JEFF KINNEY - Books About the Diary of a Wimpy Kid Author

THE DIARY OF A WIMPY KID series has been one of the most popular series for elementary and middle school readers for quite a few years.

I know these books are ones that my son and I enjoyed sharing.  It was great to curl up (he did this even as a middle-schooler) on the couch and just laugh our heads off at Greg's and his family's exploits.  And I created this list because I thought young readers might be interested in this wonderful author.

There are now 3 books at the 4th Grade Reading level, which is the same level as the series.  I also found two others, one much longer book at the 5th Grade reading level and one short book at the 6th Grade level.

Enjoy!

**all ratings from GoodReads 
**all links to Amazon

Jeff Kinney
(Blastoff! Readers Level 4: Children's Storytellers)
by Christina Leaf

I couldn't find any reviews for this BlastOff book.  The description says that there are full color photos and simple language.

Reading Information
Word Count: 848
Page Count: 24
Accelerated Reader: 4.1 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 176585

Jeff Kinney

(Capstone)
by Kelli L. Hicks
Michael Byers (Illustrations)

This short biography talks about Jeff's  childhood, education, and milestones as a best selling children's author.

There are photos, of course, but also information like the fact that the WIMPY KID books have been translated into 41 languages.  (How is that for popular!)

Word Count: 712
Page Count: 24
Accelerated Reader: 4.1 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 160019
Lexile: 770L

Jeff Kinney
Abdo Publishing Company
(Checkerboard Biography)
by Megan M. Gunderson

4.18 avg rating — 94 ratings

This biography covers Jeff Kinney's life beginning with his early life in Maryland.  Interestingly it talks about his middle school memories, his love of reading, and what he is doing now.

Word Count: 1,823
Page Count:  24
Accelerated Reading level: 4.8 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 147470
--library binding

Who Is Jeff Kinney?
by Patrick Kinney
John Hinderliter (Illustrations)

Publisher's Blurb:

Even as a kid, everyone thought Jeff Kinney was talented. People loved his drawings, and when he went to college, his comic strip Igdoof was so popular that it spread to other universities! Still, Jeff faced challenges. His cartoons were rejected by syndicates that claimed his art was unprofessional. 

Then, an idea struck: Jeff would write a journal from the perspective of a child, illustrated with doodles just like a kid might do. And so, the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series was born--and it was a hit! In this biography, Jeff's brother, Patrick Kinney, provides a knowledgeable look at the life of this best-selling author/illustrator. From Jeff's childhood pranks to his job developing online games, kids will love the chance to learn more about the creator of the popular Wimpy Kid books.

Word Count: 7,991
Page Count:  112
Accelerated Reader: 5.5 / points: 1.0
Ar quiz: 176429
Lexile: 830L
--available for Kindle

Jeff Kinney
(Remarkable Writers)
by Christine Webster

4.28 avg rating — 57 ratings

Did you know that Jeff was a computer programmer and that he worked on the wildly popular website Poptropica?  Tis true.  

And did you now he had an older brother who is not named Roderick?

This biography is at the 6th Grade reading level but has the advantage of being only 32 pages long. 

Word Count: 4,636
Page Count: 32
Accelerated Reader: 6.1 / points: 1.0
AR quiz: 154778


compiled by Pam
updated November 2015 

To find the Diary of a Wimpy Kid list in English, check here.

For the Spanish version, check here.

MISTBORN series reading level (Brandon Sanderson)

Brandon Sanderson roared onto the fantasy scene and has become a tremendously popular author.  His MISTBORN series are the books that most new readers hear about.  

Suitable for Adults and Young Adults.  If you want to read a sampler, check this out -- amazon

**all ratings from GoodReads
**all links to Amazon.com

THE FINAL EMPIRE
(Mistborn #1)
by Brandon Sanderson
9780765311788

4.40 avg rating — 145,331 ratings 

In a world where ash falls from the sky, and mist dominates the night, an evil cloaks the land and stifles all life. The future of the empire rests on the shoulders of a troublemaker and his young apprentice. Together, can they fill the world with color once more?  In Brandon Sanderson's intriguing tale of love, loss, despair and hope, a new kind of magic enters the stage - Allomancy, a magic of the metals.

