Royster Summer Reading 2024

ROYSTERSUMMERREADING 2024

Royster Summer Reading Program

Welcome to the Royster Summer Reading program! Each book on our summer reading list has been hand-picked by a middle school teacher. Each student in the middle school will need to read THREE books from this list over the summer. As you choose your books, please keep these guidelines in mind:

1)Students and parents should look over the list together to select books that are a good fit for the student’s interests and abilities.

2)If you will be in the 7th grade next year, you will need to choose books listed for grades 7-9. Rising 8th graders may choose books for grades 7-9 or 8-9. Rising ninth graders may choose any books on the list.

3)We ask that you select books that you have not read before.

Students will use each book within the first month of school.

Group Discussion Selection: In August, a group of students who read the same book will meet with the sponsoring faculty member for a discussion and an activity based around the book. In the fall you will be assigned to a discussion group for one of the books you've signed up to read. You may choose which of your other two books will be used for English class and which will be used for the community activity.

English Class Selection: When they return to school, students will use one summer reading book to complete a writing exercise in English class. The specifics of the assignment will vary depending on the student’s class. Any of the books on the list will work for this activity.

Middle School Community Selection: The entire middle school community will participate in a group activity based on a summer reading book. Any book on the list will work.

How Do I Submit My Book Choices?

Current Bulldogs

All book selections will be submitted through Canvas. You will receive instructions from Mr. Robertson about book submissions.

New Bulldogs

You will submit your book selections through this Google Form.

How do I get copies of my books?

You can order all books through the Norfolk Academy Book Store. You are also welcome to acquire the book from the library or bookstore of your choice.

I have a question about Summer Reading that is not answered here. What should I do?

Contact the Middle School Office at 757.452.6829 and we will help you find an answer!

BENEATH THE SURFACE

MICHAELPHELPS GRADES7-9

Peek into the mind of a champion swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time (28 medals, including 23 gold). Readers will relive all the heart-stopping glory as Phelps completes his journey from the youngest man to ever set a world swimming record in 2001, to an Olympic powerhouse in 2008, to surpassing the greatest athlete of ancient Greece, Leonidas of Rhodes, with 13 triumphs in 2016. Athletes and fans alike will be fascinated by insights into Phelps’s training, mental preparation, and behind-the-scenes perspective on international athletic competitions.

BOLTFROMTHE BLUE

JENNIFERWOODLIEF GRADES7-9

On the afternoon of July 26, 2003, six vacationing mountain climbers ascended the peak of the Grand Teton in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Rain and colliding air currents blew in, and soon a massive electrical charge began to build. As the group began to retreat from its location, a colossal lightning bolt struck and pounded through the body of every climber. One of the six died instantly, one lay critically injured next to her body, and four dangled perilously into the chasm below. In riveting, pageturning prose, veteran journalist Jennifer Woodlief tells the story of the climb, the arrival of the storm, and the unprecedented rescue by the Jenny Lake Rangers, one of the most experienced climbing search-and-rescue teams in the country.

BOMB

STEVENSHEINKIN GRADES7-9

In December of 1938, a chemist in a German laboratory made a shocking discovery: When placed next to radioactive material, a Uranium atom split in two. That simple discovery launched a scientific race that spanned three continents. In Great Britain and the United States, Soviet spies worked their way into the scientific community; in Norway, a commando force slipped behind enemy lines to attack German heavy-water manufacturing; and deep in the desert, one brilliant group of scientists was hidden away at a remote site at Los Alamos. This is the story of the plotting, the risk-taking, the deceit, and genius that created the world's most formidable weapon. This is the story of the atomic bomb.

CHARLIE THORNE AND THE LAST EQUATION

STUARTGIBBS GRADE7-9

Decades ago, Albert Einstein devised an equation that could benefit all life on earth or destroy it. Fearing what would happen if the equation fell into the wrong hands, he hid it. But now, a diabolical group known as the Furies are closing in on its location. In desperation, a team of CIA agents drags Charlie into the hunt, needing her brilliance to find it first even though this means placing her life in grave danger. I

CODE TALKER JOSEPHBRUCHAC GRADES7-9

Throughout World War II, in the conflict fought against Japan, Navajo code talkers were a crucial part of the U.S. effort, sending messages back and forth in an unbreakable code that used their native language They braved some of the heaviest fighting of the war, and with their code, they saved countless American lives. Yet their story remained classified for more than twenty years. Joseph Bruchac brings their stories to life for young adults through the riveting fictional tale of Ned Begay, a sixteen-year-old Navajo boy who becomes a code talker.

