LMS BATTLE OF THE BOOKS 2015-2016
LIST OF BOOKS WITH DESCRIPTIONS
One for the Murphys
by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
Carley uses humor and street smarts to keep her
emotional walls high and thick. But the day she
becomes a foster child, and moves in with the Murphys,
she's blindsided. This loving, bustling family shows
Carley the stable family life she never thought existed,
and she feels like an alien in their cookie-cutter-perfect
household. Despite her resistance, the Murphys
eventually show her what it feels like to belong--until
her mother wants her back and Carley has to decide
where and how to live. She's not really a Murphy, but
the gifts they've given her have opened up a new future.
Perfect Game
by Fred Bowen
Isaac is a serious pitcher. He's got an awesome
fastball and sneaky changeup. He's determined to
pitch a perfect game: no hits, no runs, no walks, and
no errors. He gets close a couple of times, but when
the batter gets on base, Isaac totally loses his cool on
the mound and can't get his head back in the game.
Then Isaac learns about a Special Olympics Unified
Sports team and meets an interesting athlete who
shows him a whole new way to think about perfect.
Camo Girl
by Kekla Magoon
Ella and Z have been friends forever, both of them
middle-school outsiders in their Las Vegas suburb. Ella
is the only black girl in her grade and gets teased for
the mottled colors of her face. (Her deceased father was
white.) Z is the classic “weird kid” who maintains an
elaborate—and public—fantasy life, starring himself as
a brave knight. Though Z is content with his imagined
world, Ella wishes for a larger group of friends, so
she’s thrilled when Bailey, another black kid, arrives at
their school. He’s popular and wants to befriend Ella—
but to join the cool crowd, Ella would have to ditch Z.
Does she stay loyal to the boy who has been her best
and only friend for years, or jump at the chance to
realize her dream of popularity?
Lions of Little Rock
by Kristin Levine
As twelve-year-old Marlee starts middle school in
1958 Little Rock, it feels like her whole world is
falling apart. Until she meets Liz, the new girl at
school. Liz is everything Marlee wishes she could be:
she's brave, brash and always knows the right thing to
say. But when Liz leaves school without even a goodbye, the rumor is that Liz was caught passing for
white. Marlee decides that doesn't matter. She just
wants her friend back. And to stay friends, Marlee and
Liz are even willing to take on segregation and the
dangers their friendship could bring to both their
families.
Rump: The True Story
of Rumpelstiltskin
by Leisl Shurtliff
In a magic kingdom where your name is your destiny, 12year-old Rump is the butt of everyone's joke. But when he
finds an old spinning wheel, his luck seems to change. Rump
discovers he has a gift for spinning straw into gold. His best
friend, Red Riding Hood, warns him that magic is dangerous,
and she’s right. With each thread he spins, he weaves himself
deeper into a curse.
To break the spell, Rump must go on a perilous quest,
fighting off pixies, trolls, poison apples, and a wickedly
foolish queen. The odds are against him, but with courage and
friendship—and a cheeky sense of humor—he just might
triumph in the end.
.
Buddy
by M. H. Herlong
Tyrone "Li'l T" Roberts meets Buddy when his family's car accidentally hits the stray dog on their way to church. Buddy turns out to be the dog Li'l T's always wished for-­‐-­‐until Hurricane Katrina comes to New Orleans and he must leave Buddy behind. After the storm, Li'l T and his father return home to find a community struggling to rebuild their lives-­‐-­‐and Buddy gone. But Li'l T refuses to give up his quest to find his best friend. From the author of the BBYA Top Ten selection The Great Wide Sea comes a powerful story of hope, courage, and knowing when to let go.
One Came Home
by Amy Timberlake
In the town of Placid, Wisconsin, in 1871, Georgie
Burkhardt is known for two things: her uncanny aim with a
rifle and her habit of speaking her mind plainly.
But when Georgie blurts out something she shouldn't, her
older sister Agatha flees, running off with a pack of
"pigeoners" trailing the passenger pigeon migration. And
when the sheriff returns to town with an unidentifiable
body—wearing Agatha's blue-green ball gown—everyone
assumes the worst. Except Georgie. Refusing to believe the
facts that are laid down (and coffined) before her, Georgie
sets out on a journey to find her sister. She will track every
last clue and shred of evidence to bring Agatha home. Yet
even with resolute determination and her trusty Springfield
single-shot, Georgie is not prepared for what she faces on
the western frontier.
Counting by 7s
by Holly Goldberg Sloan
Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed
with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who
finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy
for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive
parents, but that hasn’t kept her from leading a quietly
happy life . . . until now.
Suddenly Willow’s world is tragically changed when her
parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a
baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a
tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily
endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her
journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully
believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to
read.
Summer of the Wolves
by Polly Carlson – Voiles
Julie of the Wolves meets Hatchet in this middle
grade novel that follows twelve-year-old Nika and
her seven-year-old brother, Randall, as they leave
their California foster home to spend a summer with
their long-lost uncle. There she finds an orphaned
wolf pup in a cave, whose mother has been shot.
This compelling first novel explores themes of
searching for family and finding a balance between
caring for— and leaving alone—wild animals.
Diary of Wimpy Kid :
Old School #10
Release November 2015
by Jeff Kinney
Life was better in the old days. Or was it?
That’s the question Greg Heffley is asking as his town
voluntarily unplugs and goes electronics-free. But
modern life has its conveniences, and Greg isn’t cut
out for an old-fashioned world.
With tension building inside and outside the Heffley
home, will Greg find a way to survive? Or is going
“old school” just too hard for a kid like Greg?