Summer Reading 5th Grade

 Summer Reading Assignment 
Your summer reading assignment is due on September 22, 2023, Incoming Fifth Graders

Suggested Titles for 5th Graders
Fiction and Graphic Novels

All He Knew -- Frost, Helen
In 1939 six-year-old Henry, who is deaf, is taken from his family and placed in a home for the feeble-minded where, years later, his friends include a conscientious objector serving there during World War II.
LEX: 760L

Amina's Voice -- Khan, Hena A Pakistani-American Muslim girl struggles to stay true to her family's vibrant culture while simultaneously blending in at school after tragedy strikes her community. LEX 800L Ban this Book -- Gratz, Alan A fourth grader fights back when 'From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler' by E. L. Konigsburg is challenged by a well-meaning parent and taken off the shelves of her school library. Amy Anne is shy and soft-spoken, but don't mess with her when it comes to her favorite book in the whole world. Amy Anne and her lieutenants wage a battle for the books. LEX 690L

Before the Ever After -- Woodson, Jacqueline
ZJ's friends Ollie, Darry and Daniel help him cope when his father, a beloved professional football player, suffers severe headaches and memory loss that spell the end of his career.

Circus Mirandus -- Beasley, Cassie
When he realizes that his grandfather's stories of an enchanted circus are true, Micah Tuttle sets out to find the mysterious Circus Mirandus--and to use its magic to save his grandfather's life. LEX 710L

Counting Thyme -- Conklin, Melanie
Thyme Owens moves across the country with her family so her younger brother can take part in a promising cancer drug trial, and though all she wants is for him to get better, adjusting to life in Manhattan is anything but easy.
Lexile 680

Dead Voices -- Arden, Katherine
Trapped at a haunted ski resort, Ollie, Coco, and Brian must rely on their friendship and sharp minds if they want to escape.
LEX: 550L

A Diamond in the Desert -- Fitzmaurice, Kathryn
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, thirteen-year-old Tetsu and his family are sent to the Gila River Relocation Center in Arizona where a fellow prisoner starts a baseball team, but when Tetsu's sister becomes ill and he feels responsible, he stops playing.
Lexile 810

The Dog, Ray -- Coggin, Linda
Daisy, age twelve, has died ... in a car accident. She finds herself in the afterworld, which resembles nothing more than a job center. Her soul is being returned to Earth, but not as a human being-she's returning as a dog. A dog who is determined to get back to her parents and to get back home.
Lexile 630

The First Rule of Punk -- Perez, Celia C
Twelve-year-old Maria Luisa O'Neill-Morales (who really prefers to be called Malu) reluctantly moves with her Mexican-American mother to Chicago and starts seventh grade with a bang--violating the dress code with her punk rock aesthetic and spurning the middle school's most popular girl in favor of starting a band with a group of like-minded weirdos.
LEX 670L

Flunked -- Calonita, Jen
When petty thief Gilly, who lives with five younger brothers and sisters in a run-down boot, gets caught stealing, she is sentenced to three months at Fairy Tale Reform School, where all of the teachers are former villains, including the Big Bad Wolf, the Evil Queen, and Cinderella's Wicked Stepmother.
LEX: 710L

Forever, or a Long, Long Time -- Carter, Caela Flora and her brother, Julian, don't believe they were born. They've lived in so many foster homes, they can't remember where they came from. And even now that they've been adopted, Flora still struggles to believe in forever. So along with their new mother, Flora and Julian begin a journey to go back and discover their past-for only then can they really begin to build their future. LEX 570L

Full Cicada Moon -- Hilton, Marilyn
In 1969 twelve-year-old Mimi and her family move to an all-white town in Vermont, where Mimi's mixed-race background and interest in "boyish" topics like astronomy make her feel like an outsider.
Lexile 790

Go Big or Go Home -- Hobbs, Will
Fourteen-year-old Brady and his cousin Quinn love extreme sports, but nothing could prepare them for the aftermath of Brady's close encounter with a meteorite after it crashes into his Black Hills, South Dakota, bedroom.
Lexile 700

The Hypnotists -- Korman, Gordon
Twelve-year-old Jackson Opus is descended from two powerful hypnotist bloodlines, but he has just begun to realize that he can control other peoples' actions with sometimes frightening results--especially when the head of the Sentia Institute plans to use Jackson for his own benefit. Lexile 750

I Love You, Michael Collins -- Baratz-Logsted, Lauren
In 1969, as her own family is falling apart, ten-year-old Mamie finds comfort in conducting a one-sided correspondence with the least famous astronaut heading toward the moon on Apollo 11.
LEX 800L

The Last Boy at St. Edith's -- Malone, Lee Gjertsen
Seventh-grader Jeremy Miner, the only boy in a school of 475 girls, unleashes a series of pranks in hopes of getting expelled.
Lexile 780

Love, Ish -- Rivers, Karen
Twelve-year-old Mischa "Ish" Love's longtime dream has been to someday live on Mars, but when she collapses on the first day of seventh grade, Ish receives a diagnosis which threatens her future plans.
LEX: 640L

Lucky Broken Girl -- Behar, Ruth
In 1960s New York, fifth-grader Ruthie, a Cuban-Jewish immigrant, must rely on books, art, her family, and friends in her multicultural neighborhood when an accident puts her in a body cast.
LEX: 670

Mascot -- John, Antony
Noah Savino has been stuck in a wheelchair for months. He hates the way people treat him like he's helpless now. He's sick of going to physical therapy, where he isn't making any progress. He's tired of not having control over his own body. And he misses playing baseball--but not as much as he misses his dad.
LEX: 630L

Pashmina -- Chanani, Nidhi
Priyanka Das has so many unanswered questions: Why did her mother abandon her home in India years ago? What was it like there? And most importantly, who is her father, and why did her mom leave him behind? But Pri's mom avoids these questions--the topic of India is permanently closed. For Pri, her mother's homeland can only exist in her imagination. That is, until she finds a mysterious pashmina tucked away in a forgotten suitcase.
LEX GN240L

The Rhino in Right Field -- DeKeyser, Stacy
In 1948, Nikko Spirakis, twelve, loves baseball but must get past his hard-working immigrant parents--and the rhino in the outfield--to become a batboy for the local minor league team.
LEX 630L

Shuri: A Black Panther Novel -- Stone, Nic
Follows Shuri as she sets out on a quest to save her homeland of Wakanda.

