Thanks to veteran volunteer, Anne Davies, the Cabrini Connection's Book Club will be starting up Nov. 10, 2009. Here is the list of books that the students can choose from. Students sign up and encourage your peers AND volunteers encourage your students.
"Reading IS FUNdamental"
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Accidental love / Gary Soto
Summary - After unexpectedly falling in love with a "nerdy" boy, fourteen-year-old Marisa works to change her life by transferring to another school, altering some of her behavior, and losing weight.
The Amazon papers / Beverly Keller
Summary - Fifteen-year-old Iris gets into hilarious trouble when her mother goes on vacation and leaves her alone
Armageddon summer / Jane Yolen & Bruce Coville
Summary - Fourteen-year-old Marina and sixteen-year-old Jed accompany their parents' religious cult, the Believers, to await the end of the world atop a remote mountain, where they try to decide what they themselves believe.
Big Mouth & Ugly Girl / Joyce Carol Oates
Summary - When sixteen-year-old Matt is falsely accused of threatening to blow up his high school and his friends turn against him, an unlikely classmate comes to his aid
Black duck / Janet Taylor Lisle
Summary - Years afterwards, Ruben Hart tells the story of how, in 1929 Newport, Rhode Island, his family and his best friend's family were caught up in the violent competition among groups trying to control the local rum-smuggling trade.
Bloomability / Sharon Creech
Summary - When her aunt and uncle take her from New Mexico to Lugano, Switzerland, to attend an international school, thirteen-year-old Dinnie discovers her world expanding
Bone dance / Martha Brooks
Summary - When her father wills her a cabin on land in rural Manitoba, Alexandra meets a young man who shares her Indian heritage and her experience of being haunted by spirits
The book thief / by Markus Zusak
Summary - Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel--a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors
Calling the swan / Jean Thesman
Summary - When Skylar goes to summer school and tentatively begins to make some friends, she finally starts to get over the loss of her older sister and its terrible effects on the whole family
Chanda's wars / Allan Stratton; with an afterword by Roméo Dallaire. Fiction
Summary - Chandra Kabelo, a teenaged African girl, must save her younger siblings after they are kidnapped and forced to serve as child soldiers in General Mandiki's rebel army
Chasing Vermeer / by Blue Balliett; illustrated by Brett Helquist. Fiction
Summary - When a book of unexplainable occurrences brings Petra Andalee and Calder Pillay together, strange things start to happen: Seemingly unrelated events connect, an eccentric old woman seeks their company, and an invaluable Vermeer painting disappears. Blue Balliett's bewitching first novel is a puzzle, wrapped in a mystery, disguised as an adventure, and delivered as a work of art
Chicken soup for the teenage soul III: more stories of life, love, and learning / [compiled by] Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Kimberly Kirberger. NonFiction
Summary - Inspirational stories on life, love, and learning for teens, including contributions by teens
The city of Ember / Jeanne DuPrau. Fiction
Summary - In the year 241, twelve-year-old Lina trades jobs on Assignment Day to be a Messenger to run to new places in her decaying but beloved city, perhaps even to glimpse Unknown Regions
Coraline / Neil Gaiman. Fiction
Summary - Coraline ventures through a mysterious door into a world that is similar, yet disturbingly different from her own, where she must challenge a gruesome entity in order to save herself, her parents, and the souls of three others.
The dark side of nowhere: a novel / by Neal Shusterman. Fiction
Summary - Fourteen-year-old Jason faces an identity crisis after discovering that he is the son of aliens who stayed on earth following a botched invasion mission
The devil in the white city: murder, magic, and madness at the fair that changed America / Erik Larson. Historical fiction
Summary - An account of the Chicago World's Fair of 1893 relates the stories of two men who shaped the history of the event--architect Daniel H. Burnham, who coordinated its construction, and serial killer Herman Mudgett.
Dramarama / by E. Lockhart. Fiction.
Summary - Spending their summer at Wildewood Academy, an elite boarding school for the performing arts, tests the bond between teens Sadye and her best friend Demi
Escape!: the story of the great Houdini / Sid Fleischman. Biography.
Summary - A biography of the magician, ghost chaser, aviator, and king of escape artists whose amazing feats are remembered long after his death in 1926. Profiling his early years, personal life, and great accomplishments in show business, the story of the famous magician, Harry Houdini, comes to life through a review of his greatest tricks and most amazing feats
Fat kid rules the world / K.L. Going. Fiction
Summary - Troy Billings is seventeen, 296 pounds, friendless, utterly miserable, and about to step off a New York subway platform in front of an oncoming train. Until he meets Curt MacCrae, an emaciated, semi-homeless, high school dropout guitar genius, the stuff of which Lower East Side punk rock legends are made. Never mind that Troy's dad thinks Curt's a drug addict and Troy's brother thinks Troy's the biggest (literally) loser in Manhattan. Soon, Curt's recruited Troy as his new drummer-even though Troy can't play the drums. Together, Curt and Troy will change the world of punk, and Troy's own life, forever.
for Mike / Shelley Sykes
Summary - MISSING: MIKE THAYER, 17 When Jeff's best friend Mike disappears in the fall of their senior year, Jeff starts to doubt everything he's ever known about their small town, and the familiar people in it. What happened to Mike? Jeff has got to find him. Then Jeff starts to have vivid dreams where he hears Mike say, "Come get me." Their friend Kirby is in the dreams, too, but Jeff's afraid to tell him. For with every dream, Jeff feels the power of his bond to Mike, and he also sees that Mike may have had another life, one that Jeff knew nothing about.
