Freshman Reading List • (annotated) •
Have a great summer and read,
read, read!
Albanov,Valerian, In the Land of White Death (nonfiction)
Tells
the true story of experiences of the captain and crew of the Russian vessel,
Saint Anna, that was trapped in a frozen polar ice cap in 1912 where it
remained for two years. Chilling
first-person account of extreme survival in the Siberian Arctic.
Allende, Isabel, City of the Beasts (fiction)
Fifteen-year-old
Alexander Cold accompanies his fearless grandmother, a magazine reporter for
International Geographic, on an expedition to the dangerous, remote world of
the Amazon to document the legendary Yeti known as The Beast. Translated from
Spanish.
Alvarez,
Julia, Before We Were
Free (fiction)
Early
1960s in the Dominican Republic, twelve-year-old Anita learns that her family
is involved in the underground movement to end the bloody rule of the dictator,
General Trujillo.
Anderson,
Laurie Halse, Speak (fiction)
A
traumatic event near the end of the summer has a devastating effect on
Melinda's freshman year in high school.
Beals,
Melba Patillo, Warriors Don't
Cry (nonfiction)
A
riveting true story of an embattled teenager who paid for integration with her
innocence. Beals chronicles her
harrowing junior year at Central High where she underwent the segregationists'
brutal organized campaign of terrorism which included telephone threats, vigilante
stalkers, economic blackmailers, rogue police, and much more.
Bennett,
James, The Squared Circle
(sports fiction / mystery)
Sonny,
a university freshman and star basketball player, finds the pressures of
college life, NCAA competition, and an unsettling relationship with his
feminist cousin bring up painful memories he must face before he can decide
what is important in his life.
Berg,
Elizabeth, Durable Goods (fiction)
Adolescent
Katie spends the lazy days of summer waiting for life to begin; waiting for
womanhood to begin; waiting to fall in love; and waiting for the beatings to
stop. Since the death of her mother, she and her sister have struggled to
understand their father's violent behavior. Soon an adventure will transform
Katie's life.
Bradley,
Marion, Firebrand (fiction)
Blending
archaeological fact and legend, the myths of the gods and the feats of heroes,
Marion Zimmer Bradley breathes new life into the classic tale of the Trojan
War-reinventing larger-than-life figures as living people engaged in a
desperate struggle that dooms both the victors and the vanquished. Their fate is seen through the eyes of
Kassandra-priestess, princess, and passionate woman with the spirit of a
warrior.
Card,
Orson Scott, Ender's Game (science fiction)
Ender,
who is the result of genetic experimentation, may be the military genius Earth
needs in its war against an alien enemy.
Card, Orson Scott, Ender's Shadow (science fiction)
An urchin is picked off the street by a nun and sent
to war school to become a brilliant space-war strategist. He is Bean, so called
because of his diminutive stature, the result of an illegal genetic experiment.
Chbosky,
Stephen, The Perks of Being a
Wallflower (fiction)
Charlie
struggles to cope with the complex world of high school as he deals with the
confusions of sex and love, the temptations of drugs, and the pain of losing a
close friend and a favorite aunt.
Chin,
Frank, Donald Duk (fiction)
Donald
Duk attempts to deal with his comical name and his feelings for his cultural
heritage.
Cormier,
Robert, Tenderness (fiction)
A
psychological thriller told from the points of view of a teenage serial killer
and the runaway girl who falls in love with him.
Courtenay,
B., Power of One (fiction)
Peekay's
childhood in South Africa was marked by humiliation and abandonment. Yet he
vowed to survive. He would become welterweight champion of the world and he
would dream heroic dreams. On his
epic journey, he learns the power of words, the power to transform lives, and
the mystical power that would sustain him even when it appeared that villainy
would rule the world.
Crutcher, Chris, Running Loose (fiction)
Louie,
a high school senior in a small Idaho town, learns about sportsmanship, love,
and death as he matures into manhood.
Crutcher,
Chris Ironman (fiction)
While
training for a triathlon, seventeen-year-old Bo attends an anger management
group at school which leads him to examine his relationship with his father.
Crutcher,
Chris Whale Talk (fiction)
Intellectually
and athletically gifted, TJ, a multiracial, adopted teenager, shuns organized
sports and the gung-ho athletes at his high school until he agrees to form a
swimming team and recruits some of the school's less popular students.
Demetz,
Hanna, The House on Prague Street (fiction)
Half-Jewish
Helene Richter sensitively shares her experiences in Czechoslovakia as things
become desperate for the Jews
Dickens,
Charles, Oliver Twist (fiction)
Dickens'
classic story of a boy forced to live in a dark and dismal London workhouse
lorded over by the awful Mr. Bumble. Desperate but determined, Oliver makes his
escape and discovers that life in the harsh streets of London's underworld
makes the workhouse look like a picnic.
