Class of 2014 Summer Reading Elizabeth Smith, Joy Oettel, Tom Cash

Reading is such a sensitive matter! As teachers we know that reading makes us better readers and that reading closely makes us scholars. We also know that forcing students to read (especially in the summer) frequently results in hostile teenagers whose distaste for reading only deepens. Therefore, in the on-going effort to do what we know is best for you while also engaging you in reading something that might spark a passion for the written word, here is the assignment. Everyone will read two books. You are required to read The Sledding Hill by Chris Crutcher. Then, you must choose 1 other title from the attached list. The Sledding Hill by Chris Crutcher-Eddie Proffit experiences a double dose of tragedy when both his father and best friend die in freak accidents within a short period of time. But Billy Bartholomew, his friend, doesn't disappear completely. He comes back to speak with Eddie and to help him find his way again. For a while Eddie talks to Billy only in his head, as he is not speaking to anyone for any reason while he tries to deal with his grief. Eddie needs Billy's help now more than ever in a very confusing time. A Reverend his mother leans on for support is leading a fight to remove the book WARREN PEECE by Chris Crutcher from Eddie's English class. When Eddie read the book, he found friends in the characters, and he doesn't want to give it up. Other people that Eddie admires also liked the book and are being punished for it. But popular kids who are involved with the church want Eddie to help fight for decency. Who is right? Reviewed by Amy Alessio

For this book all students will write a structured response based upon these instructions: Written Response to The Sledding Hill For this assignment, you will write about 3 different topics. Topic #1 is required of all students. You may choose the topics for responses 2 and 3, but you will use the same questions to write the response. These are the questions: What does Crutcher say about the topic? In other words, based upon your reading of the book, what is his opinion? How do you know that this is what he thinks? Include at least 3 quotations from the book as evidence that what you say is accurate (minimum length 200 words). Do not simply summarize the plot. We have all read the book and already know the story.

These are the topics: Required Topic: 1. Why are books censored and how should it be handled? Topics from which to choose for the second and third responses: 2. What is life after death like? 3. What role should organized religion play in our lives? 4. Why is friendship important to us and what responsibilities does it bring?

5. What are the advantages/disadvantages of having a brain that works differently than most other peoples? For the summer assignment, you must write a total of 3 responses (600 words). You should type or write neatly in blue or black ink. Use a standard font (Times New Roman) no larger than 12 points. Double space your responses. Extra credit will be awarded to all students who consult the newest version of the MLA Handbook (MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers 7th edition) and submit their papers in the correct MLA format. Second Book Assignment Choose one (1) book from the following list and complete the Reading Cards on it. *Note to parents: We also encourage you to read the books with your child. Talking about what you are reading gives more meaning to the activity. Additionally, you will be aware of any language or themes that you want to explain to your child. Though these are award winning titles, all of which have been on reading lists across the country, some have language or mature themes that may concern some parents. Please contact us if your child has any questions. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Katniss is a 16-year-old girl living with her mother and younger sister in the poorest district of Panem, the remains of what used be the United States. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, "The Hunger Games." The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed. When her sister is chosen by lottery, Katniss steps up to go in her place. http://www.suzannecollinsbooks.com/works.htm The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7,057. He relates well to animals but has no understanding of human emotions. He cannot stand to be touched. And he detests the color yellow. This improbable story of Christopher's quest to investigate the suspicious death of a neighborhood dog makes for one of the most captivating, unusual, and widely heralded novels in recent years. Catalyst by Laurie Halse Anderson Anderson, author of the acclaimed YA novels Speak and Fever 1793, returns to the same high school Speak is set in for another story of courageous but struggling young women. Kate, the narrator, is the daughter of a minister and a star student and runner. A high school senior, she has set her sights on studying chemistry in college. She is convinced that MIT, her dead mother's alma mater, is the only school for her--so convinced that she hasn't bothered to apply anywhere else. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0PBX/is_5_36/ai_107202413/ Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya Bless Me, Ultima is about pride and assimilation, faith and doubt. The summer before Antonio Juan Luna Marez turns seven, an old woman with healing powers comes to live with his family. There is something magical and mystical about Anaya's coming-of-age story in post-World War II New Mexico. The novel presents a world where everyday life is still full of dreams, legends, prayers, and folkways. http://www.neabigread.org/books/blessmeultima/

Life of Pi by Yann Martel, Winner of the 2002 Man Booker Prize for Fiction Pi Patel is an unusual boy. The son of a zookeeper, he has an encyclopedic knowledge of animal behavior, a fervent love of stories, and practices not only his native Hinduism, but also Christianity and Islam. When Pi is sixteen, his family emigrates from India to North America aboard a Japanese cargo ship, along with their zoo animals bound for new homes. The ship sinks. Pi finds himself alone in a lifeboat, his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Soon the tiger has dispatched all but Pi, whose fear, knowledge, and cunning allow him to coexist with Richard Parker for 227 days lost at sea. When they finally reach the coast of Mexico,

Richard Parker flees to the jungle, never to be seen again. The Japanese authorities who interrogate Pi refuse to believe his story and press him to tell them "the truth." After hours of coercion, Pi tells a second story, a story much less fantastical, much more conventional-but is it more true? Life of Pi is at once a realistic, rousing adventure and a meta-tale of survival that explores the redemptive power of storytelling and the transformative nature of fiction.