Reading Information:
Word Count: 212,417
Page Count: 541
Accelerated Reading level: 5.5 / points: 33.0
AR quiz: 166366
--sample pages available
--other reviews available
--audio version available
--amazon


THE WELL OF ASCENSION
(Mistborn, #2)

4.33 avg rating — 101,509 ratings

The impossible has been accomplished. The Lord Ruler – the man who claimed to be god incarnate and brutally ruled the world for a thousand years – has been vanquished. But Kelsier, the hero who masterminded that triumph, is dead too, and now the awesome task of building a new world has been left to his young protégé, Vin, the former street urchin who is now the most powerful Mistborn in the land, and to the idealistic young nobleman she loves.

As Kelsier’s protégé and slayer of the Lord Ruler she is now venerated by a budding new religion, a distinction that makes her intensely uncomfortable. Even more worrying, the mists have begun behaving strangely since the Lord Ruler died, and seem to harbor a strange vaporous entity that haunts her.

Stopping assassins may keep Vin’s Mistborn skills sharp, but it’s the least of her problems. Luthadel, the largest city of the former empire, doesn’t run itself, and Vin and the other members of Kelsier’s crew, who lead the revolution, must learn a whole new set of practical and political skills to help. It certainly won’t get easier with three armies – one of them composed of ferocious giants – now vying to conquer the city, and no sign of the Lord Ruler’s hidden cache of atium, the rarest and most powerful allomantic metal.

As the siege of Luthadel tightens, an ancient legend seems to offer a glimmer of hope. But even if it really exists, no one knows where to find the Well of Ascension or what manner of power it bestows.

Reading Information:
Word Count: 245,672
Page Count: 590
Accelerated Reader: 5.3 / points: 38.0
AR quiz: 170174
--sample pages available
--other reviews available
--audio version available
--amazon


THE HERO OF AGES
(Mistborn, #3)

4.42 avg rating — 96,002 ratings

The conclusion of the Mistborn trilogy.  The ramifications of the first two books begins to cascade.

Reading Information:
Word Count: 235,114
Page Count: 572
Accelerated Reader: 5.7 / points: 37.0
AR quiz: 171267
Lexile: HL750L
--sample pages available
--other reviews available
--audio version available
--amazon


 OTHER MISTBORN NOVELS
--without reading information

The Alloy of Law 
(Mistborn #4)

4.19 avg rating — 46,308 ratings

From here on out the series jumps 300 years.  There is still Allomancy and Feruchemy but the Mistborn/reborn world now has trains, electricity and steel construction.

There are still frontier areas though.  And enter Waxillium Ladrian, a rare Twinborn who can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After twenty years in the Roughs, Wax must now put away his guns and assume the duties incumbent upon the head of a noble house--until he learns the hard way that the mansions and elegant tree-lined streets of the city can be even more dangerous than the dusty plains of the Roughs.

--amazon

Shadows of Self      ---- OCTOBER 6th 2015
(Mistborn #5)
--amazon

 Bands of Mourning  ---- January 26th 2015
(Mistborn #6)
--amazon


compiled by Pam
June 2015

STEELHEART / THE RECKONERS series reading infornation

BRANDON SANDERSON is best known for his adult series Mistborn, and for his work finishing Robert Jordan's fantasy series The Wheel of Time.  With THE RITHMATIST  Brandon made his first foray into the Young Adult market.  This series earned good marks from readers and the RECKONERS first book, STEELHEART, followed quickly.

**all ratings from GoodReads


**New York Times Bestseller**
STEELHEART
(Reckoners, #1)
by Brandon Sanderson

**Starred Review** ALA BookList
4.14 avg rating — 56,780 ratings

The School Library Journal calls STEELHEART a 'fast-paced, futuristic science-fiction superhero story' and I think that's an accurate description.  

The backstory: One day the sky exploded and darkness came and stayed.  Even worse, some people developed super-human skills.  They are called Epics. And as it turns out they quickly become unpleasant people.