Doyle,
Roddy, The Snapper (fiction)
Twenty-year-old Sharon Rabbitte is pregnant. She's also unmarried,
living at home, working in a grocery store, and keeping the identity a secret.
Her own father, Jimmy Sr., is shocked by the news. Her mother says very little.
Her friends and neighbors all want to know whose "snapper" Sharon is
carrying. The story follows the progression of Sharon's pregnancy and its
impact on the Rabbitte family--especially on Jimmy Sr--with wit, candor, and
surprising authenticity.
duMaurier,
Daphne, Rebecca (fiction)
Rebecca
chronicles the nameless narrator's marriage to Maxim de Winter, a marriage
which is overshadowed by the memory of Maxim's first wife, Rebecca, who was
killed in a mysterious sailing accident. As Maxim's second wife learns more
about Rebecca, she becomes more intimidated and jealous, until Maxim reveals
the intriguing details of the marriage.
In a future where humans despise clones, Matt enjoys special status as the young clone of El Patrón, the 142-year-old leader of a corrupt drug empire nestled between Mexico and the United States.
Gaines,
Ernest , A Gathering of Old Men
(fiction)
Set
on a Louisiana sugar cane plantation in the 1970s, "A Gathering of Old
Men" is a powerful depiction of racial tensions arising over the death of
a Cajun farmer at the hands of a black man.
Gaines,
Ernest , A Lesson Before
Dying (fiction)
Set in a small Cajun community in the late 1940s, a novel of one
man condemned to die for a crime he did not commit and a young man who visits
him in his cell. The two men forge a bond as they both come to understand the
simple heroism of resisting--and defying--the expected.
Geras,
Adèle, Troy (fiction)
The
last weeks of the Trojan War find the women sick of tending the wounded, men
tired of fighting, and bored gods and goddesses trying to find ways to stir
things up.
Gibbons,
Kaye, Ellen Foster (fiction)
Having
suffered abuse and misfortune for much of her life, a young child searches for
a better life and finally gets a break in the home of a loving woman with
several foster children.
Gordon,
Sheila, Waiting for the Rain: a
novel of South Africa (fiction)
Chronicles nine years in the lives of two South African
youths--one black, one white--as their friendship ends in a violent
confrontation between student and soldier.
Hamill, Pete, Snow in August (fiction)
Eleven-year-old
Michael Devlin, an Irish Catholic from Brooklyn, and Judah Hirsch, a rabbi and
refugee from Prague, meet during a swirling blizzard on the Saturday morning.
For Michael, Hirsch is an extraordinary window to ancient times and foreign
lands; for the Rabbi, Michael is an encyclopedia of cultural knowledge of his
new land. In baseball, the two find a common love, but when some anti-Semitic
hoodlums threaten them with violence, the two must look for a miracle in a most
unlikely place
Haruf,
Kent, Plainsong (fiction)
In the small town of Holt, Colorado, a high school teacher is
confronted with raising his two boys alone after their mother retreats first to
the bedroom, then altogether.
Hemingway,
Ernest, The Old Man and the
Sea (fiction)
The story of an old Cuban fisherman and his supreme ordeal: a
relentless, agonizing battle with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf Stream.
Katz,
Jon, Geeks: how two lost boys rode the Internet out of Idaho (nonfiction)
The
true story of Jesse and Eric, nineteen-year-old roommates in the small town of
Caldwell, Idaho who changed their lives and built a new future for themselves
with the power of the Internet.
Kincaid,
Jamaica, Annie John (fiction)
On the West Indies island of Antigua, young Annie John comes of age and
encounters many adolescent problems until a crisis of emotions wrenches her
away from her island home.
King,
Stephen, The Shining (fiction)
The
Overlook Hotel is more than just a home-away-from-home for the Torrance family.
For Jack, Wendy, and their young son, Danny, it is a place where past horrors
come to life. And where those gifted with the shining do battle with the
darkest evils.
Kinsella,
W.P., Shoeless Joe (fiction)
Following the advice of a phantom baseball
announcer, Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella builds a
stadium in his cornfield hoping to attract
a number of baseball's greatest players for a game which only
few can actually see.
Kipling,
Rudyard, Captains
Courageous (fiction)
Harvey
Cheyne, born of wealthy parents, is swept overboard from the deck of a liner. A
fishing boat hauls him aboard and then it is up to him to prove he deserves to
live.
