Governor Hodges’ 2002-2003 Middle School Reading Challenge will last the entire school year, as opposed to a single semester, to allow students more time to read the books.

In September, Governor Hodges will send copies of the featured books to every middle school in South Carolina and a new challenge will begin. The challenge is featuring the following eight titles this year:

The View From Saturday by E. L. Konigsburg (Simon & Schuster)

Sees Behind Trees by Michael Dorris (Disney Press)

Darby by Jonathon Scott Fuqua (Candlewick Press)

Memories of Summer by Ruth White (Bantam Doubleday Dell)

Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelen (HarperCollins)

Martin the Warrior by Brian Jaques (Penguin Putnam)

The Barn by Avi (Scholastic)

The Great Fire by Jim Murphy (Scholastic Inc.)