Summer Reading > Grade 8

Summer Reading
Welcome, rising Grade 8 students!

In grade 8, we will start the year by exploring how literature helps young people find their voices and power. To prepare for this theme, you will choose one of the following novels below to read and enjoy. There is no written assignment over the summer. When we return in the fall, bring your book with you. We will use the book to practice understanding the theme and characterization.

We encourage you to take a look at each of these novels and see which is the best match for you! Although you are only required to read one novel, you are welcome to read more! (Note: For the March Trilogy, all three books are required)

Choose One Text:

March Trilogy by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell

March Trilogy presents in graphic novel format events from the life of Georgia congressman John Lewis, focusing on his involvement in the Civil Rights Movement.
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The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani

Shy twelve-year-old Nisha, forced to flee her home with her Hindu family during the 1947 partition of India, tries to find her voice and make sense of the world falling apart around her by writing to her deceased Muslim mother in the pages of her diary.
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The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

Rivalry between rich and poor gangs in 1960s Oklahoma leads to the deaths of three teenagers and intense soul-searching for one of the kids involved, a sensitive fourteen-year-old writer named Ponyboy.
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Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

While going through the possessions of a deceased guest who owed them money, the mistress of the inn and her son find a treasure map that leads them to a pirate's fortune as well as great danger.
Tristan Strong Punches the Sky A Rick Riordan novel by Kwame Mbalai

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
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Warcross by Marie Lu

When teenage coder Emika Chen hacks her way into the opening tournament of the Warcross Championships, she glitches herself into the game as well as a sinister plot with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.
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