# 900L–1200L books assigned in US schools

**43** books in the 900L–1200L Lexile band, typically read by students in grades 6–12. Lexile measures the prose complexity of each text — not who should read it.

**Band window:** 900L–1199L
**Observed range:** 910L–1170L
**Grade span:** 2–12
**Canonical URL:** https://readinglist.school/lexile/900-1200l
**Wikipedia (entity):** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexile
**License:** [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) — please credit ReadingList.school when citing.

## How to choose a 900L–1200L book for your child

Five steps to match a Lexile-banded book to a reader's actual ability and interests:

1. **Confirm the reader's measured Lexile.** Pull the latest Lexile score from school assessments (STAR, MAP, iReady, NWEA). A reader 100-200L below 900L will find these books challenging; 100L above 1199L will find them easy.
2. **Pick a book at +0 to +200L above their measured level.** Research from MetaMetrics shows readers grow most when reading 0-200L above their measured ability.
3. **Cross-check with the book's grade-band citation.** Each book's detail page lists every grade where US schools assign it.
4. **Confirm thematic appropriateness.** Lexile measures prose complexity, not content. Check the Themes + Content notes section on each book's detail page.
5. **Verify with the curriculum citation.** A book widely cited across multiple frameworks signals broader teacher consensus on age-appropriateness.

## Themes at 900L–1200L

- family (11)
- identity (9)
- adventure (5)
- coming of age (4)
- friendship (4)
- nature (4)
- perseverance (3)
- poverty (3)

## Authors at 900L–1200L

- Charles Dickens (2)
- Christopher Paul Curtis (2)
- George Orwell (2)
- Mark Twain (2)
- Amy Tan
- Anne Frank
- Bryan Stevenson
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