DARE TO LEAD

BRENEBROWN GRADES8-9

Leadership is not about titles, status, and wielding power. A leader is anyone who takes responsibility for recognizing the potential in people and ideas, and has the courage to develop that potential. When we dare to lead, we don’t pretend to have the right answers; we stay curious and ask the right questions. We don’t see power as finite and hoard it; we know that power becomes infinite when we share it with others. We don’t avoid difficult conversations and situations; we lean into vulnerability when it’s necessary to do good work.

THE DARKNESS MANIFESTO

JOHANEKLOF GRADES7-9

How much light is too much light? Satellite pictures show our planet as a brightly glowing orb, and in our era of constant illumination, light pollution has become a major issue. The world’s flora and fauna have evolved to operate in the natural cycle of day and night. But in the last 150 years, we have extended our day and in doing so have forced out the inhabitants of the night and disrupted the circadian rhythms necessary to sustain all living things, including ourselves.

ENOLA HOLMES AND THE BLACK BAROUCHE

NANCYSPRINGER GRADES7-9

Enola Holmes is the much younger sister of her more famous brothers, Sherlock and Mycroft. But she has all the wits, skills, and sleuthing inclinations of them both. At fifteen, she's an independent young woman--after all, her name spelled backwards reads 'alone'--and living on her own in London. When a young professional woman, Miss Letitia Glover, shows up on Sherlock's doorstep, desperate to learn more about the fate of her twin sister, it is Enola who steps up. It seems her sister, the former Felicity Glover, married the Earl of Dunhench and per a curt note from the Earl, has died. But Letitia Glover is convinced this isn't the truth, that she'd know--she'd feel--if her twin had died.

EVERLOST NEALSHUSTERMAN GRADES7-9

Nick and Allie don’t survive the car accident and their souls don’t exactly get where they’re supposed to go Instead, they’re caught halfway between life and death, in a sort of limbo known as Everlost: a shadow of the living world, filled with all the things and places that no longer exist. It’s a magical, yet dangerous, place where bands of lost kids run wild and anyone who stands in the same place too long sinks to the center of the Earth. When they find Mary, the self-proclaimed queen of lost souls, Nick feels like he’s found a home, but Allie isn’t satisfied spending eternity between worlds. Against all warnings, Allie begins learning the “Criminal Art” of haunting, and ventures into dangerous territory, where a monster called the McGill threatens all the souls of Everlost.

THEFOUR AGREEMENTS

DONMIGUELRUIZ GRADES7-9

Bestselling author don Miguel Ruiz reveals the source of self-limiting beliefs that rob us of joy and create needless suffering. Based on ancient Toltec wisdom, The Four Agreements offer a powerful code of conduct that can rapidly transform our lives to a new experience of freedom, true happiness, and love.

GATHERINGBLUE

LOISLOWRY GRADES7-9

Left orphaned and physically flawed in a civilization that shuns and discards the weak, Kira faces a frighteningly uncertain future. Her neighbors are hostile, and no one but a small boy offers to help. When she is summoned to judgment by The Council of Guardians, Kira prepares to fight for her life. But the Council, to her surprise, has plans for her. Blessed with an almost magical talent that keeps her alive, the young girl faces new responsibilities and a set of mysteries deep within the only world she has ever known. On her quest for truth, Kira discovers things that will change her life and world forever.

GIRL WITH THE BLUE COAT

MONICAHESSE GRADES7-9

Amsterdam, 1943. Hanneke spends her days procuring and delivering sought-after black market goods to paying customers, her nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the Dutch front lines when the Germans invaded. She likes to think of her illegal work as a small act of rebellion.On a routine delivery, a client asks Hanneke for help. Expecting to hear that Mrs. Janssen wants meat or kerosene, Hanneke is shocked by the older woman's frantic plea to find a person a Jewish teenager Mrs. Janssen had been hiding, who has vanished without a trace from a secret room.

HOWL'S MOVINGCASTLE

DIANAWYNNEJONES

GRADES7-9

Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the Wizard Howl's castle.

To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there's far more to Howl and herself than first meets the eye.

THEHUNGERGAMES SUZANNECOLLINS GRADES7-9

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, "The Hunger Games," a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the Games. The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed.

INTHEHALLOFTHE DRAGONKING

STEPHENLAWHEAD GRADES7-9

Carrying a sealed message from the war-hero Dragon King to the queen, Quentin and his outlaw companion, Theido, plunge headlong into a fantastic odyssey and mystic quest. Danger lurks everywhere in the brutal terrain, and particularly in the threats from merciless creatures, both human and not-so-human.

While at the castle, the wicked Prince Jaspin schemes to secure the crown for himself, and an evil sorcerer concocts his own monstrous plan. A plan that Quentin and Theido could never imagine.

