Year 7 reading list 2020

YEAR 7

READINGLIST

Some great fiction recommended by English teachers and the Librarian

Year 7 Reading List 2020

Welcome to K.E.S. from the English Department

As your English teachers, we can't wait to meet you and share our love of reading with you. Now more than ever we need the escape that reading can give and the opportunity it provides to take a journey of the mind.

My favourite times to read are very early in the morning before everyone else is awake, or in a stolen moment in the afternoon with a cup of tea and a chocolate biscuit. When and where do you like to read? It has been scientifically proven that reading with your feet in an elevated position is more enjoyable.

On a more serious note, I firmly believe that alongside all of my life experiences, reading has had the greatest influence on me as a person. I encourage you to browse this list and pick out a few titles that appeal to you. Don't be afraid to try an author or a genre that you haven't encountered before.

We look forward to meeting you in September and hearing about some of your reading discoveries.

MR ABBEY MISS BARTON MRS HUTTON

Welcome to K.E.S. from the Librarian

All the books on this list can be found in the school library, along with thousands more. I am looking forward to sharing them with you, finding out what books you like and helping you to discover writers you haven’t heard about yet. Your new favourite author might even be on this list!

Books that can be borrowed free as e-books from Warwickshire Public Libraries, if you have a library card, have been indicated with the Borrow Box logo. Any that aren’t available can be ordered from online book retailers, either in print or as e-books, and many of the older ones are available at lower prices from secondhand online sellers. Happy reading!

MRS WATTS

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Year 7 Reading List 2020

In the Shadow of Heroes by Nicholas Bowling

There is plenty of adventure in this story set in the Roman Empire, where a Greek slave and the daughter of a British chieftain get involved in a quest for the Golden Fleece of Greek mythology.

King of Shadows by Susan Cooper

One of the best books that features William Shakespeare as a character, and one that everyone in his school should read at some stage.

Sputnik's Guide to Life on Earth by Frank Cottrell Boyce

Prez finds his life being taken over by an alien called Sputnik whom his foster family seems to think is a dog. Only Prez knows he is from outer space and has special powers.

Orion Lost by Alastair Chisholm

A group of teenagers have to bring a stranded space ship safely back to Earth in this science fiction adventure that has plenty of plot twists.

The Good Hawk by Joseph Elliott

In a mythological Scotland, Jamie and Agatha are thrown together when a dreadful event destroys their life on Skye and forces them to embark on a dangerous mission to save the people they love.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Bod lost his family as a baby and is being brought up in the local graveyard by ghosts who are trying to protect him from the man who destroyed his family.

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Year 7 Reading List 2020

Boy in the Tower by Polly Ho-Yen

Ade is caring for his mum in an isolated tower block as he watches sinister plants called blutchers spread their deadly spores and take over the city.

Crater Lake by Jennifer Killick

The trip to Crater Lake is one of the worst school trips ever. It starts with a blood-soaked man warning Lance and his friends to run away and goes downhill from there.

Mic Drop by Sharna Jackson

The return of junior sleuths Nik and Norva in another tense detective story set around their London tower block. Their last adventure was called 'High Rise Mystery'.

The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble

A brother and sister and their dogs must travel across the Australian outback in search of food in a world decimated by a famine caused by a mysterious fungus.

Kick by Mitch Johnson

Budi works making football boots in a sweatshop in Jakarta but dreams of playing for Real Madrid. Will that ever be possible now he has accidentally become involved with one of the most feared criminals in the city?

4

How to Rob a Bank by Tom Mitchell

When you have a crush on a girl but you've accidentally burned down her house, you have to make it up to her somehow. Dylan is hopeless, but also hilarious. The author has a new book out called 'That Time I Got Kidnapped'.

Year 7 Reading List 2020

Orphans of the Tide by Struan Murray

Ellie lives in a city that rises from the sea and where harsh rules are enforced. She is the only one who believes that a boy washed up in the body of a whale is not the legendary 'Enemy' but someone worth saving.

Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen

Ambrose

is

a

nerdy

Scrabble fan and Cosmo

a reformed ex-convict.