Sunny Side Up -- Holm, Jennifer L.
After her older brother starts acting strangely, Sunny Lewin is shipped off to Florida to spend the summer with her grandfather. She makes a friend her age and tries to enjoy her stay but, other than Buzz, everyone is really old. Besides, Sunny just knows her parents sent her away because she somehow made her brother the way he is. She just wants things to go back to how they were before.
Lexile 240

Tumble & Blue -- Beasley, Cassie
In order for Tumble Wilson and Blue Montgomery to fix their ancestors' mistakes and banish the bad luck that has followed them around for all of their lives, they must face Munch, the mysterious golden alligator who cast the curse centuries ago.
LEX 680L

When You Trap a Tiger -- Keller, Tae
When Lily, her sister Sam, and their mother move in with her sick grandmother, Lily traps a tiger and makes a deal with him to heal Halmoni.
LEX: 590L

White Bird : A Wonder Story -- Palacio, R. J
Tells the story of Julian's grandma's childhood as she, a Jewish girl, was hidden by a family in a Nazi-occupied French village during World War II and how the boy she once shunned became her savior and best friend.
LEX: GN440L

A Wish in the Dark -- Soontornvat, Christina
All light in Chattana is created by one man--the Governor, who appeared after the Great Fire to bring peace and order to the city. For Pong, who was born in Namwon Prison, the magical lights represent freedom, and
he dreams of the day he will be able to walk among them. But when Pong escapes from prison, he realizes that the world outside is no fairer than the one behind bars.
LEX: 720L

Wonderstruck: A Novel in Words and Pictures -- Selznick, Brian
Relates the stories of twelve-year-old Ben, who loses his mother and his hearing in a short time frame and decides to leave his Minnesota home in 1977 to seek the father he has never known in New York City; and Rose, who lives with her father but feels compelled to search for what is missing in her life. Ben's story is told in words; Rose's in pictures.
Lexile 830

Suggested Titles for 5th Graders
Non-Fiction

All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team -- Soontornvat, Christina
Looks at the cave rescue of the twelve young players of the Wild Boars soccer team and their coach in northern Thailand.
LEX: 1020L

American Pharoah : Triple Crown Champion -- Mickle, Shelley Fraser Examines the thoroughbred horse racing career of American Pharoah, the first Triple Crown winner since 1978. LEX 1000L

Between the Lines: How Ernie Barnes went from the Football Field to the Art Gallery -- Wallace, Sandra Neil
Discover the true story of NFL star Ernie Barnes, a boy who followed his dreams and became one of the most influential artists of his generation.
LEX 660L

Camp Panda: Helping Cubs Return to the Wild -- Thimmesh, Catherine
Looks at attempts to save the dwindling giant panda population by having people dress up as pandas and teach panda cubs how to live and survive in the wild.
LEX: NC1260L

Colonel Theodore Roosevelt -- Adler, David A
Chronicles the life and career of President Theodore Roosevelt.
Lexile 960

Cub -- Copeland, Cynthia L (Memoir)
Author and artist Cindy Copeland comes of age, discovers new talents, and finds her voice as a cub reporter at her local newspaper during the Watergate era. (Graphic Novel)

Freedom Struggle: The Anti-Slavery Movement in America, 1830-1865 -- Rossi, Ann
Presents an overview of the history of abolitionism in the United States, including information on the Underground Railroad with an emphasis on pro-slavery and anti-slavery arguments used up until the Civil War.

Noah Webster's Fighting Words -- Maurer, Tracy
A brief biography of educator and writer Noah Webster, famous for writing the first dictionary of the English language, with fictitious editing remarks by Noah.
LEX 710L

Pills, Powders & Potion: a History of Medication -- Townsend, John
Presents a short study of medicines, herbal remedies, and ancient cures, and discusses how some illnesses and ailments were and are treated.

President Taft is Stuck in the Bath -- Barnett, Mac
Relates the incident in which President Taft supposedly got himself stuck in a bathtub in the White House on the day of his inauguration.
Lexile 420

Real Friends -- Hale, Shannon (Memoir)
The graphic memoir of Shannon Hale in which she reflects on her childhood friendships.
LEX GN290L

Tsunami! : Deadly Wall of Water -- Putnam, Jeff
A short study of the December 2004 tsunami that hit Thailand and other parts of Southeast Asia, describing what causes a tsunami, previous tsunamis around the world, and the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami.
Lexile 530

The Unforgettable Season : The Story of Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams and the Record-Setting Summer of '41 -- Bildner, Phil
Illustrations and text describe the 1941 baseball season, in which Red Sox players Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams set hitting records. Lexile: 980

The Year of Goodbyes: a True Story of Friendship, Family, and Farewells -- Levy, Debbie
Debbie Levy reveals the story of her mother's life in 1938, the family's last year in Germany before they escaped Nazi persecution, based on the poems, inscriptions, and drawings collected in twelve-year-old Jutta's autograph book, and describes Jutta's life in New York City.
Lexile 910

•  Suggested Titles for 5th Graders