Short month, short books! 7th grade February booktalks

Booked by Kwame alexander Nick Hall’s life revolves around family, friends, and soccer He is an 8th grade soccer phenom His mother is a horse trainer while his father is a linguistics professor (the scientific study of language and its structure) who makes him read the dictionary he wrote called Weird and Wonderful Words like Verbomania (a crazed obsession with words) and onomatophobia (the fear of hearing certain words) Nick’s life is great until: his mom accepts a job far away, his parents separate, and his appendix bursts during an important game How will Nick survive life? With help from Mr. Mac, school librarian extraordinaire, and his best friend Colby Fast-paced, funny, and full of rich vocabulary…no soccer knowledge required!

Down a dark hall by Lois Duncan Similar to Shadow House, this novel is about 4 girls who are invited to attend Blackwood School for Girls, and to their surprise when they arrive, they are the only students. There are three teachers (including the headmistress and her son) who are there to instruct the girls Strange things start to happen early on and the girls discover they have something in common---they all have ESP, or extrasensory perception (a 6th sense, and yes, they see dead people!!!) Kit is able to play breathtaking music but only while she is asleep while another character is suddenly a talented painter As Kit searches for answers, she is able to uncover many secrets about the real reason the girls are at Blackwood….learning CAN be deadly!

Blackwater Eve Bunting See beginning for Blackwater River description Main character/protagonist is Brodie and his cousin Alex is spending the summer with him Alex has a pretty tough life (has been exposed to gangs, single mom who is not around often) Brodie’s life is the opposite-great parents and his crush Pauline has agreed to go out with him When on an early morning mission to teach Alex to swim Brodie spots Pauline on Toadstool Rock with another boy, Otis Brodie is furious so he swims out to scare them…but something much worse happens What happens when you make a mistake? Do you admit it? Cover it up? See what Brodie decides to do in Blackwater by Eve Bunting

Trapped by Michael Northrup What would you do if you were snowed in at school for days with just a handful of classmates? Takes place in a small, rural town in CT (not completely unlike EW) Main characters are high school students who decide to stay after to work in the shop on a snowy, early release day (picture the cast from The Breakfast Club) Unfortunately, it is not a normal storm…the snow never stops… No cell reception, no heat, no power, and frozen pipes (no flushing!) are the least of their worries… Would you survive being ‘Trapped’???

The Secret Language of birthdays Alicia Thompson Discover what your day of birth “says” about you including: Best hobby Style inspiration Best pet Best accessory Power color Star match Theme song And more!