Kids and Families

Book Discussion Kits for Grades 6 through 9

The Kits: New youth titles | All kits for grades 4 - 5 | All kits for grades 6 - 9 | New Adult Titles | Adult titles, sorted by author | Adult titles, sorted by title

indicates book on CD
indicates book on cassette
indicates availability on Overdrive
indicates availability on Playaway

 

Acceleration by Graham McNamee
Stuck working in the Lost and Found of the Toronto Transit Authority for the summer, seventeen-year-old Duncan finds the diary of a serial killer and sets out to stop him. Book Discussion Questions from RI Teen Book Award.

Airborn by Kenneth Oppel
Matt, a cabin boy aboard an airship, and Kate, a wealthy girl traveling with her chaperone, team up to prove the existence of fantastic winged creatures sited by Katie's late Grandfather. A fast-paced fantasy adventure.

The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett
Maurice, the cat, is ringleader for a gang of talking rats and a kid who work together to pull off a Pied Piper scam, until they try to con the wrong town. Book Discussion Questions from HarperCollins.

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Luke is one of the shadow children, a third child forbidden by the Population Police. He's lived his entire life in hiding. Then Luke meets Jen, another third child willing to risk everything to come out of the shadows. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

Breaking Through by Francisco Jimenez
Continuing his story from The Circuit, fourteen-year-old Jiménez attempts to further his education while facing poverty and prejudice, and working to help his family in the 1950’s. Book Discussion Questions from Santa Clara University.

The Circuit by Francisco Jimenez
Francisco Jimenez uses stories from his own childhood to portray the life of a migrant child who must alternately hide from truant officers and immigration officials. Book Discussion Guide from Scholastic.

Dealing With Dragons by Patricia Wrede
Cimorene should have been a proper princess, but she is not. After she is forbidden lessons in fencing, cooking, magic, and economics, she takes her one remaining option: she runs away to become the princess of a very powerful dragon, Kazul. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

The Demon in the Teahouse by Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler
In 18th-century Japan, fourteen-year-old Seikei’s adoptive father places him in a teahouse to investigate the connection between murder, arson, and a geisha.

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
At her birth, Ella of Frell is given the gift of obedience by a fairy. She realizes that it is truly a curse, for how can she be herself when at any moment she must obey any order given to her, whether it’s to hop on one foot, or betray her kingdom. Book Discussion Questions from Harper Collins.

Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
On her way to help a friend pick out a dress for the Senior Prom, Liz is hit by a taxi and killed. She awakens aboard a cruise ship headed for Elsewhere. Book Discussion Questions from Holtzbrinck.

Eragon by Christopher Paolini
The day Eragon discovers the saphire-blue dragon's egg, he takes his first unwitting steps towards becoming a dragon rider and changing the course of history in his embattled land, Alagaesia. Book Discussion Questions from MPL.

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
At sixteen, Matilda Cook finds herself alone and temporarily homeless in the midst of the yellow fever epidemic in 1790s Philadelphia. Book Discussion Questions from Scholastic.

The First Part Last by Angela Johnson
Sixteen year old Bobby's carefree teenage life changes forever when he discovers his girlfriend, Nia, is pregnant and he is going to be a father. An unusually realistic look at teen fatherhood. Book Discussion Questions from MPL.

Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen
Ever since the 2nd grade, Bryce’s oddball neighbor, Juli, has had a crush on him. Now, in 8th grade, Juli has taken to sitting in trees and selling eggs, and Bryce is finding her attention even harder to take. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

Girlhearts by Norma Mazer
When Sarabeth’s mother dies suddenly, she is left lost, orphaned, and facing an enormous number of unknowns such as where to live and whether to contact family she’s never met.

The Giver by Lois Lowry
In a world with no poverty, no crime, no sickness and no unemployment, 12-year-old Jonas is chosen to be the community's Receiver of Memories. In this role, he meets The Giver and discovers the disturbing truth about his utopian world. Book Discussion Questions from TeenReads.com.

