RMS READING
EIGHTH GRADE

Everyone At Richmond Reads!

All English teachers at the Richmond School ask their students to read a minimum of two books over the summer and read continuously throughout the year. This site contains the reading lists sent out to students coming into grades six through twelve.

The Sixth Grade List contains new books from this year's Vermont's Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award and the New Hampshire Great Stone Face Award selections.
The Seventh Grade List contains brief reviews written over the years by students leaving the seventh grade.
Howe Library and The Norwich Public Library
both have terrific librarians who will recommend more favorites. Enjoy!!!

SUMMER READING ASSIGNMENT
All Richmond School students are expected to read at least two books over the summer, and we hope you will read many more. Find books that appeal to you, are not too difficult to read, and enjoy them! Try to get in the habit of reading daily, even for a short stretch. The eighth grade list contains a wide selection of books listed by genre; in addition, you can link to our page of the American Library Association 2010 top picks for young adults: ALA Top 10, Printz Awards, Alex Awards (best adult books for teens); and new this year: YALSA Awards for Excellence in Young Adult Non-Fiction.

None of these lists is meant to be exclusive or definitive: they are simply an expression of Richmond's deep commitment to pleasure reading. Many of the authors on our list have written a number of excellent books: only one or two are listed here in the interest of space. PG NOTE: Some of the books on this list contain teenage or adult issues and situations. Please respect your family's wishes about appropriate books as you would about film choices and internet sites. We try to develop lists with all our readers in mind, as does the American Library Association.


Please save the following to be read and discussed as class books during the year:
Lee. To Kill A Mockingbird
Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet
Steinbeck. Of Mice and Men
Wiesel. Night

2010-2011 EIGHTH GRADE RECOMMENDATIONS

FANTASY * SCIENCE FICTION * HORROR

HISTORICAL FICTION

2010 ALA TOP BOOKS
ANNOTATED WITH COVERS

REALISTIC FICTION

NON-FICTION

2009 ALA TOP BOOKS
ANNOTATED WITH COVERS

FANTASY * SCIENCE FICTION * HORROR

Addams. Watership Down
Adams.
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Anderson. Feed
Asimov. Foundation

Barlow
. Sharp Teeth ('09 Alex)
Barron.
Lost Years of Merlin
Bradbury.
Fahrenheit 451
Bray.
A Great and Terrible Beauty

Brennan. Demon's Lexicon ('10 ALA)
Brunner. Shockwave Rider
Card. Ender's Game / 7th Sun
Chabon. Summerland
Colfer. Artemis Fowl
Carriger.
Soulless: Alexia Tarabotti ('10 Alex)
Eddings.
Pawn of Prophecy
Anthony. Centaur Aisle
Clement-Davies. Fire Bringer
Connolly. The Book of Lost Things
Constable. Singer of All Songs
Cooper. The Dark is Rising
Crichton. Jurrasic Park
DePrau. City of Ember
Farmer. The House of the Scorpion
Feist. Magician's Apprentice
Funke. The Thief Lord / Inkheart

Gaiman. Anansi Boys / Stardust
Grossman. The Magicians ('10 Alex)
Hearn. Across the Nightingale Floor
Hunter. Warriors (series)
Jacques. Mossflower
Jenkins. Repossessed

Jinks. The Reformed Vampire Support Group ('10 ALA)
King. Just After Sunset ('09 Alex)
Knox.
Dreamquake

Lanagan. Tender Morsels ('09 Printz Honor)
Landy. Skulduggery Pleasant
Larbalestier. Magic or Madness
L'Engle. A Wrinkle in Time

LeGuin. Wizard of Earthsea
Lewis. Chronicles of Narnia
Martin. Storm of Swords
McCaffrey. Dragonsong
McKinley. Deerskin
Meyer.
Twilight
Murphy. Night Flying
Nix. Sabriel
Paolini. Eragon & Eldest
Pattou. East
Pierce. Trickster's Choice

Pratchett. Nation ('09 ALA & Printz Honor)
Oppel. Airborn / Skybreaker
Riordan.
Lightning Thief
Rowling. Harry Potter
Ruff. Bad Monkeys
Sage.
Magyk
Slade. Dust
Sleator. Beasties
Snicket. Series of Impossible Events
Stead. When You Reach Me ('10 ALA)

Stewart. The Crystal Cave
Stroud. Bartimaeus Trilogy

Swanick. The Dragons of Babel ('09 Alex)
Taylor. Lips Touch: Three Times ('10 ALA)
Tolan. Welcome to the Ark
Tolkien. The Hobbit / Lord of the Rings
Turner. The King of Attolia
Vanderveld. Knight's Apprentice
Verne. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Wells.
The War of the Worlds
Westerfield. Uglies / Peeps
Vonnegut. Cat's Cradle
Yolen. Dragon's Blood
Zevin. Elsewhere

