LibGuides: BCS Summer Reading 2022: Home

6th Grade

Alone by Megan E. Freeman
ISBN: 9781534467569
Publication Date: 2021-01-12
When twelve-year-old Maddie hatches a scheme for a secret sleepover with her two best friends, she ends up waking up to a nightmare. She’s alone—left behind in a town that has been mysteriously evacuated and abandoned.
The Barren Grounds by David A. Robertson
ISBN: 9780735266124
Publication Date: 2021-08-31
Two Indigenous children forced away from their families and communities, are brought together in a foster home in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are struggling to fit in at school and at their new home -- until they find a secret place, walled off in an attic bedroom. A portal opens to another reality…
Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes
ISBN: 9780316493796
Publication Date: 2021-03-30
Two brothers, one who presents as white, the other as black, and the complex ways in which they are forced to navigate the world, all while training for a fencing competition.
The Canyon's Edge by Dusti Bowling
ISBN: 9780316494670
Publication Date: 2021-09-14
A novel in verse about a young girl's struggle for survival after a climbing trip with her father goes terribly wrong.
Caprice by Coe Booth
ISBN: 9780545933346
Publication Date: 2022-05-17
12-year-old girl navigates the effects of past abuse and finds the power to share her truths.
The Deepest Breath by Meg Grehan
ISBN: 9780358354758
Publication Date: 2021-02-16
A glimpse into the life of an anxious preteen who learns to accept herself and all the things she doesn’t know.
Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros
ISBN: 9780062881694
Publication Date: 2021-06-08
A young boy must become an adult overnight when his mother is deported.
A High Five for Glenn Burke by Phil Bildner
ISBN: 9781250763280
Publication Date: 2021-02-23
A gay black baseball player posthumously inspires a sixth grade white boy who is ready-ish to come out.
Jinxed by Amy McCulloch
ISBN: 9781728216379
Publication Date: 2020-12-01
When a coding star enters an elite technology academy, she discovers a world of competition, intrigue, and family secrets―plus a robotic companion that isn't what it seems.
The Lucky Ones by Linda Williams Jackson
ISBN: 9781536222555
Publication Date: 2022-04-19
An 11-year-old and his family struggle to maintain hope as they cope with poverty in an African American community in the Mississippi Delta during the 1960s.
Show Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte
ISBN: 9781338255829
Publication Date: 2021-09-21
A young girl living on Martha’s Vineyard in 1805 doesn’t think her community of Deaf and hearing signers is special until the day the hearing world violently intrudes.
Stand up, Yumi Chung! by Jessica Kim
ISBN: 9780525554998
Publication Date: 2021-03-16
Eleven-year-old Yumi Chung doesn’t have anyone to sit with at lunch, but she secretly harbors dreams of becoming a comedian. Shy + Asian + Girl = Comedian? Why, yes. Yes, it does.
Starfish by Lisa Fipps
ISBN: 9781984814500
Publication Date: 2021-03-09
Ellie is tired of being fat-shamed and does something about it in this poignant debut novel-in-verse.
Take Back the Block by Chrystal D. Giles
ISBN: 9780593175170
Publication Date: 2021-01-26
Wes Henderson wants to focus on championing his swag in middle school but instead confronts a larger challenge as his neighborhood is threatened by the forces of gentrification.
Troublemaker by John Cho
ISBN: 9780759554474
Publication Date: 2022-03-22
Follows the events of the LA Riots through Jordan's eyes, a 12-year-old Korean American boy navigating school and family.
What Lane? by Torrey Maldonado
ISBN: 9780525518457
Publication Date: 2021-05-11
"STAY IN YOUR LANE." Stephen doesn't want to hear that--he wants to have no lane. Anything his friends can do, Stephen should be able to do too, right? So when they dare each other to sneak into an abandoned building, he doesn't think it's his lane, but he goes. Here's the thing, though: Can he do everything his friends can?