Enter David. When he was a young boy he went to the bank with his father. There they unfortunately crossed paths with Steelheart, the worst of the Epics, and their leader.  David's father is murdered and David swears to destroy Steelheart.  To this he worms his way into a group called the Reckoners.

Reading Information:
Word Count: 107,599
Page Count:  384
Accelerated Reader:  5.0 / points: 16.0
AR quiz: 161310
Lexile: 680L
--sample pages and reviews available

 

MITOSIS
(Reckoners, #1.5)

3.90 avg rating — 10,265 ratings

Mitosis takes place after the Reckoners reclaim Newcago --trying to fill the space left by the death of Steelheart.

Looking at the reviews at Amazon I'd say that most people loved the story BUT thought it was too short for the price. 

Look for it on sale.  (It does happen. Sometimes the e-stories will drop to 99cents in price.)

Page Count: 35
no reading information currently available
--sample pages and reviews available

------------------------------------------------------------------
You might also want to look at:
Review: The Rithmatist 
Review: Screaming Staircase
Review: California Bones
------------------------------------------------------------------

FIREFIGHT
(Reckoners, #2)

4.36 avg rating — 16,688 ratings

David and the Reckoners continue their fight against the Epics, humans with superhuman powers, except they may have met their match in Regalia, a High Epic who resides in Babylon Restored, the city formerly known as the borough of Manhattan.

Reading Information:
Word Count: 104,499
Page Count: 304
Accelerated Reader: 5.1 / points: 16.0
AR quiz: 171445
 Lexile: HL700L
--sample pages and reviews available


compiled by Pam
updated June 2015

THE SCHOOL OF GOOD AND EVIL series reading level information (Soman Chainani)

Soman Chainani has penned a series which stands the fairytale tropes on their heads.  Though written for Middle-Graders these books also have adult fans.

**all ratings from GoodReads

THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD AND EVIL   
(The School for Good and Evil #1)
by Soman Chainani
Illustrated by Iacopo Bruno

3.93 avg rating — 8,502 ratings

Sophie and Agatha find out where all the lost children go: the fabled School for Good and Evil.  A school were regular kids are are trained to be heroes... or villains.

Reading Information:
Word Count: 105,365
Page Count:  488
Accelerated Reader: 5.2 / points: 16.0
AR quiz: 161269
Lexile: 830L

A WORLD WITHOUT PRINCES
(The School for Good and Evil #2)
by Soman Chainani
Illustrated by Iacopo Bruno

4.20 avg rating — 1,285 ratings

Sophie and Agatha are back in the real world... for a while.  But not everything is resolved and they continue to think about the nature of good and bad, and about their relationship.  

Page Count: 400
no reading information currently available
--sample pages and reviews available

✓ You might also like: THE PRINCESS ACADEMY

compiled by Pam
updated August 2014

THE CHRONICLES OF VLADIMIR TOD series reading information (Heather Brewer)

My teen daughter urged me to put this list together.  She just turned 14 and she is loving this series -- almost as much as the Escape from the Furnace books.

Heather Brewer has a winner here. 

**all ratings from GoodReads 


Eighth Grade Bites
(The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, #1)
by Heather Brewer

3.94 avg rating — 21,279 ratings

13 year old Vlad isn't your normal teen. His mom was human, but his dad was a vampire.  This means he has a difficult time keeping his blood urges under control.  And it also means that he's different, even for a vampire, because he was born a vampire instead of being created.

In this book Vlad has all the usual middle school hurdles and then some. Bullies are targeting him, the principle is watching him closely, and worse, the girl he likes, likes his best friend better.  But none of this is as dangerous as the substitute teacher who is on the verge of blowing his cover.

Reading Information:
Word Count: 42,383
Page Count:  182
Accelerated Reader: 5.4 / points: 7.0
AR quiz: 116596
Lexile: 780L
-- sample pages available
-- manga version available
-- audio CD available


Ninth Grade Slays
(The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, #2)

4.16 avg rating — 15,651 ratings

Some good stuff, and some very bad stuff.

First the good. Vlad get to study abroad! Unfortunately it's not Paris. Uncle Otis and Vlad head off to Siberia so that Vlad can study under a very old vampire named Vikas.  He also learns of the Pravus myth of which hints that he could be 'the vampire of the prophecy'.

