The 6th Grade Battle of the Books is coming! On Tuesday, February 22 at 7 PM, sixth graders will battle for book knowledge supremacy at Cornell Area School District.
For more information, check out the BOB Wiki.
Registration
- Team registration must be completed by January 24, 2022 by 8:00 PM.
- Teams have 1-5 members.
- If you can’t find a team or need members for your team, contact Ms. Heather or Ms. Emily.
- Registration forms can be turned into your school librarian, Moon Library, Sewickley Library, or by email.
- Team managers will receive an information packet upon registration.
Books
The Beast and the Bethany #1
By Jack Meggitt-Phillips and Isabelle Follath
Available as a book and CD audiobook.
Summary: Beauty comes at a price. And no one knows that better than Ebenezer Tweezer, who has stayed beautiful for 511 years. How, you may wonder? Ebenezer simply has to feed the beast in the attic of his mansion. But the beast grows ever greedier with each meal, and one day he announces that he’d like to eat a nice, juicy child next. Ebenezer has never done anything quite this terrible to hold onto his wonderful life. Still, he finds the absolutely snottiest, naughtiest, and most frankly unpleasant child he can and prepares to feed her to the beast. The child, Bethany, may just be more than Ebenezer bargained for. She’s certainly a really rather rude houseguest, but Ebenezer still finds himself wishing she didn’t have to be gobbled up after all. Could it be Bethany is less meal-worthy and more…friend-worthy?
Becoming Muhammad Ali
By James Patterson, Kwame Alexander, and Dawud Anyabwile
Available as a book, CD audiobook, Playaway, ebook, and digital audiobook.
Summary: Before he was a household name, Cassius Clay was a kid with struggles like any other. Kwame Alexander and James Patterson join forces to vividly depict his life up to age seventeen in both prose and verse, including his childhood friends, struggles in school, the racism he faced, and his discovery of boxing. Readers will learn about Cassius’ family and neighbors in Louisville, Kentucky, and how, after a thief stole his bike, Cassius began training as an amateur boxer at age twelve. Before long, he won his first Golden Gloves bout and began his transformation into the unrivaled Muhammad Ali.
Charlie Thorne #1: Charlie Thorne and the Last Equation
By Stuart Gibbs
Available as a book, CD audiobook, ebook, and digital audiobook.
Summary: Charlie Thorne is a genius. Charlie Thorne is a thief. Charlie Thorne isn’t old enough to drive. And now it’s up to her to save the world. Decades ago, Albert Einstein devised an equation that could benefit all life on earth—or destroy it. Fearing what would happen if the equation fell into the wrong hands, he hid it. But now, a diabolical group known as the Furies are closing in on its location. In desperation, a team of CIA agents drags Charlie into the hunt, needing her brilliance to find it first—even though this means placing her life in grave danger!
Zoe Washington #1: From the Desk of Zoe Washington
By Janae Marks and Mirelle Ortega
Available as a book, CD audiobook, Playaway, ebook, and digital audiobook.
Summary: Zoe Washington isn’t sure what to write. What does a girl say to the father she’s never met, hadn’t heard from until his letter arrived on her twelfth birthday, and who’s been in prison for a terrible crime? A crime he says he never committed. Could Marcus really be innocent? Zoe is determined to uncover the truth. Even if it means hiding his letters and her investigation from the rest of her family. Everyone else thinks Zoe’s worrying about doing a good job at her bakery internship and proving to her parents that she’s worthy of auditioning for Food Network’s Kids Bake Challenge. But with bakery confections on one part of her mind, and Marcus’s conviction weighing heavily on the other, this is one recipe Zoe doesn’t know how to balance. The only thing she knows to be true: Everyone lies.
I Can Make This Promise
By Christine Day
Available as a book, large print book, Playaway, ebook, and digital audiobook.
Summary: All her life, Edie has known that her mom was adopted by a white couple. So, no matter how curious she might be about her Native American heritage, Edie is sure her family doesn’t have any answers. Until the day when she and her friends discover a box hidden in the attic—a box full of letters signed “Love, Edith,” and photos of a woman who looks just like her. Suddenly, Edie has a flurry of new questions about this woman who shares her name. Could she belong to the Native family that Edie never knew about? But if her mom and dad have kept this secret from her all her life, how can she trust them to tell her the truth now?
