8th Grade Summer Reading

Hudson High School English and Social Studies

In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get
through, but rather how many can get through to you.
Mortimer J. Adler

One of your first tasks as a high school student will be to complete your summer
reading assignment for both social studies and English. Inside this pamphlet, you will
see a variety of books to choose from. You must select any two of the books listed and
complete one Reading for Signposts chart for each book. One will be graded in
English Language Arts and one will be graded in social studies.

Tough
Questions

Aha
Moment
Words
of the
Wiser

Again
and
Again
Memory
Moment

Contrast and
Contradiction

Please note: To entice you to keep reading all summer, sequels to some of the novels are included
in the book descriptions. The sequels are not part of the required Summer Reading list.

The City of Ember, Jeanne DuPrau (Book #1 in the series; Fantasy, Sci-Fi,
Dystopian)

Many hundreds of years ago, the city of Ember was created by the Builders to
contain everything needed for human survival. It workedbut now the
storerooms are almost out of food, crops are blighted, corruption is spreading
through the city and worst of allthe lights are failing. Soon Ember could be
engulfed by darkness.
But when two children, Lina and Doon, discover fragments of an ancient
parchment, they begin to wonder if there could be a way out of Ember. Can they
decipher the words from long ago and find a new future for everyone? Will the
people of Ember listen to them?
(The series continues with Book #2: The People of Sparks, Book #3: The Prophet of
Yonwood; Book #4: The Diamond of Darkhold)

If I Stay, Gayle Foreman (Realistic Fiction)

Choices. Seventeen-year-old Mia is faced with some tough ones: Stay true to her
first lovemusiceven if it means losing her boyfriend and leaving her family
and friends behind?
Then one February morning Mia goes for a drive with her family, and in an
instant, everything changes. Suddenly, all the choices are gone, except one. And
it's the only one that matters.
If I Stay is a heart-achingly beautiful book about the power of love, the true
meaning of family, and the choices we all make.
(If you liked this novel, you will really like the sequel, Where She Went)

Life As We Knew It, Susan Beth Pfeffer (Book #1 in the series; Science
Fiction)

Mirandas disbelief turns to fear in a split second when a meteor knocks the moon closer
to the earth. How should her family prepare for the future when worldwide tsunamis
wipe out the coasts, earthquakes rock the continents, and volcanic ash blocks out the
sun? As summer turns to Arctic winter, Miranda, her two brothers, and their mother
retreat to the unexpected safe haven of their sunroom, where they subsist on stockpiled
food and limited water in the warmth of a wood-burning stove. Told in journal entries,
this is the heart-pounding story of Mirandas struggle to hold on to the most important
resource of all--hope--in an increasingly desperate and unfamiliar world.
(The series continues with Book #2: The Dead and the Gone, Book #3: The World We
Live In and Book #4: The Shade of the Moon)

Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children, Ransom

Riggs (Book #1 in the series; Fantasy)
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of curious
photographs. A horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to
a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of
Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned
bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just
peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a
deserted island for good reason. And somehowimpossible though it seems
they may still be alive.
(The series continues with Book #2: Hollow City and Book #3: Library of Souls)

Chains, Laurie Halse Anderson (Book #1 in a series; Historical Fiction)

As the Revolutionary War begins, thirteen-year-old Isabel wages her own fight...for
freedom. Promised freedom upon the death of their owner, she and her sister, Ruth, in a
cruel twist of fate become the property of a malicious New York City couple, the
Locktons, who have no sympathy for the American Revolution and even less for Ruth
and Isabel. When Isabel meets Curzon, a slave with ties to the Patriots, he encourages
her to spy on her owners, who know details of British plans for invasion. She is reluctant
at first, but when the unthinkable happens to Ruth, Isabel realizes her loyalty is available
to the bidder who can provide her with freedom.
From acclaimed author Laurie Halse Anderson comes a novel that shows the lengths we
can go to cast off our chains, both physical and spiritual.
(The series continues with Book #2: Forge and coming in January 2016 Book #3, Ashes)

The Greatest: Muhammad Ali, Walter Dean Myers (Sports Biography)

He was the greatest boxer in the world, and in the 1960s, he single-handedly
changed the face of boxing forever.
Award-winning author Walter Dean Myers presents the amazing story of
Muhammad Ali's childhood, his rise as a champion, his politics, and his battles
against Parkinson's disease. Packed with dramatic black-and-white photos, this
critically acclaimed biography is the perfect choice for both young adult sports
fans and fans of Walter Dean Myers in general.

