High School Reads!

by Ernest Cline Lexile:  990 Genre:  Science Fiction, Dystopian It is 2044 and the world is a very different place.  In fact, Wade Watts wants to avoid the real world as much as possible.  He accomplishes this by logging into the OASIS where he is a powerful avatar on a quest to win the ultimate prize that would make him one of the most powerful people in the world - virtual and real.  But there are many others on this quest as well and Wade will have to decide who he can trust as the stakes are very high.  Will he be able to survive long enough to complete the quest and win the prize?

by Fredrick McKissack, Jr. Lexile:  720 Genre:  Realistic Fiction Jomo Rodgers wants to be the best...the biggest and the fastest football player on the team.  His best friend Jayson seemingly has it all and is on pace to become a team leader of the varsity squad. Jomo's coach lectures him about his commitment to football at the end of the season and Jomo promises to try harder by working out more so that he can grow bigger and faster.  But he is afraid that it won't be enough to compete with superstars like Jayson.  Jomo has heard about players who take supplements and steroids.  Would that be the right choice for him?

by Jen Larsen Lexile:  ??? Genre:  Realistic Fiction Every year on her birthday, Ashley gets a card from her grandmother that offers her a big gift if she is willing to lose weight.  This year the stakes are especially high:  Ashley has been offered four tuition free years at Harvard University, her dream school, if she agrees to weight loss surgery.  Ashley wants to go to Harvard more than anything, but she also doesn't want to cave to her grandmother's demands.  Ashley is happy with the way she looks and doesn't feel that her weight holds her back. Will Ashley have the courage to stand up to her grandmother and get what she wants out of her life?

by Chris Crutcher Lexile:  870 Genre:  Realistic Fiction, Sports Willie was a superstar baseball player.  He was the hometown hero after the outcome of the Crazy Horse Electric Game.  But then he was injured in a boating accident and his whole world changed. Suddenly he could no longer compete as an athlete, connect with his friends and girlfriend, and his relationship with his parents becomes strained.  Willie decides that the only pathway left for him is to head out of town to see if he can make a new life for himself, away from the people who knew him as a superstar athlete.

by John Marsden Lexile:  850 Genre:  Dystopia, Science Fiction Ellie and her friends have finally persuaded her parents to let them go camping alone.  They have a great time out in the Australian wilderness until they return and find that everyone is gone.  The electricity is off, the phones don't work, and there is no sign of life anywhere.  But then strange aircraft and helicopters are flying overhead.  After some investigating, they find out that the world as they know it has ended.  Their country has been invaded and their friends and family are all being held hostage.  They have two choices:  return to the wilderness and try to survive on their own or stay and try to figure out where everyone went.

by Lynda Mullaly Hunt Lexile:  550 Genre:  Realistic Fiction Ally has become an expert at fooling people.  Her extreme behaviors have helped her mask the fact from her teachers that she can't read.  She prefers to have people think that she is a troublemaker, rather than "slow" or "dumb."  In reality, Ally is a very bright girl who has creatively managed to fool all of her teachers for the last seven years, until Mr. Daniels takes over for Mrs. Hall midyear.  Mr. Daniels isn't falling for Ally's old tricks.  He actually expects her to stay in class and do all of the reading and writing assignments.  He tells Ally that she can trust him, but will Ally be willing to reveal her biggest secret?