Lubar,
David, Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie (fiction)
This
hilarious novel chronicles Scott's freshman year, as he decides that high
school would be a lot less overwhelming if it came with a survival manual.
Scott records his first year of bullies, romance, honors, classes, and
brotherhood.
Lynch,
Chris, Iceman (fiction)
Fourteen-year-old
Eric, a ruthless hockey player prone to violence on the ice, tries to reconcile
his own needs with those of his parents.
Lynch,
Chris, Inexcusable
(fiction)
High
school senior and football player Keir sets out to enjoy himself on graduation
night, but when he attempts to comfort a friend whose date has left her
stranded, things go terribly wrong.
Maguire,
Gregory, Wicked (fiction)
A
fable for adults on the subject of destiny and free will by a writer of
children's books. It tells the story of Elphaba before she became the Wicked
Witch of the West in the land of Oz. The novel traces her career as nun, nurse,
pro-democracy activist and animal rights defender.
Malamud,
Bernard, The Assistant (fiction)
Frank,
a troubled, somewhat desperate, Italian American, works long hours in the
grocery store of a struggling Jewish family in a Brooklyn neighborhood where he
develops a secret passion for his employer's attractive daughter.
Malamud,
Bernard, The Natural (fiction)
The
story of Roy Hobbs - an athlete born with rare and wondrous gift - who is robbed
of his prime playing years by a youthful indiscretion that nearly costs him his
life. But at an age when most players are considering retirement, Roy re-enters
the game, lifting the lowly New York Knights from last place into pennant
contention and becoming an instant hero in the process. Now all he has to worry
about is the fixers, the boss, the slump, the jinx, the fans...and the
dangerously seductive Memo Paris, the one woman Roy can't seem to get out of
his mind.
Martinez,
Victor, Parrot in the Oven, Mi
Vida
Manny
relates his coming of age experiences as a member of a poor Mexican American
family in which the alcoholic father adds to everyone's struggle.
Mathabane, Mark, Kaffir Boy: the true story of a
Black youth's coming of age in Apartheid South
Africa (autobiography)
Autobiography of a Black youth who grows up under Apartheid in South
Africa and wins a scholarship to study in America.
McCafferty,
Megan, Sloppy Firsts (fiction)
Sixteen-year-old
Jessica Darling is devastated when her best friend moves away and leaves
Jessica to face the trials of high school on her own.
McCall, Nathan Makes Me Wanna
Holler (biography)
In
this "honest and searching look at the perils of growing up a black male
in urban America" ("San Francisco Chronicle"),"Washington
Post" reporter Nathan McCall tells the story of his passage from the
street and the prison yard to the newsroom of one of America's most prestigious
papers.
Monroe,
Mary, God Don't Like Ugly (fiction)
Set
in Ohio during the 50's, 60's and 70's, this richly-drawn coming-of-age tale is
about a sexually abused young black woman and her beautiful and diabolical best
friend who comes to the rescue. Resonating with clear-eyed wit and
uncompromising honesty, it is a tale of endurance, hope and triumph, full of
laughter and pure enjoyment.
Mori,
Kyoko, Shizuko's daughter (fiction)
After
her mother's suicide when she is twelve years old, Yuki spends years living
with her distant father and his resentful new wife. Cut off from her mother's family, Yuki relies on her own
inner strength to cope with the tragedy.
Mosley, Walter , 47 (fiction)
Number 47, a fourteen-year-old slave boy growing up under the watchful eye of a brutal master in 1832, meets the mysterious Tall John, who introduces him to a magical science and also teaches him the meaning of freedom.
Myers,
Walter Dean, Fallen
Angels (fiction)
Seventeen-year-old
Richie Perry, just out of his Harlem high school, enlists in the Army in the
summer of 1967 and spends a devastating year on active duty in Vietnam.
Myers,
Walter Dean
Hoops (fiction)
A
teenage basketball player from Harlem is befriended by a former professional
player who, after being forced to quit because of a point-shaving scandal,
hopes to prevent other young athletes from repeating his mistake.
Myers,
Walter Dean Monster (fiction)
While
on trial as an accomplice to a murder, sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon records
his experiences in prison and in the courtroom in the form of a film script as
he tries to come to terms with the course his life has taken.
Otsuka,
Julie, When the Emperor Was Divine (fiction)
A haunting evocation of a family during WWII, with a resonant
lesson for our times
Otsuka
uses a single family to evoke the deracination--both physical and emotional--of
a generation of Japanese Americans.
Peters,
Julie Ann, Luna (fiction)
Fifteen-year-old Regan's life, which has always revolved around
keeping her older brother Liam's transsexuality a secret, changes when Liam
decides to start the process of "transitioning" by first telling his
family and friends that he is a girl who was born in a boy's body.