HISTORICAL FICTION

EARLY HISTORY
Anderson. The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation
Anderson.
Octavian Nothing Volume II ('09 Printz Honor & Alex)
Avi.
Crispin: The Cross of Lead
Achebe. Things Fall Apart
Blackwood. Shakespeare Stealer
Bradley. The Mists of Avalon
Brooks. Year of Wonders
Crichton. Timeline
Collier. My Brother Sam Is Dead
Cross. Pope Joan
Follett. Pillars of the Earth
Gregory. The Other Boleyn Girl
Iggulden. Genghis: Birth of an Empire
Levitin. The Cure
Meyers. Mary Bloody Mary
Morressy. The Juggler

Napoli. Breath
Rinaldi. A Break With Charity
Renault. The King Must Die
Rosoff. The Bride’s Farewell ('10 Alex)
Smith. I Capture the Castle
Tinti.
The Good Thief ('09 Alex)
White.
The Once and Future King
Yolen.
Sword of the Rightful King: Arthur

19TH CENTURY
Alcott. Little Women
Austen. Pride and Prejudice
Avi. The Barn

Brontë, C. Jane Eyre
Brontë, E. Wuthering Heights
Chevalier. Girl With a Pearl Earring
Crane. The Red Badge of Courage
Dumas. Three Musketeers
Crichton. The Great Train Robbery
Dickens. Oliver Twist
Doyle. The Hound of the Baskervilles
du Maurier. Rebecca
Farmer. A Girl Named Disaster

Frazier.
Cold Mountain
Gratz. Samurai Shortstop
Haley. Roots
Hesse.
Stowaway
Lester.
Day of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue
Meyer. Bloody Jack
Jones.
Mister Pip
Lockhart. The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks ('09 Printz Honor)
Lutz.
The Spellman Files

Montgomery. Anne of Green Gables
Napoli.
Bound (China)
Napoli.
 Alligator Bayou ('10 ALA)
Park. A Single Shard (Korea)
Pearsall. Crooked River
Rawlings. The Yearling
Rothfuss.The Name of the Wind
Sayers. Gaudy Night
Shaara. The Killer Angels
Stevenson. Treasure Island
Stowe. Uncle Tom's Cabin
Tan.The Arrival
Twain. Tom Sawyer / Huckleberry Finn

Walker. Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith ('10 Printz Honor)
Wharton. Ethan Frome

20TH CENTURY LIFE & CONFLICT
Adichie. Purple Hibiscus
Alvarez. In the Time of the Butterflies
Benioff. City of Thieves ('09 Alex)
Cheech. Walk Two Moons
Crowe. Mississippi Trial, 1955
Duncan, D. The Brothers K
Gaines. A Lesson Before Dying
Gibbons. Ellen Foster
Gorman. The Stumptown Kid
Hamill. Snow in August
Hemingway. The Old Man and the Sea
Hosseini. The Kite Runner

Jordan. Mudbound ('09 Alex)
Kidd. Secret Life of Bees
King. The Beekeeper's Apprentice
Kingsolver. Poisonwood Bible
McCullers. Member of the Wedding
Mosher. Looking for Teddy Williams
Myers. Fallen Angels (Vietnam)
O'Brien. The Things They Carried
Paterson.
Preacher's Boy
Peck. A Day No Pigs Would Die

Peet. Tamar

Picoult. A Second Glance
Potok. The Chosen
Salinger. Catcher in the Rye
Smith. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Steinbeck.
Grapes of Wrath / Red Pony
Taylor.
The Land
Thornton.
Our Town
Watkins. Far from the Bamboo Grove
Whelan. Listening for Lions
Wright. Native Son
WORLD WAR II
Boyne. The Boy in Striped Pajamas
Bruchac. Code Talker
Chambers. Postcards from No Man's Land
Courtney. The Power of One
Elliott. Under the War Torn Sky
Hegi. Stones from the River
Heller. Catch-22
Helperin. Soldier of the Great War
Knowles. A Separate Peace
Magorian. Goodnight, Mr. Tom
Mazer, H.. The Last Mission
Mazer, N.. Good Night, Maman
Mishima. The Sound of Waves
Napoli. Stones in the Water
Park. When My Name Was Keoko: A Novel of Korea
Nelson. And One For All
Nolan. If I Should Die Before I Wake
Spinelli. Milkweed
Spiegelman. Maus I / Maus II
Pullman. The Ruby and the Smoke
Yolen. The Devil's Arithmetic
Zusak
. The Book Thief

