Beach Reads
Check out these books this summer!
World War II is drawing to a close in East Prussia and thousands of refugees are on a desperate trek toward freedom, many with something to hide. Among them are Joana, Emilia, and Florian, whose paths converge en route to the ship that promises salvation, the Wilhelm Gustloff. Forced by circumstance to unite, the three find their strength, courage, and trust in each other tested with each step closer to safety.
Just when it seems freedom is within their grasp, tragedy strikes. Not country, nor culture, nor status matter as all ten thousand people aboard must fight for the same thing: survival. This masterful work of historical fiction is inspired by the real-life tragedy that was the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff - the greatest maritime disaster in history.
The WWII setting of this novel is a great companion for any 10th grade students who will be reading The Book Thief next year!
Welcome to the stunning conclusion of the award-winning and best-selling MARCH trilogy. By the fall of 1963, the Civil Rights Movement has penetrated deep into the American consciousness, and as chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, John Lewis is guiding the tip of the spear. Through relentless direct action, SNCC continues to force the nation to confront its own blatant injustice, but for every step forward, the danger grows more intense. To carry out their nonviolent revolution, Lewis and an army of young activists launch a series of innovative campaigns, including the Freedom Vote, Mississippi Freedom Summer, and an all-out battle for the soul of the Democratic Party waged live on national television. With these new struggles come new allies, new opponents, and an unpredictable new president who might be both at once. But fractures within the movement are deepening...even as 25-year-old John Lewis prepares to risk everything in a historic showdown high above the Alabama river, in a town called Selma.
This book is a great choice for incoming freshman who will focus on the Civil Rights Movement in their English classes!
March: Book Three was the winner of the following awards:
2016 National Book Award for Young People's Literature
2017 Printz Award
2017 Coretta Scott King Author Award
2017 Sibert Medal
2017 YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction
2017 Walter Award
With the PTHS Hockey team winning the State Championship and the Penguins winning the Stanley Cup, there's no better time than now to read about hockey.
From minor-hockey phenomenon to Hall of Fame sensation, Wayne Gretzky rewrote the record books, his accomplishments becoming the stuff of legend. Dubbed "The Great One," he is considered by many to be the greatest hockey player who ever lived. No one has seen more of the game than he has - but he has never discussed in depth just what it was he saw.
For the first time, Gretzky discusses candidly what the game looks like to him and introduces us to the people who inspired and motivated him: mentors, teammates, rivals, the famous and the lesser known. Weaving together lives and moments from an extraordinary career, he reflects on the players who inflamed his imagination when he was a kid, the way he himself figured in the dreams of so many who came after, takes us onto the ice and into the dressing rooms to meet the friends who stood by him and the rivals who spurred him to greater heights; shows us some of the famous moments in hockey history through the eyes of someone who regularly made that history.
Warm, direct, and revelatory, it is a book that gives us number 99, the man and the player, like never before.
Two books on this list with the same name!
Everyone has an inner nerd just waiting to be awakened by the right passion. In Everything All At Once, Bill Nye will help you find yours. With his call to arms he wants you to examine every detail of the most difficult problems that look unsolvable - that is, until you find the solution. Bill shows you how to develop critical thinking skills and create change, using his "everything all at once" approach that leaves no stone unturned.
Whether addressing climate change, the future of our society as a whole, personal success, or stripping away the mystery of fire walking, there are certain strategies that get results: looking at the world with relentless curiosity, being driven by a desire for a better future, and being willing to take the actions needed to make change happen. He shares how he came to create this approach - starting with his Boy Scout training (it turns out that a practical undertanding of science and engineering is immensely helpful in a capsizing canoe) and moving through the lessons he learned asa a full-time engineer at Boeing, a stand-up comedian, CEO of The Planetary Society, and of course, as Bill Nye The Science Guy.
This is the story of how Bill Nye became Bill Nye, how he became a champion of change and an advocate of science. It's how he became The Science Guy. Bill teaches us that we have the power to make real change. Join him in...dare we say it...changing the world.