AP English 12; IB English 11-12 Reading Assignments

Summer of 2008

Mr. Thompson and Mr. Tindell

 

TWO TYPED, DOUBLE-SPACED, ONE-PAGE RESPONSES DUE THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL.

 

We believe that, before all else, reading is a pleasure.  Therefore our summer reading project is designed to allow you to read a book simply for enjoyment.  We save the difficult books, the ones that benefit from being taught and discussed in a classroom setting, for the school year so we can read those books with you.  So here’s the deal. 

 

Instructions: 

1.       Choose one of the books from the following list, or e-mail another suggestion to us for approval. 

2.       Divide your book in half, either by chapters or page numbers.

3.       Halfway through reading the book, type a one-page, double-spaced response to the novel.  (By “response,” we mean write about your perceptions, delights, and frustrations about the book thus far).  

4.       At the end of the book, type another one-page, double-spaced response about the book as a whole, judging it in light of all the other books you’ve read in your life. 

5.       Then make sure your name is on both pages of your responses, staple the two pages together and bring them to class on the first day of school to turn in. 

 

Format:

Responses should be written in Times New Roman, 11 point font, with 1 inch margins on each side.  Handwritten responses must be four pages (2 for each half of the book) in order to receive full credit.

 

Evaluation:

The Summer Reading Assignment is a 100 point homework grade, and we won’t take it late.  The pages must be FULL to receive full credit.  Remember that your two page assignment will be our first impression of you in our classroom. 

 

Due Date:

The Summer Reading Assignment is due on the first day of your English class.  No exceptions.

 

Questions?

If you have any questions or want to suggest a book for approval, you can contact us over the summer at the following addresses:  davisbthompson@gmail.com or tindej@yahoo.com.  (Our school addresses may be unavailable for parts of the summer).

 

You can find most of these books at libraries or you can buy them at most local bookstores.  Please choose a book that you think you will enjoy, and don’t choose one randomly off the list.  If you start a book and don’t like it, then put the book down and choose another. 

 

A Word of Warning:  Some of the works listed below have content that may be offensive to some readers.  Other than the books listed that we have not read ourselves (which are labeled), we have tried to list warnings beside each title.  Please do not choose a book with a warning if you know that you would be offended by that book, or more importantly, if you know that your parents would not like you to read that book.  A * means this work may have adult themes and issues.

 

The List:

Our list of suggested works is organized somewhat thematically.  If you would like to know more about individual works, then look on either of our web pages under the link “Summer Reading 2008.”  On our website you can read synopses and see what we’re reading this summer as well.

  

Summer Reading 2008 Novel Suggestions

 for AP English 12; IB English 11-12

 

African-American Works:

*The Bluest Eye, Morrison

*Song of Solomon, Morrison

*A Lesson Before Dying, Gaines

*The Color Purple, Walker

*A Gathering of Old Men, Gaines

Black Boy, Wright

 

Dystopian / Post-apocalyptic Works:

*A Clockwork Orange , Burgess

*The Road, Cormac McCarthy

Brave New World, Huxley

Alas, Babylon , Frank

 

Non-Fiction (Mostly Adventure):

Into the Wild, Krakeur

Into Thin Air, Krakeur

The Perfect Storm, Junger

*Black Hawk Down, Bowden

*Newjack, Conover

 

Horror:

Dracula, Stoker

*The Stand, King

*The Shining, King

*Different Seasons, King

The Historian, Kostova

The Terror (I have not read this book yet)

 

Science Fiction:

I, Robot, Asimov

*The Sparrow, Russell

 

Historical Fiction:

The Killer Angels, Shara

I, Claudius, Grave

The March, Doctorow

 

 

Memoir:

* China Boy, Lee

*A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, Eggers

 

Fictional Memoir:

*The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Diaz

*Memoirs of a Geisha, Golden

 

Christian:

Cry, the Beloved Country, Paton

Lest Innocent Blood Be Shed, Hallie

Pilgrim’s Progress, Bunyan

 

For the Future English Major:

Jane Eyre, Bronte

Wuthering Heights , Bronte

David Copperfield, Dickens

Emma, Austen

Mansfield Park , Austen

Persuasion, Austen

Jude the Obscure, Hardy

Return of the Native, Hardy

Lord Jim, Conrad

Passage to India , Forster

Howard’s End, Forster

Brighton Rock, Graham Greene

The Power and the Glory, Greene

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, Joyce

Remains of the Day, Ishiguiro

 

Some American Literature:

Age of Innocence, Wharton

Catcher in the Rye , Salinger

The Sun Also Rises, Hemingway

Ragtime, Doctorow

*On the Road, Kerouac

*The Cider House Rules, Irving

A Prayer for Owen Meany, Irving

The Poisonwood Bible, Kingsolver

A Farewell to Arms, Hemingway

Cold Mountain , Frazier

 

Some International Works:

The Plague, Camus

The Three Musketeers, Dumas

The Count of Monte Cristo, Dumas

Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Garcia Marquez

Return to AHS Home Page