Potok,
Chaim, The Chosen (fiction)
The
story of the friendship that develops between two Jewish boys in New York City.
Pullman,
Phillip, The Golden
Compass (fiction/ fantasy)
Accompanied by her daemon, Lyra Belacqua sets out to prevent her
best friend and other kidnapped children from becoming the subject of gruesome
experiments in the Far North.
Renault,
Mary, The King Must Die (historical fiction)
The story of mythical hero Theseus, slayer of monsters, abductor
of princesses and king of Athens.
Rouse, The Iliad (fiction)
Recounts
the triumphs and defeats of the Greek and Trojan heroes during the Trojan War
and the destruction of Troy by combined Greek armies
Rowling,
J.K. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (fiction)
The final episode
!
Rushdie,
Salman, Haroun and the
Sea of Stories (fiction)
Set in an exotic Eastern landscape peopled by magicians and
fantastic talking animals, Haroun sets out on an adventure to restore the
poisoned source of the sea of stories. On the way, he encounters many foes, all
intent on draining the sea of all its storytelling powers.
Santiago,
Esmeralda, When I Was Puerto
Rican (nonfiction)
Magic,
sexual tension, high comedy, and intense drama move through an enchanted yet harsh
autobiography, in the story of a young girl who leaves rural Puerto Rico for
New York's tenements and a chance for success.
Senna,
Danzi, Caucasia (fiction)
A
sensitive coming-of-age bestseller about two sisters divided by politics and
race at the beginning of the 1970s.
Shange,
Ntozake, Betsey Brown: a
novel (fiction)
The
portrait of an extended African-American family in which the thirteen-year-old
daughter strives to be grown-up while facing prejudice and school busing
pressures outside of the family.
Smith,
Betty, A Tree Grows in
Brooklyn (fiction)
A
poignant tale of childhood and the ties of family, "A Tree Grows in
Brooklyn" will transport the reader to the early 1900s where a little girl
named Francie dreamily looks out her window at a tree struggling to reach the
sky.
Stoker,
Bram, Dracula (fiction)
An
awesome tale of a thrillingly bloodthirsty vampire whose nocturnal atrocities
reflect the dark underside of a supremely moralistic age. A story of suspense and horror,
boasting one of the most terrifying characters in literature.
Tolkien,
J.R.R., The Hobbit (fiction)
Bilbo
Baggins, a respectable, well-to-do hobbit, lives comfortably in his hobbit-hole
until the day the wandering wizard Gandalf chooses him to share in an adventure
from which he may never return.
Townsend,
Sue, The Secret Diary of
Adrian Mole, Aged 13 3/4 (fiction)
Story
about the ups and downs of a British teenager's life in diary form.
Twain,
Mark , The Adventures of
Tom Sawyer (fiction)
The
escapades of Tom Sawyer and his friends in a small, nineteenth-century town on
the Mississippi River.
Twain,
Mark , The Prince and the
Pauper (fiction)
When
young Edward VI of England and a poor boy who resembles him exchange places,
each learns something about the other's very different station in life.
Wallis,
Velma, Two Old Women (fiction)
An Alaska legend of betrayal, courage and survival this classic
Athabascan Indian tale of survival is filled with suspense and wisdom. Based on
a legend told for many generations in the remote Yukon River region of
northeast Alaska, this is the tragic and shocking story (with an unexpected
upbeat ending) of two elderly women who are abandoned by a migrating band
facing starvation because of unusually harsh Arctic weather and a shortage of
fish and game.
White,
T. H., The Sword in the
Stone (fiction)
A
retelling of the Arthurian legend of King Arthur.
White,
T. H., The Once and
Future King (fiction)
Tells
the story of the youth and reign of King Arthur, the establishment of the Round
Table, and the search for the Holy Grail.
Wideman,John
Edgar, Brothers and
Keepers (biography)
As
John Wideman was building a reputation as one of our finest writers, his
brother Robby went from the streets of Philadelphia to a life sentence in
prison for murder. This memoir
weighs their shared bonds of blood,
tenderness, and guilt.
Wilhelm,
Kate, Good Children (fiction)
Four
children in Oregon hide their mother's death for fear of being sent to foster
homes. Eventually, they are forced to report her disappearance. A lawyer is
appointed and falls in love with the eldest daughter who narrates the tale.
Williams-Garcia,
Rita, Like Sisters on the
Homefront (fiction)
Troubled fourteen-year-old Gayle is sent down South to live with
her uncle and aunt, where her life begins to change as she experiences the
healing power of the family.
June 2008