Summer Reading List 2012

The Trouble with Chickens by Doreen Cronin

J. J. Tully, a former search-and-rescue dog, is supposed to be resting and relaxing after a noble career. But he is hardly settled into his new home before a mama chick named Mildred wants him to find two of her brood that have gone missing. Tully’s willing to take on the case for a hamburger, but a ransom note soon complicates things, and a house dog, Vince the Funnel (for the contraption wrapped around his head), is out to make sure that he is not the canine going to the vet to get tubes in his ears.

Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm

Set in 1935, during the Great Depression, an 11-year-old girl nicknamed Turtle goes to live with relatives in Key West, Florida, after her mother takes a job as a housekeeper for a woman who does not like children; as a result, Turtle's world opens up in many unexpected ways, and she finds herself coming out of the shell she has spent her whole life building.

Neil Armstrong is my Uncle & Other Lies Muscle Man McGinty told me

by Nan Marino

Frustrated with ten-year-old Muscle Man McGinty constantly telling lies,Tamara dreams of the day when it all catches up to him and the entire town sees him for who he is, but when an incredible event takes place in the summer of1969, Tamara gains a new sense of spirit towards her fellow man that alters her outlook on life in the most surprising way.

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

In the historic town of Norvelt, Pennsylvania, twelve-year-old Jack Gantos spends the summer of 1962 grounded for various offenses until he is assigned to help an elderly neighbor with a most unusual chore involving the newly dead, molten wax, twisted promises, Girl Scout cookies, underage driving, lessons from history, typewriting, and countless bloody noses.

The Music of Dolphins by Karen Hesse

Rescued by dolphins when her ship sinks,killing all aboard, including her family Mia is a feral child when she is captured years later. The author makes ingenious use of typeface to illustrate Mia’s progress in understanding human language and customs and to telegraph the surprise ending.

Pie by Sarah Weeks (Visiting Author for 2013)

Alice's Aunt Polly passes away and entrusts the recipe for her world-famous pie crust to her cat, which she leaves in Alice's care, and as everyone, including Alice,tries to discover the secret ingredients, Alice learns some important lessons about faith, love, and family.

The Pepins and Their Problems by Polly Horvath

Another fun read-aloud by Horvath, the reader is invited to help solve the Pepin family's unusual problems, which include having a cow that creates lemonade rather than milk and other comic predicaments.

The Fingertips of Duncan Dorfman by Meg Wolitzer

Twelve-year-old's Duncan Dorfman, April Blunt, and Nate Saviano meet at the Youth Scrabble Tournament where, although each has a different reason for attending and for needing to win, they realize that something more important is at stake than the grand prize.

Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai

Ten-year-old Ha and her family flee Saigon and struggle to make a new life in Alabama. Told in verse, the story features a spirited child who misses her homeland and faces bullies, unfriendly people, and perfectly horrid American food. A tender tale, leavened with humor and hope.

The Grand Plan to Fix Everything by Uma Krishnaswami

Eleven-year-old Dini loves movies, and so when she learns that her family is moving to India for two years, her devastation over leaving her best friend in Maryland is tempered by the possibility of meeting her favorite actress, Dolly Singh.

The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens

Kate, Michael, and Emma have passed from one orphanage to another in the ten years since their parents disappeared to protect them, but now they learn that they have special powers--and a fearsome enemy--and embark on a journey to dangerous and secret corners of the world to find a magical book.

Myth O Mania Series by Kate McMullan

Features humorous and engaging fractured myths with a contemporary spin and a positive message. Find out the real truth behind the most famous Greek myths from Hades, King of the Underworld. Eight books in the series.

The Star Maker by Laurence Yep

With the help of his popular Uncle Chester, a young Chinese American boy tries hard to fulfill a promise to have firecrackers for everyone on the Chinese New Year in 1954. Includes an afterword within formation about the Chinese customs portrayed in the story.

The Lemonade Crime by Jacqueline Davies

When the boy who stole $200 from Jessie and Evan in The Lemonade War brags about his newly purchased X-box, Jessie demands a trial, with her brother as plaintiff and herself as his lawyer. Davies again does a good job showing what motivates each character, depicting them with some shades of gray as they don't always live up to their own standards.

Love That Dog by Sharon Creech

This is the perfect book to tie poetry into real life as reluctant journal and poetry student makes a story-to-life connection to a traumatic incident in his life.

On the Blue Comet by Rosemary Wells

When the Depression hits in Cairo, Illinois, and Oscar Ogilvie's father must sell their home and vast model train set-up to look for work in California, eleven-year-old Oscar is left with his dour aunt, where he befriends a mysterious drifter, witnesses a stunning bank robbery, and is suddenly catapulted onto a train that takes him to a different time and place.

The Apothecary by Maile Meloy

Fourteen-year-old Janie Scott, newly arrived in London from Los Angeles in 1952, becomes friends with a mysterious apothecary and his son, Benjamin Burrows, and is drawn into a dangerous adventure with Benjamin when his father is kidnapped and Russian spies try to steal his book of secrets.

How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell

Billy's friends Tom and Alan bet Billy fifty dollars that he can't eat fifteen worms. Billy's going to need all the discipline and will-power he can muster if he has any chance to succeed.

Holes by Louis Sachar

One of those books that is loved equally by critics and children, Holes delivers an incredible tale of bad luck and fate laced with humor and distinctly memorable characters. (1999Newbery Medal Winner)

Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry

Another favorite from my childhood tells a fictionalized story of the real wild ponies of Assateague Island Maryland and 2children who long to have one for their own. This story had such an effect on me that when I visited Assateague as an adult, seeing the wild ponies was a thrill.