Today you will be previewing Quarter B literature circle reads.
Refer to your preference list you were given and watch all of the book
trailers/read the book summaries before listing your preferences on the
sheet of paper. Please make sure your headphones are on and properly
plugged into your computer. You will be reading and discussing this
title with Reading 9-10 students across all sections of the day through
an online forum (Edmodo) during the first four weeks of quarter B (Discussions
will be once/week).
The Big Wave
Kino lives on a farm on the side of a mountain in Japan. His
friend, Jiya, lives in a fishing village below. Everyone, including Kino
and Jiya, has heard of the big wave. No one suspects it will wipe out
the whole village and Jiya's family, too. As Jiya struggles to overcome
his sorrow, he understands it is in the presence of danger that one
learns to be brave, and to appreciate how wonderful life can be. The famous story of a Japanese boy who must face life after escaping the tidal wave destruction of his family and village.
California Diaries: Sunny (overview from www.amazon.com)
Major
stress at home with mom's illness. Bug fight with the best friend.
Where can a girl go to find peace of mind? This new series has a
first-person, diary format that draws readers into an intimate look at
preteen life in the 1990s.
The China Garden (overview taken from www.bn.com)
When
Clare moves with her mother from London to Ravensmere, an historic
English estate, she can't shake the feeling that the residents already
know her, especially Mark, a maddeningly attractive biker. Clare also
feels compelled to take midnight walks in Ravensmere's abandoned China
Garden. Then her mother reveals that their own past is tragically linked
to the estate. But when Clare discovers that Ravensmere is in grave
danger, will she risk her future-and Mark's-to save it?
Crushed (overview taken from www.bn.com)
Audrey
and her two best friends have just transferred to Jemison High from
their tiny private school. They're a nerdy little trio, so everyone is
shocked when the handsome new guy, Wickham Hill, asks Audrey out. Audrey
is so smitten that she doesn't pay much attention to The Yellow Paper, a vicious underground school newspaper...until it threatens to tell a tale that could change everything.
Flight to Freedom (overview taken from www.bn.com)
Yara
Garcia and her family live a middle-class life in Havana, Cuba. But in
1967, as Communist ruler Fidel Castro tightens his hold on Cuba, the
Garcias, who do not share the political beliefs of the Communist Party,
are forced to flee to Miami, Florida. There, Yara encounters a strange
land with foreign customs. She knows very little English, and she finds
that the other students in her new school have much more freedom than
she and her sisters. Tension develops between her parents, as Mami grows
more independent and Papi joins a militant anti-Castro organization.
The Royal Diaries: Cleopatra VII
While
her father is in hiding after attempts on his life, twelve-year-old
Cleopatra records in her diary how she fears for her own safety and
hopes to survive to become Queen of Egypt some day. (annotation from
www.bn.com)
Stick and Whittle (overview taken from www.bn.com)
Stick
is a Civil War veteran, down on his luck and searching for his long
lost sweetheart. Whittle is an orphan on the lam, looking to repay the
world a favor he claims to owe. When the two meet up out West, they
become partners on a high-stakes adventure that includes a kidnapping,
travel by tornado, and a dramatic rescue mission.
Sweetgrass (overview from www.bn.com)
Sweetgrass,
a 15-year-old Blackfoot girl, longs to be married like the other girls
her age, and she has a young warrior in mind, Eagle-Sun. Her father
feels she is too young for marriage, but over a difficult year for their
tribe, which include natural disasters, encounters with white settlers,
fights with other tribes, and a smallpox epidemic, she proves her
courage, intelligence, and maturity.
Tracker (overview taken from www.bn.com)
For John
Borne's family, hunting has nothing to do with sport or manliness. It's a
matter of survival. Every fall John and his grandfather go off into the
woods to shoot the deer that puts meat on the table over the long
Minnesota winter.But this year John's grandfather
is dying, and John must hunt alone. John tracks a doe for two days, but
as he closes in on his prey, he realizes he cannot shoot her. For John,
the hunt is no longer about killing, but about life.Only
thirteen, John must track a deer in the Minnesota woods for his family's
winter meat, and in doing so finds himself drawn to the doe who leads
him and hating his role as hunter.
Trickster's Queen (overview taken from www.bn.com)
The
native people of Copper Isles, the raka, know that the ancient prophecy
handed down their trickster god is on the brink of coming to pass. But
what they don't know is that all their hopes rest on the slender shoulders of Aly Homewood -- formerly Alianne of Pirate's Swoop.
From
daughter of the powerful to slave in a foreign land, Aly is also a
pivotal leader in the underground movement to put a new queen on the
throne. Witty, intelligent, and a talented spy, Aly is used to staying
two steps ahead of the action. But with new adversaries -- and a
faltering romance -- Aly is blind to the threat that lurks right under
her nose. What will happen if the queen-to-be is lost?
In this dramatic sequel to Trickster's Choice, Tamora
Pierce examines the power of loyalty, family, and friendship in the
face of adversity. And in doing so, she gives us the stories of three
unforgettable young women discovering who they are and who they want to
become.
Aly
fails to foresee the dangers that await as she uses her magic to
safeguard Dova and her younger siblings, despite knowing that her
thirteen-year-old charge might be queen of the Copper Isles when the
colonial rulers are defeated.
The Trouble with Lemons (overview taken from www.bn.com)
His
real name was Tyler McAllister, but he felt like a lemon. He had
allergies and nightmares, and was the only unfamous person in his
family. But one night he and a friend went swimming at the forbidden
quarry, and Tyler found a dead body. Now he's determined to find out who
killed the man and why they're now after him....
