Grade 6 – Fiction – Summer Reading List 2010

Appelt, Kathi                                        The Underneath

An old hound that has been chained up at his hateful owner's run-down shack, and two kittens born underneath the house, endure separation, danger, and many other tribulations in their quest to be reunited and free.

Babbit, Natalie                                    Tuck Everlasting

Welcome to the town of Treegap.   The Tucks and Fosters are brought together by a magic water spring.  Winnie Foster learns the importance of the life cycle and that it has a natural beauty and balance.  She learns that this should not be disturbed by human greed. 

Beil, Michael                                        Red Blazer Girls

Catholic-schooled seventh-graders Sophie, Margaret, Rebecca, and Leigh Ann help an elderly neighbor solve a puzzle her father left for her estranged daughter twenty years ago.

Berlin, Eric                                           Puzzling World of Winston  Breen

Puzzle-crazy, twelve-year-old Winston and his ten-year-old sister Katie find themselves involved in a dangerous mystery involving a hidden ring. Puzzles for the reader to solve are included throughout the text.

Boniface, William                                The Hero Revealed – Ordinary Boy Series

Ordinary Boy, the only resident of  Superopolis without a superpower, uncovers and foils a sinister plot to destroy the town.

Boniface, William                                The Return of Meteor Boy? – Ordinary Boy Series

While working on a time machine for the Spring Science Fair, Ordinary Boy discovers the true identity of long-lost Superopolis hero Meteor Boy.

Burnett, Frances Hodgson                 The Secret Garden

Ten-year-old Mary comes to live in a lonely house on the Yorkshire moors and discovers an invalid cousin and the mysteries of a locked garden.

Clements, Andrew                                No Talking                                                                                           

The noisy fifth grade boys of Laketon Elementary School challenge the equally loud fifth grade girls to a "no talking" contest.

Curtis, Chirtopher Paul                     Elijah of Buxton

Eleven-year-old Elijah  Freeman, the first free-born child in Buxton, Canada, which is a haven for slaves fleeing the

American  South in 1859, uses his wits and skills to try to bring to justice the lying preacher who has stolen money

that was to be used to buy a family's freedom.

#DiCamillo, Kate                                The Tale of Despereaux:  Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread

The adventures of Desperaux Tilling, a small mouse of unusual talents, the princess that he loves, the servant girl who longs to be a princess and a devious rat determined to bring them all to ruin.

#DiTerlizzi, Tony                                 The Spiderwick Chronicles – The Field Guide (series)

When the Grace children go to stay at their Great Aunt Lucinda's worn Victorian house, they discover a field guide to fairies and other creatures and begin to have some unusual experiences.

Dowd, Siobhan                                    London Eye

When Ted and Kat's cousin Salim disappears from the London Eye ferris wheel, the two siblings must work together--Ted with his brain that is "wired differently" and impatient Kat--to try to solve the mystery of what happened to Salim.

Draper, Sharon                                    Out of My Mind

Considered by many to be mentally retarded, a brilliant, impatient fifth-grader with cerebral palsy discovers a technological device that will allow her to speak for the first time.

DuPrau, Jeanne                                   City of Ember

In the year 241, twelve-year-old Lina trades jobs on Assignment Day to be a Messenger to run to new places in her decaying but beloved city, perhaps even to glimpse Unknown Regions.

Feinstein, John                                    Last Shot

After winning a basketball reporting contest, eighth graders Stevie and Susan Carol are sent to cover the Final Four tournament, where they discover that a talented player is being blackmailed into throwing the final game.

Ferris, Jean                                          Once Upon a Marigold

A young man with a mysterious past and a penchant for inventing things leaves the troll who raised him, meets an unhappy princess he has loved from afar, and discovers a plot against her and her father.

Gantos, Jack

Funke, Cornelia                                  Dragon Rider

After learning that humans are headed toward his hidden home, Firedrake, a silver dragon, is joined by a brownie and an orphan boy in a quest to find the legendary valley known as the Rim of Heaven, encountering friendly and unfriendly creatures along the way, and struggling to evade the relentless pursuit of an old enemy.

Goodman, Allegra                               Other Side of the Island

Catholic-schooled seventh-graders Sophie, Margaret, Rebecca, and Leigh Ann help an elderly neighbor solve a puzzle her father left for her estranged daughter twenty years ago.

#Haddix, Margaret Peterson            Among the Hidden

In a future where the Population Police enforce the law limiting a family to only two children, Luke has lived all his twelve years in isolation and fear on his family's farm, until another "third" convinces him that the government is wrong.

Hahn, Mary Downing                         Closed For the Season

When thirteen-year-old Logan and his family move into a run-down old house in rural Virginia, he discovers that a woman was murdered there and becomes involved with his neighbor Arthur in a dangerous investigation to try to uncover the killer.