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
When Lyra's friend disappears she sets off on a North-bound journey to find him. Along the way she meets witches, an armored bear, and other strange beings. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins
Gregor falls through a grate in the laundry room of his apartment building and hurtles into the dark Underland, where giant spiders, bats, rats, and cockroaches coexist with humans. Gregor becomes a reluctant hero in this strange land. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR .

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
The Harry Potter saga continues with Harry delving deeper into the childhood of Voldemort with the help of Dumbledore and the appearance of a mysterious Potions textbook with all the right answers. Book Discussion Questions from MPL.

A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett
When Tiffany begins her apprenticeship in magic she is pursued, then taken over by a soul-stealing hiver, an entity which has killed each of it's hosts up to now. And so the Nac MacFeegle, A.K.A. the Wee Free Men, set out to save her.

Heir Apparent by Vivian Vande Velde
While playing a total immersion virtual reality game of kings and intrigue, Giannine learns that protesters have damaged the equipment to which she is connected, and she must win the game quickly or else… Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

Holes by Louis Sachar
Stanley Yelnats' family has been cursed with bad luck for generations, so Stanley isn't surprised when he is wrongly convicted of stealing. He is sent to Camp Greenlake, a juvenile detention center in the desert, with no lake and no green. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR .

Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelan
Thirteen year old Koly must leave her struggling family to marry a man she has never met. Once married, she learns that her husband, Hari, is terminally ill. With Hari's doomed fate, Koly has to learn how to survive on her own within the limits of India's society. Book Discussion Guide from Harper Children.

The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
When Matteo Alacran learns that he is the clone of El Patron, the lord of a country called Opium, he is sure El Patron is educating him to take his place as leader, but El Patron has other, more sinister plans for Matt.

Interstellar Pig by William Sleator
Barney’s vacation at his family’s summer home gets a little too exciting when his three neighbors introduce him to a new addictive game called Interstellar Pig.

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson’s summer is turned upside down when he learns he is a demigod, is sent to summer camp for demigods, then sets out to prevent a war between the gods. Book Discussion Questions from RI Teen Book Award.

Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff
Fourteen year old LaVaughn takes the babysitting job to earn money for college. The problem is that Jolly, a seventeen year old single mom who has trouble keeping a job herself, is LaVaughn's boss.

Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve
In a future where cities roll on wheels looking for other cities to “consume” in order to survive, Tom is pushed out of the City of London and must learn to survive in the out-country. Book Discussion Questions from MPL.

My Life in Dog Years by Gary Paulsen
Paulsen tells the stories of the many dogs that have touched his life and even saved his life, while revealing tidbits from his own childhood and past. Book Discussion Questions from Enotes.

The Other Side of Truth by Beverly Naidoo
When their mother is murdered, their father decides to smuggle twelve year old Sade and her brother Femi out of Nigeria to London. When they get to the city, they are abandoned with no one to trust and no idea when-or if-they will ever see their father again.

The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place by E.L. Konigsburg
After being rescued from summer camp by her favorite uncles, Margaret Rose learns that the town plans to tear down the towers they've been creating for over 40 years.

Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science by John Fleischman
Using the premise of railroad worker Phineas Gage’s amazing head injury, history, science, and the brain are all informatively discussed. Book Discussion Questions from William Allen White.

Ruby in the Smoke by Philip Pullman
In this Victorian mystery, sixteen year old Sally Lockhart's father has been murdered, leaving her in imminent danger until she can solve the mystery of his death. Book Discussion Questions from MPL.

Rules of the Road by Joan Bauer
Through her job as a driver for an elderly shoe store president, sixteen-year-old Jenna discovers new skills as a salesperson and faces her family issues, such as an alcoholic father.

