6th Grade Book Groups: Adventure

An action-packed coming-of-age story of both natural disaster and the bravery it takes to face it. When a tornado watch is issued one Tuesday evening in June, twelve-year-old Dan Hatch and his best friend, Arthur, don't think much of it. After all, tornado warnings are a way of life during the summer in Grand Island, Nebraska. But soon enough, the wind begins to howl, and the lights and telephone stop working. Then the emergency siren starts to wail. Dan, his baby brother, and Arthur have only seconds to get to the basement before the monstrous twister is on top of them. Little do they know that even if they do survive the storm, their ordeal will have only just begun...

The Newbery Honor-winning author of Hatchet and Dogsong shares surprising true stories about his relationship with animals, highlighting their compassion, intellect, intuition, and sense of adventure. Gary Paulsen is an adventurer who competed in two Iditarods, survived the Minnesota wilderness, and climbed the Bighorns. None of this would have been possible without his truest companion: his animals. Sled dogs rescued him in Alaska, a sickened poodle guarded his well-being, and a horse led him across a desert. Through his interactions with dogs, horses, birds, and more, Gary has been struck with the belief that animals know more than we may fathom. His understanding and admiration of animals is well known, and in This Side of Wild, which has taken a lifetime to write, he proves the ways in which they have taught him to be a better person.

Based in part on a true story, Frozen Fire vividly depicts the traditional Eskimo way of life. The Canadian Arctic: a frozen land where bone-chilling winds and negative forty degree temperatures can last for days on end. Matthew and Kayak are familiar with the territory, and they plan carefully before they set out on their secret snowmobile search - a search for Matthew's missing father. But when the boys become stranded, every minute is a struggle for survival.

Four inquisitive and courageous teenagers are thrust into a race against modern-day pirates while scuba diving in the Cayman Islands' exotic waters. This contemporary fast-paced mystery novel is for the adventuresome of all ages. Author Richard Trout of Oklahoma City writes from his personal expertise as a conservationist, environmental biologist, and scuba diver. Dr. MacGregor, a world-renown zoologist, arrives in the Cayman Islands to study endangered species and investigate their internationally acclaimed sea turtle conservation project. His children, age 12, 14, and 17, fall in love with the Caymans' underwater world and are drawn into a series of adventures that include native islanders, mini-subs, beautiful reefs, intrigue, and centuries-old pirates' treasure. They combat sinister international forces that plot to destroy a natural barrier reef in order to steal treasures hidden for nearly four hundred years. The strong family structure of the MacGregors, their respect for life and the environment, and their thirst for adventure drive the teens through challenging and suspenseful events.

Six-year-old Ben is very small for his age, and gets along better with animals than people. One June day in 1870, Ben wanders away from his home on Hawk's Hill and disappears into the waving prairie grass. This is the story of how a shy, lonely boy survives for months in the wilds and forges a bond with a female badger.

Thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson, haunted by his secret knowledge of his mother's infidelity, is traveling by single-engine plane to visit his father for the first time since the divorce. When the plane crashes, killing the pilot, the sole survivor is Brian. He is alone in the Canadian wilderness with nothing but his clothing, a tattered windbreaker, and the hatchet his mother had given him as a present. At first consumed by despair and self-pity, Brian slowly learns survival skills--how to make a shelter for himself, how to hunt and fish and forage for food, how to make a fire--and even finds the courage to start over from scratch when a tornado ravages his campsite. When Brian is finally rescued after fifty-four days in the wild, he emerges from his ordeal with new patience and maturity, and a greater understanding of himself and his parents.

Miles Morales is just your average teenager. Dinner every Sunday with his parents, chilling out playing old-school video games with his best friend, Ganke, crushing on brainy, beautiful poet Alicia. He's even got a scholarship spot at the prestigious Brooklyn Visions Academy. Oh yeah, and he's Spider Man. But lately, Miles's spidey-sense has been on the fritz. When a misunderstanding leads to his suspension from school, Miles begins to question his abilities. After all, his dad and uncle were Brooklyn jack-boys with criminal records. Maybe kids like Miles aren't meant to be superheroes. Maybe Miles should take his dad's advice and focus on saving himself. As Miles tries to get his school life back on track, he can't shake the vivid nightmares that continue to haunt him. Nor can he avoid the relentless buzz of his spidey-sense every day in history class, amidst his teacher's lectures on the historical benefits of slavery and the modern-day prison system. But after his scholarship is threatened, Miles uncovers a chilling plot, one that puts his friends, his neighborhood, and himself at risk. It's time for Miles to suit up.

May 10, 1996. Sixteen-year-old Mark Pfetzer huddles in his tent at 26,000 feet, waiting for his turn to attempt Everest's summit. As a fierce storm descends on the camp, a frightening realisation dawns on Mark and his colleagues- many of the climbers who summitted that afternoon have not yet returned. By morning, the storm has claimed eight lives - and Mark's long-dreamed-of summit day has become one of the bleakest days in mountaineering history. This is Mark's fascinating first-person account of his Everest experience, in which he takes us past the ever-shifting Khumbu Icefall, over three-hundred-foot crevasses, and up to the high-altitude "Death Zone." His story is a dazzling saga of willpower and achievement, and a celebration of the strength that guides men and women through impossibly daring dreams.

There was once a village bred by evil. On the barren coast of Cornwall, England, lived a community who prayed for shipwrecks, a community who lured storm-tossed ships to crash upon the sharp rocks of their shore. They fed and clothed themselves with the loot salvaged from the wreckage; dead sailors' tools and trinkets became decorations for their homes. Most never questioned their murderous way of life. Then, upon that pirates' shore crashed the ship The Isle of Skye. And the youngest of its crew members, 14-year-old John Spencer, survived the wreck. But would he escape the wreckers? This is his harrowing tale.

Stone Fox tells the story of Little Willy, who lives with his grandfather in Wyoming. When Grandfather falls ill, he is no longer able to work the farm, which is in danger of foreclosure. Little Willy is determined to win the National Dogsled Race--the prize money would save the farm and his grandfather. But he isn't the only one who desperately wants to win. Willy and his brave dog Searchlight must face off against experienced racers, including a Native American man named Stone Fox, who has never lost a race.

A missing girl, a determined reporter, and a young man on the brink combine for a powerful story of choices, suspense, and survival.Four Months AgoSara Zapata's best friend disappeared, kidnapped by the web of criminals who terrorize Juárez.Four Hours AgoSara received a death threat -- and with it, a clue to the place where her friend is locked away.Four Weeks AgoEmiliano Zapata fell in love with Perla Rubi, who will never be his so long as he's poor.Four Minutes AgoEmiliano got the chance to make more money than he ever dreamed -- just by joining the web.In the next four days, Sara and Emiliano will each face impossible choices, between life and justice, friends and family, truth and love. But when the criminals come after Sara, only one path remains for both siblings: the way across the desert to the United States