Ohio 7th grade reading list

Books with an Ohio citation for 7th grade include Holes, Maniac Magee and The Giver. This list has 722 total books, 14 of them with an Ohio-specific citation. Each book shows its reading level and a cited source. Lexile levels on the list run from 410L to 1300L.

Top Ohio 7th grade pick: Holes by Louis Sachar — on 1 Ohio list

Get it on Amazon →

Affiliate link: as an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

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.

Total books722Lexile410L–1300LSourceOhio Learning Standards✓ 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 Ohio 7th grade

These are the 14 titles named in Ohio’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. Holes

    Louis Sachar

    Cited in 1 Ohio 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.

    Get it on Amazon

  2. Maniac Magee

    Jerry Spinelli

    Cited in 1 Ohio 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.

    Get it on Amazon

  3. The Giver

    Lois Lowry

    Cited in 1 Ohio 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.

    Get it on Amazon

  4. The Crossover

    Kwame Alexander

    Cited in 1 Ohio curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers family, brotherhood and basketball. At 750L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  5. Eragon

    Christopher Paolini

    Cited in 1 Ohio curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 6 to 9. Covers dragons, destiny and courage.

    Get it on Amazon

  6. Ghost

    Jason Reynolds

    Cited in 1 Ohio curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers running, family violence and mentorship. At 730L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  7. Hatchet

    Gary Paulsen

    Cited in 1 Ohio curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers survival, resilience and self-reliance. At 1020L it falls inside the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  8. Out of My Mind

    Sharon M. Draper

    Cited in 1 Ohio 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.

    Get it on Amazon

  9. Refugee

    Alan Gratz

    Cited in 1 Ohio curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 5 to 9. Covers refugees, survival and family. At 800L it sits just under the 925–1185L band for this grade.

    Get it on Amazon

  10. Ground Zero

    Alan Gratz

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

    Get it on Amazon

  11. Guts

    Raina Telgemeier

    Cited in 1 Ohio curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 8. Covers anxiety, growing up and courage.

    Get it on Amazon

  12. Heroes

    Alan Gratz

    Cited in 1 Ohio curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8. Covers courage, friendship and history.

    Get it on Amazon

  13. Restart

    Gordon Korman

    Cited in 1 Ohio 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

  14. Rules

    Cynthia Lord

    Cited in 1 Ohio curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers disability, friendship and acceptance.

    Get it on Amazon

14 books cited for Ohio 7th grade

Assignments tied directly to Ohio’s Ohio Learning Standards with a Ohio-specific citation.

708 additional grade-appropriate books for 7th grade readers

The 722-book total above includes 14 titles with direct Ohio citation; these 708 additional titles cover 7th grade in the broader canon. They don't have an Ohio-specific citation yet but are commonly taught at this level.

Show all 708 titles

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

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 Ohio 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 Ohio 7th grade reading list

This list combines books cited in Ohio Learning Standards 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 722 titles for 7th grade in Ohio, of which 14 carry a direct Ohio citation and 708 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 62 titles here with a Lexile score 10 are grade-level, 51 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.

Ohio’s English Language Arts requirements are set by Ohio Learning Standards (education.ohio.gov). Most states pair their own standards with the Common Core text-complexity framework. The 7th grade list below blends Ohio-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 Ohio-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 Ohio?
Books with an Ohio-specific citation for 7th grade include Holes, Maniac Magee, The Giver, The Crossover and Eragon. 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 Ohio?
This list has 722 books for 7th grade students in Ohio. 14 of them have an Ohio-specific citation; the other 708 are grade-appropriate titles from national reading lists and awards.
What's the Lexile range for 7th grade reading in Ohio?
Lexile measures across the 7th grade Ohio 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?
Ohio-specific entries reference Ohio Learning Standards (published at education.ohio.gov). 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

▸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 education.ohio.gov. National references cited on each book’s detail page.

Find ReadingList in your Google results more often: