Spirit of Texas (SPOT) Reading List

Twelve-year-old Quijana is a biracial girl, desperately trying to understand the changes that are going on in her life; her mother rarely gets home before bedtime, her father suddenly seems to be trying to get in touch with his Guatemalan roots (even though he never bothered to teach Quijana Spanish), she is about to start seventh grade in the Texas town where they live and she is worried about fitting in--and Quijana suspects that her parents are keeping secrets, because she is sure there is something wrong with her little brother, Memito, who is becoming increasingly hard to reach

Twelve-year-old Iris and her grandmother, both deaf, drive from Texas to Alaska armed with Iris's plan to help Blue-55, a whale unable to communicate with other whales.

Rex Ogle's story of starting middle school on the free lunch program is timely, heartbreaking, and true. Free Lunch is the story of Rex Ogle's first semester in sixth grade. Rex and his baby brother often went hungry, wore secondhand clothes, and were short of school supplies, and Rex was on his school's free lunch program. Grounded in the immediacy of physical hunger and the humiliation of having to announce it every day in the school lunch line, Rex's is a compelling story of a more profound hunger -- that of a child for his parents' love and care.

The inspiring memoir for young readers about a Latina rocket scientist whose early life was transformed by joining the Girl Scouts and who currently serves as CEO of the Girl Scouts of the USA.

When her ailing father is conscripted to fight invaders from the north, Mulan dresses as a man to take his place in the army. Chosen for an elite team under the command of the princeling, they cross the Great Wall to face the enemy beyond. An old enemy and an attraction for her troop's commander complicate her mission.

The things I've seen are burned into me, like scars that refuse to fade.Before, she lived inside the fence. Before, she was never allowed to leave the property, never allowed to talk to Outsiders, never allowed to speak her mind. Because Father John controlled everything; and Father John liked rules. Disobeying Father John came with terrible consequences. But there are lies behind Father John's words. Outside, there are different truths.Then came the fire

In the final days of the Viýýet Nam War, Hýýang takes her little brother, Linh, to the airport, determined to find a way to safety in America. When Linh is ripped from her arms, Hýýang is left behind in the war-torn country. Six years later, Hýýang is now in Texas as a refugee. She doesn't know how she will find her little brother until she meets LeeRoy, a city boy with big rodeo dreams, who decides to help her. Reunited with Linh, she realizes he doesn't remember her, their family, or Viýýet Nam. Her heart is crushed, but she will do anything to bridge the gap.

On June 23, 2018, twelve young players of the Wild Boars soccer team and their coach enter a cave in northern Thailand seeking an afternoon's adventure. But when they turn to leave, rising floodwaters block their path out. The boys are trapped! Before long, news of the missing team spreads, launching a seventeen-day rescue operation involving thousands of rescuers from around the globe. Combining firsthand interviews of rescue workers with in-depth science and details of the region's culture and religion, [the author]...masterfully shows how both the complex engineering operation above ground and the mental struggles of the thirteen young people below proved critical in the life-or-death mission.

In an alternate America, princesses Beatrice and Samantha Washington and the two girls wooing their brother, Prince Jefferson, become embroiled in high drama in the most glorious court in the world.

Told in multiple voices, four summer school classmates band together to save their teacher and their academic futures after Ms J.'s unorthodox teaching methods are questioned.

Two years ago, Jane Norton crashed her car on a lonely road, killing her friend David and leaving her with amnesia. At first, everyone was sympathetic. Then they found Jane's note: I wish we were dead together. A girl to blame... From that day the town turned against her. But even now Jane is filled with questions: Why were they on that road? Why was she with David? Did she really want to die? The secrets she should forget Most of all, she must find out who has just written her an anonymous message: I know what really happened. I know what you don't remember.

Thirteen-year-old Patricia, widely known as Sweet Pea, navigates her parents' unconventional divorce and finds herself in the unlikely role of her town's advice columnist.

In an alternate America, tensions are high as Beatrice prepares to become the country's first queen, while Princess Samantha and Prince Jefferson struggle to decide what their futures might hold.

A timely, accessible, and beautifully written story exploring themes of food, friendship, family and what it means to belong, featuring sixth-graders Sara, a Pakistani American, and Elizabeth, a white, Jewish girl taking a South Asian cooking class taught by Sara's mom.

Told in two voices, eleven-year-olds Mimi, who is visiting her wealthy grandparents in Karachi, Pakistan, for the first time and Sakina, daughter of the grandparents' cook, form an unexpected friendship.