I Am Malala, Malala Yousafzai (Memoir, Current Events, Non-Fiction)

When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out.
Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education.
On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate
price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home
from school, and few expected her to survive.
Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey
from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in
New York. At sixteen, she has become a global symbol of peaceful protest and the
youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize. I Am Malala is the remarkable
tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, who have a fierce love for their
daughter in a society that prizes sons.

The Nazi Hunters, Neal Bascomb (Historical Non-Fiction)

In 1945, at the end of World War II, Adolf Eichmann, the head of operations for
the Nazis' Final Solution, walked into the mountains of Germany and vanished
from view. Sixteen years later, an elite team of spies captured him at a bus stop in
Argentina and smuggled him to Israel, resulting in one of the century's most
important trials -- one that cemented the Holocaust in the public imagination.
Survivor Simon Wiesenthal opened Eichmann's case; a blind Argentinean and his
teenage daughter provided crucial information. Finally, the Israeli spies -- many
of whom lost family in the Holocaust -- embarked on their daring mission,
recounted here in full.
***All descriptions are from goodreads.com***

Signposts: What are they?

When you are traveling to an unknown location, signposts can help you get there,
whether they are on the road or the GPS. In reading literature, signposts will help you
get into the many layers of reading. Signposts are particularly noticeable points in a
text that stand out as a significant moment in the story. You will be using signposts
regularly in your classes.
Directions:
Use the Reading for Signposts information on the following page as a guide as you
read your books and to help you complete each blank Reading for Signposts chart.
When completing the two charts you must choose four different signposts to write
about on each chart. Use the anchor questions as a guide and remember to record
the page number where your evidence was found.
Checklist:
Read two different novels from the provided list
Complete one Reading for Signposts chart for your English class
four different signposts were chosen
evidence is provided (a quote, a paraphrased example, etc.)
included page number where evidence was found
answered one anchor question from the chart
Complete one Reading for Signposts chart for your social studies class
four different signposts were chosen
evidence is provided (a quote, a paraphrased example, etc.)
included page number where evidence was found
answered one anchor question from the chart

Grading and Due Date: This will be your first major assessment in both ELA
and social studies. Both Summer Reading charts are due the first week of school,
which means no later than September 3, 2015. Students should also be prepared
to participate in small group book discussions as well.
**An example of how to complete the Reading for Signposts chart can be
found on the back of this packet.**

Use this Reading for Signposts information to guide your reading responses

Signpost and
Definitions
Contrasts and
Contradictions
A sharp contrast between what
we would expect and what we
observe the character doing;
behavior or well-established
patterns. Also, contrasts
between characters or situations.

Clues to the Signpost

A character behaves or thinks in a
way we dont expect, or an element
of a setting is something we would
not expect.

1. Why would the character act or

feel this way?
2. How do the contrasts between
characters help us understand
them?
3. How might contrasts between
situation help us predict plot or
conflict?

Why might the author bring this up

again and again?

Again and Again

Events, images, or particular
words that recur over a portion
of the novel

Memory Moment
A recollection by a character that
interrupts the forward progress
of the story

Aha Moment
A characters realization of
something that shifts his actions
for understanding of himself,
others, or the world around him.

