Summer Reading for NCCS Upper School Students 2024: Top 10 List (Booklist Magazine)

A narrative nonfiction about how the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre, how the robbery made the portrait the most famous artwork in the world-and how the painting by Leonardo da Vinci should never have existed at all. Grades 4-8 (Lexile:780).

Legendary photographers Dorothea Lange, Toyo Miyatake, and Ansel Adams all photographed the Japanese American incarceration, but with different approaches-and different results. This nonfiction picture book for middle grade readers examines the Japanese-American incarceration-and the complexity of documenting it-through the work of these three photographers. Grades 6-9 (Lexile: 990)

An inside look at the early lives of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, This Boy is a perfect book for any young reader embracing their inner Beatlemania. Grades 5-8

Jeanne Villepreux-Power was never expected to be a scientist. Born in 1794 in a French village more than 100 miles from the ocean, she pursued an improbable path that brought her to the island of Sicily. There, she took up natural history and solved the two-thousand-year-old mystery of how of the argonaut octopus gets its shell. In an era when most research focused on dead specimens, Jeanne was determined to experiment on living animals. And to keep sea creatures alive for her studies, she had to invent a contraption to hold them―the aquarium. Grade 5-8 (Lexile: 1220)

The struggle for equal rights continues. This account of the Little Rock Nine shows how the United States has come a mighty long way...but still has a long way to go Grade 5-10 (Lexile: 980)

Using Olaudah Equiano's autobiography as the source, the text shares Equiano's life story in found verse. Readers will follow his story from his childhood in Africa, enslavement at a young age, liberation, and life as a free man. Grade 7-10

"When these 15 women coders and engineers face impossible problems, they don't quit--they find solutions. They are all doing amazing work in technical fields while overcoming unique challenges not equally faced by male colleagues. Engineering and coding have typically been considered men's fields of study, but these innovative women are showing that problem solving with science and math is everyone's field, and it's time for the world to see powerful women suceeding in it. Grade 8-11

Explores why and how people have constructed taller and taller buildings over the course of human history. Grade 4-8

A stunning and intimate biography of Margaret Hamilton, the computer engineer who helped Apollo 11 and mankind get from the Earth to the moon. First-hand accounts, exclusive interviews with the legendary Margaret Hamilton, and detailed science populate the pages of this remarkable biography. In 1969, mankind successfully left our atmosphere and landed on the moon. It took countless hours of calculations, training, wonder, and sacrifice from all of the men and women who worked hard to make that landing. One of those people was Margaret Hamilton. A young computer engineer, Hamilton was hired to develop the completely new software used in the groundbreaking Apollo Space Program. Soon she became the lead engineer, one of the few women in the almost entirely male-dominated profession. But it wasn't always easy. Grade 6-9 (Lexile: 1100)

To save their father's life, a brother and sister must journey across a land full of magical beings from Colombian folklore and find the most powerful and dangerous of them all--the Madremonte. Grade 4-7

The Otherworld is at war. The Academy for the Unbreakable Arts trains warriors. And Kelcie Murphy―a foster child raised in the human world―is dying to attend. A place at AUA means meeting Scáthach, the legendary trainer of Celtic heroes. It means learning to fight with a sword. It means harnessing her hidden powers and―most importantly―finding out who her parents are, and why they abandoned her in Boston Harbor eight years ago. When Kelcie tests into the school, she learns that she’s a Saiga, one of the most ancient beings in the Otherworld. Secretive, shunned, and possessed of imposing elemental powers, the Saiga are also kin to the Otherworld's most infamous traitor. But Kelcie is a survivor, and she’ll do whatever it takes to find her parents and her place in their world. Even if that means making a few enemies. Grade 6-8

Riley Oh ventures into the Spiritrealm, where she hopes to convince Saint Heo Jun to become the new patron god of the Gom clan and restore their healing powers. Grade 4-8

All Momo wants for her twelfth birthay is an ordinary life, but instead she finds out she is half human, half goddess and must unlock her divine powers to save her mother's life and keep countless evil spirits from escaping Yomi, the land of the dead. Grade 5-7

Searching for her buried friend after the mines collapse, twelve-year-old Pakistani mica miner Nura finds herself at the Sijj Palace, a luxury hotel for the dangerous and deceitful jinn, where she must discover the truth beneath the glitter or be trapped forever. Grade 5-8

After her home is attacked by shapeshifting vampires, twelve-year-old Serwa Boateng is sent to live with her aunt and cousin in Maryland, but the aspiring vampire hunter discovers that middle school is harder than it appears on television, especially when she has to avoid detention and turn her classmates into warriors before they become vampire food. Grade 5-8