KILLERSOFTHE FLOWERMOON (ADAPTEDFOR YOUNGREADERS)

DAVIDGRANN GRADES8-9

In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, the Osage rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe.Then, one by one, the Osage began to be killed off. As the death toll surpassed more than twenty-four Osage, the newly created F.B.I. took up the case, in what became one of the organization's first major homicide investigations. An undercover team, including one of the only Native American agents in the bureau, infiltrated the region, struggling to adopt the latest modern techniques of detection to bring an end to the deadly crime spree. Together with the Osage they began to expose one of the most chilling conspiracies in American history.

LUNAR NEW YEAR LOVE STORY

GENELUENYANG GRADES7-9

Val is ready to give up on love. It's led to nothing but secrets and heartbreak, and she's pretty sure she's cursed no one in her family, for generations, has ever had any luck with love.

But then a chance encounter with a pair of cute lion dancers sparks something in Val. Is it real love? Could this be her chance to break the family curse? Or is she destined to live with a broken heart forever?

MARVELS KURTBUSIEK GRADES7-9

Within the Marvel Universe, heroes soar high in the skies, ready to battle the villains who threaten their world. Yet living in the shadow of these extraordinary icons are ordinary men and women who view the Marvels with a mixture of fear, disbelief, envy and admiration. Among them is Phil Sheldon, a New York City photojournalist who has dedicated his career to covering the exploits of the Marvels and their effect on humankind.

Written by Kurt Busiek and masterfully illustrated by Alex Ross, Marvels presents a richly painted historical overview of the entire Marvel Universe, spanning from the 1939 debut of the Human Torch to the fearsome coming of the worlddevouring Galactus and culminating in the shocking death of Gwen Stacy, Spider-Man’s first love.

THE MONA LISA VANISHES

NICHOLASDAY GRADE7-9

On a hot August day in Paris, just over a century ago, a desperate guard burst into the office of the director of the Louvre and shouted, The Mona Lisa, she’s gone! No one knew who was behind the heist. Was it an international gang of thieves? Was it an art-hungry American millionaire? Was it the young Spanish painter Pablo Picasso, who was about to remake the very art of painting? Travel back to an extraordinary period of revolutionary change: turn-of-thecentury Paris. Walk its backstreets. Meet the infamous thieves and detectives of the era. And then slip back further in time and follow Leonardo da Vinci, painter of the Mona Lisa, through his dazzling, wondrously weird life. Discover the secret at the heart of the Mona Lisa the most famous painting in the world should never have existed at all.

MY OWN LIGHTNING LAURENWOLK GRADES7-9

It’s been several months since the tragic events set in motion by bully Betty Glengarry, and the routine of daily life in Wolf Hollow has slowly returned. But for Annabelle McBride it’s hard to move forward and make peace with what feels like threadbare justice. Newly warm summer days are about to bring a jolt of change on the winds of a powerful storm. In its wake, the search for her brother’s missing dog will set Annabelle on a new path that brings her to unfamiliar doorsteps and reunites her with a too-familiar adversary Andy Woodberry, who was complicit in Betty’s most terrible acts. Growing up and blazing her own trail will soon force Annabelle to reexamine deeply felt truths about people, about justice, about herself that had once seemed so uncomplicated.

NOWHERE BOY KATHERINEMARSH GRADES7-9

Fourteen-year-old Ahmed is stuck in a city that wants nothing to do with him. Newly arrived in Brussels, Belgium, Ahmed fled a life of uncertainty and suffering in Aleppo, Syria, only to lose his father on the perilous journey to the shores of Europe Now Ahmed’s struggling to get by on his own, but with no one left to trust and nowhere to go, he’s starting to lose hope. Then he meets Max, a thirteen-year-old American boy from Washington, D.C. Lonely and homesick, Max is struggling at his new school and just can’t seem to do anything right. But with one startling discovery, Max and Ahmed’s lives collide and a friendship begins to grow. Together, Max and Ahmed will defy the odds, learning from each other what it means to be brave and how hope can change your destiny.

OLD SCHOOL GRIT

DARRINDONNELLY GRADES7-9

Psychologists tell us that the secret to a successful and happy life, more than anything else, is something called GRIT. Defined as the willpower to persevere with passion and a sense of purpose, research shows that grit is what matters most in whether a person succeeds or fails. That same research shows that previous generations had a lot more grit than today’s younger generations. This isn’t surprising. After all, most of us would agree that those older, wiser, and tougher members of the Greatest Generation are prime examples of what it means to persevere, to never back down, and to make sacrifices for a greater purpose. We could all use more of the Old School Grit they embraced.

