Wooden bike builderSummer reading list for 9th grade
May 12, 2008
Dear Student and Family,
More summer reading |
Lista de lecturas del verano para estudiantes del grado 9 (en español) |
Next year, we will read several novels that focus on the idea of storytelling and ask these questions: How do we tell stories? Why do we tell stories? And how are we to read and interpret the stories our cultures and other cultures produce? We also expect you to read independently each night for our Reader's Workshop. In order to prepare you for the upcoming year, we decided on three summer reading assignments. You can read these books in any order and at any pace. You do not need to keep a journal or write a book report; just enjoy the books and the pure pleasure of reading. We will refer to the themes of the texts during the school year.
Choose one book from each section (one novel, one memoir, and one epic/myth).
Novel:
The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
Haroun and the Sea of Stories, Salman Rushdie
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, Sherman Alexie
Memoir:
Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America, Firoozeh Dumas
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, Ishmael Beah
The Circuit, Francisco Jiminez
Red Scarf Girl, Ji-Li Jiang
Hero’s Journey/Myth:
The Odyssey, Homer (any translation)
Mythology, Edith Hamilton (read all myths in the text)
Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling (any book in the series)
All books can be checked out at your local library or they can be purchased at any bookstore.
We have copies of Haroun and the Sea of Stories if you would like to stop by Berkeley High School to pick one up. Rory Bled, Vice Principal for BIHS, will be available to give you a copy if you come by the last two weeks of June. Just come to the reception area of the Administration Building at 1980 Allston Way and ask for her. You can also email her in advance at rbled@berkeley.k12.ca.us.
Some of you may ask why you should be reading Harry Potter or young adult novels like The Book Thief, so we’ll try to explain our thought process in choosing the series. We wanted to choose books that most students are already familiar with and excited about. Harry Potter has a following, of course, and The Book Thief recently won the Michael L. Printz award for young adults. We thought it would be fun to integrate the books into our reading list and use that passion to our advantage. We wanted texts that are age appropriate and still engaging for readers of all levels. Most of the books on our list are favorites of young adults and their parents. We also have a pedagogical reason for choosing the series: we wanted a book that we could easily refer to in discussions about literary elements and narrative structure. Now, if we were teaching a lesson about the hero's journey and guardian figures, and if students were confused about the guardian figures in our class text, we could easily say, "Who is the guardian in Harry Potter?” For some students, this hint will be a helpful comparison tool.
We also have a personal reason for choosing this text. We don't think we, as readers, should always categorize books into "good" literature and "bad" literature. Sometimes, we should read for the joy of reading. We love the feeling of reading a book and getting so swept up in the story that you cannot put it down and will snap at anyone who interrupts you. It is sad to think that some teenagers have never felt that way before about any book. Harry Potter and other books on our list seem to capture many readers' imaginations, and that's why we thought it would be a wonderful choice.
Do not worry - we will challenge you with international texts during the year. Your summer reading lists for your sophomore and junior year will also include the British and American classics.
Happy reading,
BIHS English teachers