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    Central High School

    Summer Reading 2021-2022

    Outside Reading List

    English I Honors Reading List

     

    Alternate titles will be provided at parents’ request. An asterisk* beside a title indicates possible objections.

    English I students should read both titles listed and complete the written assignments. English II students should read both titles listed for them. AP Language (11th grade) should read three titles and complete the other written assignments, and AP Literature (12th grade) should read all three titles listed.

     

    English I Honors

     *To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee (language and content)

     In Harper Lee’s classic coming of age novel, young Scout Finch witnesses her small Southern town deal with class differences and racism in the 1930s. With the guidance of her gentle yet powerful father, she learns how to see the world through the eyes of others and “walk around in their skin.”

     

     Lord of the Flies, William Golding

     Golding’s book features a group of choir boys stranded on a deserted island by a plane crash. With no adults, they must form their own society in order to survive. Two groups emerge and struggle for dominance as Golding explores how quickly society’s structures can devolve.

     

    *********See attached sheet for the remaining assignments.

     

     

    English II Honors 

    Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury

    In Bradbury’s dystopian novel, books are burned and television (or its equivalent) is celebrated. Firemen start fires, and reading must be done in secret for fear of government reprisals.

     

    *The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd (possible controversial content)

     This coming-of-age story focuses on a young woman who journeys to a new home to find her true self.

     

    English III AP Language and Composition

    Summer reading summary - 3 books, 3 written assignments

    (please read through in depth explanations for further clarification):

    1. Read The Radium Girls by Kate Moore and complete a DEJ (double-entry journal) in which you analyze the author’s use of rhetorical devices throughout the book.
    2. Read I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai and compose an informal reflection about Malala’s purpose for writing the book - roughly 5 paragraphs (ex: one for each section of the book).
    3. Read ONE of the four choice novels (The Unthinkable, In Cold Blood, The Girls of Atomic City, or The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks) and choose ONE of the three writing options to complete about the book you chose to read.

     

    *********See attached sheet for the remaining assignments.

     

    English IV AP Literature and Composition

     A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry
    This work won the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Best Play Award in 1959, the first by an African-American woman. Hansberry’s story of the Younger family’s decision to leave their Chicago apartment is fraught with the racial, gender, and economic tensions of her time that are still relevant today.

     

    Macbeth, William Shakespeare
    This classic tragedy highlights the dangers of unchecked ambition. A Scottish nobleman hears a prophecy of greatness and then takes matters into his own hands to assure his success. The consequences of his actions can be traced through his rise and fall; much slaying and bloodshed ensues before order is restored at the end of the play.

     

    Frankenstein, Mary Shelley
    This first science fiction novel focuses as much on the moral and philosophical realms as on the scientific questions of creating new life. A brilliant doctor sets out to create a new being from spare parts and electricity, then runs away in horror when he succeeds. The creature at first seeks only his creator—both father and god—but when rebuffed by society and his maker, turns to revenge. This frame narrative also includes an adventurer pushing the boundaries of Arcti