New Mexico 7th grade reading list

Books with a New Mexico citation for 7th grade include Bud, Not Buddy; Holes and Maniac Magee. This list has 730 total books, 21 of them with a New Mexico-specific citation. Each book shows its reading level and a cited source. Lexile levels on the list run from 410L to 1300L.

Top New Mexico 7th grade pick: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis — on 1 New Mexico list

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Total books730Lexile410L–1300LSourceNM Common Core✓ sources cited per book

Most-assigned on state lists: 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).

Our pick to start — most-cited for New Mexico 7th grade

These are the 21 titles named in New Mexico’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. Bud, Not Buddy

    Christopher Paul Curtis

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers family, identity and perseverance. At 950L it falls inside the 925–1185L band for this grade.

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  2. Holes

    Louis Sachar

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers fate vs choice, friendship and justice. At 660L it reads well below the 925–1185L band for this grade.

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  3. Maniac Magee

    Jerry Spinelli

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers race, homelessness and family. At 820L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

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  4. The Giver

    Lois Lowry

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document and 3 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.

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  5. Brown Girl Dreaming

    Jacqueline Woodson

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers identity, family and civil rights. At 990L it falls inside the 925–1185L band for this grade.

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  6. Out of My Mind

    Sharon M. Draper

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers disability, inclusion and intelligence. At 700L it reads well below the 925–1185L band for this grade.

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  7. The Hunger Games

    Suzanne Collins

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document and 1 national reference, 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.

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  8. Wonder

    R.J. Palacio

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document and 1 national reference, 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.

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  9. City of Orphans

    Avi

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8.

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  10. Dangerous

    Shannon Hale

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8.

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  11. Ghost Canoe

    Will Hobbs

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8.

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  12. Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus

    Dusti Bowling

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 5.

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  13. Love That Dog

    Sharon Creech

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 8. Covers poetry, fiction, poetry and authorship.

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  14. Orbiting Jupiter

    Gary D. Schmidt

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 7 to 10. Covers fatherhood, loss and compassion.

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  15. Raymond and Graham Rule the School

    Mike Knudson

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8.

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  16. So B. It

    Sarah Weeks

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers family, identity and journey.

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  17. Storm Runner

    J.C. Cervantes

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8.

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  18. The Iron Trial

    Holly Black

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8.

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  19. The Lions of Little Rock

    Kristin Levine

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8.

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  20. The Red Pyramid

    Rick Riordan

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 8. Covers serie:the_kane_chronicles, egyptian mythology and nyt:paperback-books=2011-09-04.

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  21. The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963

    Christopher Paul Curtis

    Cited in 1 New Mexico curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8.

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21 books cited for New Mexico 7th grade

Assignments tied directly to New Mexico’s NM Common Core with a New Mexico-specific citation.

709 additional grade-appropriate books for 7th grade readers

The 730-book total above includes 21 titles with direct New Mexico citation; these 709 additional titles cover 7th grade in the broader canon. They don't have a New Mexico-specific citation yet but are commonly taught at this level.

Show all 709 titles

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Other New Mexico 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 New Mexico 7th grade reading list

This list combines books cited in NM Common Core with books from national sources that list titles for 7th grade: the Common Core State Standards (ELA), plus awards such as the Andre Norton Award for Middle Grade & Young Adult Fiction, the Newbery Medal and the Golden Kite Award. ReadingList currently tracks 730 titles for 7th grade in New Mexico, of which 21 carry a direct New Mexico citation and 709 are grade-appropriate titles whose reading level overlaps 7th grade. Across the list, Lexile measures span 410L–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 61 titles here with a Lexile score 10 are grade-level, 50 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.

New Mexico’s English Language Arts requirements are set by NM Common Core (webnew.ped.state.nm.us). Most states pair their own standards with the Common Core text-complexity framework. The 7th grade list below blends New Mexico-specific assignments with widely taught national titles. 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 New Mexico-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

What books do 7th grade students read in New Mexico?
Books with a New Mexico-specific citation for 7th grade include Bud, Not Buddy; Holes; Maniac Magee; The Giver and Brown Girl Dreaming. Individual schools and districts choose their own titles, so check with your child's teacher for the exact list.
How many books are assigned to 7th grade students in New Mexico?
This list has 730 books for 7th grade students in New Mexico. 21 of them have a New Mexico-specific citation; the other 709 are grade-appropriate titles from national reading lists and awards.
What's the Lexile range for 7th grade reading in New Mexico?
Lexile measures across the 7th grade New Mexico reading list range from 410L to 1300L. Books without a published Lexile (poetry, drama, picture books) are not included in this range.
Where does this reading list come from?
New Mexico-specific entries reference NM Common Core (published at webnew.ped.state.nm.us). The other books come from national sources that list books for 7th grade: the Common Core State Standards (ELA), plus awards such as the Andre Norton Award for Middle Grade & Young Adult Fiction, the Newbery Medal and the Golden Kite Award. Each book's page links the primary source for every listing.

Reading guides for parents

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State-specific entries sourced from webnew.ped.state.nm.us. National references cited on each book’s detail page.

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