CRAZY THINGS BOYS DO A LA GARY PAULSEN

How Angel Peterson Got His Name: And Other Outrageous Tales About Extreme Sports by Gary Paulsen. This is of course extreme sports before extreme sports became a sport. Back in the days of the author's youth, they were just boys having fun and daring each other to do outrageous things like trying to break the speed record on skis. The only problem was there were no ski slopes on the flat Minnesota landscape. So a car, a very fast car, will have to do. And so this begins a hilarious collection of stories about the things the boys in this small town tried, just to, you know, see what would happen.

A short but hilarious tale of mischief making. For readers in 5th-8th grade.

READING + DEATH = PERFECT SUMMER?

Derek's perfect summer was ruined. His mother did not want to have fun. She wants him to READ! His best friend goes away for a great vacation back East, and he gets to go to a learning camp so he can learn to enjoy reading "real" books. Then he finds out that he almost died when he was a baby and he may have caused the death of the babysitter. He's obsessed with finding out what happened, but his mom is also determined not to let him.

A funny look at one boy's wreck of a summer with stick figure commentaries on the side. My Life as a Book by Janet Tashijian is great read for 5th-8th grade.

NEVER MIND, JUST READ IT!

Meg and Edward are twins that don't get along at all. They are in constant fighting mood and one is terribly embarrassed of the other. Meg is smart, funny and full of wit whereas Edward is an underachiever who has no problem for being just that. Meg does not want anyone at school to know that they are in anyway related to one another. However, unexpectedly Meg gets tricked by her brother in believing that he is a rock singer who is going to be at her party. Knowing all her sister’s concerns Edward begins to think of all the different pranks that he can pull on her sister. This is a really fun story to read about sibling rivalry and it is written in an alternating narratives so you will be able to literally read about each side.

Mind this book and read it. NEVER MIND! by AVI and RACHEL VAIL.

For grades fifth and up.