PONY R.J.PALACIO GRADE7-9

When Silas Bird wakes in the dead of night, he watches powerlessly as three strangers take his father away. Silas is left shaken, scared, and alone, except for the presence of his companion, Mittenwool . . . who happens to be a ghost. But then a mysterious pony shows up at his door, and Silas knows what he has to do. So begins a perilous journey to find his father--a journey that will connect him with his past, his future, and the unknowable world around him.

REFUGEE ALANGRATZ GRADES7-9

Josef is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration camps looming, he and his family board a ship bound for the other side of the world...

Isabel is a Cuban girl in 1994. With riots and unrest plaguing her country, she and her family set out on a raft, hoping to find safety in America...

Mahmoud is a Syrian boy in 2015. With his homeland torn apart by violence and destruction, he and his family begin a long trek toward Europe...

All three kids go on harrowing journeys in search of refuge. All will face unimaginable dangers -from drownings to bombings to betrayals. But there is always the hope of tomorrow And although Josef, Isabel, and Mahmoud are separated by continents and decades, shocking connections will tie their stories together in the end.

REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES

SHELBYVANPELT GRADES8-9

After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.

Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.

SCYTHE NEALSHUSTERMAN GRADES8-9

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery: humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now Scythes are the only ones who can end life and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.

SHETHE CONFIDENT

SHAYHADDOW GRADES7-9

In youth sports, the majority focus is spent on the physical side of sport: becoming faster, stronger, and more skilled, yet there is an apparent lack of resources and programs dedicated to developing confidence in female athletes which is vital for developing well-rounded athletes. The pressure for youth female athletes to succeed is higher than ever, and without the confidence and self-belief, girls are quitting sports at an alarming rate. Not only does confidence affect female athlete’s performance and enjoyment of the sport, but more importantly, it affects how they lead their lives.

SMALL COUNTRY GAELFAYE GRADES8-9

Burundi, 1992. For ten-year-old Gabriel, life in his comfortable expatriate neighborhood of Bujumbura with his French father, Rwandan mother and little sister Ana, is something close to paradise. These are carefree days of laughter and adventure – sneaking Supermatch cigarettes and gorging on stolen mangoes – as he and his mischievous gang of friends transform their tiny cul-de-sac into their kingdom. But dark clouds are gathering over this small country, and soon their peaceful existence will shatter when Burundi, and neighboring Rwanda, are brutally hit by civil war and genocide.

THE SPIRIT IN THE STICK

NEILDUFFY GRADES7-9

Robbie Jones is a fourteen-year-old lacrosse player, a young talent. He’s been noticed by lacrosse legend, former naval aviator and test pilot Jim Lewis, who has determined that Robbie will be the next recipient of an important gift. The gift is a special hand-made, wooden lacrosse stick, over two-hundred years old, with Cherokee and Iroquois origins. Lewis received the same stick from another legend when he was about Robbie’s age. And he has been only one in an exceptional line of “custodians” who have absorbed the full history of the sport and have learned difficult and important life lessons from the spirit in the stick.

THEREISA RIVER THOMASSUGRUE GRADES7-9

This is the complete, original biography of the best-documented psychic in America. It tells the story of how Edgar Cayce discovered his astounding psychic gifts and what led him to a life dedicated to helping others. Cayce’s "readings," given in a trancelike state, ranged from phenomenal medical cures to advice on spiritual growth, psychology, and the prophesy of world events.

TRAVELTEAM MIKELUPICA GRADES7-9

Twelve-year-old Danny Walker may be the smallest kid on the basketball court -- but don't tell him that. Because no one plays with more heart or court sense. But none of that matters when he is cut from his local travel team, the very same team his father led to national prominence as a boy. Danny's father, still smarting from his own troubles, knows Danny isn't the only kid who was cut for the wrong reason, and together, this washed-up former player and a bunch of neversay-die kids prove that the heart simply cannot be measured.

TWODEGREES

ALANGRATZ GRADES7-9

Akira is riding her horse in the California woods when a wildfire sparks--and grows scarily fast How can she make it to safety when there are flames everywhere?

Owen and his best friend, George, are used to seeing polar bears on the snowy Canadian tundra. But when one bear gets way too close for comfort, do the boys have any chance of surviving?

Natalie hunkers down at home as a massive hurricane barrels toward Miami. When the floodwaters crash into her house, Natalie is dragged out into the storm--with nowhere to hide.

Akira, Owen, George, and Natalie are all swept up in the devastating effects of climate change. They are also connected in ways that will shock them-and could alter their destinies forever.

UGLIES SCOTTWESTERFELD GRADES7-9

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait. In just a few weeks she’ll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty. And as a pretty, she’ll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun.

But Tally’s new friend Shay isn’t sure she wants to become a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world and it isn’t very pretty. The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally’s choice will change her world forever.