The Upper School Friends of the Library team looks forward each year to hosting the Learning Commons Summer Reading Book Fair--it's a great way to let students browse and choose their summer reading, and all proceeds go toward enrichments like author visits and special collections. This year, our fair will run from Monday, April 18th - Friday, April 22nd. All students in current grades 5-11 will come to the fair during English classes (homeroom for 5th grade). All required and choice titles will be available for students to browse and purchase. Students can pay with cash or credit card (not school credit). It's a great way to get your summer off to a great start!

Welcome to Summer, dear readers!

Each middle schooler will read a total of three (3) books this summer. All reading and assignments should be completed by the first day of school.

Most books are available in several formats, including paperback, audio , and eBook. No matter which versions you choose, you must bring a print or digital copy of your books with you to class in August.

1. Required novel and annotation assignment (all 8th graders must read this book).

2. Visiting Author Book (choose to read ONE of the books below). There is no written assignment for this book. Please read and enjoy, and be prepared to discuss and to complete assignments on this book in class this August.

3. 8th grade choice book (choose to read ONE of the books below). There is no written assignment for this book. Please read and enjoy, and be prepared to discuss and to complete assignments on this book in class this August.

The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen

When a school bus accident leaves sixteen-year-old Jessica an amputee, she returns to school with a prosthetic limb and her track team finds a wonderful way to help rekindle her dream of running again.

Breakout

Nora Tucker is looking forward to summer vacation in Wolf Creek–two months of swimming, popsicles, and brushing up on her journalism skills for the school paper. But when two inmates break out of the town’s maximum security prison, everything changes. Fear brings out the worst in some people Nora has known her whole life. Even if the inmates are caught, she worries that home might never feel the same.

Eye of the Storm

In the not-too-distant future, huge tornadoes and monster storms are a part of everyday life. In the heart of storm country, Jaden attends the exclusive summer science camp, Eye on Tomorrow that her dad founded. There she meets Alex, a boy from a nearby storm-ravaged farm, and together they discover a horrible truth about her dad's weather research.

Wake Up Missing

After a concussion that affects her balance, memory, and other abilities, twelve-year-old Kat goes to the "Miracle Clinic in the Swamp," where she joins forces with other patients to expose a plot that endangers them all.

The Inheritance Games (Hawthorne Legacy series, bk. 1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Avery Grambs has a plan for a better future: survive high school, win a scholarship, and get out. But her fortunes change in an instant when billionaire Tobias Hawthorne dies and leaves Avery virtually his entire fortune. The catch? Avery has no idea why -- or even who Tobias Hawthorne is. To receive her inheritance, Avery becomes caught in a world of wealth and privilege, with danger around every turn.

To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan & Meg Wolitzer

Unhappy about being sent to the same summer camp after their fathers start dating, Bett and Avery eventually begin scheming to get the couple back together after a break-up. Now that they can't imagine life without each other, will the two girls figure out a way to be a family? Told entirely through emails.

The Only Road by Alexandra Diaz

Jaime is sitting on his bed drawing when he hears a scream. Instantly, he knows: Miguel, his cousin and best friend, is dead. Everyone in Jaime's small town in Guatemala knows someone who has been killed by the Alphas, a powerful gang that's known for violence and drug trafficking. With Miguel gone, Jaime fears that he is next. There's only one choice: Jaime must flee his home to live with his older brother in New Mexico. Inspired by true events.

House Arrest by K.A. Holt

Timothy is a good kid who did a bad thing. Now he's under house arrest for a whole year. He has to check in weekly with a probation officer and a therapist, keep a journal, and stay out of trouble. But when he must take drastic measures to help his struggling family, staying out of trouble proves more difficult than Timothy ever thought it would be. A touching and funny novel written in verse.

Fast Break by Mike Lupica

Forced to live on his own after his mom dies, 12-year-old Jayson does whatever it takes to get by. He manages to get away with his deception until the day he gets caught stealing a new pair of basketball sneakers. Game over.

Fable: A Novel (Fable series, bk. 1) by Adrienne Young

Seventeen-year-old Fable joins the young, motley crew of the Marigold to escape the island where her father abandoned her, but she quickly realizes life off the island is more dangerous than she imagined.