MODERN REALISTIC FICTION
Alexie. The Absolute True Diary of a Part Time Indian.
Alvarez. Before We Were Free
Anderson. Wintergirls
Asher. 13 Reasons Why
Blackwell.
Noughts and Crosses
Braff. The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green
Brashares. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Barnes. Tales of the Madman Underground
('10 Printz Honor)
Bray. Going Bovine ('10 Printz Winner)

Brooks, K. Lucas: A Story of Love and Hate
Brown. Angels & Demons / Da Vinci Code
Buckhanon. Upstate
Chbosky. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Choldenko. Al Capone Does My Shirts
Christie. And Then There Were None
Cisneros.
House on Mango Street
Clancy. Patriot Games
Clarke. One Whole and Perfect Day
Clements. Things Not Seen
Collins. Hunger Games ('09 ALA)
Connor. Waiting for Normal ('09 ALA)
Cook.
Outbreak

Cooney. Driver's Ed

Cormier. The Rag and Bone Shop

Crutcher.
Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes
Currie.
Everything Matters! ('10 Alex)
 
Curtis. Bucking the Sarge
Cussler. Park Watch
de la Peña. Mexican White Boy ('09 ALA)
Dessen. Lock and Key
Doig The Whistling Season
Dowd. Bog Child ('09 ALA)
Draper. Forged By Fire
Deenham. Before I Die
Duncan, D. The Brothers K
Duncan, L. Stranger With My Face
Ferraris. Finding Nouf
('09 Alex)
Flake. Beggin' for Change
Fleischman. Breakout
Flinn. Breathing Under Water
Frost. Keesha's House
Giles. Shattering Glass
Going. Fat Kid Rules the World
Golding. Lord of the Flies
Green. Looking for Alaska / Paper Towns
Green & Levithan.. Will Grayson / Will Grayson
('10 Goodling/Horan Award)

Greene. The Drowning of Stephan Jones
Griffin. The Orange Houses ('10 ALA)
Grisham. Street Lawyer / The Client
Gruen. Water for Elephants

Haddix. Among the Hidden
Haddon. Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Hahn . The Old Willis Place
Hartinger. Geography Club
Hartnett. Surrender
Hautman.
Godless / Rash

Herlong. The Great Wide Sea ('10 ALA)
Hiaasen. Hoot / Flush
Hidier. Born Confused
Hinton. The Outsiders
Horowitz. Stormbreaker / Raven's Gate
Hosseini. Kite Runner
Hurwin. A Time for Dancing
Kyle. The God of Animals
Iverson. Only the Strong Survive
Jenkins. Out of Order
Joern. Floor of the Sky
Johnson. The First Last Part
Klass. You Don't Know Me
Konigsburg. The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place
Korman. Son of the Mob
Lanagan. Black Juice
Lawrence. B for Buster
Monninger.
Baby ('09 ALA)
Lawrence.
The Lightkeeper's Daughter
Lemire. Tales from the Farm
Levenkron. The Luckiest Girl in the World
Levithan. Boy Meets Boy
Lockhart. The Disreputable History of Landau-Banks ('09 Printz Honor)
Ludlum. The Bourne Identity
Lupica. Travel Team
Lynch. The Highest Tide
Marchetta. Jellicoe Road ('09 Printz Winner)
Martell. Life of Pi
McCaughrean. The White Darkness
McCormick. Sold
McDonald. Swallowing Stones
McNeal. Crooked
Maltman. The Night Birds
Meyer. Twilight: A Novel
Mikaelsen. Touching Spirit Bear
Mori. Shizuko's Daughter
Moriarty. Feeling Sorry for Celia
Morpurgo. Private Peaceful
Mosher. Zazoo
Murrow. Twelve Days in August
Myers. Monster / Scorpions

Na. A Step from Heaven
Naidoo.
The Other Side of Truth

Murdock. Dairy Queen

Nolan. If I Should Die Before I Wake
Oates. Big Mouth and Ugly Girl
Paterson. Same Stuff As Stars
Paulsen. Hatchet / Tracker
Peet.
Tamar
Picoult. My Sister's Keeper / 19 Minutes
Plum-Ucci. Whatever Happened to Lani Garver
Rapp. Under the Wolf, Under the Dog

