Independent Reading Semester 1

ASSIGNMENT: Every 2-3 weeks, a discussion board will be opened on

Schoology for reactions to the books you are reading. Because these are posted
on a discussion forum, Mr. Crachiolo and Mr. McAdam will be able to respond
to them, and so will every one else in the class. This will, we hope, create more
of a community of readers, and will also allow us to get to know you a bit
better, find out what you are reading, and maybe make some suggestions.

REQUIREMENTS: The requirement is not that you read a certain number

of books, but a certain number of pages: 800. That way, you may read two
long books, or several shorter books, or maybe you might decide after reading
50 pages of a book that it is not working for you, so you want to find another
book. This way, you will still get credit for reading the pages that you did read.
OR, you can read essays and articles from The New Yorker or The Atlantic or
Slate.com, etc. OR poetry and short stories of your own selection.

RESPONSE? A reading response is based on YOUR thoughts, YOUR

questions, the things YOU like and dislike about the book you are reading. It is
a place for you to reflect on some of the literary elements of the book (syntax,
imagery, characterization, diction, foreshadowing, themes, and so on). One
thing you cannot do is just tell us the plot. Plot summaries are for losers and
cheats. Maybe something in a book or short story reminds you of something
from your own life, or from another book or short story you read, or a movie
you saw. You can write about that. Maybe the work you read is great in some
parts but dull in others. You can write about that, and about what makes it
dull. You can make predictions (good readers do this all the time). You can
write about a sentence or paragraph that you found particularly well-written,
and why you liked it.

Did we mention you cannot do plot summaries?

Here are some excerpts from reading responses. What do you think of them?

1. I read War and Peace. I think everybody in the world should just get
along. Why should there be war? Why can’t we all be friends? People
should just be nicer to each other. Don’t you agree? I think peace is
possible. It would be easier if we had no war. Right?
2. I really enjoy reading this book. It is the best book I have ever read.
Thank you, Mr. C, for giving me the opportunity to read this wonderful
book. You are a really great teacher and this is a great book. I
recommend this book to anyone who loves great books. It really is
great.
3. This book sucks. It is the greatest waste of paper I have ever seen. I
can’t believe anyone would publish this miserable excuse for literature.
My dog could write better than this.
4. Well, I haven’t read much this week because I had a lot of homework,
and I went to my friend’s birthday party on the weekend. It was so fun.
Lady Gaga played for the first four hours, and then we all took her
private jet to Seoul, where we hit the clubs with Taylor and Beyonce.
Then we flew back. Then I went home. When I woke up I went
shopping with my friends. I bought three new pairs of shoes and a
Hermes purse. It is black with white straps. Then I went to the One
Direction concert in Singapore. Sunday I just hung out at my friend’s
house. It was cool. I had a great weekend. How was your weekend, Mr.
Parker?
5. Captain Underpants is a great book because…
6. In this book Jack is 18 years old and he has a job at a movie theatre and
he loves movies. One day robbers attack him at the theatre, and they hit
him on the head and he loses his memory. Then he goes to the hospital.
Then at the hospital he meets a girl named Jill who works in the
hospital. She is very cute. Anyway, then Jack falls out of bed one night
and gets back his memory. Then he goes home and makes some
spaghetti. Then he calls Jill and they talk on the phone. Then he goes
to Los Angeles and hangs with Taylor and Beyonce and then his
parents get mad. In the end he gets married to Jill and they buy a dog
called Chewbacca.
7. Room is a 2010 novel by Irish-Canadian author Emma Donoghue. The
story is told from the perspective of a five-year-old boy, Jack, who is
being held captive in a small room along with his mother.[1] Donoghue
conceived the story after hearing about five-year-old Felix in the Fritzl
case.[2]The novel was long-listed for the 2011 Orange Prize[3] and won
the 2011 Commonwealth Writers' Prize regional prize (Caribbean and
Canada); was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2010 and was
shortlisted for the 2010 Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize[4] and the
2010 Governor General's Awards.[5]
FORMAT:
Always begin with a date.
You need to keep a running log of how much you have read, and put that on
each response.

Here is a sample of a fairly good response. (Or at least one I wrote).

March 11, Brief History of Seven Killings, by Marlon James.

Pages read this semester: 810 Pages read since last response:
200

I am thoroughly enjoying a Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon

James. I love the way the narrative is fragmented, with more than twenty
different narrators (including the spirit of a dead man) telling their stories
that all, in some way, relate to the attempted killing of Bob Marley in 1976.
While many of the chapters are brutally graphic, and some of the sexual
encounters are very disturbing, the way that James is able to weave such a
complicated story using so many different voices, each with different slang
and rhythm and distinctive voice really appeals to me. I also realized as I
was writing this response that almost none of the characters are very
attractive: pimps and killers and drug addicts and corrupt politicians and
abusive husbands, so I am not sure exactly what draws me so much to this
book. I think mostly it is the poetry of the writing, the shifting rhythms and
points of view. I get to know a character through his or her voice, and then
I may not read that voice again for 100 pages. Each chapter, then,
surprises me, and as a reader I really like to be surprised. Nothing is
predictable, and, because the story is told through so many different
voices, nothing is certain. All is subjective, just like all truth is, I guess. I
knew who Bob Marley was, though I was never a big fan of his music, but
not I want to go back and listen to his songs again. I really didn’t know
much about Jamaica and its relationship with both Cuba and the US
before I read this book, but I didn’t find that troubling.
I do have one character that I really like, a woman who keeps trying to
change her destiny by changing her name, moving to new cities, but is
always looking over her shoulder in case her past catches up with her. I
admire people who are able to re-invent themselves, maybe because I have
moved so much and been so many different people in my own life.
I certainly don’t think this book is for everyone. It is confusing, and in
some chapters, especially when the ghost is narrating, I have very little
idea of what is happening. I also caution readers that if they are upset by
violence they may not like this book at all. But for certain readers, willing
to take a chance and read a very well-written, haunting novel, I think they
will enjoy this one a lot.

REPLIES: Replies do not need to be long, but can be a place where you
share recommendations (“If you liked this book, you might really like …”
or ask questions (what did you mean when you said the character was a lot
like Mr. Parker”) or just thank them for sharing a book that mattered to
them. However, your reply should be specific and unique to that person’s
post; you should not leave a generic comment that doesn’t demonstrate
that you have truly read what they have written.

YES: I really appreciate how you analyze the shift in Agatha’s character
from shy to aggressive. Do you think she would have been able to change
so quickly without Anna’s influence?

NO: How would the character be different if the setting were different?
 EVALUATION: Your posts will not be evaluated for grammar and
spelling. Each response will be evaluated using the following rubric:

Excellent Good Satisfactory Needs

Improvement
DETAILS 4 3 2 1
Response is specific and
detailed, while avoiding plot
summary.
LITERARY ELEMENTS 4 3 2 1
Response looks intelligently at
one or more literary element(s)
ENGAGEMENT 4 3 2 1
Response is engaged and
personal.
FOLLOW UP 4 3 2 1
Student responds purposefully
and completely to others' posts.

At the end of the semester, you will also be evaluated on the number of pages
you have read, as follows:

• ≥801 = 20
• 701-800 = 18-19
• 601-700= 16-17
• 501-600 = 14-15
• 401-500 = 12-13
• ≤499 = 11