After twelve-year-old Lebanese-American Shad Hadid discovershe is an Alchemist, he receives an invitation to the Alexandria Academy where he discovers not everything is as it seems and shadowy figures are lurking around every corner. Grade 4-7

Armed with her fledgling powers, a magic cookbook, and the mentorship of a talking rabbit, sixth-grader Winnie Zeng must embrace her heritage and the powers of her ancestors to save her town from an evil spirit of Chinese legend. Grade 5-8

Over the last half-billion years, there have been five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs. Adapting from her New York Times-bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-winning adult nonfiction, Elizabeth Kolbert explores how humans are altering life on Earth. Grades 5-8

The gripping inside story of the ongoing landmark lawsuit, Juliana v. United States, brought against the US government by twenty-one young people. Grade 6-10

A fascinating look at the most destructive wildfires in American history, the impact of climate change, and what we're doing right and wrong to manage forest fire. Grades 8-12 (Lexile: 1140)

The Davenports are one of the few Black families of immense wealth and status in 1910 Chicago, and the two daughters, Olivia and Helen, are finding their way and finding love--even where they are not supposed to. Grades 7-10

It's 1930s Mississippi. Magic is permitted only in certain circumstances, and by certain people. Unsanctioned broom racing is banned. But for those who need the money, or the thrills...it's there to be found. Meet Billie Mae, captain of the Night Storms racing team, and Loretta, her best friend and second-in-command. Theyre determined to make enough money to move out west to a state that allows Black folks to legally use magic and take part in national races. Grades 7-12

Deep in the forest, a curious pair reside: a young girl Mira, whose affliction leads her to call forth darkness whenever she's in distress; and her physician Rei, determined to seek a cure. Each day, she works to remember the light and bring back the person she used to be. But a sudden visit from Rei's friend, who harbors an interest in Mira's illness may be end of their peaceful days... Grades 6-11

A twisty, spellbinding adventure about a girl and her dog who want to save the world.

What was the first message sent over the internet? How much water does a single person use every day? How was the electric light invented? For every utility people use each day, there's a hidden history below the surface - a story of intrigue, drama, humor, and inequity. This graphic novel provides a guided tour through the science of the past - and how the decisions people made while inventing and constructing early technology still affect the way people use it today. Full of art, maps, and diagrams, Hidden Systems is a thoughtful, humorous exploration of the history of science, and what needs to be done now to change the future Grade 7-12

Tess Medina is dealing with the loss of her beloved father, a new school, and the troubling fact that the thing she enjoys most in life, baking, seems to be making her increasingly ill--something she is trying to hide from everybody. Grades 4-7

The Davenports are one of the few Black families of immense wealth and status in 1910 Chicago, and the two daughters, Olivia and Helen, are finding their way and finding love--even where they are not supposed to. Grades 7-10

In his village in Upper Kwanta, 11-year-old Kofi loves his family, playing oware with his grandfather and swimming in the river Offin. He’s warned though, to never go to the river at night. His brother tells him ”There are things about the water you do not know. “ Like what? Kofi asks. “The beasts.” His brother answers.

One fateful night, the unthinkable happens and in a flash, Kofi’s world turns upside down. Kofi soon ends up in a fight for his life and what happens next will send him on a harrowing journey across land and sea, and away from everything he loves. Grades 6-9

This is the tale of an exciting journey along the Silk Road with a young Monk and his newfound guardian, Samir, a larger than life character and the so-called 'Seller of Dreams.' The man is a scammer; his biggest skill being the ability to talk his way into getting what he wants. While that talking did save Monkey's life, it has left a lot of people furious with Samir--furious enough to hire assassins. Monkey decides to try and save Samir from the attempts on his life--as a way to pay off his debt! If he can save Samir six times, he'll be a free man ... but will they all survive that long, Grade 5-8

Tells the story of Gerda Taro, a headstrong photojournalist with a passion for capturing the truth amid political turmoil and the first woman photojournalist killed in combat, Grades 7-12

This is the life story of Cudjo Lewis, as told by himself.

Of the millions of men, women, and children transported from Africa to America to be enslaved, eighty-six-year-old Cudjo Lewis was then the only person alive to tell the story of his capture and bondage—fifty years after the Atlantic human trade was outlawed in the United States. Cudjo shared his firsthand account with legendary folklorist, anthropologist, and writer Zora Neale Hurston.

