AP English 4 English Summer Reading
2014-2015
Part 1: Self-Select Novel
Choose from the list of novel titles below. Read and annotate the text as you read. You will need these annotations
for another assignment after school starts.
Novels you may use – These were chosen for their appearance on the AP Literature Exam. Note that while these novels have all
appeared at least once on the AP Exam, I make no claims regarding their content. Research the synopsis of any book before you
purchase or read it if you’re worried about being offended by the subject matter.
 = This work has been cited multiple times (5+) on recent AP exams. (That does not have to affect your choice; it’s just FYI.)
All the Pretty Horses (McCarthy)
Atonement (McEwan)
Beloved (Morrison)
Bless Me, Ultima (Anaya)
The Bluest Eye (Morrison)
Catch-22 (Heller)
Ceremony (Silko)
The Color Purple (Walker)
Invisible Man (Ellison**)
The Kite Runner (Hosseini)
A Lesson Before Dying (Gaines)
Native Son (Wright)
Obasan (Kogawa)
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Marquez)
The Poisonwood Bible (Kingsolver)
Sister of My Heart (Divakaruni)
Sula (Morrison)
Their Eyes Were Watching God (Hurston)
The Things They Carried (O’Brien)
A Thousand Splendid Suns (Hosseini)
**Invisible Man NOTE: Be careful to read Ralph Ellison’s book, NOT the science fiction novel by H. G. Wells. No
credit will be given for reading the wrong book.
It should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: Don’t choose a book you’ve read before for another class.
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT: After reading, select one of the “Ontological Questions” from the list attached that you feel
applies to your novel. Apply this question as you respond to the following prompt, using your self-selected novel as
your novel choice.
Prompt: Critic Roland Barthes has said, “Literature is the question minus the answer.” Choose a novel
or play, and, considering Barthes’ observation, write an essay in which you analyze a central question
the work raises and the extent to which it offers answers. Explain how the author’s treatment of this
question affects your understanding of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary.
Grades are
based on:
-- Completeness of your essay. (Answer the question thoroughly. I think it will take between 400
and 500 words. Longer is all right, but when you hit 700, start winding it up.)
-- Quality of thought in your essay.
-- All work is your own. Anything that comes from Sparknotes, Wikipedia, or anything that
resembles those websites will result in the entire assignment’s being rejected as plagiarized. Don’t
risk it.
Part 2: Lord of the Flies -- William Golding
This book is short and very easy to read. Don’t be insulted by its simplicity; we will use the novel as a basis for
training for the AP Literature essay.
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Read the novel, annotating the text as you read. As with your self-selected work, you will use these
annotations for something else after school starts.
There will be a READING TEST on the novel after you begin school in August. Study questions that will help
you focus on plot, setting, and main character details are posted online.
Produce a Dialectical Journal for your reading (See below.)
What is a Dialectical Journal?
A dialectical journal records a dialogue, or conversation, between the ideas in the text and the ideas of the reader. In
your journal, have a conversation with the text and with yourself. Write down your thoughts, questions, insights, and
ideas while you read. The important part is that you are reading something, reflecting on it, and then responding to it
with your ideas. These responses then become a part of your analysis (and later your essay.)
EXAMPLE from The Great Gatsby:
Quotation
“The line(s) from the text in quotation
marks” (citation).
“…and taking hold of my elbow
literally forced me from the car”
( 28).
Dialectical Journal
Lit. Element/Commentary/Questions
Your comments should be a specific analysis, understanding, and/or
connection to the quote, or advance the thought of the author. It should
not repeat or restate what the author wrote. DO NOT write whether or not
you “liked” something. In analysis, that won’t work.
DICTION: The word “force” has a violent connation. Tom doesn’t ask
Nick if he wants to accompany him. He gives Nick no choice.
Formatting Instructions:
 Each “category” (see list below) will need to be on a separate page. Multiple entries on a page are fine, but
when you stop writing about “character,” switch to a different page.
