A Long Walk to Water, by Linda Sue Park
Click here to access a digital version through Annie Wright’s ebook collection.
A Long Walk to Water begins as two stories, told in alternating sections, about a girl in Sudan in 2008 and a boy in Sudan in 1985. The girl, Nya, is fetching water from a pond that is two hours’ walk from her home: she makes two trips to the pond every day. The boy, Salva, becomes one of the “lost boys” of Sudan, refugees who cover the African continent on foot as they search for their families and for a safe place to stay. Enduring every hardship from loneliness to attack by armed rebels to contact with killer lions and crocodiles, Salva is a survivor, and his story goes on to intersect with Nya’s in an astonishing and moving way.
Counting by 7s, by Holly Goldberg Sloan
In the tradition of Out of My Mind, Wonder, and Mockingbird, this is an intensely moving middle grade novel about being an outsider, coping with loss, and discovering the true meaning of family.
As Brave As You, by Jason Reynolds
Click here to access a digital version through Annie Wright’s ebook collection.
When two brothers decide to prove how brave they are, everything backfires—literally—in this piercing middle grade novel by the winner of the Coretta Scott King – Johnson Steptoe Award.
Ghosts, by Raina Telgemeier
Catrina and her family are moving to the coast of Northern California because her little sister, Maya, is sick. Cat isn’t happy about leaving her friends for Bahía de la Luna, but Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the cool, salty air that blows in from the sea. As the girls explore their new home, a neighbor lets them in on a secret: There are ghosts in Bahía de la Luna. Maya is determined to meet one, but Cat wants nothing to do with them. As the time of year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears for her sister’s sake — and her own.
Citizen Scientists: Be a Part of Scientific Discovery from Your Own Backyard, by Loree Griffin Burns and Ellen Harasimowicz (photog.)
Anyone can get involved in gathering data for ongoing, actual scientific studies such as the Audubon Bird Count and FrogWatch USA. Just get out into a field, urban park, or your own backyard. You can put your nose to a monarch pupa or listen for raucous frog calls. You can tally woodpeckers or sweep the grass for ladybugs. This book, full of engaging photos and useful tips, will show you how.
Additional Recommendations
The Glass Sentence, by S.E. Grove | Click here to access the digital title
The Tiger Rising, by Kate DiCamillo| Click here to access the digital title
The Great Trouble, by Deborah Hopkinson| Click here to access the digital title
The Mysterious Benedict Society, by Trenton Lee Stewart| Click here to access the digital title
Wolf Hollow, by Lauren Welk
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