When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson (Illustrator); Omar Mohamed; Iman Geddy (Illustrator)
ISBN: 9780525553908
Publication Date: 2020-04-14
A Somali boy living in a refugee camp in Kenya tries to make a future for himself and his brother in this graphic novel memoir.
When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller
ISBN: 9781524715700
Publication Date: 2020-01-28
Would you make a deal with a magical tiger? This uplifting story brings Korean folklore to life as a girl goes on a quest to unlock the power of stories and save her grandmother.

7th-8th Grades

Across the Tracks by Alverne Ball
ISBN: 9781419755170
Publication Date: 2021-05-04
A love letter to Greenwood, Oklahoma, known as Black Wall Street. Greenwood was a community whose importance is often overshadowed by the atrocious massacre that took place there 1921.
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
ISBN: 9780399588198
Publication Date: 2019-02-12
A mischievous young boy grows into a restless young man struggling to find himself in a world where he was never supposed to exist and his relationship with his fearless, rebellious, and fervently religious mother—his teammate, a woman determined to save her son from the cycle of poverty, violence, and abuse that would ultimately threaten her own life.
The Benefits of Being an Octopus by Ann Braden
ISBN: 9781510757677
Publication Date: 2021-05-04
Twelve-year old Zoey has bigger problems than seventh grade. She lives with her mom and three younger siblings in her mom’s boyfriend Lenny’s trailer. Lenny’s trailer is nice and clean, but it comes at a price. What Zoey really needs is to be an octopus, someone with eight arms to wrestle her siblings and who can squirt black ink to get away quickly.
Caprice by Coe Booth
ISBN: 9780545933346
Publication Date: 2022-05-17
12-year-old girl navigates the effects of past abuse and finds the power to share her truths.
Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram
ISBN: 9780525552970
Publication Date: 2019-08-20
Darius doesn't think he'll ever be enough, in America or in Iran. Hilarious and heartbreaking, this book is for anyone who’s ever felt not good enough—then met a friend who makes them feel so much better than okay.
Don't Read the Comments by Eric Smith
ISBN: 9781335209962
Publication Date: 2021-04-06
We all need a place to escape the real world. For Divya and Aaron, it’s the world of online gaming. While Divya trades her rising-star status for sponsorships to help her struggling single mom pay rent, Aaron plays as a way to fuel his own dreams of becoming a game developer—and as a way to disappear when his mom starts talking about medical school.
Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros
ISBN: 9780062881694
Publication Date: 2021-06-08
A young boy must become an adult overnight when his mother is deported.
Fadeaway by E. B. Vickers
ISBN: 9780593180198
Publication Date: 2021-03-23
How does a beloved high school basketball star with a seemingly bright future disappear without a trace on the very night he helps his team win a major game?
The Insiders by Mark Oshiro
ISBN: 9780063008106
Publication Date: 2021-09-21
San Francisco and Orangevale may be in the same state, but for Héctor Muñoz, they might as well be a million miles apart. Back home, being gay didn’t mean feeling different. At Héctor’s new school, he couldn’t feel more alone.
Loveboat, Taipei by Abigail Hing Wen
ISBN: 9780062957276
Publication Date: 2020-01-07
A sheltered teen with a passion for dance finds love, drama, and herself at a summer camp in Taiwan.
Monsters in the Mist by Juliana Brandt
ISBN: 9781728245447
Publication Date: 2022-05-03
Glennon discovers the sinister reason why the Lake Superior island he’s visiting isn’t found on any map.
A Pho Love Story by Loan Le
ISBN: 9781534441934
Publication Date: 2021-02-09
A funny, smart romantic comedy, in which two Vietnamese-American teens fall in love and must navigate their newfound relationship amid their families’ age-old feud about their competing, neighboring restaurants.
Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi; Yusef Salaam
ISBN: 9780062996497
Publication Date: 2021-12-07
From award-winning, bestselling author Ibi Zoboi and prison reform activist Yusef Salaam of the Exonerated Five comes a powerful YA novel in verse about a boy who is wrongfully incarcerated. 16-year-old Amal, a budding artistic talent with a promising future, is put away in prison for throwing a punch.
