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Will you accept the 40
Book Challenge?
English 6 Monroe
2014-15
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You want me to what???
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You WILL be reading 40 books this year.
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You will be reading from a variety of genres in order to
explore books that you might not ordinarily read and to
develop an understanding of literary elements, text features,
and text structures.
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The Expectations
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Poetry Anthology [1 book]
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Realistic Fiction (could happen in real life) [8 books]
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Historical Fiction (takes place in a particular time period in the past) [5 books]
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Fantasy (contains impossible elements like talking animals or magical powers) [5 books]
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Science Fiction (type of fantasy with science or technology such as robots or time travel) [4 books]
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Memoir/Autobiography (the story about someone’s life—written by that person himself) [2 books]
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Biography (a detailed account of a person’s life written by an author) [1 book]
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Informational (provides facts about a subject) [2 books]
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Mystery (a mystery that isn’t solved until the end of the book) [2 books]
Student Choice (any genre) [10 books]
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One very important thing to
remember:
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Any book that is more than 350 pages counts as TWO books!
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Notes about the Required Genres:
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On your 40 Book Challenge log, you will color in a box every
time you finish reading a book. Make sure you color in the
correct genre!
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Each colored box must be traced back to your Completed
Book List. That is where you will record the title, author, and
page numbers of each book you read this year!
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Poetry Anthology
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Shortened writing form.
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Contains figurative language—simile, metaphor, personification, etc.
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Authors express description, feelings, emotions in as few words as possible.
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May rhyme and follow a rhythm or pattern but does not have to.
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May contain illustrations.
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The reader must often visualize and reflect on the meaning expressed in
each poem.
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Example of a Poetry Anthology:
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Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
100 Great Poems for Boys (Edited by Leslie Pockell)
100 Great Poems for Girls (Edited by Celia Johnson)
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Realistic Fiction
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Characters are everyday people doing everyday things.
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Setting as a modern-day, realistic place.
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Plot consists of realistic events.
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Plot may highlight social issues.
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Plot is believable and could happen in real life.
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Examples of Realistic Fiction:
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Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass
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Historical Fiction
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Takes place in the past. (Forty years before now is
considered historical.)
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Plot contains historical events.
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Characters may be historical figures or made up from the
author’s imagination.
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Examples of Historical Fiction:
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Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
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Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis
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Al Capone Does my Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
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NIGHTJOHN by Gary Paulsen
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Fantasy
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Contains unrealistic or unworldly elements.
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Characters may have magical powers in addition to human
qualities.
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Theme is often focused on good versus evil.
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Examples of Fantasy:
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
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Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins
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The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
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The Thief and the Beanstalk by P.W. Catanese
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Science Fiction
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Fantasy that involves or is based on scientific principles.
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Often has technology, robots, time machines, etc.
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Often set in the future.
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Examples of Science Fiction:
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The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson
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Mystery
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Involves something unknown.
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Centers around a character investigating wrongdoing or
obtaining secret information.
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Suspenseful.
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Solution to the mystery is not revealed until the end of the
book.
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Examples of Mystery:
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The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd
Down the Rabbit Hole by Peter Abrahams
Last Shot by John Feinstein
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Informational
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Provides information on the topic.
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Nonfiction.
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Organized into sections or categories.
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No characters or settings.
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Examples of Informational:
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Super Storms by Seymour Simon
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Just a Second: A Different Way to Look at Time by Steve Jenkins
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The World of Ballet and Dance by Mike Davis
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Memoir/Autobiography/Biography
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Memoir—an account of the author’s experiences written by himself/herself.
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Example of Memoir:
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Boy: Tales of Childhood by Roald Dahl
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Autobiography—a story of someone’s entire life written by himself/herself.
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Example of Autobiography:
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I am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and was Shot by the Taliban by Malali
Yousafzai
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Biography—a story of someone’s entire life researched and written by
someone else.
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Example of Biography:
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George Balanchine: an American Ballet Master by Kristy Davida
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Frequently Asked Questions:
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Can I read all picture books?
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No. This would defeat the purpose of the 40 Book Challenge. The
motivating goal of this challenge is to improve your reading
comprehension, increase your reading stamina, and read genres
you would not naturally choose to read on your own. If you only
read picture books, you are not challenging yourself at all.
However, you may read some picture books. The Seymour Simon
books we discussed are wonderful Informational texts. They
contain complex ideas and are about 40 pages long.