Frindle/ Andrew Clements/Fiction
Summary - Always one step ahead of his teachers, Nick not only can "feel a homework assignment coming the way a farmer can feel a rainstorm" but can dream up a distraction to prevent the assignment from being given. In fifth grade, however, he meets his match in tough language-arts teacher Mrs. Granger. Just to get under her skin and despite her loud protests he invents the word "frindle" and convinces the whole school to use it instead of the word "pen." The word spreads to the city, nation and world, and Clements (Big Al) fast-forwards the story by 10 years to show that "frindle" has made it into the dictionary. With this coup Nick gets a big surprise: the proof that Mrs. Granger was rooting for "frindle" all along. Like the Velveteen Rabbit, his well-worn word has become real. Dictionary lovers will cotton to this mild classroom fantasy, while readers who have a hard time believing that one person could invent a word out of thin air will be surprised to learn that the word "quiz" was invented the same way. Ages 8-12.
The grave / James Heneghan. Fiction
Summary - Thirteen-year-old Tom, an unhappy foster child in Liverpool, falls into a massive open grave and is transported to Ireland in 1847, where he finds himself in the midst of the deadly potato famine.
The Great Depression / by Michael Burgan. Nonfiction
Summary - Text and illustrations survey the Great Depression, explaining its causes, describing the First and Second New Deals, relating its outcomes, and providing a glossary, lists of important dates and people, and selected further resources
Gregor the Overlander / Suzanne Collins. Fiction
Summary - When eleven-year-old Gregor and his two-year-old sister are pulled into a strange underground world, they trigger an epic battle involving men, bats, rats, cockroaches, and spiders while on a quest foretold by ancient prophecy
Hachiko waits / Leslea Newman. Fiction
Summary - Professor Ueno's loyal Akita, Hachiko, waits for him at the train station every afternoon, and even after the professor has a fatal heart attack while at work, Hachiko faithfully continues to await his return until the day the dog dies. Based on a true story; includes an author's note and glossary of Japanese words.
Heartbeat / Sharon Creech. Fiction
Summary - Twelve-year-old Annie ponders the many rhythms of life the year that her mother becomes pregnant, her grandfather begins faltering, and her best friend (and running partner) becomes distant
Holes/Louis Sachar/Fiction
Summary – Stanley Yelnats is unjustly sent to Camp Green Lake where he and other boys are sentenced to dig holes to build character. Stanley learns the warden has them digging holes for something else- but what?
Homeless bird / Gloria Whelan. Fiction
Summary - When thirteen-year-old Koly enters into an ill-fated arranged marriage, she must either suffer a destiny dictated by India's tradition or find the courage to oppose it
Inside out/ Larry Crabb
Summary - A sixteen-year-old with schizophrenia is caught up in the events surrounding an attempted robbery by two other teens who eventually hold him hostage
Invention of Hugo Cabret/ Brian Selznick/Fiction
Summary - Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo's dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery
Kindred / Octavia E. Butler. Fiction
Summary - Dana, a modern black woman, is celebrating her twenty-sixth birthday with her new husband when she is snatched abruptly from her home in California and transported to the antebellum South. Rufus, the white son of a plantation owner, is drowning, and Dana has been summoned across the years to save him. After this first summons, Dana is drawn back, again and again, to the plantation to protect Rufus and ensure that he will grow to manhood and father the daughter who will become Dana's ancestor. Yet each time Dana's sojourns become longer and more dangerous, until it is uncertain whether or not her life will end, long before it has even begun. Book jacket.
Kit's wilderness. Fiction
Summary - The Watson family moves to the old coal-mining town of Stoneygate to care for Kit's recently widowed grandfather. When Kit meets John Askew, another boy whose family had worked and died in the mines, he invites Kit to join him in playing a game called Death. Kit's association with Askew takes him into the mines where the boys look for the childhood ghosts of their long-gone ancestors. Winner of the Michael L. Printz Award.
The kite runner / Khaled Hosseini.
Summary - Traces the unlikely friendship of a wealthy Afghan youth and a servant's son, in a tale that spans the final days of Afghanistan's monarchy through the atrocities of the present day.
