Nebraska 7th grade reading list

The 619 books most commonly assigned to Nebraska 7th grade students in US schools — each with its reading level and a cited source.

Try it on audio — free. Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.

Listen free on Audiblestarts instantly

New members only · many assigned titles are included with the membership. As an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases and membership trials at no extra cost to you.

Books619Lexile360L–1300LSourceNebraska ELA Standards✓ sources cited per book

Most-assigned nationally: across every US state’s official reading and award lists, the Middle (6–8) titles appearing in the most states are The Giver (20 states), The Hunger Games (14 states), and Ground Zero (8 states). From our 2026 study of 13,258 source-cited assignments (as of 2026-07-13).

Start here — most-cited for Nebraska 7th grade

These are the 15 titles named in Nebraska’s own curriculum documents for this grade — everything below is the wider national list. Read against the Common Core Appendix A complexity band; reading level is not thematic maturity, and several sit below the band because they are assigned for discussion.

  1. The Giver

    Lois Lowry

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 6 to 8. Covers conformity vs individuality, memory, utopia and dystopia. At 760L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  2. The War That Saved My Life

    Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers war, resilience and disability. At 580L it reads well below the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  3. Stepping on the Cracks

    Mary Downing Hahn

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 4 to 7.

    Get it on Amazon

  4. The Running Dream

    Wendelin Van Draanen

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 7 to 12.

    Get it on Amazon

  5. Ghost Boys

    Jewell Parker Rhodes

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers race, justice and family. At 360L it reads well below the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  6. Legend

    Marie Lu

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 9. Covers dystopia, justice and loyalty.

    Get it on Amazon

  7. Restart

    Gordon Korman

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers identity, bullying and memory. At 730L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  8. Scythe

    Neal Shusterman

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 7 to 12. Covers mortality, power and ethics.

    Get it on Amazon

  9. The False Prince

    Jennifer A. Nielsen

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 9. Covers identity, adventure and power.

    Get it on Amazon

  10. The Hunger Games

    Suzanne Collins

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 9. Covers authoritarianism, survival, media and spectacle. At 810L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  11. The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1)

    Rick Riordan

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers Greek mythology, neurodivergence (dyslexia, ADHD) and friendship. At 740L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  12. Touching Spirit Bear

    Ben Mikaelsen

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 9. Covers survival, nature and courage.

    Get it on Amazon

  13. Two Degrees

    Alan Gratz

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers climate, survival and courage.

    Get it on Amazon

  14. Wait Till Helen Comes

    Mary Downing Hahn

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers ghosts, family and jealousy.

    Get it on Amazon

  15. Wonder

    R.J. Palacio

    Cited in 1 Nebraska curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers facial difference, kindness and bullying. At 790L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

619 books cited for Nebraska 7th grade

Assignments tied directly to Nebraska’s Nebraska ELA Standards or national curricula with a Nebraska-specific citation.

Show all 619 titles

Reading the whole Nebraska 7th grade reading list? Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.

Listen free on Audiblestarts instantly

New members only · many assigned titles are included with the membership. As an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases and membership trials at no extra cost to you.

Know a parent or teacher who needs this? Share it:FacebookPinterest

Teacher or librarian? Print this list as a checklist — free to photocopy for your class or library (details).

Other Nebraska grades

6th grade · 8th grade · 5th grade · 9th grade

Reading lists by grade (all states)

6th grade · 8th grade · 5th grade · 9th grade

Same 7th grade in other states

California · Texas · Florida · New York · Pennsylvania · Illinois

Browse 7th grade reading by theme

About the Nebraska 7th grade reading list

In Nebraska schools, 7th grade students are most often assigned books drawn from Nebraska ELA Standardsalongside the national curricula that apply nationwide — Common Core State Standards Appendix B, AP English, and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. ReadingList currently tracks 619 titles for 7th grade in Nebraska, each tied to a Nebraska-specific curriculum citation. Across the list, Lexile measures span 360L–1300L.

7th grade sits in the 6-8 grade band, where students are middle-grade readers. At this stage the emphasis is on analyzing theme, character, and author's craft across full-length novels and their first classics. Assigned reading skews toward full-length novels, plays, memoir, and frequently-challenged contemporary titles, with text complexity that, per Common Core’s Appendix A reading bands, typically falls around roughly 700L to 1010L. Measured against that 925–1185L range, of the 59 titles here with a Lexile score 9 are grade-level, 49 are more accessible (often assigned for theme over challenge), and 1 is a stretch text that may need scaffolding. Because readers in a single 7th grade classroom can span several hundred Lexile points, this list is best read as a starting point rather than a fixed requirement.

Nebraska’s English Language Arts requirements are set by Nebraska ELA Standards (education.ne.gov). Most states pair their own standards with the Common Core text-complexity framework, so the 7th grade list below blends Nebraska-specific assignments with the widely-taught national canon. Every title links to its primary source on the book’s detail page, so you can confirm exactly where and why it is assigned.

How to use this list:match a title to your child’s most recent Lexile or guided-reading level rather than to the grade alone. Teachers building a 7th grade unit can pair a Nebraska-cited core text with a grade-appropriate companion novel; parents previewing summer or supplemental reading can check each book’s content notes and challenge history before assigning it.

Common questions

How many books are assigned to 7th grade students in Nebraska?
619 books appear on ReadingList for 7th grade students in Nebraska, sourced from Nebraska ELA Standards and national curricula (Common Core, AP, IB) with applicable grade citations.
What's the Lexile range for 7th grade reading in Nebraska?
Lexile measures across the 7th grade Nebraska reading list range from 360L to 1300L. Books without a published Lexile (poetry, drama, picture books) are not included in this range.
Where does this reading list come from?
Entries reference Nebraska ELA Standards (published at www.education.ne.gov) plus national curricula that apply to Nebraska schools: Common Core State Standards Appendix B, AP English Literature and Language, IB Diploma Programme, and Cambridge Assessment International. Every assignment row on each book's detail page links its primary source.

Reading guides for parents

▸Embed this list on your site

Copy + paste this snippet into any school newsletter, classroom blog, library site, or homeschool resource page. The embed shows the top 12 titles and links back to the full list. Updates automatically when ReadingList’s data changes.

<iframe src="https://readinglist.school/embed/grade/7" width="100%" height="540" style="border:1px solid rgba(0,0,0,0.1);border-radius:6px;max-width:640px" loading="lazy" title="7th grade reading list — ReadingList.school"></iframe>

Preview: /embed/grade/7 · License: CC BY 4.0 (please credit “ReadingList.school”).

Was this page helpful?

Browse by another angle

State-specific entries sourced from www.education.ne.gov. National references cited on each book’s detail page.