Three Things I Know Are True by Betty Culley
ISBN: 9780062908032
Publication Date: 2021-01-12
After her brother is injured in a gun accident, a teen—and her town—grapples with the aftermath.
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky (a Tristan Strong Novel, Book 1) by Kwame Mbalia
ISBN: 9781368042413
Publication Date: 2020-09-22
Seventh-grader Tristan Strong tumbles into the MidPass and, with allies John Henry and Brer Rabbit, must entice the god Anansi to come out of hiding and seal the hole Tristan accidentally ripped in the sky.
Yonder by Ali Standish
ISBN: 9780062985682
Publication Date: 2022-05-10
Three years ago, Danny Timmons witnessed young Jack Bailey rescue two little girls from floodwaters while adults stood by, too afraid to help. Now it’s 1943, and Danny is describing his sharp observations of wartime life in the Appalachian town of Foggy Gap.
Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor by Xiran Jay Zhao
ISBN: 9781665900706
Publication Date: 2022-05-10
Twelve-year-old Zack is recruited into helping the spirit hosts of ancient Chinese emperors in a dangerous mission.
Zenobia July by Lisa Bunker
ISBN: 9780451479402
Publication Date: 2019-05-21
When someone anonymously posts hateful memes on her school's website, Zenobia knows she's the one with the abilities to solve the mystery, all while wrestling with the challenges of a new school, a new family, and coming to grips with presenting her true gender for the first time.

9th-11th Grade

Ain't Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds; Jason Griffin (Illustrator)
ISBN: 9781534439467
Publication Date: 2022-01-11
Reynolds’ poetry and Griffin’s art perform a captivating dance on pages of mixed-media collage and emotive reflection on the pronounced threats facing a contemporary Black family.
Boys of the Beast by Monica Zepeda
ISBN: 9781643790954
Publication Date: 2022-04-12
Reunited following the death of their beloved Grandma Lupe, three estranged teen cousins—quick-witted, aloof stoner Oscar; aspiring Christian filmmaker Matt; and Jewish nerd-in-love Ethan—embark on a road trip from Portland to Albuquerque.
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
ISBN: 9781250250469
Publication Date: 2020-09-01
Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can't get rid of him. A trans boy determined to prove his gender to his traditional Latinx family summons a ghost who refuses to leave in this paranormal YA debut.
Chlorine Sky by Mahogany l. Browne
ISBN: 9780593176429
Publication Date: 2023-02-07
A novel-in-verse about broken promises, fast rumors, and when growing up means growing apart from your best friend.
Exhalation by Ted Chiang
ISBN: 9781101972083
Publication Date: 2020-06-30
Exploring humankind's place in the universe and the nature of humanity, many of the stories in this collection focus on how technological advances can impact humanity’s evolutionary journey
Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
ISBN: 9781250766564
Publication Date: 2021-03-16
A Native teen must root out the corruption in her community. 18-year-old Daunis, a biracial unenrolled member of the Ojibwe tribe exists between two cultural identities. Fake relationship romance-meets backwoods thriller in this powerhouse debut.
Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
ISBN: 9781643751894
Publication Date: 2022-02-15
Set in Argentina, a rising soccer star must put everything on the line—even her blooming love story—to follow her dreams.
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
ISBN: 9781101971062
Publication Date: 2017-05-02
From different villages in 18th-century Ghana, half-sisters Effia and Esi lead very different lives, with Effia married off to an Englishman and living comfortably in Cape Coast Castle and Esi imprisoned in that very castle before being sold into slavery in America. Homegoing follows the parallel paths of these sisters and their descendants through eight generations: from the Gold Coast to the plantations of Mississippi, from the American Civil War to Jazz Age Harlem.
How It All Blew Up by Arvin Ahmadi
ISBN: 9780593202876
Publication Date: 2020-09-22
Eighteen-year-old Amir Azadi always knew coming out to his Muslim family would be messy--he just didn't think it would end in an airport interrogation room. But when faced with a failed relationship, bullies, and blackmail, running away to Rome is his only option. Right?
