Social Issues—Middle School
Buss. Journey of the Sparrows
Maria and her brother and sister, Salvadoran refugees, are smuggled into the United States in crates and try to eke out a living in Chicago with the help of a sympathetic family.
Byars. Cracker Jackson
"Jackson, now
eleven, still loves Alma, {his former babysitter}, and is fearful on her
behalf, because--although she won't admit it--her bruises indicate that she's
being abused by her {husband}. The latter has threatened Jackson, who is afraid
both on his own behalf and Alma's. . . . After Alma, brutally assaulted, admits
the situation, Jackson tries to help her; eventually his mother steps in and,
in the end, Alma and her baby are taken to another town where they are safe. .
. ." (Bull Cent Child Books)
Carmi. Samir and Yonatan
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. (publisher)
Trent, an ace
interrogator from Vermont, works to procure a confession from an introverted
twelve-year-old accused of murdering his seven-year-old friend in Monument, Massachusetts.
Intellectually and athletically gifted, TJ, a multiracial, adopted teenager, shuns organized spors and the gung-ho athletes at his high school until he agrees to form a swimming team and recruits some of the school’s less popular students.
Clements. The Janitor’s Boy
Jack finds himself the target of ridicule at school when it becomes known that his father is one of the janitors, and he turns his anger onto his father.
Cooney. Burning Up
When a girl she has met at an inner city church is murdered, 15-year-old Macey channels her grief into a school project that leads her to uncover prejudice she had not imagined in her grandparents and their wealthy Connecticut community.
Cummings. A Face First
Twelve-year-old Kelley decides to cut off contact with her friends and classmates after suffering third-degree burns to her face and body in a car accident near her home on Maryland’s Kent Island.
Dowell. Dovey Coe
Accused of murder in her North Carolina mountain town in 1928, Dovey Coe, a strong-willed 12-year-old girl, comes to a new understanding of others, included her deaf brother, as she attempts to clear her name.
Greenberg. I Never Promised You a Rose Garden
This book chronicles
the three-year battle of a mentally ill, but perceptive, teenage girl against a
world of her own creation, emphasizing her relationship with the doctor who
gave her the ammunition of self-understanding with which to help herself.
Ewing. Drive-By
Twelve-year-old Tito, while helping to care for his little sister, struggles to find his way during the aftermath of his brother's death in a gang-related shooting.
This is a very good book that tells about a boy and his
brother and how they got in trouble. Nick C.
Hesser. Kissing Doorknobs
Fourteen-year-old Tara describes how her increasingly strange compulsions begin to take over her life and affect her relationships with her family and friends.
Lisle. The Art of Keeping Cool
In 1942, Robert and his cousin Elliot uncover long-hidden family secrets while staying in their grandparents’ Rhode Island town, where they also become involved w ith a German artist who is suspected of being a spy.
Lowry. The Giver
Given his lifetime assignment at the Ceremony of Twelve, Jonas becomes the receiver of memories shared by only one other in his community and discovers the terrible truth about his society.
Naylor. Walker’s Crossing
While living on his family’s ranch in Wyoming where he hopes to someday be a cowboy, Ryan faces conflicts with his older brother who becomes involved in a militia unit.
Philbrick. Freak the Mighty
All his life Max had been called stupid, until Freak came
along. Together, they were Freak the Mighty. Also read Max the Mighty.
Ryan. Esperanza Rising
Esperanza and her
mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go
work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the
harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great
Depression.
Shaw. Black-eyed Suzie
Suzie's stay in a mental hospital helps her tear down the walls of a devasting psychological prison that she calls "the box."
Sones. Stop Pretending: What Happened When My Big
Sister Went Crazy
A younger sister has a difficult time adjusting to life after her older sister has a mental breakdown.
Spinelli. Stargirl
In this story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love, an eccentric student named Stargirl changes Mica High School forever.
Spinelli. Wringer
This is a highly unusual book. It's something that you
wouldn't read that often, but it's good. Suraj K.
Staples. Dangerous Skies
Hypocrisy and prejudice twist events in such a way as to implicate two children, one from a prominent white family and the other an African-American, in a murder.
Taylor. Mississippi Bridge
During a heavy rainstorm in 1930s Mississippi, a white boy sees a bus driver order the black passengers off a crowded bus to make room for white passengers and set off across the creek. What happens is a horrible shock to the whole town.
Taylor. The Friendship and The Gold Cadillac
Four children witness a confrontation between an elderly
black man and a white storekeeper in rural Mississippi in the 1930s.
Trueman. Stuck
in Neutral
Fourteen-year-old Shawn McDaniel, who suffers from severe cerebral palsy and cannot function, relates his perceptions of his life, his family, and his condition, especially as he believes his father is planning to kill him.
White. Memories of Summer
In 1955, 13-year-old Lyric finds her whole life changing when her family moves from the hills of Virginia to a town in Michigan and her older sister Summer begins descending into mental illness.
Wilson. Vancouver Nightmare
When Tom visits his grandparents in Vancouver he finds himself in the middle of a drug smuggling caper.