Grade 5 Summer Reading

Adventure/Survival Books!

Click on each book cover to borrow it online!  These titles are also available in the library.

Read it on Destiny Discover!

Disaster Days

by Rebecca Behrens

Read it on Epic!

Explorer Academy

by Trudi Trueit

Read on Destiny Discover!

Wild River

by Rodman Philbrick

Read on Destiny Discover!

Hatchet

by Gary Paulsen

Summary

Just once Luke Brockett would like to do something slightly dangerous, but when your father is the President of the United States, that is not an option. Always surrounded by Secret Service agents and kept in a bubble of safety, Luke sees Camp David, the presidential retreat in the woods of Maryland, as the only place where he can almost normal. For one week in August, Luke's mother has arranged for Luke to have a 'summer camp' experience, if summer camp had only three kids and the counselors carried automatic weapons. The experience comes to a quick end when a forest fire surrounds Camp David. Luke and his friends are trapped inside, left on their own, the Secret Service agents incapacitated, forcing the three to outwit security systems designed to be unbeatable before the fire gets to them.

Summary

Adventure, danger, and a thrilling global mission await 12-year-old Cruz Coronado as he joins an elite school for explorers.

Summary

Bob sets out on a dangerous journey in search of his long-lost sister with the help of his two best friends, Ivan and Ruby. As a hurricane approaches and time is running out, Bob finds courage he never knew he had and learns the true meaning of friendship and family.

Summary

Thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson is on his way to visit his father when the single-engine plane in which he is flying crashes. Suddenly, Brian finds himself alone in the Canadian wilderness with nothing but a tattered Windbreaker and the hatchet his mother gave him as a present—and the dreadful secret that has been tearing him apart since his parent's divorce. But now Brian has no time for anger, self-pity, or despair—it will take all his know-how and determination, and more courage than he knew he possessed, to survive.

Fantasy Fiction eBooks & Audiobooks

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Read on Destiny & Sora!

The Gauntlet

by Karuna Riazi
Common Sense Media Review

Read on Destiny Discover!

The Last Mapmaker

by Christina Soontornvat
Common Sense Media Review

Read it on Sora!

Flunked

by Jen Calonita

Read it on Sora!

Season One

by Kobe Bryant

Summary

When twelve-year-old Farah and her two best friends get sucked into a mechanical board game called The Gauntlet of Blood and Sand--a puzzle game akin to a large Rubik's cube--they know it's up to them to defeat the game's diabolical architect in order to save themselves and those who are trapped inside, including her baby brother Ahmed. But first they have to figure out how.

Summary

Eager to start a new life, twelve-year-old Sai secretly assists esteemed mapmaker, Paiyoon, on an expedition to chart the southern seas, but when she learns they are heading to the Sunderlands, a land of dragons, danger, and riches beyond imagining, Sai must weigh the cost of her dreams.

Summary

Gilly wouldn't call herself wicked, exactly...but when you have five little brothers and sisters and live in a run-down boot, you have to get creative to make ends meet. Gilly's a pretty good thief (if she does say so herself).

Until she gets caught.

Gilly's sentenced to three months at Fairy Tale Reform School where all of the teachers are former (super-scary) villains like the Big Bad Wolf, the Evil Queen, and Cinderella's Wicked Stepmother.

Summary

Reggie has never felt destined for greatness. He dreams about basketball brilliance all day and night, but the hard truth is that he's a benchwarmer for the West Bottom Badgers the worst team in the league. Even their mysterious new coach, Rolabi Wizenard, can't seem to help them end their losing streak.

Reggie is willing to train tirelessly to improve his game, but the gym itself seems to be working against him in magical ways. Before Reggie can become the player her dreams of being, he must survive the extraordinary trials of practice.

Graphic Novel eBooks & Audiobooks

Click on each book cover to borrow it online!  These titles are also available in the library.

Read it at the library!

Baby-Sitters Little Sister: Karen's Witch

by Katy Farina

Read it at the library!

Best Friends

by Shannon Hale
Common Sense Media Review

Read it on Destiny Discover!

Squire & Knight

by Scott Chandler

Read it on Sora!

El Deafo

by Cece Bell
Common Sense Media Review

Summary

Karen Brewer lives next door to Mrs. Porter, who wears long robes and has wild gray hair. Mrs. Porter has a black cat named Midnight and always seems to be working in her garden. Karen isn't supposed to spy on her neighbor, but she's determined to prove that Mrs. Porter is a witch named Morbidda Destiny!

Summary

Sequel to Shannon Hale's award-winning graphic novel memoir, "Real Friends", this new graphic memoir picks up where "Real Friends" left off. As Shannon grows a little older, the rules of friendship always seem to be changing, leaving her guessing and trying her best to just keep up. "Best Friends" shares its predecessor's frankness, compassion, and enthralling, heartfelt visual storytelling. Junior high, as it turns out, is quite the roller coaster. 