How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones
ISBN: 9781501132742
Publication Date: 2020-07-07
Blending prose and poetry Jones tells his story of being young, black, and gay from the South and what it means to create an alternate version of oneself. His memoir describes a childhood spent alternating between the suburbs of Dallas with his mother, and summers in Memphis with his evangelical grandmother.
Ironhead, or, Once a Young Lady by Jean-Claude van Rijckeghem; Kristen Gehrman (Translator)
ISBN: 9781646140480
Publication Date: 2022-03-01
Set against the sweeping backdrop of the Napoleonic wars, Stance, married off to a cruel, older man, heads off to battle dressed as a boy and forges a new life path.
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
ISBN: 9781534441613
Publication Date: 2022-02-01
After her mother dies in an accident, 16-year-old Bree Matthews wants nothing to do with her family memories or childhood home. A residential program for bright high schoolers at UNC–Chapel Hill seems like the perfect escape—until Bree witnesses a magical attack her very first night on campus.
Messy Roots: a Graphic Memoir of a Wuhanese American by Laura Gao (Illustrator)
ISBN: 9780063067769
Publication Date: 2022-03-08
A timely and emotional story about immigration, coming-of-age, and coming out, framed by the anti-Chinese racism of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Murder among Friends by Candace Fleming
ISBN: 9780593177426
Publication Date: 2022-03-29
An unforgettable account of the devastating 1924 murder of 14-year-old Bobby Franks by two older teens. It describes the subsequent trial and discusses arguments surrounding the insanity defense and death penalty.
Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez
ISBN: 9781250786173
Publication Date: 2022-01-04
Of Puerto Rican heritage, Olga Acevedo is a wedding planner to the rich and powerful while brother Pedro ("Prieto") serves their gentrifying Latinx neighborhood as congressman in their hometown, New York. Maybe, just maybe, Olga has finally found a love of her own, but then the mother who deserted the siblings years ago to pursue her increasingly radical beliefs crashes back into their lives.
One Great Lie by Deb Caletti
ISBN: 9781534463172
Publication Date: 2021-06-01
A teenage girl gets the opportunity of a lifetime when she spends the summer in Venice at a young writers’ workshop with a celebrity author in this novel exploring sexual harassment and abuses of power by influential men.
Parachutes by Kelly Yang
ISBN: 9780062941091
Publication Date: 2021-07-13
Claire is a rich 11th grader in Shanghai; Dani is a scholarship student at a private school in Southern California who helps her mother clean houses. When Claire is parachuted into America to finish high school and Dani’s mother needs the income from a boarder, they become unlikely housemates.
Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi; Yusef Salaam
ISBN: 9780062996497
Publication Date: 2021-12-07
From award-winning, bestselling author Ibi Zoboi and prison reform activist Yusef Salaam of the Exonerated Five comes a powerful YA novel in verse about a boy who is wrongfully incarcerated.
Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet by Laekan Zea Kemp
ISBN: 9780316460279
Publication Date: 2021-04-06
Told in two voices, Pen, whose dream of taking over her family's restaurant has been destroyed, and Xander, a new, undocumented, employee seeking his father, form a bond. A stunning story of first love, familial expectations, the power of food, and finding where you belong.
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
ISBN: 9780345804327
Publication Date: 2018-01-30
Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hell for all the slaves, but especially bad for Cora; an outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is coming into womanhood--where even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they decide to take a terrifying risk and escape.
Wrecked by Heather Henson
ISBN: 9781442451056
Publication Date: 2022-03-22
In this romantic thriller set against a backdrop of dangerous drug activity in the woods of Kentucky, two teens fall hard for one another while a third loses his way.
Yonder by Ali Standish
ISBN: 9780062985682
Publication Date: 2022-05-10
Three years ago, Danny Timmons witnessed young Jack Bailey rescue two little girls from floodwaters while adults stood by, too afraid to help. Now it’s 1943, and Danny is describing his sharp observations of wartime life in the Appalachian town of Foggy Gap.