Summer Reading 2008-2009

A.P. English Literature- 12th Grade

Required Book 1:
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

Assignment:

All students will read Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston.
Hurston’s novel, set in Florida during the early 20th century, explores the journey of
Janie Crawford from innocence to knowledge. Students will prepare a study guide
based on the model attached which will be due the first Wednesday of school. The
study guide will include: relevant biographical information, background on time and
setting, character sketches, structure, point of view and tone of the novel, and a brief
summary of the plot. The most important part of the guide is the theme analysis.
Students will select a major theme or motif and find four quotations that develop the
concept. Type the quotations (include page numbers) and then analyze each for use
of language and relevance. End your guide with an analysis of a critical essay on your
author and/or work. Be sure to agree or disagree with the critic’s assertions. Include
a Xeroxed copy of the article with your study guide.

Required Book 2:
The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

Assignment:

Students should choose a major theme or style device in the novel. Select three
quotations that develop this theme and analyze them. This theme analysis is due the
Tuesday after Labor Day.

The English Department late penalty of 10% per day will apply to both required-book
assignments.

Choice Book:

All students will choose one of the following works, which will be assessed by an Oprah-
style interview with one of the characters the second week of class.

The Stranger by Albert Camus- a modern story of alienation and existentionalist angst

What is the What by Dave Eggers

A fictionalized memoir of epic proportions based on the heartbreaking adventures of
Valentino Achak Deng, one of the Lost Boys of the Sudan.
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte- the ultimate romantic tale of brooding Heathcliff
and strong-willed Catherine, set on the English moors

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe- Set in an Ibo village in Nigeria, the novel
recreates pre-Christian tribal life and shows how the coming the white man led to the
breaking up of the old ways.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead by Tom Stoppard

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead is the fabulously inventive tale of "Hamlet" as
told from the worm's-eye view of the bewildered Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two
minor characters in Shakespeare's play.

House of Spirits by Isabel Allende

Through the lenses of the Trueba family, we follow the portion of Chilean history that
eventually leads to the 1973 coup.

Native Speaker by Chang-rae Lee

Henry Park is a Korean American private investigator who, in the course of spying on a
New York City politician, comes to terms with his own sense of identity, family, and
culture.

Bless me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya

Six-year-old Antonio embarks upon a spiritual journey under the watchful guidance of
Ultima, a healing woman, that leads him to question his faith and beliefs in family,
religion, and other aspects of his Chicano culture.

Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

Kingsolver follows an evangelical Baptist minister's family to the Congo in the late
1950s, entwining their fate with that of the country during three turbulent decades.
Nathan Price's determination to convert the natives of the Congo to Christianity is, we
gradually discover, both foolhardy and dangerous, unsanctioned by the church
administration and doomed from the start by Nathan's self-righteousness.

Outside Reading Requirement 2009-2010

Students will choose two additional books to read for the first trimester from the provided
list of multicultural and post-colonial literature that has been cited on the free response
question of the AP Literature and Composition exam. You may choose to read one of
these books during the summer.
Works Read During the School Year:
A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
A Doll House by Henrik Ibsen
Choice books for term paper

AP English Literature Study Guide Guidelines

Title: Give title of work in italics

Biography- Use a authoritative source such as GaleNet to find relevant biographical data
on the author. Our password is SUFF71029. Focus on literary period, contributions to
literature, prevalent themes, style, and back ground on the book you read. Limit to one
paragraph. Include parenthetical notation when necessary. Use complete sentences.

Time and setting- Include information on historical and cultural background. Limit to
one paragraph.

Structure- (chronological, flashback, epistolary, frame story, etc.)

Point of view- (1st person actor or observer, 3rd person limited or omniscient, objective,
etc.)

Author’s tone(s)- (author’s attitude toward the subject or characters) Use concise
language to describe.

Character sketches- Write a brief sketch of the major and important secondary
characters in the work. Use the characters’ full names. You do not need complete
sentences. Include specific words and consider as many of these elements of
characterization that may be applicable: personality, physical appearance, role in the
story, dialect, hobbies/interests, how other characters perceive this character.
Summary- Write in complete sentences a paragraph summarizing the plot, no more than
one page.

Theme Analysis- Choose a major theme in the work. Find four quotations that develop
this theme. Introduce and analyze the quotation. Be sure to include parenthetical
documentation. Use complete sentences and be thorough. Weave words from the quote
in your explanation.

Critical Essay- Using an authoritative source, summarize a critical essay on the work,
then respond to the criticism (agree or disagree, why?). Use complete
sentences. Include parenthetical documentation. This section will be approximately one
page long.

Works Cited: (for biography, work, and critical essay sources) must be done in MLA
format. Be sure to use parenthetical documentation as well in the study guide. You may
use Knight Cite or Noodle Tools to help you with citations:

http://www.calvin.edu/library/knightcite/

http://www.noodletools.com/