Top Ten for 6th Grade

The War That Saved My Life

Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Nine-year-old Ada has never left her one-room apartment. Her mother is too humiliated by Ada's twisted foot to let her outside. So when her little brother Jamie is shipped out of London to escape the war, Ada doesn't waste a minute, she sneaks out to join him. So begins a new adventure for the siblings, and for Susan Smith, the woman who is forced to take them in.  As Ada begins to trust Susan, Susan begins to love Ada and Jamie. But in the end, will their bond be enough to hold them together through wartime? Or will Ada and her brother fall back into the cruel hands of their mother?



The Water Castle
Megan Frazer Blakemore

After his father's stroke, Ephraim Appledore-Smith life changes when his family moves to the Water Castle-their ancestral home in the small town of Crystal Springs. Mallory Green's family has always been the caretakers of the Water Castle-and the guardians of its secrets. She has been raised to protect the legendary Fountain of Youth, hidden on the estate grounds. But ever since her mom left, she's stopped believing in magic. Will Wylie's family has been at war with the Applegates for generations, all because of the Water Castle's powerful secrets. But Will has rejected legend and magic, putting all his faith in science. When Ephraim learns of the Fountain, he's sure finding it can cure his dad. With Mallory and Will's help, the trio embarks on a mission that brings them deep into their families' shared history, through every secret room in the Water Castle, and on a quest that will blur the lines of magic and science, creativity and discovery, leaving readers left to wonder: Do you believe in the unbelievable?


Counting By 7s
Holly Goldberg Sloan

Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn't kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . . until now.   Suddenly Willow's world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world.


There Will Be Bears
Ryan Gebhart

 Thirteen-year-old Tyson loves hanging out with his roughneck Grandpa Gene, who's a lot more fun than Tyson's ex-best friend, Brighton. These days, Bright just wants to be seen with the cool jocks who make fun of Tyson's Taylor Swift obsession and dorky ways. So when Grandpa Gene has to move to a nursing home that can manage his kidney disease, Tyson feels like he's losing his only friend. Not only that, but Tyson was counting on Grandpa Gene to take him on his first big hunt. So in defiance of Mom and Dad's strict orders, and despite reports of a scary, stalking, man-eating grizzly named Sandy, the two sneak off to the Grand Tetons. Is Tyson tough enough? Is Grandpa Gene too sick to handle the hunt, miles away from help? And, oh yes, there will be bears. . . .

Boy
Roald Dahl

Where did Roald Dahl get all of his wonderful ideas for stories? From his own life, of course! As full of excitement and the unexpected as his world-famous, best-selling books, Roald Dahl's tales of his own childhood are completely fascinating and fiendishly funny. Did you know that Roald Dahl nearly lost his nose in a car accident? Or that he was once a chocolate candy tester for Cadbury's? Have you heard about his involvement in the Great Mouse Plot of 1924? If not, you don't yet know all there is to know about Roald Dahl.


Nightingale's Nest
Nikki Loftin

In this twist on "The Nightingale," Little John, despite his own poverty and grief, reaches out to Gayle, an unhappy foster child living next-door who sings beautifully and hides a great secret.

Dragon Slippers

Jessica Day George

Orphaned after a fever epidemic, Creel befriends a dragon and unknowingly inherits an object that can either save or destroy her kingdom.

Twerp
Mark Goldblatt

Returning after a week-long suspension from his 1960s Queens school, Julian accepts an offer from his English teacher to keep a journal and writes about the incident, which involved blowing up homemade fireworks, maintaining his record as the fastest kid in school and writing a disastrous love letter for a friend.


Binny for Short
Hilary McKay

 When she was eight, Binny's life was perfect: She had her father's wonderful stories and Max, the best dog ever. But after her father's sudden death, money is tight, and Aunty Violet decides to give Max away- he is just too big for their cramped new life. Binny knows she cant get her dad back, but she never stops missing Max, or trying to find him. Then, when she's eleven, everything changes again. Aunty Violet has died, and left Binny and her family an old house in a seaside town. Binny is faced with a new crush, a new frenemy, and...a ghost?


The Great Molasses Flood
Deborah Kops

A strange and sticky piece of history. January 15, 1919, started off as a normal day in Boston's North End. Workers took a break for lunch, children played in the park, trains made trips between North and South Stations. Then all of a sudden a large tank of molasses exploded, sending shards of metal hundreds of feet away, collapsing buildings, and coating the harbor front community with a thick layer of sticky-sweet sludge. What happened? Why did the tank explode? Many people died or were injured in the accident--who was to blame?