Journeyz Book Club is a reading and writing program that emphasizes multicultural literature for middle school students. Students will read the books and create a book review in whatever format they choose (poetry, formal writing, PowerPoint, sculpture, artwork, etc.). At the end of the year, students will be able to create a book filled with their personal work collected throughout the year which will be published by LAMS Knowledge Center.

1. Thirteen-year-old Celiane describes life with her mother and brother in Haiti as well as her experiences in Brooklyn after the family finally immigrates there to be reunited with her father. 153p. AR Quiz #: 65424 Reading Level: 5.6 Points: 5 Edwidge Danticat (Haitian American)

2. A collection of stories within the story of a family celebration where the guests relate their memories of growing up in various Latin American countries. Also contains recipes. 105p. AR Quiz #: 54636 Reading Level: 5 Points: 2 Lulu Delacre (Latin America)

3. Since Tobin McCauley's mom died of cancer, his family has fallen apart. Nobody talks about grief at home, a dirty "old brick shoe box" off a highway near Raleigh, North Carolina, where Tobin lives with his dad and his older, delinquent siblings. Then in seventh grade, Tobin meets Henry, who helps him raise chickens and supports him so he can stand up for himself. AR Quiz #: 88484 Reading Level: 5.1 Points: 5 Frances O’Roark Dowell (European American)

4. Romiette, an African-American girl, and Julio, a Hispanic boy, discover that they attend the same high school after falling in love on the Internet, but are harassed by a gang whose members object to their interracial dating. 236p. AR Quiz #: 32450 Reading Level: 4.7 Points: 10 Sharon M. Draper (Multicultural)

5. When life gets difficult for Ana Rosa, a twelve-year-old would-be writer living in a small village in the Dominican Republic, she can depend on her older brother to make her feel better--until the life-changing events on her thirteenth birthday. 138p. AR Quiz #: 42817 Reading Level: 5.1 Points: 3 Lynn Joseph (Dominican Republic)

6. When orphaned Dave is sent to the Hebrew Home for Boys where he is treated cruelly, he sneaks out at night and is welcomed into the music- and culture-filled world of the Harlem Renaissance. 281p. AR Quiz #: 35635 Reading Level: 3.6 Points: 8 Gail Carson Levine (Jewish American)

7. Ailin's life takes a different turn when she defies the traditions of upper class Chinese society by refusing to have her feet bound. 154p. (AR, RL – 5.5, 5 Points, Quiz #32218) AR Quiz #: 32218 Reading Level: 5.5 Points: 5 Lensey Namioka (China)

8. A poetry anthology in which 120 poets from sixty-two different countries celebrate the natural world and its human and animal inhabitants. 212p. AR Quiz #: 35635 Reading Level: 8.9 Naomi Shihab Nye (Multicultural)

9. Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression. 262p. AR Quiz #: 44286 Reading Level: 5.3 Points: 6 Pam Munoz Ryan (Mexican)

10. Tired of staying in seclusion since the death of her best friend, a fourteen-year-old Native American girl takes on a photographic assignment with her local newspaper to cover events at the Native American summer youth camp. 135p. AR Quiz #: 50386 Reading Level: 5.8 Points: 5 Cynthia Leitich Smith (Native American)

11. On stage for his eighth-grade graduation, Steven is an avid drummer, journal writer, and generally a good student. But the pressures of dealing with Jeff's illness, his five-year-old brother, stresses his entire family as his school-teacher mom takes a leave to care for him, Dad withdraws, and Steven stops doing homework. His character is an admirable fellow who grows in his ability to deal with others and his hardships. 273 p. AR Quiz #: 100187 Reading Level: 5.9 Points: 8 Jordan Sonnenblick (European American)

12. Eleven short stories depicting what it is like to be young in America, exploring such diverse cultures as urban San Francisco, a Chippewa reservation, and a Latino barrio in Chicago. 232p. AR Quiz #: 110143 Reading Level: 5.6 Points: 7 Joyce Carol Thomes (Multicultural)

13. Three German teenagers who are members of the Mormon Church join forces to create a youth resistance movement during World War II, putting their lives at risk. Based on a true story. 260p. AR Quiz #: 49817 Reading Level: 4.3 Points: 6 Michael O. Tunnell (Germany)

14. Orphaned by the influenza epidemic in British East Africa in 1919, 13-year-old Rachel is sent by conniving neighbors to visit an elderly man in England, passing as their daughter–his granddaughter–to pave the way for their return and the inheritance of his estate. The daughter of a missionary doctor and his wife, Rachel has grown up connected to the African countryside and people. 194 p. AR Quiz #: 89524 Reading Level: 5.7 Points: 7 Gloria Whelan (British East African)

15. Credits Amazon.com, Inc., (2007). Retrieved June 26, 2007, from Amazon Web site: http://www.amazon.com . Elmhurst Public Library, (2005, January 3). Multicultural books for middle school readers. Retrieved June 26, 2007, from Elmhurst Public Library Web site: http://www.elmhurstpubliclibrary.org/kids/kidsbooklists/multi-mid.html . Mackin, (2007). Mackin. Retrieved June 26, 2007, Web site: http://www.mackin.com