But there's not much time to think about those lessons and the myth because there's a vampire slayer is in town,  and he's stalking Vlad!

Word Count: 61,874
Page Count: 278
Accelerated Reading level: 5.3 / points: 9.0
AR quiz: 122154
Lexile: 780L
-- sample pages available
-- audio CD available


Tenth Grade Bleeds
(The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, #3)

 4.26 avg rating — 12,521 ratings

Changes are in the works.  First Henry wants to be free (no longer a drudge) and Vlad's blood supply is becoming iffier by the minute.  Add to that a strange and dangerous vampire demanding Vlad's father's journal, and you have book #3.

Word Count: 63,430
Page Count: 292
Accelerated Reader: 5.7 / points: 10.0
AR quiz: 130904
Lexile: 820L
-- sample pages available
-- audio CD available


Eleventh Grade Burns
(The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, #4)

4.33 avg rating — 10,070 ratings

Wow. Eleventh grade sucks. Vlad breaks up with Meredith, and now seems to have a sort-of relationship with Snow.  Uncle Otis is being tried for killing another vampire and all sorts of people --old former best friends and other vampires-- what to out him or kill him or drink his blood.

What's a guy to do?

Word Count: 70,346
Page Count: 309
Accelerated Reader: 5.3 / points: 11.0
AR quiz: 136090
Lexile: 770L
-- sample pages available
-- audio CD available


Twelfth Grade Kills
(The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, #5)

 4.38 avg rating — 8,830 ratings

Pravus prophecy and more.  Vlad's dad may even be alive!

Word Count: 71,416
Page Count: 325
Accelerated Reader: 5.1 / points: 11.0
AR quiz: 140207
Lexile: 700L
-- sample pages available
-- audio CD available

compiled by Pam
updated April 2014

MISS PEREGRINE / RANSOM RIGGS reading information

Not a book for Kindle, Ransom Riggs books include strange photos that are part of the fun. The MISS PEREGRINE books are well written and deliciously mysterious and spooky.  Middle-grade and up.  Mild profanity, sexual references, and violence.

**all ratings from GoodReads

MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN

(Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, #1) 
by Ransom Riggs

ALA Teens' Top Ten Nominee (2012)
3.77 avg rating — 223,171 ratings

Jacob grew up with stories his grandfather told about an orphanage which housed peculiar children with amazing abilities. As he grew older Jacob assumed these were just great stories. But when his grandfather is murdered, Jacob receives a cryptic message that sends him on a journey to find that orphanage.

What he finds on the Welsh island is amazing. The house is decrepit but the children are just as described. No older than when his grandfather knew them.

As Jacob begins to unravel more about his grandfather’s childhood, he becomes aware of a monster that is hunting him.

Word Count: 84,898
Page Count: 352
Accelerated Reading level: 5.7 / points: 13.0
AR quiz: 145802
Lexile: 890L
--sample pages available
--audio version available

HOLLOW CITY
(Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, # 2)
by Ransom Riggs

4.04 avg rating — 18,826 ratings

At the end of book #1, the children's island home was destroyed, and Miss Peregrine was left in her bird state.  In this book, Jacob and the others flee to London (remember this is during the war) and they seek help for Ms. Peregrine.

Word Count: 95,667
Page Count: 400
Accelerated Reader: 5.7 / points: 15.0
AR quiz: 163783
Lexile: 850L
--sample pages available
--audio version available

MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN : The Graphic Novel
(Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children)
by Ransom Riggs
illustrated by Cassandra Jean

4.11 avg rating — 1,320 ratings 

See the description for the first book. 
Profanity and violence.

Word Count: 10,135

Page Count:272
Accelerated Reading level: 3.4 / points: 1.0
AR quiz: 162295


compiled by Pam
updated July 2014 

JACQUELINE KELLY reading information

JACQUELINE KELLY earned a Newbery Honor award for THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE.   And she has picked up additional fans with her sequel to Kenneth Grahame's WIND IN THE WILLOWS.