Summary

"Squire is brainy, bookish, and terribly under-appreciated by the brawny, inept knight Sir Kelton, who somehow always gets all the glory. So when the two mismatched heroes find themselves in a cursed village plagued by a demonic dragon, Kelton rides off to slay it and Squire stays behind to catch up on some reading. But Squire starts to notice that something isn't quite right about this town--Can he uncover its strange secrets?"--Provided by publisher.

Summary

Starting at a new school is scary, even more so with a giant hearing aid strapped to your chest! At her old school, everyone in Cece's class was deaf. Here she is different. She is sure the kids are staring at the Phonic Ear, the powerful aid that will help her hear her teacher. Too bad it also seems certain to repel potential friends.

Historical Fiction eBooks & Audiobooks

Click on each book cover to borrow it online!  These titles are also available in the library.

Read it on Destiny Discover

The Blackbird Girls

by Anne Blankman

Read OR listen on Sora!

Under the Blood Red Sun

by Graham Salisbury

Read it at the library!

Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story

by Nora Raleigh Baskin 
Common Sense Media Review

Read on Destiny Discover!

Resistance

by Jennifer A. Nielsen

Summary

On a spring morning, neighbors Valentina Kaplan and Oksana Savchenko wake up to an angry red sky. A reactor at the nuclear power plant where their fathers work--Chernobyl--has exploded. Before they know it, the two girls, who've always been enemies, find themselves on a train bound for Leningrad to stay with Valentina's estranged grandmother, Rita Grigorievna. In their new lives in Leningrad, they begin to learn what it means to trust another person. Oksana must face the lies her parents told her all her life. Valentina must keep her grandmother's secret, one that could put all their lives in danger. And both of them discover something they've wished for: a best friend. But how far would you go to save your best friend's life? Would you risk your own?

Summary

Tomikazu Nakaji's biggest concerns are baseball, homework, and a local bully, until life with his Japanese family in Hawaii changes drastically after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December 1941.

Summary

Ask anyone: September 11, 2001, was serene and lovely, a perfect day — until a plane struck the World Trade Center.

But right now it is a few days earlier, and four kids in different parts of the country are going about their lives. Sergio, who lives in Brooklyn, is struggling to come to terms with the absentee father he hates and the grandmother he loves. Will’s father is gone, too, killed in a car accident that has left the family reeling. Nadira has never before felt uncomfortable about being Muslim, but at her new school she’s getting funny looks because of the head scarf she wears. Amy is starting a new school in a new city and missing her mom, who has to fly to New York on business.

Summary

Chaya Lindner is a teenager living in Nazi-occupied Poland. Simply being Jewish places her in danger of being killed or sent to the camps. After her little sister is taken away, her younger brother disappears, and her parents all but give up hope, Chaya is determined to make a difference. Using forged papers and her fair features, Chaya becomes a courier and travels between the Jewish ghettos of Poland, smuggling food, papers, and even people.

Mystery/Suspense eBooks & Audiobooks

Click on each book cover to borrow it online!  These titles are also available in the library.

Read it on Epic!

Peter Nimble and the Fantastic Eyes

by Jonathan Auxier

Read on Destiny Discover!

Spirit Hunters

by Ellen Oh

Read it at the library!

Scary Stories for Young Foxes

by Christian McKay Heidicker
Common Sense Media Review

Read on Destiny & Sora!

Tyrannosaurus Wrecks

by Stuart Gibbs

Summary

A beguiling tale of a blind 10 year old orphan who has been schooled in a life of thievery.

Summary

Harper doesn’t trust her new home from the moment she steps inside, and the rumors are that the Raine family’s new house is haunted. Harper isn’t sure she believes those rumors, until her younger brother, Michael, starts acting strangely. The whole atmosphere gives Harper a sense of déjà vu, but she can’t remember why. She knows that the memories she’s blocking will help make sense of her brother’s behavior and the strange and threatening sensations she feels in this house, but will she be able to put the pieces together in time?

Summary

The haunted season has arrived in the Antler Wood. No fox kit is safe.

When Mia and Uly are separated from their litters, they discover a dangerous world full of monsters. In order to find a den to call home, they must venture through field and forest, facing unspeakable things that dwell in the darkness: a zombie who hungers for their flesh, a witch who tries to steal their skins, a ghost who hunts them through the snow . . . and other things too scary to mention.

Summary

Teddy was all set for a campout at his friend Sage’s family ranch—but then Sage gets terrible news: The skull of a rare dinosaur that was being excavated on his property has mysteriously vanished overnight in the middle of a rainstorm, even though it weighed 500 pounds. Not a single footprint has been left behind. Since the dinosaur was top secret, the police don’t believe anyone outside the dig could have stolen it.

Non-Fiction/Biography eBooks & Audiobooks

Click on each book cover to borrow it online!  These titles are also available in the library.