Hahn, Mary Downing                         Deep, Dark and Dangerous

When thirteen-year-old Ali spends the summer with her aunt and cousin at the family's vacation home, she stumbles upon a secret that her mother and aunt have been hiding for over thirty years.

Hoobler, Dorothy and Thomas         The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn (series)

While attempting to solve the mystery of a stolen jewel, Seikei, a merchant's son who longs to be a samurai, joins a group of kabuki actors in eighteenth-century Japan.

Horowitz, Anthony                              Stormbreaker (Alex Ryder series)                                                     

                                                After the death of the uncle who had been his guardian, fourteen-year-old Alex Rider is coerced to continue his uncle's dangerous work for Britain's intelligence agency, MI6.

Hunter, Erin                                         Into the Wild (Warriors series)

                                                Rusty, a bored house kitten, is apprenticed by the ThunderClan and must struggle to fit in when the group of feral cats is threatened by the enemy ShadowClan.

Ibbotson, Eva                                       Dial-A-Ghost

A family of nice ghosts protects a British orphan from the diabolical plans of his evil guardians.

Kehret, Peg                                           Abduction

Thirteen-year-old Bonnie has a feeling of foreboding on the very day that her six-year-old brother Matt and their dog Pookie are abducted, and she becomes involved in a major search effort as well as a frightening adventure.

Korman, Gordan                                 Kidnapped (series)

Aiden teams up with the FBI to track down his sister Meg who was kidnapped while they were walking home from school.

Korman, Gordan                                 Swindle

After unscrupulous collector S. Wendell Palamino cons him out of a valuable baseball card, sixth-grader Griffin Bing puts together a band of misfits to break into Palomino's heavily guarded store and steal the card back, planning to use the money to finance his father's failing invention, the Smart Pick fruit picker.

Korman, Gordan                                 Zoobreak

After a class trip to a floating zoo where animals are mistreated and Savannah's missing pet monkey is found in a cage, Long Island sixth-grader Griffin Bing and his band of misfits plan a rescue.

Lewis, C. S.                                           The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (series)                           

Four English schoolchildren find their way through the back of a wardrobe into the magic land of Narnia.

Lord, Cynthia                                       Rules

Frustrated at life with an autistic brother, twelve-year-old Catherine longs for a normal existence but her world is further complicated by a friendship with an young paraplegic.

Lowery, Lois                                         Willoughbys

In this tongue-in-cheek take on classic themes in children's literature, the four Willoughby children set about to become "deserving orphans" after their neglectful parents embark on a treacherous around-the-world adventure, leaving them in the care of an odious nanny.

#Lubar, David                                      Punished!

After Logan receives a face full of magic dust from a man in the reference section of the library, he finds the only way to stop his incessant punning is to find oxymorons, anagrams, and palindromes to fulfill the requirements of three quests.

Lupica, Mike                                        Travel Team

After he is cut from his travel basketball team--the very same team that his father once led to national prominence--twelve-year-old Danny Walker forms his own team of cast-offs that might have a shot at victory.

Montgomery, L. M.                              Anne of Green Gables (series)                                                          

                                                An orphan girl mistakenly sent to Prince Edward Island to live with a lonely old couple changes their lives.

O’Connor, Barbara                            How To Steal a Dog

Living in the family car in their small North Carolina town after their father leaves them virtually penniless, Georgina, desperate to improve their situation and unwilling to accept her overworked mother's calls for patience, persuades her younger brother to help her in an elaborate scheme to get money by stealing a dog and then claiming the reward that the owners are bound to offer.

Paterson, Katherine                           The Bridge To Terabithia

The life of a ten-year-old boy in rural Virginia expands when he becomes friends with a newcomer who subsequently meets an untimely death trying to reach their hideaway, Terabithia, during a storm.

Paulsen, Gary                                      Hatchet

After a plane crash, thirteen-year-old Brian spends fifty-four days in the wilderness, learning to survive initially with only the aid of a hatchet given by his mother, and learning also to survive his parents' divorce.

Raskin, Ellen                                        The Westing Game

The mysterious death of an eccentric millionaire brings together an unlikely assortment of heirs who must uncover the circumstances of his death before they can claim their inheritance.

Riordan, Rick                                       Lightning Thief

Percy, expelled from six schools for being unable to control his temper, learns the truth from his mother that his father is the Greek god Poseidon, and is sent to Camp Half Blood where he is befriended by a satyr and the demigod daughter of Athena who join him in a journey to the Underworld to retrieve Zeus's lightning bolt and prevent a catastrophic war.

Rowling, J.K.                                        Harry Potter

Harry lives in a tiny closet in his uncle, aunt and cousin’s house.  He hasn’t celebrated his birthday in eleven years.  All of that changes when he is invited to a wonderful, mysterious, magical place.  Join Harry and his adventure to a place of broomsticks, invisibility cloaks and dragons.