## 900L–1200L canon

- [Flowers for Algernon](https://readinglist.school/book/flowers-for-algernon) by Daniel Keyes _(910L · Grades 8–11)_
- [Mr. Popper's Penguins](https://readinglist.school/book/mr-poppers-penguins) by Richard Atwater · Florence Atwater _(910L · Grades 3–5)_
- [A Single Shard](https://readinglist.school/book/a-single-shard) by Linda Sue Park _(920L · Grades 5–8)_
- [Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World's Most Dangerous Weapon](https://readinglist.school/book/bomb) by Steve Sheinkin _(920L · Grades 6–9)_
- [Purple Hibiscus](https://readinglist.school/book/purple-hibiscus) by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie _(920L · Grades 10–12)_
- [Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry](https://readinglist.school/book/roll-of-thunder-hear-my-cry) by Mildred D. Taylor _(920L · Grades 6–8)_
- [Stuart Little](https://readinglist.school/book/stuart-little) by E.B. White _(920L · Grades 3–5)_
- [The Bluest Eye](https://readinglist.school/book/the-bluest-eye) by Toni Morrison _(920L · Grades 11–12)_
- [The Joy Luck Club](https://readinglist.school/book/the-joy-luck-club) by Amy Tan _(930L · Grades 9–12)_
- [The Old Man and the Sea](https://readinglist.school/book/the-old-man-and-the-sea) by Ernest Hemingway _(940L · Grades 8–12)_
- [Black Boy](https://readinglist.school/book/black-boy) by Richard Wright _(950L · Grades 9–12)_
- [Bud, Not Buddy](https://readinglist.school/book/bud-not-buddy) by Christopher Paul Curtis _(950L · Grades 4–7)_
- [Diary of a Wimpy Kid](https://readinglist.school/book/diary-of-a-wimpy-kid) by Jeff Kinney _(950L · Grades 3–7)_
- [Invisible Man](https://readinglist.school/book/invisible-man) by Ralph Ellison _(950L · Grades 11–12)_
- [The Adventures of Tom Sawyer](https://readinglist.school/book/the-adventures-of-tom-sawyer) by Mark Twain _(950L · Grades 5–8)_
- [The Awakening](https://readinglist.school/book/the-awakening) by Kate Chopin _(960L · Grades 11–12)_
- [The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn](https://readinglist.school/book/the-adventures-of-huckleberry-finn) by Mark Twain _(980L · Grades 10–12)_
- [Brown Girl Dreaming](https://readinglist.school/book/brown-girl-dreaming) by Jacqueline Woodson _(990L · Grades 5–8)_
- [My Father's Dragon](https://readinglist.school/book/my-fathers-dragon) by Ruth Stiles Gannett _(990L · Grades 2–4)_
- [Island of the Blue Dolphins](https://readinglist.school/book/island-of-the-blue-dolphins) by Scott O'Dell _(1000L · Grades 4–7)_
- [Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You](https://readinglist.school/book/stamped-racism-antiracism-and-you) by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi _(1000L · Grades 7–12)_
- [The Phantom Tollbooth](https://readinglist.school/book/the-phantom-tollbooth) by Norton Juster _(1000L · Grades 4–7)_
- [The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963](https://readinglist.school/book/the-watsons-go-to-birmingham-1963) by Christopher Paul Curtis _(1000L · Grades 5–8)_
- [My Ántonia](https://readinglist.school/book/my-antonia) by Willa Cather _(1010L · Grades 10–12)_
- [The Pearl](https://readinglist.school/book/the-pearl) by John Steinbeck _(1010L · Grades 6–9)_
- [Hatchet](https://readinglist.school/book/hatchet) by Gary Paulsen _(1020L · Grades 5–8)_
- [Heart of Darkness](https://readinglist.school/book/heart-of-darkness) by Joseph Conrad _(1070L · Grades 11–12)_
- [I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings](https://readinglist.school/book/i-know-why-the-caged-bird-sings) by Maya Angelou _(1070L · Grades 10–12)_
- [The Great Gatsby](https://readinglist.school/book/the-great-gatsby) by F. Scott Fitzgerald _(1070L · Grades 10–12)_
- [Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave](https://readinglist.school/book/narrative-of-the-life-of-frederick-douglass) by Frederick Douglass _(1080L · Grades 8–12)_
- [The Diary of a Young Girl](https://readinglist.school/book/the-diary-of-a-young-girl) by Anne Frank _(1080L · Grades 7–10)_
- [Their Eyes Were Watching God](https://readinglist.school/book/their-eyes-were-watching-god) by Zora Neale Hurston _(1080L · Grades 10–12)_
- [1984](https://readinglist.school/book/1984) by George Orwell _(1090L · Grades 9–12)_
- [The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time](https://readinglist.school/book/the-curious-incident-of-the-dog-in-the-night-time) by Mark Haddon _(1090L · Grades 8–12)_
- [Pride and Prejudice](https://readinglist.school/book/pride-and-prejudice) by Jane Austen _(1100L · Grades 10–12)_
- [A Separate Peace](https://readinglist.school/book/a-separate-peace) by John Knowles _(1110L · Grades 9–11)_
- [The Call of the Wild](https://readinglist.school/book/the-call-of-the-wild) by Jack London _(1120L · Grades 6–10)_
- [Just Mercy (Adapted for Young Adults)](https://readinglist.school/book/just-mercy-young-adult) by Bryan Stevenson _(1130L · Grades 9–12)_
- [The Odyssey](https://readinglist.school/book/the-odyssey) by Homer _(1130L · Grades 9–12)_
- [Great Expectations](https://readinglist.school/book/great-expectations) by Charles Dickens _(1150L · Grades 9–12)_
- [A Tale of Two Cities](https://readinglist.school/book/a-tale-of-two-cities) by Charles Dickens _(1170L · Grades 9–12)_
- [Animal Farm](https://readinglist.school/book/animal-farm) by George Orwell _(1170L · Grades 7–10)_
- [Frankenstein](https://readinglist.school/book/frankenstein) by Mary Shelley _(1170L · Grades 9–12)_

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_Generated from primary-source citations indexed on ReadingList.school. JSON API: https://readinglist.school/api/lexile/900-1200l · HTML view: https://readinglist.school/lexile/900-1200l._