**NEWBERY HONOR Book**

THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE
by Jacqueline Kelly

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist
**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal

 3.95 avg rating — 14,140 ratings

In central Texas in 1899, eleven-year-old Callie Vee Tate is instructed to be a lady by her mother, learns about love from the older three of her six brothers, and studies the natural world with her grandfather, the latter of which leads to an important discovery.

Common Core Aligned
Word Count: 80,972
Page Count: 352
Accelerated Reading level: 5.3 / points: 12.0
AR quiz: 130075
Lexile: 830L
--Evolucion De Calpurnia Tate - SPANISH
(no reading information for Spanish edition)

RETURN TO THE WILLOWS
by Jacqueline Kelly
Clint Young (Illustrations)

3.95 avg rating — 216 ratings

A sequel to the much loved WIND IN THE WILLOWS.

Word Count: 52,211
Page Count:288
Accelerated Reader:  6.0 / points: 8.0
AR quiz: 154843
Lexile: 890L


compiled by Pam
updated January 2014

NEWBERY HONOR Books

This list features the NEWBERY HONOR books. 

We'll be expanding it in the future to include more information and more back-years. In the meantime, there are links to check out the reviews at Amazon.com.

You can find the Newbery Medal Winners here. That list includes book descriptions and other information like reading levels, book points, and quiz numbers for those who like those additional facts.

**all ratings from GoodReads

*sample pages are available for all of these books


2013


SPLENDORS AND GLOOMS
by Laura Amy Schlitz

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** Kirkus
**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist

 3.85 avg rating — 3,150 ratings

Clara Wintermute is the only child of a wealthy doctor.  When she sees  Gaspare Grisini fantastic puppet work she has him invited to her birthday party.  Gaspare agrees, but only because his criminal nature lets him see this as an opportunity to become rich.

Gaspare arrives with his two innocents assistants, Lizzie and Parsefall.  To the youngsters Clara's life seems marvelous.  But in fact it is not all it seems to be.  There are secrets and private grief and guilt.  And before the puppeteer and his helpers, Lizzie and Parsefall, can act, someone else kidnaps Clara.  

As they try to puzzle out who could have taken Clara, and where she is, Lizzie and Parse uncover Grisini’s criminal past.  Fleeing London, where they are suspects, they find themselves caught in a trap set by Grisini’s ancient rival, a witch with a deadly inheritance to shed before it’s too late. 

Reading Information:
Word Count: 102,088
Page Count: 400
Accelerated Reading level: 5.1 / points: 15.0
AR quiz: 153476
 Lexile: 670L 


BOMB: The Race to Build--and Steal--the World's Most Dangerous Weapon
by Steve Sheinkin

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal
**Starred Review** Kirkus

4.15 avg rating — 4,134 ratings

The story of the atomic bomb.  This tale includes espionage!

Word Count:  60,534
Page Count:  266
Accelerated Reading level: 6.9 / points: 10.0
AR quiz:153499
Lexile: 920L 


THREE TIMES LUCKY
by Sheila Turnage

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** Kirkus
**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist

4.01 avg rating — 4,965 ratings

Miss Moses LoBeau (Mo) lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, NC.  When she was a baby she was found on the shore after a hurricane, and she's been stormy ever since. 

She's found a home with the Colonel and Miss Lana.  And while she hopes one day to find her 'upstream mom', she's more than loyal to them.   So when a police detective comes to town investigating a murder, she can't help but get involved.

Word Count: 62,217
Page Count:  256
Accelerated Reading level: 3.9 / points: 9.0
AR quiz: 151057
Lexile: 560L


2012

BREAKING STALIN'S NOSE
by Eugene Yelchin

**Starred Review**Horn Book
3.80 avg rating — 3,295 ratings 

Sasha Zaichik has known the laws of the Soviet Young Pioneers since the age of six:

• The Young Pioneer is devoted to Comrade Stalin, the Communist Party, and Communism.
• A Young Pioneer is a reliable comrade and always acts according to conscience.
• A Young Pioneer has a right to criticize shortcomings.

But now that it is finally time to join the Young Pioneers, the day Sasha has awaited for so long, everything seems to go awry. He breaks a classmate's glasses with a snowball. He accidentally damages a bust of Stalin in the school hallway. And worst of all, his father, the best Communist he knows, was arrested just last night.