Middle School Bites #1
By Steven Banks and Mark Fearing
Available as a book.
Thanks to a series of unfortunate bites, eleven-year-old Tom is a triple threat: he’s a Vam-Wolf-Zom. And just in time for the first day of middle school. So much for his Invisible Tom Plan. He never thought to make a What If I Turn Into A Vampire Werewolf Zombie Plan. Maybe it’s time for a Run Away and Live Somewhere Else Plan? With the help of his irrepressible best friend, Zeke, Tom tries to accept his future. Zeke thinks being a Vam-Wolf-Zom sounds EXCELLENT! (Zeke thinks everything sounds EXCELLENT!) At least he’ll be able to stand up to the sixth-grade bully. The question is will the rest of Hamilton Middle School accept the Vam-Wolf-Zom, too?
Snapdragon
By Kat Leyh
Available as a book, and digital audiobook.
Summary: Snap’s town had a witch. At least, that’s how the rumor goes. But in reality, Jacks is just a Crocs-wearing, internet-savvy old lady who sells roadkill skeletons online. It’s creepy, sure, but Snap thinks it’s kind of cool, too. Snap needs a favor from this old woman, though, so she begins helping Jacks with her strange work. Snap gets to know her and realizes that Jacks may in fact have real magic—and an unlikely connection to Snap’s family’s past.
Unplugged
By Gordon Korman
Available as a book, CD audiobook, Playaway, and ebook.
Summary: As the son of the world’s most famous tech billionaire, Jett Baranov has always gotten exactly what he wanted. So, when his father’s private jet drops him in the middle of Little Rock, Arkansas, at a wellness camp called the Oasis, Jett can’t believe it. He’s forced to hand over his cell phone, eat grainy veggie patties, and participate in wholesome activities with the other kids. As the weeks go on, Jett starts to get used to the unplugged life and even bonds with the other kids over their discovery of a baby lizard-turned-pet, Needles. But he can’t help noticing that the adults at the Oasis are acting really strange…
We’re Not from Here
By Geoff Rodkey
Available as a book, CD audiobook, and digital audiobook.
Summary: The first time I heard about Planet Choom, we’d been on Mars for almost a year. But life on the Mars station was grim, and since Earth was no longer an option (we may have blown it up), it was time to find a new home. That’s how we ended up on Choom with the Zhuri. They’re very smart. They also look like giant mosquitos. But that’s not why it’s so hard to live here. There’s a lot that the Zhuri don’t like: singing (just ask my sister, Ila), comedy (one joke got me sent to the principal’s office), or any kind of emotion. The biggest problem, though? The Zhuri don’t like us. And if humankind is going to survive, it’s up to my family to change their minds. No pressure.
The World Ends in April
By Stacy McAnulty
Available as a book and digital audiobook.
Summary: Eleanor Dross knows a thing or two about the end of the world, thanks to a survivalist grandfather who stockpiles freeze-dried food and supplies–just in case. So when she reads about a Harvard scientist’s prediction that an asteroid will strike Earth in April, Eleanor knows her family will be prepared. Her classmates? They’re on their own! But it’s hard to keep quiet about a life-destroying asteroid–especially at a crowded lunch table–and soon Eleanor is the president of the (secret) End of the World Club. It turns out that prepping for TEOTWAWKI (the End of the World as We Know It) is actually kind of fun. But you can’t really prepare for everything life drops on you. And one way or another, Eleanor’s world is about to change.
Rules
- Each team has a Team Manager, who must be an adult at least 18 years old.
- Books can only be borrowed by team members. Team Managers cannot borrow books.
- Each team member can only borrow 3 books at a time.
- The overdue fines for Battle books are $0.25 per day.
- Teams arrive at Battle at least 15 minutes before it starts.
- Team Managers act as Scorekeepers for another team.
- The Battle Moderator will ask each question twice. There are 5 questions and three rounds of questions.
- Teams have 20 seconds to write down their answers.
- Up to 5 points are awarded for each answer. All decisions are final.
- The top three teams will receive prizes.
COVID Protocol
All participants must wear masks over their nose and mouth during the entire Battle of the Books.
