LIKE, I AM TOTALLY NOT AFRAID OF GHOSTS

Sherry is SO not afraid of ghosts. Well, most ghosts that is, because her mom is a ghost. But someone, or something, is out to get Sherry's step mom Paula, and Sherry has to help before something really bad happens. So, on top of celebrating her 2 month anniversary with her boyfriend, and trying to keep a good friendship with her BFF Junie, NOW she has to solve the mystery of who or what is ruining her step mom's life. I SO DON'T DO SPOOKY by Barrie Summy is a fun yet suspenseful story for grades 5 and up.

ARE PEOPLE REALLY THIS PERFECT?

Willa Havisham lives in a small town in Cape Cod with her mom and step dad and they run a popular bed and breakfast. Her grandmother owns a candy/bookstore down the road. Willa has a cute boyfriend and goes to the local beach every day for poetic inspiration, and to check on the endangered species of birds. But her world just absolutely falls apart when her boyfriend decides to go to Florida, and her best friend is hanging out with another girl while Willa has to work, and the endangered plovers are getting shoved off their beach. But not to worry - Willa will save everything by the end of the book. FORGET ME NOT by Coleen Murtagh Paratore is a great entertaining quick read that will drag you through all aspects of teen angst including eco-footprints and wedding planning, and is part of a series. For grades 5-8.

NO GIRLS ALLOWED!

Sophomore, Frankie Landau-Banks doesn't want to be Bunny Rabbit anymore. She wants to be more like her popular sister, noticed and and a part of something cool. She wants to belong to her new boyfriend's cool crowd. Through chance Frankie discovers that he and his friends haved been "tapped" to join a secret male society at their boarding school just as her father had been many years ago. She wants to join desperately but realizes she would never be included because she is female.

Feeling challenged and desperate to belong, she sets on an ambitious path to prove herself. She masterminds school pranks, manipulates the Loyal Order of the Basset Hounds members through a convoluted series of emails and false identities. Everyone at school enjoys the fun and Frankie is thrilled by the comments until one member is caught and everything unravels. When she unmasks herself as the secret leader of the pranks, her schoolmates, family and boyfriend have differing reactions and are thrown by this other side of Frankie.

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart is about one girl's attempt to make sense of her world; love, her identity, her ambition, social acceptance and the ultimate power and role of men and women. A great novel for mature readers 6th and older.

IT'S AUGUST AND YOU STILL HAVEN'T READ ANYTHING YET...

Here's another list of summer themed books for the older readers.

If you start now, you'll have plenty of time to read before you go back to school.

Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen - A boy gets an old lawnmower for a present and makes a ton of money mowing lawns. If you like making money, you'll enjoy this book. A very funny and short read for mature 6th - 8th graders.

The One Where the Kid Nearly Jumps to His Death and Lands in California by Mary Hershey - A one legged kid has to spend the summer in California with his dad and new wife who's super rich. He also learns how to swim to impress a girl he has a crush on. Note: this boy has a lot of anger issues. Fast read for mature 6th -8th graders.

My Almost Epic Summer by Adele Griffin - This girl fantasizes about having a hair salon based on her literary heroines during a boring summer of babysitting. But, the boring summer turns into a one of intrigue when she finds herself featured in the online journal of a pretty but self absorbed lifeguard. Also for mature mature 6th -8th .

Gilda Joyce: Psychic Investigator by Jennifer Allison - A girl figures out a way to get a free trip to San Francisco by using her psychic ability to solve her distant cousin's ghostly mystery. Not so scary but good for mystery lovers. 6th - 8th.

Deep Dark and Dangerous: A Ghost Story by Mary Downing Hahn- During a summer stay at the family cabin, the sisters discover an old family secret at the bottom of the lake. If you like being scared, then this is a great book with one angry and spooky ghost. 6th-8th .

IF YOU LIKE THE SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING PANTS...

... then you will like this book.

The neighbor just passed away and left Anna a cat and a set of tarot cards. She and her two best friends decide to do a reading to see if she will get together with her crush - Declan, geek turned hottie. The cards predict love in her future. But will it be with Declan?

In the Cards: Love by Mariah Fredericks is the first in a new trilogy of stories about the complexity and reality of middle school friendships and loves. For readers in 6th - 8th grade.

JINXED OR A WITCH?

Jean is the name, not Jinx.

Jean moved thousands of miles to get away from her reputation as a "jinx" and leave her troubles behind in Iowa, but trouble keeps on finding her. She thought she could start with a clean slate by moving in with her aunt and uncle in New York City, but cousin Tory is convinced that the two of them could be powerful witches just like their ancestor. Jean knows too well what would happen if you play with magic and she wasn't about to go there again.

For 6th grade and up.

THE TRUTH BEHIND JUNIOR HIGH

It's not all fun and games. Junior high, middle school - whatever you call it - is about survival. STUCK IN THE MIDDLE, compiled by illustrator Ariel Schrag, is a collection of junior high experiences from different animators and illustrators. There's close to twenty stories, and I'd be willing to bet everyone can relate to at least two, if not more. It doesn't paint the prettiest picture of the "tween" years, but it shows a glimmer of hope in each that despite what happens, you make it out alive. For 6th grade and up ONLY.