Common Core Recommended
Word Count: 15,128
Page Count: 160
Accelerated Reading level: 4.6 / points: 2.0
AR quiz: 146486



INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN
by Thanhha Lai

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** Kirkus
**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist

4.06 avg rating — 11,563 ratings 

For all the ten years of her life, HÀ has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, the warmth of her friends close by . . . and the beauty of her very own papaya tree.

But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. HÀ and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope. In America, HÀ discovers the foreign world of Alabama: the coldness of its strangers, the dullness of its food, the strange shape of its landscape . . . and the strength of her very own family.

Common Core Recommended
Word Count: 14,925
Page Count: 272
Accelerated Reading level: 4.8 / points: 2.0
AR quiz: 142622
Lexile: 800L


2011

TURTLE IN PARADISE
by Jennifer L. Holm

**Starred Review** ALA BookList
**Starred Review** Kirkus

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly

3.89 avg rating — 7,802 ratings 

11-year-old Turtle discovers that life isn't like the movies. She's smart and tough and has seen enough of the world not to expect a Hollywood ending. After all, it's 1935, and jobs and money and sometimes even dreams are scarce. So when Turtle's mama gets a job housekeeping for a lady who doesn't like kids, Turtle says goodbye without a tear and heads off to Key West, Florida, to stay with relatives she's never met.

Common Core Recommended
Word Count: 30,474
Page Count: 208
Accelerated Reading level: 3.7 / points: 4.0
AR quiz: 137063
Lexile: 610L

HEART OF A SAMURAI 
by Margi Preus

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly

**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist

3.86 avg rating — 2,325 ratings

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, who dreams of becoming a samurai, learns new laws and customs as he becomes the first Japanese person to set foot in the United States.

Word Count: 51,267
Page Count: 320
Accelerated Reading level: 5.4 / points: 8.0
AR quiz: 139383
 Lexile: 760L 

DARK EMPEROR AND OTHER POEMS OF NIGHT
by Joyce Sidman
Rick Allen (Illustrator)

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** HornBook
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist

4.01 avg rating — 837 ratings

Table of Contents
Snail At Moonrise
Love Poem Of The Primrose Month
Dark Emperor
Oak After Dark
Night-Spider's Advice
I Am A Baby Porcupette
Cricket Speaks
The Mushrooms Come
Ballad Of The Wandering Eft
Bat Wraps Up
Moon's Lament
Welcome To The Night

This collection of poems celebrates the wonder, mystery, and danger of the night and describes the many things that hide in the dark.

Come feel the cool and shadowed breeze,
come smell your way among the trees,
come touch rough bark and leathered leaves:
Welcome to the night. 

Common Core Recommended
Word Count: 2,604
Page Count:  32
Accelerated Reading level: 6.1 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 139110
Lexile: 1020L


ONE CRAZY SUMMER
(Gaither Sisters #1)
by Rita William-Garcia

Scott O'Dell Award (2011)
 National Book Award Nominee for Young People's Literature

**Starred Review** Kirkus
**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal
**Starred Review** HornBook
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist

In the summer of 1968, after traveling from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to spend a month with the mother they barely know, eleven-year-old Delphine and her two younger sisters arrive to a cold welcome as they discover that their mother, a dedicated poet and printer, is resentful of the intrusion of their visit and wants them to attend a nearby Black Panther summer camp.

Common Core Recommended
Word Count: 45,483
Page Count: 
Accelerated Reader:  4.6 / points: 7.0
AR quiz: 135338
Lexile: 750L


2010

CLAUDETTE COLVIN: TWICE TOWARD JUSTICE
by Phillip Hoose

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist
**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal
**Starred Review** HornBook

 4.09 avg rating — 1,888 ratings

Presents the life of the Alabama teenager who played an integral but little-known role in the Montgomery bus strike of 1955-1956, once by refusing to give up a bus seat, and again, by becoming a plaintiff in the landmark civil rights case against the bus company.