Tangerine by Edward Bloor
Even though Paul Fisher is legally blind, he’s still a great soccer goalie, but Paul can’t understand why no one else can see the truth about his brother Erik, the football star. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

Sabriel by Garth Nix
Sabriel journeys into the Old Kingdom, a place of dangerous magic and frightening half-dead creatures, to battle a powerful sorcerer and rescue her father from the land of the dead. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

The Sea of Trolls by Nancy Farmer
Jack and his little sister Lucy are captured by Viking Berserkers and taken to the home of King Ivar the Boneless and his half-troll queen, leading Jack to undertake a vital quest to Jotunheim, home of the trolls. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

Silent to the Bone by E.L. Konigsburg
When Branwell finds his baby sister, Nikki, unconscious and calls 911, he is unable to speak. Bran is unustly accused of injuring Nikki, and Connor, Bran's best friend, must find a way to communicate with him to discover what really happened the day Nikki was hurt. Book Discussion Questions from MPL.

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
Best friends Carmen, Tibby, Bridget, and Lena are spending their first summer apart from one another. To keep them together in spirit, they form the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, a club where each gets to wear "magical" jeans for a period of time. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

Skeleton Man by Joseph Bruchac
Molly comes home from school one day to find that her parents have disappeared without a trace. Molly must rely on herself and the wisdom of her Mohawk ancestors to save herself and her parents. Book Discussion Questions from MPL.

Skellig by David Almond
When Michael goes out into the old rickety garage behind his new house, he comes across a mysterious being who calls himself Skellig. Michael and his friend Mina bring Skellig out in to the light, and their worlds change forever. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR .

So Hard to Say by Alex Sanchez
Mexican-American Xio and Frederick, the cute new boy, quickly become friends, but when Xio wants more than a friendship Frederick has to figure out what he really wants. Book Discussion Questions RI Teen Book Award.

So Yesterday by Scott Westerfeld
Cool-spotter Hunter Braque, paid to spot “cool” trends for major corporations, finds himself searching for a missing corporate agent, and uncovering an anti-consumerist conspiracy. Book Discussion Questions from RI Teen Book Award.

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
When Stargirl enrolls at Mica High, she captures the attention of junior Leo Borlock. Leo and Stargirl become a couple, and Leo learns what it's like to be shunned. In hopes of gaining acceptance Leo encourages her to become normal. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR .

A Step From Heaven by An Na
When she is four, Young Ju's family leaves their small fishing village in Korea for a new life in America. Once in America, Young Ju's family battles economic hardships and worse. Finally, Young Ju, aided by the strength of her mother, heads for college.

Ties that Bind, Ties that Break by Lensey Namioka
Born into the Tao family at a time of great change in China, the rebelious Ailin refuses to have her feet bound. She seems doomed to a life of servitude and "low standing" until at fourteen she becomes a governess and embarks on a new life.

Trickster's Choice by Tamora Pierce
Captured and enslaved, Alianne must call forth her mother's courage and her father's wit in order to survive on the Copper Isles in a royal court rife with political intrigue and murderous conspiracy. Book Discussion Questions from Random House.

True Believer by Virginia Euwer Wolff
LaVaughn learns to navigate through changing friendships, first love, and school challenges and triumphs in this sequel to Make Lemonade. Book Discussion Questions from SimonSays.

Tucket's Gold by Gary Paulsen
Tucket, Lottie, and Billy are fleeing for their lives. At the same time, Tucket is searching for his family after being separated from them on the Oregon Trail more than a year past. Now, after finding hidden treasure, maybe their luck is changing. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR .

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
Tally should be getting the mandatory operation that will turn her Pretty, then her best friend, Shay, runs away and Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world -- and it isn't very pretty. Book Discussion Questions from Multnomah Co. OR.

Virtual War by Gloria Skurzynski
Along with two other genetically engineered teenagers, Corgan must fight a virtual war to save the Western Hemisphere, but he’s beginning to question that which he’s always been taught.

The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett
Tiffany Aching is a young dairymaid with some witch-like tendencies. When her brother is kidnapped by the fairy queen, Tiffany goes on a rescue mission aided by the Wee Free Men, a band of six-inch-high, blue, fairy-land rejects. Book Discussion Questions from HarperCollins.

When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park
Ten year old Sun-hee and her brother Tae-yul tell a story of life in Korea during the Japanese occupation of the 1940's when Koreans were forced to give up their customs. Difficult conditions worsen with the impact of World War II.

---