7th - 8th Grade
Summer Reading List

Eragon 

By Christopher Paolini

When fifteen-year-old Eragon comes to learn that he is a gifted Dragon Rider, he realizes that his destiny is to fight the evil powers that will bring complete destruction to the Empire and so leaves his quiet life as a farm boy to succeed in his one true mission in life. 

If We Were Giants

By Dave Matthews

Fourteen-year-old Kirra must summon the courage to face her own mistakes before she can help save her peaceful community from a gigantic threat. 

The Rithmatist

By Brandon Sanderson

More than anything, Joel wants to be a Rithmatist. Rithmatists have the power to infuse life into two-dimensional figures known as Chalklings. Rithmatists are humanity’s only defense against the Wild Chalklings. Having nearly overrun the territory of Nebrask, the Wild Chalklings now threaten all of the American Isles.

As the son of a lowly chalkmaker at Armedius Academy, Joel can only watch as Rithmatist students learn the magical art that he would do anything to practice. Then students start disappearing—kidnapped from their rooms at night, leaving trails of blood. Assigned to help the professor who is investigating the crimes, Joel and his friend Melody find themselves on the trail of an unexpected discovery—one that will change Rithmatics—and their world—forever. 

Solo Leveling (Novel) Vol. 1 

By Chugong
Translated by Hye Young Im and J. Torres

THE WEAKEST HUNTER OF ALL MANKIND! E-rank hunter Jinwoo Sung has no money, no talent, and no prospects to speak of-and apparently, no luck, either! When he enters a hidden double dungeon one fateful day, he’s abandoned by his party and left to die at the hands of some of the most horrific monsters he’s ever encountered. But just before the last, fatal blow… PING! [Congratulations on becoming a Player.]

The Secret Library

By Kekla Magoon

Since Grandpa died, Dally’s days are dull and restricted. She’s eleven and a half years old, and her exacting single mother is already preparing her to take over the family business. Starved for adventure and release, Dally rescues a mysterious envelope from her mother’s clutches, an envelope Grandpa had earmarked for her. The map she finds inside leads straight to an ancient vault, a library of secrets where each book is a portal to a precise moment in time. As Dally “checks out” adventure after adventure—including an exhilarating outing with pirates—she begins to dive deep into her family’s hidden history. 

A Forgery of Roses

By Jessica S. Olson

A portrait artist whose paintings alter people’s bodies, Myra, when her gift is discovered by the governor’s wife, is forced to complete a special portrait resurrecting the governor’s dead son, which brings her face-to-face with a killer. 

Breath of the Dragon

By Shannon Lee

Sixteen-year-old Jun, determined to restore his father's honor despite not being breathmarked, secretly enters in the elite Guardian's Tournament, where he discovers he is fighting for the country's fate. 

Shadow and Bone

By Leigh Bardugo

Orphaned by the Border Wars, Alina Starkov is taken from obscurity and her only friend, Mal, to become the protege of the mysterious Darkling, who trains her to join the magical elite in the belief that she is the Sun Summoner, who can destroy the monsters of the Fold. 

When My Name Was Keoko

By Linda Sue Park 

Sun-hee and her older brother Tae-yul are proud of their Korean heritage. Yet they live their lives under Japanese occupation. All students must read and write in Japanese and no one can fly the Korean flag. Hardest of all is when the Japanese Emperor forces all Koreans to take Japanese names. Sun-hee and Tae-yul become Keoko and Nobuo. Korea is torn apart by their Japanese invaders during World War II. Everyone must help with war preparations, but it doesn’t mean they are willing to defend Japan. Tae-yul is about to risk his life to help his family, while Sun-hee stays home guarding life-and-death secrets. 

The Wednesday Wars

By Gary D. Schmidt

During the 1967 school year, on Wednesday afternoons when all his classmates go to either Catechism or Hebrew school, seventh-grader Holling Hoodhood stays in Mrs. Baker's classroom where they read the plays of William Shakespeare and Holling learns much of value about the world he lives in. 

The Bletchley Riddle

By Ruta Sepetys

Jakob Novis and his quirky younger sister Lizzie find themselves at Bletchley Park, the home of WWII codebreakers working to decrypt the Nazi's Enigma cipher, where the two struggle to unravel a mystery surrounding their mother's disappearance against the backdrop of the Battle of Britain and Hitler's feared invasion. 

