2026 Lone Star Reading List

Blood in the water

Jackson, Tiffany D.,


Kirkus Reviews. Brooklyn girl Kaylani McKinnon is thrust into an intricate web of lies when a shocking murder on Martha's Vineyard threatens to expose dangerous secrets.
Date Published:2025

The extraordinary orbit of Alex Ramirez

Paulino, Jasminne,


School Library Journal starred, May 2025. Publishers Weekly, March 2025. Kirkus Review, April 2025. Alex, a neurodiverse seventh grader, works to convince his teachers and parents that he is ready to leave his self-contained classroom and join his grade's mainstream science class.
Date Published:2025

A hero's guide to summer vacation

Cartaya, Pablo,


Gonzalo Alberto García has never considered himself the hero of his own story. He’s an observer, quietly snapshotting landscapes and drawing the creatures he imagines emerging from them. Forced to spend the summer with his estranged grandfather, Alberto William García—the very famous reclusive author—Gonzalo didn’t expect to learn that heroes and monsters are not only the stuff of fantasy. But that’s precisely what happens when Gonzalo’s CEO mother, Veronica, sends Alberto on tour to promote the final book in his fantasy series for children and Gonzalo must tag along, even though he feels no connection to his grandfather or the books. Together, they embark on a cross-country road trip from Mendocino to Miami in a classic 1968 Oldsmobile Cutlass S Convertible named Mathilde. Over the course of ten epic days on the highway, they will slay demons, real and imagined; confront old stories to write new ones; and learn what it truly means to show up for your family.
Date Published:2025

Gonzalo Alberto García has never considered himself the hero of his own story. He’s an observer, quietly snapshotting landscapes and drawing the creatures he imagines emerging from them. Forced to spend the summer with his estranged grandfather, Alberto William García—the very famous reclusive author—Gonzalo didn’t expect to learn that heroes and monsters are not only the stuff of fantasy. But that’s precisely what happens when Gonzalo’s CEO mother, Veronica, sends Alberto on tour to promote the final book in his fantasy series for children and Gonzalo must tag along, even though he feels no connection to his grandfather or the books. Together, they embark on a cross-country road trip from Mendocino to Miami in a classic 1968 Oldsmobile Cutlass S Convertible named Mathilde. Over the course of ten epic days on the highway, they will slay demons, real and imagined; confront old stories to write new ones; and learn what it truly means to show up for your family.

Date Published:2025

Keeping pace

Morrison, Laurie,


Grace Eller has spent most of middle school working toward one goal: beating her former friend Jonah Perkins's GPA so she can be the best student in her class. But when Jonah beats her for eighth grade top scholar and then announces he's switching schools for ninth grade, it feels like none of Grace's academic accomplishments have really mattered. She starts to expand her ideas of what--and who--really matters.
Date Published:2024

Grace Eller has spent most of middle school working toward one goal: beating her former friend Jonah Perkins's GPA so she can be the best student in her class. But when Jonah beats her for eighth grade top scholar and then announces he's switching schools for ninth grade, it feels like none of Grace's academic accomplishments have really mattered. She starts to expand her ideas of what--and who--really matters.

Date Published:2024

Shadowed

Deuker, Carl,


School Library Journal, November 2024. Kirkus Review, September 2024. Nate plays soccer, but he doesn't love it. He plays because it's what his family expects. Then Lucas Cawley moves in across the street. Lucas isn't like any of Nate's sports friends--he's poor, his parents are mostly absent, and he's devoted to his sister, Megan, who has a learning disability. Lucas may be an outcast at school, but he and Nate find common ground in their fierce games of one-on-one basketball. It's not long before Nate realizes that basketball is his sport. But Nate has an ax to grind with star players Colin and Bo, who have disrespected him for years. Nate believes that outplaying those two is the most important thing until he learns that life is about more than getting ready for the next game.
Date Published:2024

School Library Journal, November 2024. Kirkus Review, September 2024. Nate plays soccer, but he doesn't love it. He plays because it's what his family expects. Then Lucas Cawley moves in across the street. Lucas isn't like any of Nate's sports friends--he's poor, his parents are mostly absent, and he's devoted to his sister, Megan, who has a learning disability. Lucas may be an outcast at school, but he and Nate find common ground in their fierce games of one-on-one basketball. It's not long before Nate realizes that basketball is his sport. But Nate has an ax to grind with star players Colin and Bo, who have disrespected him for years. Nate believes that outplaying those two is the most important thing until he learns that life is about more than getting ready for the next game.

Date Published:2024