As a big fan of Gordon Korman stories, I’ve shared books with several teachers many, many times since I started reading them way back in 1987. So, Mr. Wheeler, if you want some additional ideas, I’d recommend these:

– This Can’t Be Happening at MacDonald Hall: It was so good an entire series followed it, but it doesn’t have any cliffhangers. It’s one of the easiest of all GK titles to read for struggling readers.

– I Want to Go Home: This one is based in summertime and is hilarious. It’s a great choice for kids who find reading to be a challenge since they don’t want to put it down! If you wanted to really make a theme of it, you could decorate your summer program as Camp Algonkian from the book.

– Restart: This one is much more serious than the first two recommendations. It is what was called a coming-of-age novel when I was young, and now I think the trendy term is bildungsroman. The story’s concept is so intriguing that it would make for really good group discussions.