Summer Reading -- AP English Language and Composition (aka AP Journalism)

What does it mean to be an American?

This summer, we are asking all students enrolled in AP English Language and Composition to read our One School, One Book choice, Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, as well as one set of three books that in some way relates to that overall question. When you return in the fall, you will be asked to write an essay that develops an original idea in response to the arguments and thoughts in the books you have read. You do not need to take notes or otherwise write anything over the summer, but reactions or responses you do write down may be helpful to you as you write your essay.

Choose one of these seven sets of books related to the overall theme.

Coming to America (choose three)

-- Coyotes by Ted Conover

-- The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman

-- Tearing at the Silence: On Being German in America by Ursula Hegi

-- Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle

-- Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez by Richard Rodriguez

Race In America (choose three)

-- How Race is Lived in America by the Staff of the New York Times

-- Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Man by Henry Louis Gates Jr.

-- The Content of Our Character by Shelby Steele

-- The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin

-- Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? by Beverly Daniel Tatum

Being Female in America (choose three)

-- Odd Girl Out by Rachel Simmons

-- Reviving Ophelia by Mary Pipher

-- Female Chauvinist Pigs by Ariel Levy

-- Backlash by Susan Faludi

-- Who Stole Feminism?: How Women Have Betrayed Women by Christina Hoff-Sommers

America’s Media Culture (choose three)

-- The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell

-- Born to Buy by Juliet B. Schor

-- Everything Bad Is Good For You by Steven Johnson

-- Persuasion Nation by George Saunders

America’s Role In The World (choose three)

-- A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide by Samantha Power

-- Just And Unjust Wars: A Moral Argument With Historical Illustrations by Michael Walzer

-- Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Thomas Friedman

-- America and the World: Conversations on the Future of American Foreign Policy by Zbigniew Brzezinski, Brent Scowcroft, and David Ignatius

-- American Vertigo: Traveling America in the Footsteps of Tocqueville by Bernard-Henri Levy

Being Poor in America (choose three)

-- There are No Children Here by Alex Kotlowitz

-- Homocide: Life on the Street by David Simon

-- Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich

-- American Dream by Jason DeParle

-- Rosa Lee: A Mother and Her Family in Urban America by Leon Dash

Being Young and Idealistic in America

-- Underground: My Life With SDS and the Weathermen By Mark Rudd

-- Letters from Young Activists: Today's Rebels Speak Out by Chesa Boudin, Kenyon Farrow, Bernardine Dohrn, Dan Berger

-- Letters to a Young Conservative by Dinesh D'Souza

If you have any questions, you can reach Mr. Baron at brian_baron@newton.k12.ma.us or Mr. Kaplan at Alexander_kaplan@newton.k12.ma.us