When their paths cross,

they develop an unlikely

friendship. Susin Nielsen

always

laces

serious

subjects

with

huge

doses of humour.

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

Todd Hewitt lives in a world inhabited only by men who can hear one another's thoughts. One day he discovers a patch of silence and begins a heart-stopping adventure.

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

'My name is August. I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse.' Auggie is the likeable narrator of his own extraordinary story.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

'The monster showed up at midnight. As they do.' Conor has been having nightmares ever since his mother fell ill. This book has been called 'a singular masterpiece'.

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

This is the totally gripping story of Brian who has to survive alone in the Canadian wilderness after a plane crash.

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Year 7 Reading List 2020

Pax by Sara Pennypacker

Peter's father says he is going away to war and they must set Pax, Peter's tame fox, free. Boy and fox have never been parted and have to set out on separate journeys through the war-torn country to see if they can be reunited.

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Can Ghost stay the course to be a champion runner, or will his past problems sabotage his efforts?

Northern Lights by Philip Pullman

This must-read fantasy is the first in an outstanding series.

Lyra and her daemon find themselves at the heart of a truly terrible struggle in an astoundingly imagined world.

Knights of the Borrowed Dark by Dave Rudden

This has similarities with Harry Potter but a style all its own. It is an action-packed beginning to the series that continues with 'The Forever Court' and 'The Endless King'.

Here Lies Arthur by Philip Reeve

An ingenious reworking of the myth of King Arthur where Merlin, a master of manipulation, aims to turn Arthur, the not-very-clever leader of a small band of warriors, into a great king who can unite the realm.

6

The Explorer by Katherine Rundell

If you have ever wondered if you could survive in the Amazon jungle, this nail-biting story of a group of children whose plane crashes, and who must make their way down river to safety, conveys the experience in convincing detail.

Year 7 Reading List 2020

Spylark by Danny Rurlander

When Tom flies his drone over the Lake District where he lives, he discovers a terrorist plot. A great adventure especially for gadgetlovers.

The Guggenheim Mystery by Robin Stevens

A valuable painting has been stolen from the Guggenheim Museum in New York and Ted, Kat and Salim have to use their detective skills to try and retrieve it.

Outwalkers by Fiona Shaw

Jake is trying to be accepted and obey the rules of no technology, being outside and hidden and obedience to his little gang of 'outwalkers'. It is the only way he can escape a dystopian England and join his grandparents in Scotland.

928 Miles From Home by Kim Slater

Callum and his dad are fine living as they are. He really does not want Angie and her son Sergei, recently arrived from Poland, to move in with them. This is a family story and a crime adventure rolled into one.

7

The Screaming Staircase (Lockwood & Co.) by Jonathan Stroud

A company of ghosthunters is trying to rid London of an infestation of spirits. There is plenty of spookiness and a touch of Sherlock Holmes in this first book in the series.

The Gifted, the Talented and Me by William Sutcliffe

You are about to attend a school where everyone is gifted, talented and cool, but you feel you are really very ordinary.

Fifteen year old Sam tells his story in hilarious fashion.

Contains occasional use of strong language

Year 7 Reading List 2020

The Boy Who Fooled the World by Lisa Thompson

Cole is being treated as a genius, but has achieved fame by telling lies.

Lisa Thompson has written several bestselling books and this is her latest.

Paper Avalanche by Lisa Williamson

Ro Snow has managed to keep her home life a secret, until the annoying Tanvi Shah decides they are going to become friends.

A thoughtful and entertaining read.

Contains occasional use of strong language

Slick by M.M. Vaughan

Books I enjoyed...

Danny and Eric bond over playing Land X, an online game, when Eric moves to Ashland from New York. Their friendship is about to be tested when one of them discovers the other is actually an android.

The Kid Who Came From Space by Ross Welford

When you are hurtling through space with a hairy, smelly alien, a weird kid from school and a chicken called Suzy, you may wonder what has gone wrong with your life.

More book recommendations from the Librarian can be found at https://mrswatts101.edublogs.org

Cover illustration by Pavel Lunevich from 123rf.com8