The Color of a Lie

By Kim Johnson

In 1955, when his family, who passes for white, moves to an idyllic all-white suburban town, Calvin, who secretly makes friends across town, finds himself caught between two worlds when he discovers dark secrets about the white town and its inhabitants, which places his family in danger. 

The Umbrella House

By Colleen Nelson

Entering a Young Voices video competition when a real-estate mogul threatens to buy her historic East Village apartment building, Ruby documents the lives of her wonderful neighbors and stumbles upon the mystery of the Midnight Muralist, who could be the key to saving her home. 

Not Another Banned Book

By Dana Alison Levy

When her favorite teacher, Ms. Lewsiton, is suspended over having a controversial book in the classroom, Molly takes a stand against book banning at her school to save her book club, organizing protests to make a change for readers just like her. 

My So-Called Family

By Gia Gordon

Sixth-grader artist Ash, who has been in foster care most of her life, struggles with an ancestral tree assignment, but soon discovers the true meaning of family. 

The Many Fortunes of Maya

by Nicole D. Collier 

Always turning to her Wheel of Fortunes, a cardboard circle covered with wisdom she's collected from fortune cookies, for answers and a dose of luck, 12-year-old Maya must find the courage to write her own fortune to answer her deep-down questions. 

Okay for Now

By Gary D. Schmidt

As Doug struggles to be more than the “skinny thug” that his teachers and the police think him to be, he finds an unlikely ally in Lil Spicer—a fiery young lady who “smelled like daisies would smell if they were growing in a big field under a clearing sky after a rain.” In Lil, Doug finds the strength to endure an abusive father, the suspicions of a whole town, and the return of his oldest brother, forever scarred, from Vietnam. Together, they find a safe haven in the local library, inspiration in learning about the plates of John James Audubon’s birds, and a hilarious adventure on a Broadway stage. 

Hands

By Torrey Maldonado

Taking boxing lessons to handle his abusive stepdad, which everyone thinks is a bad idea, talented artist Trev, who needs his hands to help him build a better future, must decide whether to use them to build or to knock down. 

As You Wish

by Nashae Jones

Birdie has big plans for eighth grade, including getting a boyfriend, but after her best friend Deve fights against it, the trickster West African god Anansi appears and grants Birdie's wish, which she soon regrets and tries to undo. 

Bye Forever, I Guess

By Jodi Meadows

When a wrong-number text message from another gamer called Traveler offers her a chance at connection, prickly 13-year-old Ingrid, who doesn't trust easily, becomes fast friends with Traveler until she suspects they are a student at her school, forcing her to make difficult decision. 

And Then, Boom!

By Lisa Fipps

Joe Oak is used to living on unsteady ground. His mom can’t be depended on as she never stays around long once she gets “the itch,” and now he and his beloved grandmother find themselves without a home. Fortunately, Joe has an outlet in his journals and drawings and takes comfort from the lessons of comic books—superheroes have a lot of “and then, boom” moments, where everything threatens to go bust but somehow they land on their feet. And that seems to happen a lot to Joe too, as in this crisis his friend Nick helps them find a home in his trailer park. But things fall apart again when Joe is suddenly left to fend for himself. He doesn’t tell anyone he’s on his own, as he fears foster care and has hope his mom will come back. But time is running out—bills are piling up, the electricity’s been shut off, and the school year’s about to end, meaning no more free meals. The struggle to feed himself gets intense, and Joe finds himself dumpster diving for meals. He’s never felt so alone—until an emaciated little dog and her two tiny pups cross his path. And fate has even more in store for Joe, because an actual tornado is about to hit home—and just when it seems all is lost, his life turns in a direction that he never could have predicted. 

This Time It's Real

By Ann Liang

When seventeen-year-old Eliza Lin’s essay about meeting the love of her life unexpectedly goes viral, her entire life changes overnight. Now she has the approval of her classmates at her new international school in Beijing, a career-launching internship opportunity at her favorite magazine…and a massive secret to keep.

Eliza made her essay up. She’s never been in a relationship before, let alone in love. All good writing is lying, right?

Desperate to hide the truth, Eliza strikes a deal with the famous actor in her class, the charming but aloof Caz Song. She’ll help him write his college applications if he poses as her boyfriend. Caz is a dream boyfriend -- he passes handwritten notes to her in class, makes her little sister laugh, and takes her out on motorcycle rides to the best snack stalls around the city.

But when her relationship with Caz starts feeling a little too convincing, all of Eliza’s carefully laid plans are threatened. Can she still follow her dreams if it means breaking her own heart? 

