what is a good fiction book for an eighth-grade reading level?

Question

It's for a book report. I need a book that a strict Christian school will aprove of.
please leave a title and summary of the book. thanks for helping!

P.S. No Harry Potter, books about witchcraft tales or stories, or anything considered "satanic". Although I've read the Harry Potter books, and a great fan of them, my school forbids them...

Answer 1

Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury

Simply put, 451 degrees Fahrenheit is the temperature at which paper burns. In this grim look at a fascist future, firemen have taken on a new duty of starting fires as well as putting them out (complete with flame throwers), specifically with the task of burning all books, as way of suppressing independent thought and action in the public. The novel's story centers around a young fireman, Guy Montag, who finds himself questioning his job, even as he encounters a beautiful young woman, and learns about an underground of rebels who each memorize the entire contents of a book, so that they can preserve it even without the use of paper...

Does your school seriously think Harry Potter is satanic? I'm so so sorry for you.

If you weren't going to a strict Christian School, I would suggest

The Body of Christopher Creed - Carol Plum Ucci

The Body of Christopher Creed is the first novel by an esteemed entertainment and business writer, Carol Plum-Ucci. The novel is about a young boy, Torey Adams, and how his perfect world is shattered when an unpopular boy in his school disappears. The novel takes on heavy social issues that teenagers deal with every day, such as popularity and classroom bullies, and allows its readers to see them through the eyes of both the popular and the unpopular. Ms. Plum-Ucci's novel is well written and inspiring for both young adult readers and the young at heart.

The novel opens nearly two years after Christopher Creed's disappearance. Torey Adams, a high school senior who has chosen to finish his high school education at boarding school rather than at his hometown high school, is preparing an e-mail that he hopes will be the one to reveal Christopher Creed's fate. While preparing this e-mail, Torey is interrupted by a noisy and unpopular classmate. Torey finds it difficult to be polite to this nuisance but manages to keep his unpleasant thoughts to himself. Finally, Torey is allowed to return to his e-mail that contains a document entitled Creed.doc. Torey decides to read this document for the first time since he originally wrote it.

Torey becomes interested in Christopher Creed's disappearance during church services in which the pastor allows Mr. and Mrs. Creed to give an impassioned speech asking for any information in the search for their son. After church, Torey and his friends, Alex and Ryan, are in his basement, where they decide to look up the note Creed supposedly sent to the principal of their school the day of his disappearance. Alex is a computer geek and quickly finds a copy of the note in the principal's e-mail inbox. The note claims that Creed is no longer happy with his parents and his unpopularity, mentioning Torey and his friends as the type of people he would like to be, and Creed announces that he has decided to stop existing in this capacity.

Torey is deeply disturbed by this note, but his friends find humor in it. Soon speculation begins regarding what the note means. Many people suggest it is a suicide note, while others think it is a runaway note. Others think a boon killed Creed, specifically Bo Richardson, who broke Creed's ankle the year before. Torey wants to know the truth. A friend of Torey's, Ali, lives across the street from Creed and has been witness to many of Creed's unusual behaviors because she can see into his bedroom window from her bedroom.

Torey goes to Ali's house, where he witnesses Mrs. Creed searching for something. Ali and Torey become convinced it is Creed's diary, which he keeps hidden behind a painting. When Ali's boyfriend, Bo Richardson, arrives, they decide they must steal the diary before Mrs. Creed gets it. Torey and Bo hatch a plan in which Torey will call the Creeds suggesting that he has information for them, drawing them out of the house, while Bo breaks into the house. However, this plan causes both Torey and Bo to be picked up by the police for harassment and extortion.

Bo confesses to the phone call to protect Torey and manages to sneak the diary to Ali by claiming it is Ali's schoolbook. Torey and Ali begin to read the diary and discover that Creed had a girlfriend in another town the summer before. Torey, Ali and Bo decide to find this girlfriend, hoping that Creed is staying with her. Before they can, however, Bo is arrested for extortion and for questioning in the murder of Christopher Creed. Now it becomes more important that Torey and Ali find out the truth.

When Torey and Ali find Creed's girlfriend, they learn that the girl was only nice to Creed to get him to stop hanging on her. They also learn that the girl took Creed to her psychic aunt in order to have her aunt convince Creed to leave her alone. This psychic told Creed he would die in the woods. When the psychic sees Torey, she announces that he will find Creed's body, shot in the head by his own hand, at an Indian grave marked by three large rocks. Torey knows where this grave is, since there is an old Indian burial ground behind his house where he has played since he was a small child.