Adapted with care and delivered with age-appropriate historical context by award-winning historian Ibram X. Kendi, Cudjo’s incredible story is now available for young readers and emerging scholars. With powerful illustrations by Jazzmen Lee-Johnson, this poignant work is an invaluable contribution to our shared history and culture. Grades 5-8

This YA biography-in-verse of six important Black Americans from different eras, including Ona Judge, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Ida B. Wells, Martin Luther King Jr., and Barack Obama, chronicles the diverse ways each fought racism and shows how much--and how little--has changed for Black Americans since our country's founding.
Full of daring escapes, deep emotion, and subtle lessons on how racism operates, A LONG TIME COMING reveals the universal importance of its subjects' struggles for justice. From freedom seeker Ona Judge, who fled her enslavement by America's first president, to Barack Obama, the first Black president, all of Shepard's protagonists fight valiantly for justice for themselves and all Black Americans in any way that they can. But it is also a highly personal book, as Shepard -- whose maternal grandfather was enslaved -- shows how the grand sweep of history has touched his life, reflecting on how much progress has been made against racism, while also exhorting readers to complete the vast work that remains to be done. Grades 7-12

Using Olaudah Equiano's autobiography as the source, the text shares Equiano's life story in found verse. Readers will follow his story from his childhood in Africa, enslavement at a young age, liberation, and life as a free man. Grade 7-10

A girl who sees possessed souls and ventures into a haunted house in the forest on a mission to save them, and defeat her own demons, in the process. Grade 5-8

Welcome to Bolingbroke. It's a small town just like any other, or so eighth graders Val and Lanie think. They're the best of best friends- they love the same comics, they watch the same shows, and they re always there for each other. Which is important when you're queer, like Lanie, or on the spectrum, like Val, and just don't seem to fit in anywhere. When a school project about their hometown's supernatural history leads to a for-real ghost sighting, Val and Lanie realize Bolingbroke might not be as boring as they'd always thought. But after a run-in with the resident middle school queen bee (who also happens to be Lanie's former friend), they decide to take things to the next level and accidentally summon the Ojja-Wojja, a demonic presence connected to a slew of mysterious tragedies throughout Bolingbroke's sordid history. Grade 5-8

The adults in town are acting strangely. An ancient, long-buried evil has been unleashed upon the community, and it's up to Archie Coomes and his friends to stop it before it's too late. Grade 5-8

hirteen-year-old twins Hope and Gordon enter a spelling bee in a last-ditch effort to save their family from financial ruin, only to find themselves in a cut-throat competition to uncover a fortune and dark secrets about the wealthy relations they have never known. Grades 4-7

In a warlike land of wind and sunlight, "ringed by a restless sea," live Rhaskos and Melisto, spiritual twins with little in common beyond the violent and mysterious forces that dictate their lives. A Thracian slave in a Greek household, Rhaskos is as common as clay, a stable boy worth less than a donkey, much less a horse. Wrenched from his mother at a tender age, he nurtures in secret, aided by Socrates, his passions for art and philosophy. Melisto is a spoiled aristocrat, a girl as precious as amber but willful and wild. She'll marry and be tamed--the curse of all highborn girls--but risk her life for a season first to serve Artemis, goddess of the hunt. Bound by destiny, Melisto and Rhaskos--Amber and Clay--never meet in the flesh. By the time they do, one of them is a ghost. But the thin line between life and death is just one boundary their unlikely friendship crosses. Grade 5-8

Sent with her mother to the safety of a relative's home in Cincinnati when her Syrian hometown is overshadowed by violence, Jude worries for the family members who were left behind as she adjusts to a new life with unexpected surprises. Told in verse format. Grade 4-8 (Lexile: 930)

A 13-year-old girl growing up in Mexico is visited by her 30-year-old future self in this powerful Young Adult novel in verse about accepting and loving yourself. Grade 7-12

A novel in verse about the life and work of Rubâen Darâio, a Nicaraguan poet who started life as an abandoned child and grew to become the father of a new literary movement. Includes historical notes. Grade 7-10

When thirteen-year-old Leandro takes the fall for his sister and is exiled into an ancient drone, he embarks on a perilous journey beyond the city's walls where he encounters mutant monsters, wasteland pirates, and fellow outcasts as he tries to save his sister and fellow Cascabeles from the oppressive regime. Grades 5-8

Dolores Mendoza is not thriving. She was recently diagnosed with a chronic bladder condition called interstitial cystitis. The painful disease isn't life threatening, but it is threatening to ruin her life. Just when things seem hopeless, Dolores meets someone poised to change her fate. Terpsichore Berkenbosch-Jones is glamorous, autistic, and homeschooled against her will by her overprotective mother. After a rocky start, the girls form a tentative partnership. Beautiful, talented Terpsichore will help Dolores win back her ex-best friend, Shae. And Dolores will convince Terpsichore's mom that her daughter has the social skills to survive public school. It seems like a foolproof plan, but Dolores isnt always a reliable narrator, and her choices may put her in danger of committing an unforgivable betrayal. Grades 7-10 (Lexile: 640)