Rapp. Punkzilla ('10 Printz Honor)
Rock. My Abandonment ('10 Alex)
Rash. The World Made Straight
Rebeck. Three Girls and Their Brother. ('09 Alex)
Robinson. U.S.S. Seawolf
Rosoff. how i live now
Roth. Avalanche
Sachar.
Holes
Saenz.
Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood
Sayres. Anahita's Woven Riddle
Sebold. The Lovely Bones
Selznick. The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Setterfield
The Thirteenth Tale
Shea. Tangled Threads: A Hmong Girl's Story

Smelcer The Trap
Scoppetone. Trying Hard to Hear You

Sones.
What My Mother Doesn't Know
Spinelli.
Stargirl
Stork. Marcelo in the Real World ('10 ALA)
Stratton.
Chanda's Secrets
Tamaki. Slim ('09 ALA)
Thompson. Blankets: An Illustrated Novel
Tolan. Me and Hank
Townsend. Secret Diary of Adrian Mole
Trueman. Stuck in Neutral
Vaughan. Runaways: Volume 1
Voorhees. Ten Cents a Dance ('09 ALA)
Weeks. So B It: A Novel
Whelan. Homeless Bird
White. Deathwatch
Wilhelm. The Revealers
Williams. When Kambia Elaine Flew In From Neptune

Wilson. Tunneling to the Center of the Earth ('10 Alex)
Wolff. Make Lemonade / True Believer
Wooding. Poison
Woodson. Locomotion
Zusak. I am the Messenger

NON-FICTION

YALSA EXCELLENCE IN NON-FICTION ~ New 2010 Award
HISTORY AND SOCIAL STRUGGLES

Atkin. Voices from the Streets
Bartoletti. Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow
Beah.
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
Cheng.
Bound Feet and Western Dress
Crowe. Getting Away with Murder: The Emmett Till Case
DuBois. The Souls of Black Folk

Finkel. The Good Soldiers ~ Iraq ('10 Alex)
Frank.
Diary of a Young Girl
Griffith. Black Like Me
Hoose. Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice ('10 YALSA Non-Fiction)

Jiang. Red Scarf Girl
Jones . Our America
Kozol. Amazing Grace
Lester.
To Be A Slave
Mah. Chinese Cinderella

Mathabane. Kaffir Boy
Malcolm X. Autobiography of Malcolm X
McCourt. Angela's Ashes
McPherson. Fields of Fury: The American Civil War
Mellon. Bullwhip Days: Slave Narratives
Moody. Coming of Age in Mississippi
Murphy. American Plague: Yellow Fever Epidemic
 
Opdyke. In My Hands: Memories
Satrapi. Persepolis

Walker. Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland ('10 ALA & YALSA Non-Fiction)
Williams. Eyes on the Prize

Yancy. Charles and Emma: The Darwins Leap of Faith ('10 Printz Honor & YALSA Non-Fiction)
NATURE, SURVIVAL & SPORTS
Armstrong. It's Not About the Bike
Bissinger. Friday Night Lights
Blais. In These Girls, Hope Is a Muscle
Colton. Counting Coup
Bookreev.
The Climb
Bryson. A Walk in the Woods
Carson. Silent Spring
Hoose. The Race to Save the Lord God Bird 

Junger. The Perfect Storm
Krakauer. Into Thin Air
Lansing. Endurance
Lewis. The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game
Paulsen. How Angel Peterson Got His Name (Stories of Extreme Sports)

Philbrick. In The Heart of the Sea
Raskowitz. The Long Walk
Simpson. Touching the Void

UNIQUE PEOPLE & CULTURES

Akbar & Burton, Susan. Come Back to Afghanistan: A California Teenager's Story
Bolden. Wake Up Our Souls: Black American Artists
Bowman. It's Complicated: The American Teenager ('09 ALA)
Charrier. Papillon
Copland. What to Listen For in Music
Curie. Madam Curie: a Biography
Feldstein. The Oxford Project ('09 Alex)

Fleming. The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P. T. Barnum ('10 YALSA Non-Fiction)
Fleischman.
Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science
Gantos. Hole in My Life
Grandin. Emergence from Autism / Animals in Translation

Guevara. The Motorcycle Diaries
Heiligman
. Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith ('10 ALA & YALSA Non-Fiction Winner)
Hemphill.
Your Own Sylvia
Kamkwamba. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope ('10 Alex)
Partridge.
John Lennon: All I Want Is The Truth, A Photographic Biography
Petroski. Invention by Design
Polly. American Shaolin

Small.. Stitches: A Memoir ('10 ALA & ALEX)
Stone. Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream ('10 YALSA Non-Fiction)
Welch. The Kids Are All Right: A Memoir ('10 Alex)