 Draw a vertical line in the middle of a page in your journal notebook
 At the top of the left column, write the heading “Quotation.”
 At the top of the right hand column, write the heading “Literary Element/ Commentary/Questions.”
 While you read or after you read a section, write the quotation in the left column.
 In the right column, write your ideas, questions, and comments, related to the notations on the left. The journal
is important because you “own” the new facts by putting them in your own words or by raising your own
questions.
 Typing is fine, but it’s not required.
 Please do not write on the back. (It’s hard to read and really hurts my eyes.)
 You will STAPLE your journal together. Don’t use a folder, please.
Write when:
o You see something you didn’t see before.
o You recognize a pattern -- overlapping images, repetition of ideas, details that make a connection
o You discover that the story is about something different from what you originally thought it was about.
o Something puzzles you or confuses you – but be specific about why you’re puzzled. The goal is analysis. If
you’re puzzled about vocabulary, look the word up and move on.
o
o
You see a connection to something HUMAN – you note something that illustrates Humanity as a whole.
You notice something specific about the author’s style-authentic dialogue or shifting perspective or
effective poetic devices.
Categories for your Lord of the Flies Journal: There will be at least ten total entries in your journal.
1. Two entries that reveal a character’s development, motivation, or epiphany. Choose Ralph or Jack, not
both.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Two entries that analyze the author’s use of imagery.
Two entries that analyze the author’s use of symbols.
One entry that documents and explains a significant irony found in the book.
At least THREE entries that build on or reveal a primary theme of the novel, entries to be taken from the
beginning, middle and end of the text.
Journals are due: THE FIRST DAY OF CLASS, so be sure you have it with you.
Grades are
-- Completeness
based on:
-- Thought and insight found in your discussions
-- Following all directions concerning formatting the document
-- All work is your own. (Honestly, if you need Sparknotes for Lord of the Flies, you might want to re-
think the whole “AP English” thing. It’ll be a long year.)
Let’s Recap -Here’s what you owe me during the first week of school:

An essay on your self-selected novel in response to the prompt provided due on the first day of class.

A dialectical journal over Lord of the Flies due on the first day of class.
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You’ll take a reading test over Lord of the Flies before the first week of school is over.
Failure to complete these assignments will have a negative effect on your average for the first six weeks. Please keep
in mind that your response to these assignments will constitute my first impression of your ability and dedication as a
student. Don’t peg yourself immediately as the kid who’s always looking for the easy way out. Besides, I’ve read the
Sparknotes, Wikipedia articles, and various other cheat-the-system resources for these books.
If you need to contact me over the summer, you can reach me at cturner@mesquiteisd.org. I try to check this at least
once a week.
Some Ontological Questions Addressed by Authors
Ontological = concerned with the nature of being
What is the meaning of life?
How should I live?
How can I accept the idea that someday my life will end?
What does it mean to be a good person?
What is truth?
Am I brave, or a coward? Does courage matter?
Do the rewards of life balance or outweigh its pain?
Is man a creature of the earth or of the sky? . . . a child of God or a beast crawling in the mud?
How should people treat each other?
What do women/men want? How can the sexes coexist harmoniously?
How can man live in the ugliness of modern world without despair?
Why do evil and suffering exist?
How can we tell the false from the genuine?
Does my existence matter? (Do I dare disturb the universe?)
How can dreams affect one’s life?
Is following the rules of society (morality) more important than survival as an individual?
Can one’s insecurities be destructive?
Does one’s ethical standard outweigh the moral standard of society?
Is it right to resist or oppose authority?
How can one find meaning in life?
What is the responsibility of parent to child or creator to creation?
Can one recapture or relive the past?
What is the result of attempting to avoid the consequences of one’s actions?
How can one learn his identity?
How can one prevail against the pressure of his society?
Since Life always ends in death, how can it have meaning?
Source: Jerry Brown (jerrywbrown.com)