts and ideas to not only his family but the world.
Stand Before Your GodWatkins, Paul
Watkins tells of his upsetting and hilarious days as an American student at Dragon and Eton, two prestigious boys' schools in England.
*She Said YesBernall, Misty
In this book written by her mother, the real Cassie, a typical adolescent who struggles with peer pressure and her relationship with her parents. Once headed down the common teenage path of self-loathing and depression, Cassie turned her life around through her faith and the support of her youth group at church. Regardless of what happened at Columbine, She Said Yes is a moving tribute to an extraordinary young woman and a lesson for both parents and teenagers alike.
*Gandhi: Great Soul Severance, John B.
A biography of Mahatma Gandhi, whose mission in life was to help the 350 million people of India free themselves from British rule.
*Autobiography of a FaceGrealy, Lucy
At age nine, Lucy Grealy was diagnosed with a potentially terminal cancer. When she returned to school with a third of her jaw removed, she faced the cruel taunts of classmates. In this strikingly candid memoir, Grealy tells her story of great suffering and remarkable strength without sentimentality and with considerable wit. Vividly portraying the pain of peer rejection and the guilty pleasure of wanting to be special, Grealy captures with unique insight what it is like as a child and young adult to be torn between two warring impulses: to feel that more than anything else we want to be loved for who we are, while wishing desperately and secretly to be perfect.
*A Girl From YamhillCleary, Beverly
Generations of children have grown up with Henry Huggins, Ramona Quimby, and all of their friends, families, and assorted pets. For everyone who has enjoyed the pranks and schemes, embarrassing moments, and all of the other poignant and colorful images of childhood brought to life in Beverly Cleary books, here is the fascinating true story of the remarkable woman who created them.
*Houdini: Master of Illusion Cox, Clinton
Houdini was an illusionist and escape artist who drew colossal crowds and awed them. His incredible feats seemed impossible, yet no one was ever able to debunk him. How did he escape from locked jail cells? How did he emerge after diving into stormy rivers with chains locked around his body? Although Clinton Cox exposes the secrets behind many of Houdini's tricks, readers will learn it was Houdini's brilliancy, his physical dexterity, and his wild imagination that made him a true master of illusion.
They Cage the Animals at NightBurch, Jennings Michael
Burch was left at an orphanage and never stayed at any one foster home long enough to make any friends. This is the story of how he grew up and gained the courage to reach out for love.
MYSTERY/SUSPENSE
Wolf Rider Avi
15-year-old Andy Zadinski receives a phone call from a stranger who confesses to the murder of a young woman named Nina Klemmer. Andy immediately calls the police, who shrug it off as a gag or a crank call. But Andy persists when he happens to meet Nina, who is just as Zeke described her. She takes his warnings as harassment, however, and everyone now thinks that Andy himself made up the call. Did he?
The Man Who Was PoeAvi
A young boy enlists the help of the famous Edgar Allen Poe when trying to track down his sister and aunt who disappear under mysterious circumstances.
Death Grip Bennett, Jay
Shane Lockwood is lucky and he knows it. He's only a teenager, but considered a talented violinist whom the world adores. At the end of a successful concert tour in Venice, however, someone steals his precious violin. Then he starts receiving menacing phone calls, demanding a favor in exchange for his life. Amidst these murderous threats, Shane meets beautiful student, Laurie Carson, and falls head over heels in love. Then a dark question surfaces: could she be involved in this nightmare? As Shane desperately looks for answers, he is thrust into a world where danger lurks around every gondola--and where star-crossed love could turn quite sharply into double-crossed death....
The Face on the Milk Carton Cooney, Caroline
The picture of a missing child printed on a milk carton attracts the attention of 15-year-old Jane Johnson. A glimpse of the girl's polka-dot dress causes memories to surface, and Jane begins to review her past and question her true identity. It is nearly impossible for Jane to perceive her loving parents as kidnappers; the task of gathering evidence and drawing conclusions proves less difficult than confronting the undeniable truth.
