Theodore Boone, the Accused by John Grisham

Theodore Boone, 13-year-old son of two lawyers and an aspiring lawyer himself, finds himself on the wrong side of the law when stolen electronic tablets from a local break-in are discovered in his school locker. Theo knows he didn't do it, but the evidence is overwhelming, including his Minnesota Twins cap that was found at the scene of the crime. The police believe they have their boy; Theo's parents believe the legal system works correctly and they patiently wait for things to sort themselves out; Theo envisions life in and after a juvenile detention center and decides the only way to avoid that is to point the police toward the real culprits. The problem is, Theo has no idea who would want to set him up. Theo's uncle Ike, a disbarred hippie-type lawyer, isn't too worried about bending a few rules, and helps Theo arrive at a list of possible suspects. Oh, and while Theo is serving a school suspension for fighting, he takes time to defend a spitting llama and its owner in animal court. It's the quirky elements like that, along with interesting and well-defined characters, and a mystery so tightly written that you won't have it figured out right away, that make Grisham's Theodore Boone series fun reads for everyone -- even his adult fans. This is the third Theodore Boone book but you don't have to read the first to enjoy the others. 

AR Level 5.7
AR Points 9

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai

Inside Out and Back Again is about a Vietnamese girl named Ha. She lives in Saigon and loves life. She loves the market, her family and her very own papaya tree. But, when war invades Saigon, Ha's family is forced to flee. Her bumpy boat ride is not a good start for Ha in the new land. She will live in the state Alabama. She and her family are forced to fit in, and sometimes that's not always easy. This is a touching story every kid should read.
by Tyler,  fifth grader.

Note: This book won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature and was named a Newbery Honor book in 2012.




AR Level 4.8
AR Points 2