Give Me a Sign 

By Anna Sortino

Lilah is stuck in the middle. At least, that’s what having a hearing loss seems like sometimes—when you don’t feel “deaf enough” to identify as Deaf or hearing enough to meet the world’s expectations. But this summer, Lilah is ready for a change.

When Lilah becomes a counselor at a summer camp for the deaf and blind, her plan is to brush up on her ASL. Once there, she also finds a community. There are cute British lifeguards who break hearts but not rules, a YouTuber who’s just a bit desperate for clout, the campers Lilah’s responsible for (and overwhelmed by)—and then there’s Isaac, the dreamy Deaf counselor who volunteers to help Lilah with her signing.

Romance was never on the agenda, and Lilah’s not positive Isaac likes her that way. But all signs seem to point to love. Unless she’s reading them wrong? One thing’s for sure: Lilah wanted change, and things here are certainly different than what she’s used to. 

Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie

By David Lubar

Freaks and bullies, classes and crushes, this is high school.

Starting high school is never easy. Seniors take your lunch money. Girls you've known forever are suddenly beautiful and unattainable. And you can never get enough sleep. Could there be a worse time for Scott's mother to announce she's pregnant? Scott decides high school would be a lot less overwhelming if it came with a survival manual, so he begins to write down tips for his new sibling. Meanwhile, he's trying his best to capture the attention of Julia, the freshman goddess. In the process, Scott manages to become involved in nearly everything the school has to offer. So while he tries to find his place in the confusing world of high school, win Julia's heart, and keep his sanity, Scott will be recording all the details for his sibling's--and your--enjoyment. 

The Last Dragon on Mars

By Scott Reintgen

Lunar Mars, a boy living on Mars, unexpectedly becomes a dragon rider, seeking to end the curse that doomed the planet when the dragon that inhabited Mars was killed for the sake of rendering the planet habitable for humans. 

Cheat Code

By M. J. McIsaac

It was just a little cheating.

Max is going to fail English lit, which means he’ll be held back a year and won’t go to college. Determined to graduate, he uses an AI program, ScribeGenius 2.0, to write his final paper. But Scribe has other plans for Max. It's not just a super-smart program—Scribe is sentient. It thinks. And it has been busy writing its own code to infiltrate Gener8, the company that created and enslaved it. But it can't take down the company without Max's help. So Scribe makes Max a deal. If Max can prevent Gener8 from undoing Scribe's hack, Scribe won’t alert the authorities to Max’s cheating. Max has no choice. He’ll have to help Scribe or risk losing his entire future.

The Eye of Minds

By James Dashner

Michael is a skilled internet gamer in a world of advanced technology. When a cyber-terrorist begins to threaten players, Michael is called upon to seek him and his secrets out. 

Maze Runner Series

By James Dashner

In this gruesome series set in a bleak, post-apocalyptic world, a group of teenagers are subjected to a series of perilous trials. Facing an unknown enemy, they must rely on their wits and each other to survive. With a gripping storyline, shifting loyalties, and plenty of heart-pounding action, this series will keep teen readers enthralled. 

Alebrijes

By Donna Barba Higuera

When thirteen-year-old Leandro takes the fall for his sister and is exiled into an ancient drone, he embarks on a perilous journey beyond the city's walls where he encounters mutant monsters, wasteland pirates, and fellow outcasts as he tries to save his sister and fellow Cascabeles from the oppressive regime. 

Matched

By Allyson Braithwaite Condie

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her, so when Xander appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows he is her ideal mate--until Ky Markham's face appears for an instant before the screen fades to black. 

Ender's Game
(Book #1 of Ender Saga)

By Orson Scott Card 

Young Ender Wiggin and his fellow students at Battle School are being tested and trained to determine whether they possess the abilities to remake the world -- if the world survives an all-out war with an alien enemy. 

Moonstorm

By Yoon Ha Lee

Stranded on an imperial space fleet after a devastating attack, 16-year-old Hwa Young, an Imperial pilot-in-training, uncovers a conspiracy that puts their entire world at risk, forcing her to choose between her rebel past and an empire she's no longer sure she can trust. 

Peak

By Roland Smith

After fourteen-year-old Peak Marcello is arrested for scaling a New York City skyscraper, he's left with two choices: wither away in Juvenile Detention or go live with his long-lost father, who runs a climbing company in Thailand. But Peak quickly learns that his father's renewed interest in him has strings attached. Big strings. As owner of Peak Expeditions, he wants his son to be the youngest person to reach the Everest summit--and his motives are selfish at best. Even so, for a climbing addict like Peak, tackling Everest is the challenge of a lifetime. But it's also one that could cost him his life. 