1944. The war seemed far away from Margot in Iowa and Haruko in Colorado-- until they were uprooted to dusty Texas, because of the places their parents once called home: Germany and Japan. At the high school in Crystal City, a "family internment camp" for those accused of colluding with the enemy, the teens discover that the camp is changing them, day by day, and piece by piece. Haruko becomes consumed by fear for her soldier brother and distrust of her father's secrets. Margot's watches her mother's health deteriorate and her rational father become a man who distrusts America and fraternizes with Nazis. In a prison the government has deemed full of spies, can they trust anyone-- even each other?

A boy on the run. A girl determined to find him. A compelling fantasy looks at issues of privilege, protest, and justice. All light in Chattana is created by one man — the Governor, who appeared after the Great Fire to bring peace and order to the city. For Pong, who was born in Namwon Prison, the magical lights represent freedom, and he dreams of the day he will be able to walk among them. But when Pong escapes from prison, he realizes that the world outside is no fairer than the one behind bars. The wealthy dine and dance under bright orb light, while the poor toil away in darkness. Worst of all, Pong’s prison tattoo marks him as a fugitive who can never be truly free. Nok, the prison warden’s perfect daughter, is bent on tracking Pong down and restoring her family’s good name. But as Nok hunts Pong through the alleys and canals of Chattana, she uncovers secrets that make her question the truths she has always held dear. Set in a Thai-inspired fantasy world, Christina Soontornvat’s twist on Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables is a dazzling, fast-paced adventure that explores the difference between law and justice — and asks whether one child can shine a light in the dark.

In 1961 Cuba, with the threat of military service for children looming, twelve-year-old Cumba's parents send him to Miami, where he lives with a new family and misses his homeland.

There are zero reasons for Theo Ripley to look forward to his family vacation. Not only are he, sister Laura, and nature-obsessed Dad going to Big Bend, the least popular National Park, but once there, the family will be camping. And Theo is an indoor animal. It doesn't help that this will be the first vacation they're taking since Mom passed away. Once there, the family contends with 110 degree days, wild bears, and an annoying amateur ornithologist and his awful teenage vlogger son. Then, Theo's dad hits him with a whopper of a surprise: the whole trip is just a trick to introduce his secret new girlfriend. Theo tries to squash down the pain in his chest. But when it becomes clear that this is an auditioning-to-be-his-stepmom girlfriend, Theo must find a way to face his grief and talk to his dad before his family is forever changed.

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.

A Cuban-American boy must use his ability to communicate with animals to save the inhabitants of his town when they are threatened by a witch that transforms into animals.

Three sisters in San Antonio are shadowed by guilt and grief over the loss of their oldest sister, who still haunts their house.

Hudi needs to lose weight, according to his doctors. Concerned about the serious medical issue Hudi had when he was younger, his parents push him to try out for sports. Hudi would rather do anything else, but then he meets Chunky, his imaginary friend and mascot. Together, they decide to give baseball a shot. As the only Mexican and Jewish kid in his neighborhood, Hudi has found the cheerleader he never had. Baseball doesn't go well (unless getting hit by the ball counts), but the two friends have a great time drawing and making jokes. While Hudi's parents keep trying to find the right sport for Hudi, Chunky encourages him to pursue his true love--comedy. But when Hudi's dad loses his job, it gets harder for Hudi to chart his own course, even with Chunky's guidance. Can Chunky help Hudi stay true to himself or will this friendship strike out?

Hudi finally embraced his love of art and comedy, but his class clown antics keep getting him in trouble. After Hudi's artwork lands him in detention again, his parents decide a change is needed when summer arrives, and they sentence him to four weeks at summer camp. Hudi is hesitant about Camp Green--a Jewish sleepaway camp in the blazing Texas desert. At least he still has Chunky. Then Hudi meets Pepe, a fellow camper who's also Latinx, Jewish, and a comedian like Hudi, and who--get this--can also see Chunky! What?! The rest of Hudi's bunkmates are also a motley crew of misfits. Has Hudi finally found his people. This new friendship with Pepe leads Hudi and Chunky into all kinds of hijinks, including a prank war with a few rival campers: the rich, preppy trio of Joshes. Hudi soon realizes that Pepe is driven by more than just making people laugh and he's not telling Hudi the truth. As the pranks escalate further than Hudi wants, he's at risk of getting labeled a troublemaker again--can Chunky help Hudi save this new friendship? Or will it flame out?

Eagle Pass, Texas. Grace struggles to understand the "echoes" she inherited from her mother: visions which often distort her reality. One morning as her sister, Mercy, rushes off for work, a disturbing echo takes hold of Grace. Within moments tragedy strikes. Grace sets goals and begins to recover, but is estranged from Mercy. As Grace's echoes brings ghosts and premonitions, they also bring memories of when Grace fled to Mexico to the house of her maternal grandmother-- who Grace had been told died long ago

Sadie Scofield is entered in the Texas River Odyssey, 260 miles of brutal canoeing, but a chance to finally make up for ruining her father's chance of winning the previous year; but her brother Tanner suddenly opts to paddle for a different team, and she is left with Cully, a young man who was her best friend years ago, but no longer--260 miles in the same boat to sort out her relationship with the boy she once tried to defend from his abusive father, and discover the truth about their feuding families.

