Each year the 5th graders at Hastings School participate in the Massachusetts Children’s Book Award project conducted by Salem State University. Each student must read 5 books from the list below by the end of February, in order to be able to vote for their favorite. For each book read, you must write a short response and post it here. If you read and respond to 10 books by the end of March, you will earn a free paperback book at the Hastings Book Fair! If you read all 25 books from the list, you will be invited to a special lunch party in the library. In the past, as many as 9 students read all 25 books!. How many will meet the challenge this year?

You may read a hard copy, read an ebook, listen to an audiobook or a read-aloud. All formats count. If you have already read one or more books on the list, you only need to submit a reading response for that book to count. All of the books will be available in the Hastings library beginning in October. They will also be available from public libraries across the state.