Lit Circle Books

Below are the different options for books to read in your Lit Circle. Please read each summary and look through the books. You can also do a google search for a specific book to read the reviews.

*Make sure you complete the slip of paper. This will help me decide which book is best for you*

Title: Matilda Pages: 230 Lexile: 840 # of copies: 5

Matilda is a sweet, exceptional young girl, but her parents think shes just a nuisance. She expects school to be different, but there she has to face Miss Trunchbull, a kid-hating terror of a headmistress. When Matilda is attacked by the Trunchbull, she suddenly discovers she has a remarkable power with which to fight back. It’ll take a superhuman genius to give Miss Trunchbull what she deserves, and Matilda may just be the one to do it!

Title: I Survived Hurricane Katrina Pages: 110 Lexile: 590 # of copies: 4

Barry’s family tries to evacuate before Hurricane Katrina hits their home in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans. But when Barry’s little sister gets terribly sick, they’re forced to stay home and wait out the storm.

At first, Katrina doesn’t seem to be as severe a storm as forecasters predicted. But overnight the levees break, and Barry’s world is literally torn apart. He’s swept away by the floodwaters, away from his family. Can he survive the storm of the century, alone?

Title: When You Reach Me Pages: 197 Lexile: 750 # of copies: 8 (2 Lit Circles)

By 6th grade, Miranda and her best friend, Sal, know how to navigate their New York City neighborhood. They know where it is safe to go and who to avoid. Like the crazy guy on the corner.

           But things start to unravel. Sal gets punched by a kid on the street for what seems like no reason, and he shuts Miranda out of his life. The apartment key that Miranda’s mom keeps hidden for emergencies if stolen. And then a mysterious note arrives, on a tiny slip of paper: I am coming to save your friend’s life, and my own. I ask two favors. First, you must write me a letter.

           The notes keep coming, and Miranda slowly realizes that whoever is leaving them knows things no one should know. Each message brings her closer to believing that only she can prevent a tragic death. Until the final note makes her think she’s too late…

Title: The Westing game Pages: 182 Lexile: 840 # of copies: 5

When sixteen people are called together for the reading of wealthy Sam Westing's will, they are surprised to learn that the will is actually a contest in which they are all to participate. Working with partners, the potential participants take their clues to try to find the elusive answer to the Westing game and thus take their shares of the two-hundred-million-dollar prize. But will they survive the blizzards, burglaries, and bombings!

Title: The Graveyard Book Pages:  300 Lexile: 820 # of copies: 4

Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be "completely" normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead.

There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy — an ancient Indigo Man beneath the hill, a gateway to a desert leading to an abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack — who has already killed Bod's family . . .

Title: The Witches Pages:  205 Lexile: 740 # of copies:

Grandmamma loves to tell about witches. Real witches are the most dangerous of all living creatures on earth. There's nothing they hate so much as children, and they work all kinds of terrifying spells to get rid of them. Her grandson listens closely to Grandmamma's stories — but nothing can prepare him for the day he comes face to face with The Grand High Witch herself!

Title: Stargirl   Pages:  200   Lexile: 590 # of copies:

Stargirl is not like other people at Mica School. She wears weird clothes. She dances in the rain. She plays a ukulele (tiny guitar). She captures Leo’s heart. The other students think she is too differnet. They think everyone should be the same. Even Leo wishes Stargirl could be more normal. Can Stargirl change or will the students accept her for who she is?

Title: The Egypt Game   Pages:  215   Lexile: 1010 # of copies:

The first time Melanie Ross meets April Hall, she's not sure they'll have anything in common. But she soon discovers that they both love anything to do with ancient Egypt. When they stumble upon a deserted storage yard behind the A-Z Antiques and Curio Shop, Melanie and April decide it's the perfect spot for Egypt Game.

Before long there are six Egyptians instead of two. After school and on weekends they all meet to wear costumes, hold ceremonies, and work on their secret code. Everyone thinks it's just a game, until strange things begin happening to the players. Has the Egypt Game gone too far?

Title: Double Helix-A Mystery   Pages:  240   Lexile: 700 # of copies:

Although Eli Samuels is barely out of high school, he’s offered a job at Wyatt Transgenics by Dr. Quincy Wyatt, the legendary molecular biologist. Eli knows this job is a fantastic opportunity. The salary is amazing, the work is interesting, and Dr. Wyatt seems to be paying special attention to Eli. It is almost too good to be true. Is there a catch?

Eli’s girlfriend doesn’t think so but his father is very against his taking the job and wont explain why. Eli knows there’s some connection between Dr. Wyatt and his parents—something too painful for his father to discuss. Something to do with his mother, who is now very sick with a disease. As Eli works at the lab, and spends time with Dr. Wyatt, he begins to uncover some shocking information…about himself…

Title: A Matter of Trust     Pages:  125     Lexile: 750 # of copies:

In grade school, Darcy Wills and Brisana Meeks were friends. But all that changed at Bluford High when Darcy started hanging with "the zeros," a group of students Brisana despises. Now the former friends are bitter rivals, and the tension between them is getting worse. For a while, Darcy tries to stay calm, ignoring her old friend's daily taunts. But when she learns that Brisana is after her boyfriend, Hakeem Randall, Darcy knows she must do something. But what?

Title: Lost and Found     Pages:  133     Lexile: 760 # of copies:

Darcy Willis is in big trouble. And she does not know where to turn for help. First there was the mysterious stranger who started following her. Then there was the threatening note left on her desk at Bluford High School. And now her sister has disappeared. Forced into a desperate race against time, Darcy must take action to save her sister before it is too late.