Leaving Fishers / Margaret Peterson Haddix
Summary - After joining her new friends in the religious group called Fishers of Men, Dorry finds herself immersed in a cult from which she must struggle to extricate herself
Loser / Jerry Spinelli. Fiction
Summary - Donald Zinkoff is one of the greatest kids you could ever hope to meet. He laughs easily, he likes people, he loves school, he tries to rescue lost girls in blizzards, he talks to old ladies. The only problem is, he's a loser.
A mango-shaped space: a novel / by Wendy Mass. Fiction
Summary - Afraid that she is crazy, thirteen-year-old Mia, who sees a special color with every letter, number, and sound, keeps this a secret until she becomes overwhelmed by school, changing relationships, and the loss of something important to her.
The McElderry book of Greek myths / Eric A. Kimmel; illustrated by Pep Montserrat. Nonfiction
Summary - Walk among the gods and goddesses, men and monsters, in this enchanting volume of classic Greek myths! Here are twelve of the most beloved legends of Greek mythology, from Pandora and her dreaded box to Icarus with his wings of wax, and, of course, that greedy, gold-fingered King Midas. Vibrant art adds a fresh twist to this collection, giving today's readers their own version of these timeless tales.
Mr. Was / Pete Hautman. Fiction
Summary - After his dying grandfather tries to strangle him, Jack Lund discovers a door that leads him fifty years into the past and involves him in events that determine his own future
Oh, rats!: the story of rats and people / Albert Marrin; illustrated by C.B. Mordan. Non-Fiction
Summary - Get ready to look at rats in a whole new way. These intelligent, compassionate creatures are greatly misunderstood.
The only alien on the planet/ by Kristen D. Randle. Fiction
Summary - New student Ginny is intrigued by the handsome alien in her homeroom no, this is not a science fiction novel. Smitty real name Michael’s known to his schoolmates as "The Alien" because of his affectless appearance and complete silence. Soon, Ginny and Smitty's longtime protector, Caulder, team up to try and crack his shell. They get much more than they bargain for when they drag him along on old-movie outings; as a none-too-subtle plot device, the first turns out to be The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, the second, East of Eden. Smitty walks out of both, for it turns out that he was almost fatally abused by his older brother, who also convinced him that he would die if he spoke to anyone. With the help of Ginny, Caulder and a wise and sympathetic therapist, Smitty emerges from this psychological curse, and he and Ginny even begin a tentative romantic relationship. Randle (Why Did Grandma Have to Die?) unfortunately builds her otherwise well-crafted novel around an uncharacteristic response to abuse. Under his pain, Smitty is totally honest and caring a very romantic figure, but not one likely to be found in the real world.
Peter and the Starcatchers / by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson; illustrations by Greg Call. Fiction
Summary - Soon after Peter, an orphan, sets sail from England on the ship Never Land, he befriends and assists Molly, a young Starcatcher, whose mission is to guard a trunk of magical stardust from a greedy pirate and the native inhabitants of a remote island.
A raisin in the sun / Lorraine Hansberry; with an introduction by Robert Nemiroff. Fiction
Summary - An African-American family is united in love and pride as they struggle to overcome poverty and harsh living conditions, in the award-winning 1959 play about an embattled Chicago family
Red glass / Laura Resau. Fiction
Summary - Sixteen-year-old Sophie has been frail and delicate since her premature birth, but discovers her true strength during a journey through Mexico, where the six-year-old orphan her family hopes to adopt was born, and to Guatemala, where her would-be boyfriend hopes to find his mother and plans to remain.
Rose daughter / Robin McKinley. Fiction
Summary - reexplores and reexpands on the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale. This is a new novelization that is fuller bodied, with richer characterizations and a more mystical, darker edge. The familiar plot is here, but the slant is quite different, though Beauty's sisters are once again loving rather than hostile as in de Beaumont's original version. In Rose Daughter, Beauty has an affinity for flower gardening, particularly roses, because of her memories of her deceased mother; it is a talent that serves her in good stead as she nurtures the Beast's dying rose garden. Also, in some nicely done foreshadowing, Beauty suffers from recurring dreams of a long, dark corridor and something--a monster?--waiting for her at the end. Rose Cottage, where Beauty and her family settle after the father's financial downfall, and the nearby town and its residents, as well as the opulence of the Beast's castle and the devastation of his rose garden, are vividly depicted. Among the fantasy elements are a prescient cat, the spirit of the greenwitch who willed Rose Cottage to Beauty's family, unicorns, and preternatural Guardians.
Samir and Yonatan / by Daniella Carmi; translated by Yael Lotan. Fiction
Summary - Samir, a Palestinian boy, is sent for surgery to an Israeli hospital where he has two otherworldly experiences, making friends with an Israeli boy, Yonatan, and traveling with him to Mars where Samir finds peace over his younger brother's death in the war.
The Schwa was here / Neal Shusterman. Fiction
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