Jake volunteers at a nursing home because he likes helping people. He likes skating and singing, playing Bingo and Name That Tune, and reading mysteries and comics aloud to his teachers. He also likes avoiding people his own age...and the cruelty of mirrors...and food. Jake has read about kids like him in booksthe weird one, the outsiderand would do anything not to be that kid, including shrink himself down to nothing. But the less he eats, the bigger he feels. How long can Jake punish himself before he truly disappears? Grades 6-9 (In Verse)

Six eighth graders in Washington, DC, navigate through the conflict and division sparked by a school assignment focused on their town's Native American mascot. Grades 5-8

Since the passing of their father, Oscar has tried to be the man of his family of Syrian refugees. As Oscar waits in line for rations, his younger brother Sufyan explores more nontraditional methods to provide for his family. Ignoring his brother's warnings, Sufyan gets more and more involved with a group that provides him with big rewards for doing seemingly inconsequential tasks. When the group abruptly gets more intense--taking Sufyan and other boys away from their families, teaching them how to shoot guns--Sufyan realizes his brother is right. But is it too late for Sufyan to get out of this? It's left to the bookish Oscar to rescue his brother and reunite his family. Grade 6-9

As twelve-year-old Ellie Engle navigates seventh grade and her changing relationship with her best friend, a freak accident occurs and gives Ellie the ability to bring things back to life through touch. Grade 4-8

Noah Prime discovers he can exhibit the traits and access the abilities of animals and must use them to fight back against those who are hunting him. Grade 5-8

Trapped in a rigid hierarchy where girls learn magic and boys train as knights, twelve-year-old nonbinary Callie, who dreams of becoming a knight, and their new friends find themselves embedded in an ancient war, but in order to defeat the threats outside the kingdom they must first defeat the bigotry within. Grade 4-8

This fascinating, wickedly funny account of our evolutionary journey turns science into an irresistible story. Vetted by experts at the Smithsonian's Human Origins Program, the book also features incredibly detailed portraits by celebrated paleo-artist John Gurche that bring our early ancestors to life. Grade 6-10

Jeanne Villepreux-Power was never expected to be a scientist. Born in 1794 in a French village more than 100 miles from the ocean, she pursued an improbable path that brought her to the island of Sicily. There, she took up natural history and solved the two-thousand-year-old mystery of how of the argonaut octopus gets its shell. In an era when most research focused on dead specimens, Jeanne was determined to experiment on living animals. And to keep sea creatures alive for her studies, she had to invent a contraption to hold them―the aquarium. Grade 5-8 (Lexile: 1220)

How do knowledge systems get passed down over generations? Through the knowledge inherited from their Elders and ancestors, Indigenous Peoples throughout North America have observed, practiced, experimented, and interacted with plants, animals, the sky, and the waters over millennia. Knowledge keepers have shared their wisdom with younger people through oral history, stories, ceremonies, and records that took many forms. In Sky Wolf's Call learn how Indigenous knowledge comes from centuries of practices, experiences, and ideas gathered by people who have a long history with the natural world. Indigenous knowledge is explored through the use of fire and water, the acquisition of food, the study of astronomy, and healing practices. Grade 6-8

As a female Jewish physicist in Berlin during the early 20th century, Lise Meitner had to fight for an education, a job, and equal treatment in her field, like having her name listed on her own research papers. Meitner made groundbreaking strides in the study of radiation, but when Hitler came to power in Germany, she suddenly had to face not only sexism, but also life-threatening anti-Semitism as well. Nevertheless, she persevered and one day made a discovery that rocked the world: the splitting of the atom. While her male lab partner was awarded a Nobel Prize for the achievement, the committee refused to give her any credit. Grade 5-9

Annotation:
Twelve-year-old Natalia's dream of becoming a synchronized swimmer is in jeopardy when her parents decide they are against a sport that emphasizes looks, but Nat is determined to change their minds. Grade 5-8 (Lexile: 590)

Twenty years before women's soccer became an Olympic sport and two decades before the formation of the WNBA, the '76 US women's basketball team laid the foundation for the incredible rise of women's sports in America at the youth, collegiate, Olympic, and professional levels. Though they were unknowns from small schools such as Delta State, the University of Tennessee at Martin and John F. Kennedy College of Wahoo, Nebraska, at the time of the '76 Olympics, the American team included a roster of players who would go on to become some of the most legendary figures in the history of basketball. Grade 7-12 (Lexile: 1240)

A heartwarming middle grade debut about a young nonbinary figure skater discovering who they are on and off the ice. Grade 5-8