Tough Questions
Questions a character raises that
reveal his/her inner struggles

Words of the Wiser

The advice or insight a wiser
character-usually older-offers
about life to the main
character

Anchor Questions

A word is repeated, sometimes

used in an odd way, over and
over in the story.
An image reappears several
times during the course of the
book

The ongoing flow of the narrative is

interrupted by a memory that
comes to the character, often taking
several paragraphs to recount
before we are returned to events of
the present moment.

Why might this memory be

important?

Phrases usually expressing

suddenness, like:
Suddenly I understood
The realization hit me like a
lightning bolt
In an instant I knew

How might this change things?

Phrases expressing serious doubt or

confusion:
What could I possibly do to?
I couldnt imagine how I could
cope with
How could I ever understand
why she?
Never had I been so confused
about

What does this question make me

wonder about?

The main character and another

are usually off by themselves in a
quiet serious moment, and the
wiser figure shares his wisdom or
advice in an effort to help the
main character with a problem or
a decision

Whats the life lesson and how

might it affect the character?

Reading for Signposts Chart

ENGLISH

Name: ______________________________________ Block: ______ Date: ________

Title: ________________________________________ Author: ____________________________________

Circle the Signpost You

Found
(you must use
FOUR DIFFERENT ones)
Contrast and Contradictions
Again and Again
Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

Contrast and Contradictions

Again and Again
Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

Contrast and Contradictions

Again and Again
Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

Contrast and Contradictions

Again and Again
Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

Page #

Provide supporting evidence (quote, scene, paraphrased

example) from the book and then explain why your evidence fits
the signpost you chose. Use the Anchor Questions from the
Reading for Signposts as a guide.

Reading for Signposts Chart

SOCIAL STUDIES

Name: ________________________________ Block: ______ Date: _______

Title:______________________________________ Author: _______________________________________

Circle the Signpost You

Found
(you must use
FOUR DIFFERENT ones)
Contrast and Contradictions
Again and Again
Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

Contrast and Contradictions

Again and Again
Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

Contrast and Contradictions

Again and Again
Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

Contrast and Contradictions

Again and Again
Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

Page #

Provide supporting evidence (quote, scene, paraphrased

example) from the book and then explain why your evidence fits
the signpost you chose. Use the Anchor Questions from the
Reading for Signposts as a guide.

Example of a filled out chart using The Hunger Games.

(Just a reminder, this is only two examples, you need four for each book!)

Circle the
Signpost You
Found
Contrast and
Contradiction

Page #

Pg.
22-23

Again and Again

Memory Moment

Words of the Wiser

Pg.
160

Shes dead. I stuck her myself... Someone

should go back. Make sure the jobs done...An
argument breaks out until one tribute silences
the others. Were wasting time! Ill go finish her
and lets move on! I almost fall out of the tree.
The voice belongs to Peeta.

Memory Moment
Aha Moment
Tough Questions
Words of the Wiser

This quote was chosen as a Contrast and

Contradictions signpost because I could NOT
believe that Peeta all of a sudden wants to make
sure that Katniss is dead! When did he change
his mind? How can he feel this way? He just
proclaimed his love for her on national TV and
now he wants to make sure shes dead. I sure
hope that this is some kind of a plan to sidetrack
the Career tributes! Has he already changed to a
person just wanting to survive at any cost?

Explanation of evidence using an

anchor question as a guide

Evidence from novel

Tough Questions

Again and Again

There must have been some mistake. This cant

be happening. Prim was one slip of paper in
thousands!... I volunteer! I gasp. I volunteer as
tribute!
This quote was chosen as an Aha Moment
signpost because in a split second, Katniss
decides that she must take her sisters place at
the Hunger Games Reaping. This will change
things because now Katniss no longer can think
of running away, will no longer be able to take
care of her family and will have to win the
Hunger Games in order to make sure she gets
back to them. This shows her character; she
would risk her own life to keep Prim safe.

Aha Moment

Contrast and
Contradiction

Provide supporting evidence (quote, scene,

paraphrased example) from the book and then
explain why your evidence fits the signpost you
chose. Use the Anchor Questions from the
Reading for Signposts as a guide.