Sunshine State Readers 2025-2026 for Grades 6th-8thLike this list

15 items

• Brick Dust and Bones

  Fournet, M. R.,

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  A twelve-year-old cemetery boy and monster hunter–along with his flesh-eating mermaid friend–has to race against the clock to save the ghost of his dead mother.

• Confessions of a Class Clown

  Costner, Arianne,

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  Jack Reynolds has a successful YouTube channel but he needs friends to participate. He starts fledgling friendships but will he be able to keep them and entertain the masses?

• Control Freaks

  Thomas, J. E.,

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  Frederick Douglass Zezzmer is determined to show his sports-obsessed Dad that he's worthy by winning an epic science Team Competition. Only problem is, it's a TEAM competition ... and Doug isn't so great working in a team environment (except with…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Curlfriends. New in Town

  Miller, Sharee (Illustrator),

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  When Charlie moves to a new town, she eventually meets the Curlfriends, a group of Black girls who couldn't be more different from each other, and learns that maybe there is a place to be her true self after all.

• The Fire, the Water, and Maudie McGinn

  Pla, Sally J.,

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  Neurodivergent Maudie is ready to spend an amazing summer with her dad, but will she find the courage to tell him a terrible secret about life with her mom and new stepdad?

• The Firefly Summer

  Matson, Morgan,

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  When a tween accepts an invitation to stay with her estranged maternal grandparents in the Poconos, she finds a large and lively extended family, and a treasure map, in this captivating mystery.

• The First State of Being

  Kelly, Erin Entrada,

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  When a mysterious teenager named Ridge appears at Michael Rosario’s apartment complex on Michael’s 12th birthday in 1999, Michael believes there’s “something off” about him. Ridge soon reveals he’s from 2199 and has traveled back to favorite year in…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Fowl Play

  Tubb, Kristin O'Donnell,

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  A grieving tween’s often laugh-aloud misadventures in detective work bring her estranged family closer together as she considers whether her beloved uncle's death involved foul (fowl) play.

• Heroes

  Gratz, Alan, 1972-

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  13-year-old Frank McCoy and his best friend, Japanese American Stanley Summers are united by their love of the comics they create together. But living through the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor puts them in danger in more ways then one.

• The Hoop Con

  Shah, Amar,

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  Raam Patel is eager to prove himself ever since he didn't make the middle school's basketball team. So, when Hoop Con comes to town he is determined to be there and take his shot. His big moment proves to be unforgettable . . . but not in the way…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Lost Year

  A Survival Story of the Ukrainian Famine (National Book Award Finalist)

  Marsh, Katherine

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  A 13-year-old boy trapped indoors by Covid-19 uncovers a dark family secret leading back to the Holodomor, the early 1930s Ukrainian famine caused by Stalin's policies.

• Mid-Air

  Williams, Alicia, 1970-

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  A tender-souled boy reeling from the death of his best friend struggles to fit into a world that wants him to grow up tough and unfeeling.

• Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatl

  Kagawa, Julie,

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  Shinji Takahashi, of Japanese descent, lives with his aunt Yui in Miami following his parents’ death, and each year accompanies her on “treasure hunts” around the world to source wares for her store. But then an old curse and untapped magic lead him…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Simon Sort of Says

  Bow, Erin

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  Simon is the only survivor from a shooting in his school classroom. He and his family have just moved to an off-the-grid town. Will his madcap adventures with his new friends help him escape his notoriety?

• Skyriders

  Holyoke, Polly,

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  When monsters emerge to attack the empire, it's up to Kiesandra and her beloved winged horse N'Rah to prove to herself and the imperial army that she has what it takes to lead them to victory . . . and survival.