Read it on Epic!

Kid Athletes

by David Stabler

Read it on Destiny Discover!

DIY Circus Lab for Kids

by Jackie Leigh Davis

Read it on Sora

More Laugh Out Loud Jokes for Kids

by Rob Elliott

Read on Destiny Discover!

Totally Random Questions

byMelina Bellows

Summary

Hilarious childhood biographies show how Tiger Woods, Gabby Douglas, Bruce Lee, and other sports champions faced challenges growing up.

Summary

Provides kids with instructions on how to produce a circus, including lessons on learning to be a clown, facts about the circus, and more.

Summary

Q: What do you get when you cross a dentist and a boat?

A: A Tooth Ferry.


Q: Why did the boy eat his homework?

A: Because the teacher said it was a piece of cake.

Summary

Got a random question? This book has the answer! Packed with surprising facts and colorful photos, 'Totally Random Questions, Volume 1' presents snack-sized answers to a series of wacky, weird, but always amazing questions about our wonderfully wild world! Kids will love testing their knowledge and stumping their friends with the unlikely info they'll find inside covering animals, science, sports, food, pop culture, and more

Realistic Fiction eBooks & Audiobooks

Click on each book cover to borrow it online!  These titles are also available in the library.

Read it on Sora!

Other Words for Home

by Jasmine Warga 
Common Sense Media Review

Read it on Destiny Discover!

Confessions of a Class Clown

by Jason Reynolds

Read it on Destiny Discover!

When I Hit the Road

by Nancy J. Cavanagh
Common Sense Media Review

Read it on Sora!

My Brother's Shadow

by Tom Avery

Summary

Jude never thought she’d be leaving her beloved older brother and father behind, all the way across the ocean in Syria. But when things in her hometown start becoming volatile, Jude and her mother are sent to live in Cincinnati with relatives.

At first, everything in America seems too fast and too loud. But this life also brings unexpected surprises—there are new friends, a whole new family, and a school musical that Jude might just try out for. Maybe America, too, is a place where Jude can be seen as she really is.

Summary

Seventh-grader Jack Reynolds loves making people laugh but he needs help to make his wacky MyTube channel take off, and making friends is not exactly his strong suit.

Summary

Samantha is not exactly excited to spend what was supposed to be an awesome summer vacation with her grandma all the way in Florida. Or to be testing out her mom's "Dear Me" Journals--writing to her future self just feels weird. But it turns out Gram has some not-so-boring plans up her sleeve...


Gram and her friend Mimi are going to audition for the Seniors Have Got Talent Karaoke Contest!

Summary

When I saw him that first time I screamed—a small and silent scream, all inside, in my gut. Eleven-year-old Kaia, who has felt isolated since her older brother committed suicide more than a year before, befriends a wild boy who mysteriously appears at her London school. Though the boy is mute and can only communicate with a flash of his gray eyes, he might be the friend Kaia needs to bring her through her grief.

Science Fiction eBooks & Audiobooks

Click on each book cover to borrow it online!  These titles are also available in the library.

Read it on Destiny Discover!

Diary of an 8-Bit Warrior

by Cube Kid

Read it on Destiny Discover!

A Rover's Story

by Jasmine Warga 
Common Sense Media Review

Read on Destiny Discover!

Masterminds

by Gordon Korman
Common Sense Media Review

Read it on Destiny Discover!

The Wild Robot Protects

by Peter Brown
Common Sense Media Review

Summary

In the first in this series of three unofficial Minecraft adventure books, it’s time for our 12-year-old hero to choose his future vocation to study at the Minecraftia school. His options are less than tantalizing: farmer, butcher, crafter, miner. What this noob really wants is to be a warrior like his hero, Steve. So when he learns that the five best students in school that year will get the chance to start warrior training, it’s ON. 

Summary

Built to explore Mars, Resilience begins to develop human-like feelings as he learns from the NASA scientists who assembled him, and as he blasts off and explores Mars, Resilience must overcome different obstacles as he explores the red planet.

Summary

Eli Frieden has never left Serenity, New Mexico...why would he ever want to? Then one day, he bikes to the edge of the city limits and something so crazy and unexpected happens, it changes everything. Eli convinces his friends to help him investigate further, and soon it becomes clear that nothing is as it seems in Serenity. The clues mount to reveal a shocking discovery, connecting their ideal crime-free community to some of the greatest criminal masterminds ever known.

The kids realize they can trust no one—least of all their own parents.

Summary

"Roz must take an under-the-ocean journey to save her island from a mysterious poison tide"--Provided by publisher.

The 2025 Nēnē Nominees are in! 

Start reading the eBooks to prepare for voting in the spring of 2025 on Destiny Discover and on Sora! Click the Nene Award Logo to access the eBook collection.

This is your chance to vote and let the world know which book YOU think is the BEST book this year!

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