Middle School Battle of the Books Parent Information

JavaScript isn't enabled in your browser, so this file can't be opened. Enable and reload.

Thank you for your interest in the middle school Battle of the Books! Please take a few moments to look at the 2022-2023 book list and complete the questions at the end of the form. These books are selected by the NC School Library Media Association and are used by all participating middle schools across the state. The document linked below includes multiple reviews, if available, for each title:

bit.ly/2023mBOB

We respect parental choice in the selection of reading materials for their students. If you prefer for your student to opt out of reading a specific title, please indicate that using the optional comment box under each book image.

*Please Note: Selection/competition participation of team members may vary from school to school. The NCSLMA organization limits competition teams to no more than 12 members with only 6 members competing in each round. Families who choose to “opt out” of specific titles may jeopardize their standing with the competitive team.

Airman by Eoin Colfer. Overview from Follett/publisher: "In the 1890s on an island off the Irish coast, Conor Broekhart is falsely imprisoned and passes the solitary months by scratching designs of flying machines into the walls, including one for a glider with which he dreams of escape."

The Bitter Side of Sweet by Tara Sullivan. Overview from Follett/publisher: "Kept as forced labor on a chocolate plantation in the Ivory Coast, Amadou and his younger brother Seydou had given up hope, until a young girl arrives at the camp who rekindles the urge to escape."

Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes. Overview from Follett: "Suspended unjustly from elite Middlefield Prep, Donte Ellison studies fencing with a former champion, hoping to put the racist fencing team captain in his place."

City Spies by James Ponti. From Follett/publisher: "Sara Martinez is facing years in the juvenile detention system for hacking into the foster care computer system to prove that her foster parents are crooks. But then she gets a second chance when a mysterious man offers her a chance to join a group of MI6 affiliated spies."

First Rule of Punk by Celia C Perez. From Follett/publisher: "Twelve-year-old Maria Luisa O'Neill-Morales (who really prefers to be called Malu) reluctantly moves with her Mexican-American mother to Chicago and starts seventh grade with a bang--violating the dress code with her punk rock aesthetic and spurning the middle school's most popular girl in favor of starting a band with a group of like-minded weirdos."

Healer of the Water Monster by Brian Young. From Follett/publisher: "A novel inspired by Navajo culture follows the experiences of a boy whose summer at his grandmother's reservation home is shaped by his uncle's addictions and an encounter with a sacred being from the Navajo creation story."

House Arrest by K.A. Holt. From Follett/publisher: "Timothy, sentenced to house arrest for stealing, keeps a journal into which he documents his fears and frustrations."

I am Malala (Young Reader's Edition) by Malala Yousafzai. From Follett/publisher: "Malala Yousafzai's describes her fight for education for girls under Taliban rule, the support she received from her parents to pursue an education, and how the Taliban retaliated against her by trying to kill her."

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling. From Follett/publisher: "Aven Green loves to tell people that she lost her arms in an alligator wrestling match, or a wildfire in Tanzania, but the truth is she was born without them. And when her parents take a job running Stagecoach Pass, a rundown western theme park in Arizona, Aven moves with them across the country knowing that she'll have to answer the question over and over again. Her new life takes an unexpected turn when she bonds with Connor, a classmate who also feels isolated because of his own disability, and they discover a room at Stagecoach Pass that holds bigger secrets than Aven ever could have imagined. It's hard to solve a mystery, help a friend, and face your worst fears. But Aven's about to discover she can do it all . . . even without arms"

A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen. From Follett/publisher: "When the Berlin Wall went up, Gerta, her mother, and her brother Fritz were trapped on the eastern side where they were living, while her father, and her other brother Dominic were in the West--four years later, now twelve, Gerta sees her father on a viewing platform on the western side and realizes he wants her to risk her life trying to tunnel to freedom."

The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan. From Follett/publisher: "When fifteen-year-old Will is rejected by battleschool, he becomes the reluctant apprentice to the mysterious Ranger Halt, and winds up protecting the kingdom from danger."

To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer. From Follett/publisher: "Unhappy about being sent to the same summer camp after their fathers start dating, Bett and Avery, eleven, eventually begin scheming to get the couple back together after a break-up. Told entirely through emails."

Starfish by Lisa Fipps. From Follett/publisher: "Bullied and shamed her whole life for being fat, twelve-year-old Ellie finally gains the confidence to stand up for herself, with the help of some wonderful new allies."

The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. From Follett/publisher: "A young disabled girl and her brother are evacuated from London to the English countryside during World War II, where they find life to be much sweeter away from their abusive mother."

When Stars are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed. From Follett/publisher: "Omar and his younger brother Hassan live in a refugee camp, and when an opportunity for Omar to get an education comes along, he must decide between going to school every day or caring for his nonverbal brother in this intimate and touching portrayal of family and daily life in a refugee camp."

The Shape of Thunder by Jasmine Warga. From Follett/publisher: "Estranged from the best friend whose brother killed her sister in a school shooting, a grieving Cora receives a message on her twelfth birthday from her friend, asking for her help with creating a time portal to prevent the tragedy."

Student First and Last Name:

Grade Level:

Parent First and Last Name:

Parent Permission:

I give my student permission to participate in the BOB utilizing the full list of titles

I give my student permission to participate in the BOB, but have opted out of one or more titles above

I do not give my student permission to participate in BOB

Clear selection

Submit

Clear form

Never submit passwords through Google Forms.

This form was created inside of Davidson County Schools. Report Abuse

Forms