Torey and Ali go to the grave, but they do not find anything. Later that same night, Alex comes over to warn Torey that Renee, his girlfriend, is going to tell the police that Bo and Torey confessed to killing Creed. Although Torey and Bo did say this, they said it as a joke. Now Torey is concerned that no one will believe it was a joke unless he can prove Creed killed himself. Torey goes back into the burial ground alone. While there, he climbs on top of the three rocks to get a good look at the area. One of the rocks falls loose and breaks Torey's leg. While trying to get to his feet, Torey discovers a burial cave behind the rocks that encloses three bodies wrapped in small blankets and a body dressed in modern clothing with a gun shot to the head.

Torey suffers shock after this discovery and is hospitalized for several weeks. Torey's mother tells him the body he found was not Creed, but that of a local man, Bob Haines. All charges are dropped against Bo due to the fact that all the evidence is circumstantial. No one believes Renee's accusations. Torey wrote down the story as part of his therapy to overcome Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. At first, he had no intention of ever showing the document to anyone. However, Torey has become obsessed with the idea of finding Creed. Using different versions of the names Creed listed in his suicide/runaway note, Torey searches for Creed, hoping to one day learn the truth of what really happened to him.

Answer 2

Perhaps something by Joan Bauer. She is an excellent author and while her books aren't particularly christian, they're not non-christian either. There is definitely no 'witchcraft' or anything 'dangerous' like that. And I don't believe there are any sex scenes or sexual references. My top three by Joan Bauer are Hope Was Here, Squashed, and The Rules of the Road.

In Hope Was Here, it is about a young teen girl who waitresses. She's being raised by her aunt I believe. Her aunt is a chef/cook. She was abandoned by her birth mom. They move to a new town and start working in a diner. And the book is about her adjustment to life there, making friends, learning and growing up. It's a great, great book.

In Squashed, there is a young teen girl who is trying to grow a prize-winning pumpkin. It sounds dull, but it isn't. I didn't believe a book about a vegetable could be interesting either until I read it.

In The Rules of The Road a young teen girl is working at a shoe store. She is hired by the big boss, the current president of the company, an older lady who's about to be 'forced' into retirement to drive her to the big company/stockholders meeting. So it is an intergenerational road trip. Her father is an alcoholic who hasn't been there for her in years, so the trip is her journey through that and along the way she learns how to cope and forgive and really open up her heart.

Hit the Road by Caroline Cooney might also be a possibility. It is another intergenerational road trip. A sixteen year old girl is driving her grandmother--without anyone else's permission but at the grandma's insistence--to her college reunion. It is very funny. I read it several months ago, but I don't recall there being anything remotely scandalous or offensive about it. Just good light-hearted fun.

If you like historical fiction I would suggest anything by Carolyn Meyer. I LOVE her Young Tudor Royals series. The first one is Mary, Bloody, Mary. The second one is Beware, Princess Elizabeth. The third is Doomed Queen Anne. The fourth is Patience, Princess Catherine. You can read them in any order or out of sequence. Although it's a series, they're not reliant on one another at all. I would think any of the above titles would be appropriate in a Christian school setting. Another writer you might consider is Shelley Pearsall. Crooked River is an excellent novel. It is loosely based on a true story of an Indian trial around 1812 I believe. It is very well-written. Her other novel, Trouble Don't Last is about the underground railroad. Both would be excellent choices. Again I don't see why anyone would object to them.

The Night of the Burning by Linda Press Wulf
Based on a true story, The Night of the Burning, tells the story of two sisters, orphans who at the ages of twelve and nine have witnessed too much already: the death of their uncle, father, mother, aunt, and the destruction of the entire Jewish community where they lived. As their community's sole survivors, the girls are rescued and sent to an orphanage in Pinsk. There the girls are chosen to be part of two hundred children sent to the Jewish community in South Africa.

For light fantasy, I would try Shannon Hale. The Princess Academy or Goose Girl.

Answer 3

I think you would like any of these:

Lois Lowry's The Giver Trilogy:
The Giver (1993), winner of the 1994 Newbery Medal
Gathering Blue (2000)
Messenger (2004)

Kathryn Lasky:
Blood Secret
Broken Song
Star Split
Alice Rose and Sam
True North
Beyond the Burning Time
Memoirs of a Bookbat
The Bone Wars
Pageant
Beyond the Divide
Night Journey

Pete Hautman:
Sweetblood
Godless
Invisible

Answer 4

The Giver by Lois Lowry:




Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
In a world with no poverty, no crime, no sickness and no unemployment, and where every family is happy, 12-year-old Jonas is chosen to be the community's Receiver of Memories. Under the tutelage of the Elders and an old man known as the Giver, he discovers the disturbing truth about his utopian world and struggles against the weight of its hypocrisy. With echoes of Brave New World, in this 1994 Newbery Medal winner, Lowry examines the idea that people might freely choose to give up their humanity in order to create a more stable society. Gradually Jonas learns just how costly this ordered and pain-free society can be, and boldly decides he cannot pay the price. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly
Winner of the 1994 Newbery Medal, this thought-provoking novel centers on a 12-year-old boy's gradual disillusionment with an outwardly utopian futuristic society; in a starred review, PW said, "Lowry is once again in top form... unwinding a tale fit for the most adventurous readers." Ages 10-up.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

http://www.amazon.com/Giver-Lois-Lowry/dp/0440219078/ref=cm_lm_fullview_prod_1/103-7839536-5570218

Answer 5

Read The Diary Of Anne Frank? Great read and movie. About a young girl and her jewish family living through hiding and the occupation by the Nazi's.
What about Angela's Ashes..true story. He's still alive teaching in New York. Tells of his poverty as a child in Ireland and his family and nis fathers abandonment. and his overcoming all kinds of odds. He has another book out that I just read calles Tis about his life as an adult and his moving to America and how he and his family made a life here. Very goos but, a lot of swearing and truth in it. He writes as though he is speaking to you, which I like. That may be for later when you read Angels's Ashes, for your own reading.
There is also the autobiography of Abraham Lincoln, his childhood, which was amazing. How he overcame poverty and lived and became who he was. A lot of people do not know a lot about his childhood and the obstacles he overcame.
I think any autobiography is good. Anyone that you think is interesting and has contributed to society in a positive way. Anything about people like Mya Angelo, Nelson Mandella any historical person or Sister Theresa. That is always good reading and makes you feel good and inspires you to be better and overcome and do more for others, that is what being a Christian is all about, right? Good luck.

Answer 6

Hmmm..

Where the Red Fern Grows--a coming-of-age story about a boy and his hunting dogs.

Treasure Island--a coming-of-age adventure story about a boy who goes on a hunt for treasure. (there's drinking and murder though, so that might not be good.)

What about the Chronicles of Narnia, especially The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe? REALLY GOOD series! If you're worried about it being a movie and teachers disapproving, you could do a different book from that series. (The Magician's Nephew deals with the creation of Narnia, and the similarities to the story of Creation are clear.) The Christian overtones in that series are inarguable, and C.S. Lewis wrote A LOT about Christianity, Faith, and the church. That might be a good bet.

Sounder--a boy searches for his father and grows up. Deals with racial and class inequalities.

Flowers for Algernon--really good book about a science experiment that helps a mentally retarted boy/man become smarter...and the emotional/psychological ramifications of doing this.

Good Luck!!

Answer 7

When my oldest was in 9th grade (at a Christian school), he did a book report on The Crucible (which he liked) and one on The Scarlet Letter (which he personally didn’t like). I also remember that year his class read The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare, which he thought was ‘ok’ (I’ve never read it myself) so that would likely be an acceptable book.

Answer 8

Miracle on 49th Street by Mike Lupica

From School Library Journal: Grade 6-9
Molly Parker, 12, lives in Boston with her recently deceased mother's best friend and family. She is on a mission to meet the Celtics' star player, Josh Cameron, to tell him that she is his daughter. With the help of her friend Sam, she sneaks into the athlete's car so that they will have the opportunity to talk. Self-centered Josh is skeptical of her claim, yet spends time with her. However, his sinister agent, Bobby, worries that knowledge of Molly's existence will destroy his client's clean-cut image, and he tells her to get lost. She almost despairs of ever convincing Josh of their relationship before she moves to California with her new family. But after finding an encouraging note her mother had left, she travels to New York, where Josh has a game, and the two reconcile at the Rockefeller Center skating rink. Lupica creates intriguing, complex characters in Molly, Sam, and Josh, and he paces his story well, with enough twists and cliff-hangers to keep the pages turning. Molly's relationships with others in Josh's life, such as a teammate and his housekeeper, contrast nicely with her up-and-down relationship with her father. In spite of a few implausible events, some sentimentality, and a bit of predictability, this is an entertaining work. The strong female character and the basketball tie-in will expand its appeal.

Answer 9

How about something from The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis?

A Wrinkle in Time might be appropriate. I went to a Christian school when I was your age and my 7th grade teacher read it to the class.

Answer 10

Try looking into The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury. It is broken down into different stories per chapter, and is very easy to digest. I hope this helps.

Answer 11

Old Yeller is a great book. Although it is quite short, it's a very heart-warming story. (I seem like an Old Yeller obssesed person but I was just in a hurry and I didn't no what to put as my whatever you call it XD)