Even More Great Books for Sixth Graders

Doll Bones by Holly Black

JFIC BLACK Doll (AR Pts: 7.0; Lexile: 840L)
Zach, Alice, and Poppy, friends from a Pennsylvania middle school who have long enjoyed acting out
imaginary adventures with dolls and action figures, embark on a real-life quest to Ohio to bury a doll
made from the ashes of a dead girl.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
JNBRY OR JFIC GAIMAN Graveyard (AR Pts: 10.0; Lexile: 820L)
An orphaned boy is raised by ghosts and other denizens of the graveyard.

Better Nate than Ever by Tim Federle
JFIC FEDERLE Better (AR Pts: 9.0; Lexile: 930L)
An eighth-grader who dreams of performing in a Broadway musical concocts a plan to run away to New
York and audition for the role of Elliot in the musical version of "E.T."

Escape from Mr. Lemoncellos Library by Chris Grabenstein
JFIC GRABENSTEIN Escape (AR Pts: 7.0; Lexile: 720L)
Twelve-year-old Kyle gets to stay overnight in the new town library, designed by his hero (the famous
gamemaker Luigi Lemoncello), with other students but finds that come morning he must work with
friends to solve puzzles in order to escape.

Heat by Mike Lupica
JFIC LUPICA Heat (AR Pts: 9.0; Lexile: 940L)
Pitching prodigy Michael Arroyo is on the run from social services after being banned from playing Little
League baseball because rival coaches doubt he is only twelve years old and he has no parents to offer
them proof.

The Arrival by Shaun Tan (Graphic Novel)
JGN 741.5973 T161a (No rating; Lexile: None)
In this wordless graphic novel, a man leaves his homeland and sets off for a new country, where he must
build a new life for himself and his family.

Drama by Raina Telgemeier (Graphic Novel)
JGN 741.5973 T271d (AR Pts: 1.0; Lexile: GN400L)
Callie rides an emotional roller coaster while serving on the stage crew for a middle school production of
Moon over Mississippi as various relationships start and end, and others never quite get going.

Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie Tolan
JFIC TOLAN Surviving (AR Pts: 7.0; Lexile: 820L)
Jake, a budding juvenile delinquent, is sent for home schooling to the arty and eccentric Applewhite
family's Creative Academy, where he discovers talents and interests he never knew he had.

Navigating Early by Claire Vanderpool
JFIC VANDERPOOL Navigating (AR Pts: 11.0; Lexile: 790L)
Set at the end of World War II, this Odyssey-like adventure details two boys' incredible quest on the
Appalachian Trail where they deal with pirates, buried secrets, and extraordinary encounters.

Nonfiction:
Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science by John Fleishman
JNF 362.1974 F596p (AR Pts: 2.0 ; Lexile: 1030L)
Phineas Gage was truly a man with a hole in his head. Phineas, a railroad construction foreman, was
blasting rock near Cavendish, Vermont, in 1848 when a thirteen-pound iron rod was shot through his
brain. Miraculously, he survived to live another eleven years and become a textbook case in brain
science. His case astonished doctors in his day and still fascinates doctors today. What happened and
what didn't happen inside the brain of Phineas Gage will tell you a lot about how your brain works and
how you act human.

Moonbird: A Year on the Wind With the Great Survivor B95 by Phillip Hoose
JNF 598.0723 H789m (AR Pts: 5.0; Lexile: 1150L)
Why Moonbird? Because in his lifetime, B95 has flown the distance to the moon and halfway back. In
fact, that's probably an underestimate, as scientists did not start measuring the distance B95 flew until
they caught and tagged him. B95 weighs only four ounces, but his grit, athleticism and endurance have
made him famous among scientists and ecologists.

The NEW Way Things Work by David Macaulay
JNF 600 M117n (No rating; Lexile: 1180L)
Text and numerous detailed illustrations introduce and explain the scientific principles and workings of
hundreds of machines. Includes new material about digital technology.

Jazz ABZ by Wynton Marsalis
JNF 811.6 M363j (No rating; Lexile: None)
In a swinging improvisation with poster artist Paul Rogers, Wynton Marsalis celebrates the spirit of
twenty-six stellar jazz performers, from Armstrong to Dizzy -- and showcases the same number of poetic
forms.

Chasing Lincolns Killer by James Swanson
JNF 973.7092 Sw972c (AR Pts: 6.0; Lexile: 980L)
Based on rare archival material, obscure trial manuscripts, and interviews with relatives of the
conspirators and the manhunters, this fast-paced thriller tells the story of the pursuit and capture of
John Wilkes Booth and gives a day-by-day account of the wild chase to find this killer and his
accomplices.

Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different by Karen Blumenthal
JBIO JOBS,S B658s (AR Pts: 9.0; Lexile: 1110L)
Blumenthals biography shows us the complicated man behind the black turtleneck and sleek gadgets.
The book serves to portray Jobs as the complicated individual he actually was: tech genius and human
with faults.