These are the books that I read for English class this year, in tenth grade. Many of them are about maturation, as that was a major theme this year. We read many of the books together as a class, and we read a few independently. These books are listed in the order in which they were read.
The Catcher In The Rye by J. D. Salinger. Holden Caulfield is a boy that has spent most of his teenage years in boarding school. The novel is spanned over three days of Holden's live, as he tries to figure out where he belongs in society. It is a story of the struggle that all teenagers go through as they try to find themselves.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. Huck is a teenage boy who runs away from home because his father mistreats him. He meets up with Jim, a runaway slave, who has also fled. During Huck's maturation, he spends all of his time with Jim, and has few prejudices against him because he is a slave. The rest of the world influences and tempts him throughout the book, until Huck decided that he does not belong with the rest of society because his beliefs are different. He ends up living on the river all his life, a social outcast.
The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien. Bilbo is a hobbit, who hates adventure and excitement. But when a group of dwarves insists that he come on a quest with them, he has no choice but to join their adventure. Along the way Bilbo and the dwarves have many strange experiences, and by the end of the story Bilbo has matured.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. Guy Montague is a fireman living in a future society. In this fictional setting, fireman set fires to burn books rather than putting out fires. Books are destroyed because they cause controversy, and cause arguments. Montague is interested in what might be contained in these books, so he takes a few and reads them, making him a criminal. Running from the law, he joins up with a group of men who live in the woods and memorize books, until a time comes when it is safe to read again. These men are the ones who save knowledge from being totally lost. I wrote a reaearch paper comparing this novel to Starship Troopers. Click here to read it.
Starship Troopers
by Robert Heinlien. In a future society, a few men are at a training camp for a war against alien creatures. In an academic class, the professor teaches them very unusual concepts such as not to have any values. This book is interesting to read because the way the characters think and act is so different from what any human has ever experienced. This is the novel that I compared Fahrenheit 451 to in my research paper.
My Name Is Asher Lev
by Chaim Potok. A Hasidic Jew named Asher Lev has an incredible gift for drawing. His family and the Hasidic Jews in his community think that this talent is from the devil. It is such a great talent that Asher cannot ignore it, and her becomes an apprentice to a world famous sculptor. But when Asher creates a painting that insults the entire Hasidic community, the leader of the community asks Asher to leave the community and go live in Paris. Journals, setting descriptions, and painting, and an essay that I wrote can be read by going back to my english portfolio home page and clicking on the links.
The Gift Of Asher Lev by Chaim Potok. This is the sequel to My Name Is Asher Lev. Asher is married and has children, and the family is living in South France. When Asher's uncle dies, he returns to the Hasidic for the first time since he was exiled. Now he has to face the problems that he left behind when he went to Paris. The sequel is just as good as the original. Journals can be read by clicking on the links on my english portfolio home page under "english links".
Thc Chosen by Chaim Potok. A secular Jewish boy named Reuven meets a Hasidic Jewish boy named Danny. Even though their lives and upbringings have been very different, they befriend each other. Each of them gains a lot from this friendship, learning about the other's culture. Although their religious beliefs clash at times, their friendship survives. Journals on this book can be found on my english portfolio home page, under "english links".
Oedipus the King by Sophocles. This Greek play involves the tragic events in the life of Oedipus, who is cursed by the gods. He does not realize many obvious things because of his tragic flaw, which is his outrageous temper. To read a modern version of Oedipus that my class and I wrote, Click here!
Of Mice and Men by John Steinback. Lenny is a retarded man who is not at all intelligent but very kind and loving. He and George, the man who takes care of him, find a job on a ranch. Lenny is uselful there because he is strong enough to do the work of three men. But he is also very rough, because he cannot always control what he does. When he accidentally kills the wife of one of the other workers on the ranch, George is forced to do something that is horrible, but makes life easier for everyone. This book is extremely ironic in many ways.
The Crucible by Arthur Miller. This book is fictional, but it is based on many true facts concerning the Salem witch trials. Many of the characters are actually people who were affected by the horrifying witch trials in Salem. Many innocent people died, simply becaue of mass hysteria. To read a play that I wrote with my friend Kara about mass hysteria entitled Rumor In Divver City, Click Here.
Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. A tragedy about the life and rule of Julius Caesar, and the chaos that occured after he was murdered. The senators of Rome assasinated him when they thought he was getting too much power, but they had no idea how much trouble it would cause. At first the Romans are on their side, until Caesar's friend Mark Antony speaks of what a righteous man Caesar was. The Romans become outraged that Caesar has been killed, and a civil war breaks out. To read an essay I wrote on how Julius Caesar applies to our modern society, Click Here.
To see an annotated reading list of all the books I read before this year, Click here.