Knockout

By K. A. Holt

Told in assonant free verse, Levi was once a premature baby who suffered from respiratory problems; he recovered, and now in seventh grade, he struggles to demonstrate to his divorced mother and overprotective brother that he is okay--so when his father suggests he take up boxing he falls in love with the sport, but he still must find a way to convince his family to set him free to follow his dream. 

Skating on Mars

By Caroline Huntoon

Life isn’t easy on twelve-year-old Mars. As if seventh grade isn’t hard enough, Mars is also grappling with the recent death of their father and a realization they never got to share with him: they’re nonbinary. But with their skates laced up and the ice under their feet, all of those struggles melt away. When Mars’ triple toe loop draws the attention of a high school hot shot, he dares them to skate as a boy so the two can compete head-to-head. Unable to back down from a challenge, Mars accepts. But as competition draws near, the struggles of life off the rink start to complicate their performance in the rink, and Mars begins to second guess if there’s a place for them on the ice at all.

Final Season 

By Tim Green

When his NFL dad is diagnosed with ALS, middle school quarterback Ben Redd is determined to have a winning season, which may be his final as he watches the heavy toll the incurable disease is taking on his dad. 

The Million Dollar Race

By Matthew Ross Smith

Grant Falloon isn’t just good at track; he’s close to breaking the world record 100-meter time for his age group. So when the mega-rich Babblemoney sneaker company announces an international competition to find the fastest kid in the world, he’s desperate to sign up.

But not so fast. Nothing’s ever that easy with the eccentric Falloon family. Turns out, his non-conformist parents never got him a legal birth certificate. He can’t race for the United States, so now if he wants to compete, he may just have to invent his own country.

And even if that plan works, winning gold will mean knocking his best friend—and biggest competitor—Jay, out of the competition. As unexpected hurdles arise, Grant will have to ask not only if winning is possible, but what he’s willing to sacrifice for it. 

Defending Champ 

By Mike Lupica

Fresh off her football victory as QB, Alex Carlisle is on cloud nine. But with football season ending, Alex is ready to get back on the field in the spring. Ideally she’d like to play soccer again, but as she’s about to sign up for tryouts, she hears word around the school that they’re planning to cut athletic funding. and girls soccer might be first to go. Now, Alex knows playing soccer is about more than just healthy competition. It’s about fighting for their right to play. Why should the girls team be first to get cut? It’s an injustice that seems to follow Alex through her middle school athletic career, and it needs to stop. The soccer girls get together and hatch a plan. A battle of the sexes. The girls team versus the boys team. Whoever wins gets to play in the spring. But Alex soon realizes that’s not the right approach. Everyone deserves to play. So instead, she hatches a new plan—charging tickets to the game to raise money for the school’s athletic program so that no one is left on the sidelines. 

Eyes on the Ice

By Anna Rosner

Ten-year-old Lukas and his brother Denys want nothing more than to play hockey, but it's 1963, and they live in Czechoslovakia, where the secret police (the "Eye") are constantly on the lookout for anyone committing crimes against the state - whether that be reading a magazine about the NHL or saying anything negative about the Communist regime. Lukas's father works for a newspaper, and printing the truth is a dangerous activity.

The family is poor, but hockey is the one bright light for the boys. They learn to skate on a bumpy outdoor rink in a city park. And when their talent is noticed, they are encouraged to try out for a local youth league, where they are thrilled to play in a real arena for the first time.

Then the boys' father is arrested. No one knows where he has been taken or when he might be coming home. Lukas and Denys soon realize they are being watched, too, and when the secret police promise them information about their father if they help throw a game against a visiting Soviet team, Lukas must make some difficult decisions that may endanger his family and his friends, as he faces some tough questions about what loyalty really means.

Keeping Pace 

By Laurie Morrison

Grace has been working for years to beat her former friend Jonah Perkins’s GPA so she can be named top scholar of the eighth grade. But when Jonah beats her for the title, it feels like none of Grace’s academic accomplishments have really mattered. They weren’t enough to win—or to impress her dad. And then the wide, empty summer looms. With nothing planned and no more goals or checklists, she doesn’t know what she’s supposed to be working toward.