#Selznick, Brian                                  The Invention of Hugo Cabret

When twelve-year-old Hugo, an orphan living and repairing clocks within the walls of a Paris train station in 1931, meets a mysterious toy seller and his goddaughter, his undercover life and his biggest secret are jeopardized.

Smelcer, John E.                                  The Trap

In alternating chapters, seventeen-year-old Johnny Least-Weasel, who is better known for brains than brawn, worries about his missing grandfather, and the grandfather, Albert Least-Weasel, struggles to survive, caught in his own steel trap in the Alaskan winter.

Spinelli, Jerry                                       Loser

Even though his classmates from first grade on have considered him strange and a loser, Daniel Zinkoff's optimism and exuberance and the support of his loving family do not allow him to feel that way about himself.

VanDraanen, Wendelin                      Sammy Keyes (series)

                                                Sammy continues to make life with her grandmother interesting as she tries to discover who is stealing from St. Mary's church, befriends a homeless girl, and plays in a softball tournament against a bitter rival.

Walden, Mark                                      H.I.V.E. Series: Higher Institute of Villainous Education

Swept away to a hidden academy for training budding evil geniuses, Otto, a brilliant orphan, Wing, a sensitive warrior, Laura, a shy computer specialist, and Shelby, an infamous jewel thief, plot to beat the odds and escape the prison known as H.I.V.E.

Grade 6 – Non-Fiction – Summer Reading List 2010

Allen, Thomas                                      George Washington, Spymaster: How the Americans Outspied the British and Won

the Revolutionary War

A biography of Revolutionary War general and first President of the United States, George Washington focusing on his use of spies to gather intelligence that helped the colonies win the war.

Blumberg, Rhoda                                  Shipwrecked!: The True Adventures of a Japanese Boy

In 1841, rescued by an American whaler after a terrible shipwreck leaves him and his four companions castaways on a remote island, fourteen-year-old Manjiro learns new laws and customs as he becomes the first Japanese person to set foot in the United States.

Brewster, Hugh                                     Anastasia’s Album

In a scrapbook derived from journals, letters, photographs, and watercolor paintings, the life of the last Russian princess is recreated, providing glimpes into her home life, the revolution, and her family's subsequent captivity.

Fleischman, John                                 Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science

Tells the story of Phineas Gage, a railroad construction foreman who survived eleven years years after an accident in which a thirteen-pound iron rod shot through his brain.

Fleischman, Sid                                   Escape! The Story of  The Great Houdini

A biography of the magician, ghost chaser, aviator, and king of escape artists whose amazing feats are remembered long after his death in 1926

Glover, Savion                                     Savion!:  My Life in Tap                    

Examines the life and career of the young tap dancer who speaks with his feet and who choreographed the Tony Award-winning Broadway show "Bring in da Noise, Bring in da Funk."

Hoose, Phillip                                      Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice

Celebrates the life and actions of fifteen-year-old African American Claudette Colvin who was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus almost a year before Rosa Parks committed the same act of civil disobedience. Includes black-and-white photographs, sidebars, first-person accounts, and reproduced documents.

Janeczko, Paul                                     Poke In The I

A collection of thirty American poems written in the concrete style.

Macaulay, David                                 Building Big         

Focuses on the connections between the planning and design problems and the solutions that are finally reached when building bridges, tunnels, skyscrapers, domes, and dams.

Mortenson, Greg                                 Three Cups of Tea

On a 1993 expedition to climb K2 in honor of his sister Christa, who had died of epilepsy at 23, Mortenson stumbled upon a remote mountain village in Pakistan. Out of gratitude for the villagers' assistance when he was lost and near death, he vowed to build a school for the children who were scratching lessons in the dirt.

Myers, Walter Dean                            U.S.S. Constellation: Pride of the American Navy

Examines the histories of the two American Navy ships called “USS Constellation" the first launched in 1797 and the second in 1854, discussing the role of the vessel in suppressing the illegal slave trade and in the Civil War, looking at what life was like for a sailor on the ship, and discussing its restoration in the 1990s.

Poole, Josephine                                 Joan of Arc          

A biography of the fifteenth-century peasant girl who led a French army to victory against the English, witnessed the crowning of King Charles VII, and was later burned at the stake for witchcraft.

Turner, Pamela                                    The Frog Scientist

Discusses the work of Tyrone Hayes and his efforts to study and protect frogs, and follows Hayes into the field with his students to perform experiments with various types of frogs.

Warrick, Karen Clemens                    P.T. Barnum: Genius of the Three Ring Circus

Examines the life and career of P.T. Barnum, focusing on his creation of the famous three-ring circus.

Watkins, Richard Ross                       Gladiator               

Describes the history of gladiators, including types of armor, use of animals, amphitheaters, and how the practice fit into Roman society for almost 700 years.

Weitzman, David                                  Pharaoh’s Boat

Provides an illustrated account of the construction of Egyptian pharaoh Cheops' funeral boat, and discusses its discovery centuries later during an archaeological dig.

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