Mrs. Malecha Reads!

 by Brenda Woods Genre:  Historical Fiction For 12 year old Gabriel Haberlin, life in the small town of Birdsong, SC is pretty good, until one day when he is nearly run over by a car while riding his brand hew bike. Luckily, Meriwether Hunter, a man who Gabriel has never noticed before, was able to push him to safety at the last second.  Gabriel is determined to repay Meriwether for his kindness and as their friendship develops, Gabriel is forced to confront the fact that people are not all treated equally in Birdsong.  Gabriel and his family have some choices to make as their eyes are opened to the discrimination that exists in their town.

 by Lisa Fipps Genre:  Realistic Fiction, Novel in Verse Ever since her 5th birthday party, Ellie has been bullied about her weight.  The kids at school call her all kinds of names, but worst of all, she's not safe from the bullying at home either.  Her siblings make fun of her and even her mother is constantly on her about her weight.  Ellie just wants her family, friends and the world to accept her for who she is...an amazing human with many gifts to share.   

 by James Patterson and Kwame Alexander Genre:  Historical Fiction, Novel in Verse Before he became Muhammad Ali, he was Cassius Clay, a young boy who had big dreams.  He dreamed that he would be the best boxer of all time.  At first, his mom wasn't too keen on him hanging out at the boxing gym all the time.  She felt that education was his best chance at success.  But Cassius was determined from an early age to make sure that he played the biggest role in his success.  He was focused and with the support of friends and family, he was able to achieve his dreams.

 by Jessie Janowitz Genre:  Realistic Fiction Jeanine, Tristan, and Zoe have just been surprised by their parents...they are leaving their life in New York City and moving to the small town of Petersville in the middle of nowhere.  Their parents think it will be great!  Jeanine and Tris, especially, think it will not, but their parents are bound and determined to make this lifestyle change.  When they arrive in Petersville, they learn that the school doesn't want them to start until the second semester so now Jeanine and Tris have to come up with a project to make up for not being in school.  Tris is excited to learn that there is a general store in town that makes chocolate creme donuts!  Only they don't anymore, until Tris decides that doughnuts will be his new project.  He's not sure of the details yet, but he's sure that the town of Petersville will be better off with doughnuts again!

 by Renee Watson Genre:  Realistic Fiction Ryan is having trouble living up to her name.  "Ryan" means leader and she's trying to be the best she can be, but it's hard with all that she has on her mind.  Money is tight so their family has to move and her dad has a new job that he has to work at night.  And now the big fourth grade talent show is coming up.  Ryan wants to be part of it...if she can figure out what her talent is!

 by Andrea Davis Pinkney Genre:  Historical Fiction Loretta, 1927 to 1930:  tells the story of growing up as the daughter of a sharecropper.  Her mother died shortly after she was born so it was her dad and 2 sisters that kept the family going.  They never had much, but they had each other. Roly, 1942 to 1950:  tells the story of how he was found by Loretta and her sisters and brought into their family as the younger brother.  He helped them scrape together enough money to buy a piece of land, but times were still tough. Aggie B., 1962 to 1968:  tells the story of growing up without her mother and feeling the call to change and challenge the Jim Crow laws that have kept her family down for so many years.  Aggie B, with help from 'Retta become a strong force in their community, working towards a better life for all.

 by Uri Shulevitz Genre:  Memoir Uri was just 4 years old when the Germans started bombing Warsaw, Poland.  His mother helped him put on his boots and told him they were going to take a long walk.  This book chronicles the 8 years that Uri and his family spent on their "walk" as they were relocated and struggled for survival each day.  Throughout their journey, the family remained hopeful that one day they would find a home again and not have to worry about food and safety on a daily basis.