BLOGS > APRIL 13, 2022
High-interest, low readability (hi-lo) books can be harder to find as readers reach the Middle Grade and Young Adult years. Orca Book Publishers offers short hi-lo reads to engage these older age groups with the complex content they crave, in a package they can readily digest. Many titles also include free teaching resources for classroom use. From plot-driven mysteries and fantasies to captivating realistic fiction set in the worlds of sports and fine arts, Orca hi-lo titles have something appealing for every type of reluctant reader.
Browse the Full List on Titlewave
Orca Currents are short, high-interest novels with contemporary themes written specifically for middle grade students reading below grade level. Reading levels range from 2.0 to 5.0, interest levels reach ages 9-12.
Check out this featured title from Orca Currents:
By Ann Walsh
Interest Level: 5-8
Reading Level: 3.5
Download Teacher's Guide
Has a protest to save a tree gone too far? Callie’s mother has chained herself to the neighbor’s tree and is living inside the treehouse. She refuses to come down until the neighbor, Mr. Wilson, agrees to leave the tree standing. Soon reporters arrive, followed by an activist group called the Singing Grannies and a gang of bikers – each group adding to the chaos. Callie doesn’t want to deal with any of them, but she needs to figure out how to get her mother to come down from the tree so that her life can return to normal.
Orca Soundings are short, high-interest novels written for young adults. These edgy stories are filled with compelling characters and gripping plotlines that teens will want to read. Reading levels range from 2.0 to 4.5, while interest levels reach ages 12 and up.
Check out this featured title from Orca Soundings:
By Tanya Lloyd Kyi
Interest Level: YA
Reading Level 3.2
When an adult neighbor is brutally murdered during a high school house party, everyone in school seems to have an idea who did it, but no one will go to the police. Jen was there and saw the body, and she has her own ideas about who is responsible. As a reporter for the school TV show, she decides to try and uncover the truth, suspecting that a classmate’s increasingly violent behavior is to blame. When she and others begin digging too deeply, violence flares in the small community. Finally, Jen is forced to take a stand, one that may cost her more than she could imagine.
Orca Anchor books are short, high-interest novels with teen protagonists and modern-day storylines. These titles are written specifically for young adults who are reading below a 2.0 reading level.
Check out this featured title from Orca Anchor:
By Sean Rodman
Interest Level: YA
Reading Level: 1.8
Michael has been getting in trouble lately. Consequently, his mom is making him look after his grandfather for the summer. The thing is, Gramps isn’t your average senior citizen: he’s a retired burglar with a lifetime of criminal knowledge. When a thief breaks into Gramps’ apartment and steals a necklace with great sentimental value, the unlikely pair team up, combining old-school planning and modern tech to track down the necklace and try to steal it back.
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