The Secret of the Missing Grave Crossman, D.A.
Bean and Ab always spend their summers together on the Maine island where Bean lives. This year, Bean tells Ab that the boarding house where she is staying with her parents is haunted, and the two friends become immersed in the history of the house and solving a mystery involving missing treasure and stolen paintings. When they discover an intricate pulley system that makes a floor rise, thus revealing a hidden tunnel, the two escape serious harm just as the floor stops inches from crushing them against the ceiling.
Mystery of the Kaifeng ScrollFeder, Harriet
Vivi Hartman, a rabbi's daughter, visits her grandmother in Florida during her winter break. While on the plane, she reads a front-page Miami Herald story about an Israeli tourist attacked by a gang. The woman is her grandmother's friend, also visiting in Gram's apartment. In quick succession, Vivi meets a teenaged boy and begins to notice that a rash of red birds, umbrellas, tall men with British accents, and other suspicious characters seem to be popping up everywhere.
Getting Lincoln’s Goat Goldman, E.M.
Elliot Armbruster, 15, dreams of becoming a private detective, and when the school mascot disappears, he gets firsthand experience in the field. Through observation, deduction, and luck, Elliot solves the mystery, becomes a hero, and makes new friends.
The Deadly Deception Haynes, Betsy
When popular high school counselor Judy Rothlis is killed, it's up to Ashlynto not only clear her boyfriend, Drew, of the crime, but also to find the true killer. Drew is the prime suspect...and the last one to see Mrs. Rothlis alive. Searching for clues, Ashlyn uncovers devastating news about her own past when she finds a death certificate with her name on it. Unveiling this chilling web of lies leads her to the shocking revelation that she was kidnapped as a child.
The Trouble With Lemons Hayes, Danielle Hodges
Things are tough enough for eighth-grader Tyler McAllister before he bumps into a dead body while swimming in the quarry. Tyler is trying to understand why he is allergic to almost everything in the world, how he could have saved his parents' marriage and why his father had to die in a plane crash. Tyler is suddenly thrust into the midst of a murder case, the resolution of which seems to depend upon him. As the investigation grows increasingly confusing and overwhelming, Tyler's previous dilemmas gradually become lucid and surmountable.
The Ghost in the Tokaido InnHoobler, Dorothy
Teenage Seikei dreams of being one of Japan's legendary warriors, a samurai-but samurai are born, not made, and Seikei is a tea merchant's son. Then a ruby intended for the shogun is stolen. Seikei is the only witness, and the famous samurai magistrate, Judge Ooka, needs his help. Soon they are hot on the trail of the ruby-and an unforgettable adventure.
The Keeper of the LightKlaveness, Jan O’Donnell
Ian Campbell, 16, goes from his home in Illinois to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, to claim an inheritance from a grandmother he never knew. He arrives to find his grandmother's house inhabited by distant cousin Estelle, who believes that she has a claim to the property, and her daughter, Morgan. As Ian attempts to piece together his grandmother's past, he learns that Estelle was responsible for the family's continuing estrangements and that his own life may be in danger.
The Wreckers Lawrence, Iain
There was once a village bred by evil. On the barren coast of Cornwall, England, lived a community who prayed for shipwrecks, a community who lured storm-tossed ships to crash upon the sharp rocks of their shore. They fed and clothed themselves with the loot salvaged from the wreckage; dead sailors' tools and trinkets became decorations for their homes. Most never questioned their murderous way of life. Then, upon that pirates' shore crashed the ship The Isle of Skye. And the youngest of its crew members, 14-year-old John Spencer, survived the wreck. But would he escape the wreckers?
The Westing Game*Raskin, Ellen
This highly inventive mystery involves sixteen people who are invited to the reading of Samuel W. Westing's will. They could become millionaires-it all depends on how they play the tricky and dangerous Westing game, a game involving blizzards, burglaries, and bombings!
This is a Newberry Award winning book!
Phantom Victory Service, Pamela
Terri has a summer job working on the excavation of the old Victory Hotel, which burned down in 1919. Prowling around the site, he finds a diary that belonged to his great-aunt Sophie, who died in a ferry accident. She learns that Sophie and her great-uncle Joe, who died in the hotel fire, had been friends. During the final summer of Sophie's life, she had elaborately hidden her mother's priceless necklace for Joe to find, but her plans went awry. Now, the young people race to find the necklace before someone else does.
Lord of the Kill Taylor, Theodore
When a half-eaten body is found inside a locked jaguar cage, eighteen-year old Ben Japson knows it’s no prank- someone is trying to make trouble for the Los Coyotes Big Cat Preserve and its manager, Ben’s father. An outspoken conservationist, Dr. Jepson has made some powerful enemies. But which one would dare go to these lengths? And why? Ben’s parents are on a tiger conservation mission deep in the jungle. Now Ben is the only one who can keep Los Coyotes running. But when his beloved tiger Dmitri, nicknamed “Lord of the Kill” is kidnapped, Ben must decide whether to wait for the authorities to handle the case or to strike out on his own.
RansomLois Duncan
The lives of five captives hang in the balance while their families gather the ransom.Two brothers, their family frantic to find their sons. A loner whose uncle doesn’t even know he’s missing. An Army brat whose family will never be able to raise enough money. And a cheerleader who can’t count on her stepdad, but knows her father will come through.
YOUNG ADULTS
P.S. Longer Letter Later Paula Danziger/Ann M. Martin
Elizabeth and Tara*Starr are totally different. Tara* Starr wears glitter and sequins, loves to be the center of attention, and is the only child of young parents who are taking a long time to grow up. Elizabeth is shy and quiet, hates being the center of attention, and lives in a house in which possessions are more important than feelings. So of course they're best friends. Now that Tara*Starr has moved away, the girls continue their friendship through letters. Than life changes for both of them. While Tara*Starr's family settles down, Elizabeth's falls apart. Their letters chronicle these events, and the realization that they can depend on each other and on themselves.
The Girls Amy Goldman Koss
Maya has been part of the group ever since the day Candace asked her if she wanted to "do lunch" in the cafeteria. Yet when Candace suddenly deems her unworthy, Maya's so-called friends just blow her off. While Maya just wants the girls back like they used to be, she knows that can never happen-because whatever Candace wants, Candace gets, no matter who gets hurt. Maya isn't sure exactly where things went wrong for her, but she knows she has to find out who her real friends are, and who among the girls she can trust.
Lisa Bright and Dark Neufeld
Lisa Shilling is 16, smart, and attractive — and she is losing her mind. Some days are "light," and everything is normal; during her "dark" days, she hides deep within herself, and nothing can reach her. Her teachers ignore what is happening. Her parents deny it. Lisa's friends are the only ones who are listening, and they walk with her where adults fear to tread.
The Skin I’m In Sharon G. Flake
Maleeka Madison is a strong student who has had enough of being teased about her "too black" skin and handmade clothes. So when she starts seventh grade, she decides to adopt a sassier attitude and a tougher circle of friends. The last thing she expects is to get "messed up" with another "freak," but that's exactly what happens. After a new teacher, whose face is disfigured from a skin disease, enters her life, will Maleeka be able to learn to love the skin she's in?
Anne of Green Gables L.M. Montgomery
In one of the most beloved classics of all time, Anne brings mischief, adventure, and love to the countryside of Green Gables.
How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents Alvarez, Julia
It's a long way from Santo Domingo to the Bronx, but if anyone can go the distance, it's the Garcia girls. Four lively latinas plunged from a pampered life of privilege on an island compound into the big-city chaos of New York, they rebel against Mami and Papi's old-world discipline and embrace all that America has to offer.
The Chocolate WarCormier, Robert