Common Core Aligned
Word Count: 32,581
Page Count:  160
Accelerated Reader:  6.8 / points: 5.0
AR quiz: 129138
Lexile: 1000L

THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE
by Jacqueline Kelly

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** ALA Booklist
**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal

 3.95 avg rating — 14,140 ratings

In central Texas in 1899, eleven-year-old Callie Vee Tate is instructed to be a lady by her mother, learns about love from the older three of her six brothers, and studies the natural world with her grandfather, the latter of which leads to an important discovery.

Common Core Aligned
Word Count: 80,972
Page Count: 352
Accelerated Reading level: 5.3 / points: 12.0
AR quiz: 130075
Lexile: 830L
--Evolucion De Calpurnia Tate - SPANISH
(no reading information for Spanish edition)

WHERE THE MOUNTAIN MEETS THE MOON
 by Grace Lin

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly

**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal

4.20 avg rating — 11,516 ratings 

Minli, an adventurous girl from a poor village, buys a magical goldfish and then joins a dragon that cannot fly on a quest to find the Old Man of the Moon in hopes of discovering how to change her family's fortune.

Common Core Recommended
Word Count: 42,634
Page Count: 304
Accelerated Reading level: 5.5 / points: 7.0
AR quiz: 131480
Lexile: 820L

The MOSTLY TRUE ADVENTURES OF HOMER P. FIGG
by Rodman Philbrick

**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly

 3.65 avg rating — 3,348 ratings 

Homer P. Figg escapes from his ruthless guardian's home in Pine Swamp, Maine, and sets out to find his beloved older brother, Harold, who has been illegally sold into the Union Army.

Common Core Recommended
Word Count: 45,255
Page Count: 240
Accelerated Reading level: 5.6 / points: 7.0
AR quiz: 127487
Lexile: 950L


2009

THE UNDERNEATH
David Small (Illustrator)
by Kathi Appelt

**Starred Review** ALA BookList
3.90 avg rating — 4,651 ratings

There is nothing lonelier than a cat who has been loved, at least for awhile, and then abandoned on the side of the road.

Others raved about it.  I happened to find this story to be dull and violent. Two traits that don't usually go together, but I'm not much for meanness in KidLit. 

It's one of those stories that follows different characters, where towards the end their paths cross.

Common Core Aligned
Word Count: 56,265
Page Count: 313
Accelerated Reading level: 5.2 / points: 9.0
AR quiz: 122589
Lexile: 830L



THE SURRENDER TREE: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom
by Margarita Engle

**Starred Review** ALA BookList
3.95 avg rating — 912 ratings

Rosa is a nurse who turns hidden caves into hospitals. She helps everyone she can regardless of race, age....  This collection of poems addresses Cuba's long struggle to become truly free.  (set at turn of the 19th Century)

Word Count: 12,053
Page Count: 384
Accelerated Reading level: 6.4 / points: 2.0
AR quiz: 121475
Lexile: NP



SAVVY
(Savvy, #1)
by Ingrid Law

**Starred Review** Kirkus
**Starred Review** PublishersWeekly
**Starred Review** ALA BookList

3.95 avg rating — 21,435 ratings

When my brother Fish turned thirteen, we moved to the deepest part of inland because of the hurricane and, of course, the fact that he’d caused it.

In Mib's family, when you turn 13, you get your special ability.  Your SAVVY.

Book #2 is SCRUMBLE. 

Word Count: 57,148
Page Count: 342
Accelerated Reader: 6.0 / points: 9.0
AR quiz: 122451
Lexile: 1070L

AFTER TUPAC & D FOSTER
by Jacqueline Woodson

**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal

3.63 avg rating — 1,680 ratings

This book looks at the world through the eyes three 12 year-old girls.  It deals with some 'heavy' issues, but at an age appropriate level, according to the reviews I've read.  (I've put it on my TBR)

Common Core Aligned
Word Count: 29,251
Page Count: 151
Accelerated Reader: 4.7 / points: 4.0
AR quiz: 120399
Lexile: 750L


2008

Elijah of Buxton, by Christopher Paul Curtis
The Wednesday Wars, by Gary D. Schmidt
Feathers, by Jacqueline Woodson


compiled by Pam
updated January 2014