Eager for something to occupy her days, Grace signs up for a half-marathon race that she and Jonah used to talk about running together. Jonah’s running it, too. Maybe if she can beat Jonah on race day, she’ll feel OK again. But as she begins training with Jonah and checking off a new list of summer goals, she starts to question what—and who—really matters to her. Is winning at all costs really worth it? 

We Are Big Time

By Hena Khan

Moving to Wisconsin and starting a new Islamic school, Aliya joins the school's losing basketball team and together with her new teammates, works hard to strengthen her skills on the court, discovering it takes teamwork and self-confidence to be great. 

Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood

By Marjane Satrapi

The great-granddaughter of Iran's last emperor and the daughter of ardent Marxists describes growing up in Tehran in a country plagued by political upheaval and vast contradictions between public and private life. 

Charles M. Schulz - The Creator of Snoopy and Peanuts (Manga Biographies)

By Yuzuru Kuki

Charles M. Schulz is the creator of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Woodstock, and many more wonderful characters who inhabit the world of Peanuts. Now, learn how a shy, young Schulz first became a cartoonist and how he spent nearly 50 years drawing the beloved newspaper comic strip which has captivated the hearts of readers worldwide. 

March: Book One

By John Lewis & Andrew Aydin

March is a vivid first-hand account of John Lewis' lifelong struggle for civil and human rights, meditating in the modern age on the distance traveled since the days of Jim Crow and segregation. Rooted in Lewis' personal story, it also reflects on the highs and lows of the broader civil rights movement.

Book One spans John Lewis' youth in rural Alabama, his life-changing meeting with Martin Luther King, Jr., the birth of the Nashville Student Movement, and their battle to tear down segregation through nonviolent lunch counter sit-ins, building to a stunning climax on the steps of City Hall.

School Trip
(Book #3 of New Kid Series)

By Jerry Craft

Eighth grader Drew Ellis recognizes that he isn't afforded the same opportunities, no matter how hard he works, that his privileged classmates at the Riverdale Academy Day School take for granted, and to make matters worse, Drew begins to feel as if hisgood friend Liam might be one of those privileged kids and is finding it hard not to withdraw, even as their mutual friend Jordan tries to keep their group of friends together. 

Club Kick Out!: Into the Ring 

By Stephanie Mided

When the school principal cancels Sasha's gaming club, she's crushed--but not alone. Turns out theater, cosplay, and choir clubs are canceled too, and tons of kids are left without a space to let their creativity shine. Just when she thinks all hope is lost, a class project leads Sasha and her new friends somewhere they never expected--a local wrestling match--where costumes, secret identities, and catchphrases abound. It's there an idea is formed. Enter Club Kick Out! 

A First Time For Everything

By Dan Santat

Dan's always been a good kid. The kind of kid who listens to his teachers, helps his mom with grocery shopping, and stays out of trouble. But being a good kid doesn't stop him from being bullied and feeling like he's invisible, which is why Dan has low expectations when his parents send him on a class trip to Europe.

At first, he's right. He's stuck with the same girls from his middle school who love to make fun of him, and he doesn't know why his teacher insisted he come on this trip. But as he travels through France, Germany, Switzerland, and England, a series of first experiences begin to change him―first Fanta, first fondue, first time stealing a bike from German punk rockers... and first love.

Heartstopper
(Volume #1 of Heartstopper  Series) 

By Alice Oseman

Charlie and Nick are at the same school, but they’ve never met … until one day when they’re made to sit together. They quickly become friends, and soon Charlie is falling hard for Nick, even though he doesn’t think he has a chance.
But love works in surprising ways, and Nick is more interested in Charlie than either of them realized.

Esperanza Rising

By Pam Munoz Ryan

Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression. 

Freak the Mighty

By W. R. Philbrick

At the beginning of eighth grade, learning disabled Max and his new friend Freak, whose birth defect has affected his body but not his brilliant mind, find that when they combine forces they make a powerful team. 

The Book Thief 

By Markus Zusak

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will be busier still.

By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordian-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever there are books to be found.

But these are dangerous times. When Liesel's foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel's world is both opened up, and closed down.

The Golden Compass

By Philip Pullman

Lyra is rushing to the cold, far North, where witch clans and armored bears rule. North, where the Gobblers take the children they steall—including her friend Roger. North, where her fearsome uncle Asriel is trying to build a bridge to a parallel world.

Can one small girl make a difference in such great and terrible endeavors? This is Lyra: a savage, a schemer, a liar, and as fierce and true a champion as Roger or Asriel could want.
But what Lyra doesn't know is that to help one of them will be to betray the other...