Non-Honors Reading List

GRADE 9

Ender's Game—Orson Scott Card- Andrew "Ender" Wiggin is considered humanity's best hope for leading Earth to victory over the alien "bugger" fleet.  Officials isolate and test Ender as much as possible to mold him into the effective military leader that they so desperately need.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet - "In the opening pages of Jamie Ford's debut novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Henry Lee comes upon a crowd gathered outside the Panama Hotel. once the gateway to Seattle's Japantown. It has been boarded up for decades. but now the new owner has made an incredible discovery: the belongings of Japanese families, left when they were rounded up and sent to internment camps during World War II. As Henry looks on, the owner opens a Japanese parasol."

GRADE 10

Ironman - Chris Crutcher - Bo has been at war with his father for as long as he can remember.  The rage he feels gives him the energy as a triathlete to press his body to the limit, but it also translates into angry outbursts toward his teachers.  Now dangerously closed to expulsion from school, Bo has been assigned to Anger Management sessions with the school "truants."  With an electric mix of hard-edged students, Bo may finally have to deal with his long-brewing hatried for his father -- before it eats away at him completely.

Elsewhere—Gabrielle Zevin- Fifteen-year old Liz dies in a car accident and goes to a place called Elsewhere.  She must try to forget her old life and live a new life as she ages backwards until she is ready to return to Earth.

GRADE 11

The Glass Castle: A Memoir—Jeannette Walls- This book chronicles the life of writer Jeanette Walls. Her dysfunctional family has a transient existence in which they live briefly in various places around the country. Jeannette and her siblings learn to fend for themselves as they weather their parents' betrayals and inability to take care of their children. Some mature language is included.

As Simple as Snow —Gregory Galloway- The story of a shy high school sophomore's unlikely love for a Goth girl (Anna Cayne) seems simple enough, but everything quickly gets complicated when Anna disappears and the narrator attempts to find out what happened to her. 

Unbroken - Laura Hillenbrand - On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood.  Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared--Lt.Louis Zamperini. Captured by the Japanese and driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor. (Biography)

GRADE 12

The Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein - A heart-wrenching but deeply funny and ultimately uplifting story of family love, loyalty, and hope--a captivating look at the wonders and absurdities of human life . . . as only a dog could tell it.

Anansi Boys  -- Neil Gaiman- After Fat Charlie's dad drops dead on a karaoke stage, he leaves Charlie things that make life interesting for Charlie because Charlie's dad wasn't just any dad. He was Anansi, a trickster god, the spider-god. Anansi is the spirit of rebellion, able to overturn the social order, create wealth out of thin air, and baffle the devil. Some said he could cheat even Death himself.

Honors Reading List

GRADE 9

Nineteen Minutes—Jodi Picoult- Sterling is a small town where nothing ever happens – until the day its complacency is shattered by a shocking act of violence.  In the aftermath, the town's residents must not only seek justice but also come to terms with the role they played in the tragedy. Some mature language is included.   

Rocket Boys (October Sky)—Homer Hickam- Fourteen-year-old Homer Hickam decided in 1957 to build his own rockets. They were his ticket out of Coalwood, West Virginia, a mining town that everyone knew was dying

GRADE 10

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close—Jonathan Safran Foer- Oskar Schell lives with his mother in Manhattan and terribly misses his father, who died in the attack on the World Trade Center in 2001.  Oskar discovers a strange key and message in his father's belongings and seeks to unravel the mystery behind these items.

GRADE 11

Cat’s Cradle—Kurt Vonnegut- A mix of satire, fantasy and realism, this story deals with an atomic scientist and the end of the world.

A Farewell to Arms –Ernest Hemingway- Set against the background of World War I, this book is a strong indictment of modern warfare, as well as a bitter comment on the nature of love, life, and death.

GRADE 12

The Lords of Discipline-Pat Conroy- In this coming-of-age novel, a young man experiences life at a military academy. Some mature language is included.