Sue just wants to spend the summer reading and making comics at sleepaway camp with her friends, but instead she gets stuck going to Honduras to visit relatives with her parents and two sisters. They live way out in the country, which means no texting, no cable, and no Internet! The trip takes a turn for the worse when Sue's mother announces that they'll be having a surprise quinceañera for Sue, which is the last thing she wants. She can't imagine wearing a big, floofy, colorful dress! What is Sue going to do? And how will she survive all this "quality" time with her rambunctious family?

When the president's son, Lennon, is kidnapped and pushed out of an airplane over the Q, a vast quarantine zone, Maisie gives him a seventy-two hour vaccine and together the two teenagers attempt to fight their way through the Q in order to survive.

Twelve-year-old Kyana has just discovered she's a witch! This means classes every Saturday at Park Row Magic Academy, a learning center hidden in the back of the local beauty shop, and Kyana can't wait to learn spells to help out at home. The only downside is having to keep her magic a secret from her BFF, Nae. But when the magic school loses funding, the students must pay huge fees at the fancy school across town or lose their magic! Determined to help, Kyana enters a baking contest with a big cash prize. Will she be able to keep up her grades while preparing for the competition and without revealing her magic? What about when a taste of magic works its way into her cupcakes?

Twelve-year-old Yasmeen Khoury is unhappy that her family has moved from Detroit to San Antonio, Texas, leaving her friends and Arab Christian community behind; from the very first day at school Yasmeen feels completely isolated and out of place, but she slowly makes friends with a Mexican boy, Carlos, and her Jewish neighbor, Ayelet Cohen, although she feels like she has to hide these friendships, especially from her Palestinian father, a native of Jerusalem--more than anything Yasmeen just wants to be American but it seems like she can not escape the ethnic tensions that swirl around her.

A novel-in-verse about a 12-year-old Dominican American girl who must keep her love of swimming a secret from her mother, is diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis, and is forced to re-imagine the person she is to become.

Danna Mendoza Villarreal's grandfather is slowly losing himself as his memories fade, and Danna's not sure her plan to help him remember through the foods he once reviewed will be enough to bring him back. Especially when her own love of food makes her complicated relationship with her mother even more difficult. Raúl Santos has been lost ever since his mother was wrongly incarcerated two years ago. Playing guitar for the elderly has been his only escape, to help them remember and help him forget. But when his mom unexpectedly comes back into his life, what is he supposed to do when she isn't the same person who left? When Danna and Raúl meet, sparks fly immediately and they embark on a mission to heal her grandfather...and themselves. Because healing is something best done together -- even if it doesn't always look the way we want it to.

Sixteen-year-old Sayers Wayte has everything: popularity, good looks, perfect grades--there's nothing Sayers' family money can't buy. Until he's kidnapped by a man who tells him the privileged life he's been living is based on a lie. Trapped in a windowless room, without knowing why he's been taken or how long the man plans to keep him shut away, Sayers faces a terrifying new reality. To survive, he must forget the world he once knew, and play the part his abductor has created for him. But as time passes, the line between fact and fiction starts to blur, and Sayers begins to wonder if he can escape... before he loses himself.

Thirteen-year-old Cassidy Drake wants nothing more than to race with her best dragon, Ranga, in the annual Great Texas Dragon Race. Her mother was a racing legacy, and growing up on her family's dragon sanctuary ranch, Cassidy lives and breathes dragons. She knows she could win against the exploitative FireCorp team that cares more about corporate greed than caring for the dragons. Cassidy is so determined to race that she sneaks out of her house against her father's wishes and enters the competition. Soon, Cassidy takes to the skies with Ranga across her glorious Lone Star State. But with five grueling tasks ahead of her, dangerous dragon challenges waiting at each one, and more enemies than allies on the course, Cassidy will need to know about more than just dragons to survive.

Omega will have to learn to trust her powers once again as she comes face to face with the Mexican legend El Cucuy.

A girl must learn to trust herself--and her ancestral powers--when she comes face-to-face with the Mexican legend La Lechuza.

Eleven-year-old injured soccer player Luz has a hard enough time reframing her identity as a computer programmer, but when her Guatemalan half-sister moves in, she learns what it truly means to start over.

In an alternate San Antonio, there have been no known cases of vampirism since a group of masked vampire hunters called the Vanquishers wiped out the last horde of the undead twenty years ago, but twelve-year-old Malika "Boog" Wilson's parents are not taking any chances, especially when Boog's new classmate Aaron goes missing.