9th Grade Honors English
Honors 9th Grade Literature
Awesome Summer Assignment!
Dear Phenomenal 9th Grade Honors Lit Student and Parent/Guardian:
Greetings and welcome to a new school year at Westlake High School. First, let me say that I am excited
about having you in my class! How can I say that without having met you? Simple. I get excited about all my
students; and since we’re going to be spending nearly every Monday – Friday together, there’s something else
you need to know: I try to come to school hype…every day. Why? Because I know I’m going to get greatness
from my students! And how do I know that? Again, simple: Because I only expect and accept greatness from
my students. So, are you ready? I hope so because our journey to greatness starts now!
Statistics show that continued reading improves test scores and increases student success. With this in mind, 9th
Grade Honors requires a summer reading assignment for students. (I know! I’m excited too! )
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As a student entering the 9th Grade Honors English program, summer reading is an absolute must! I
hope you love words and language because this course is a lot about reading and understanding all of the
different ideas and perspectives that authors use and play with in their books. (I am a self-proclaimed
logophile and bibliophile. I LOVE literature and the vocabulary used to create it!)
Successful completion of this course requires individual study time outside of class on a regular basis. I
can’t teach you everything you need to know during class time and you can’t learn everything you need
to learn so there will be plenty of opportunities for you to so some discovering on your own.
The key to success in this class is critical thinking. Simply put, you must begin to develop the ability to
make meaning of a text for yourself. If this makes you nervous, don’t be! You will have many
opportunities to get plenty of practice during our Socratic Seminars. (Don’t know what those are?
Hmmm….sounds like an opportunity to do a little research!)
Students will need to purchase supplemental materials for some of the 9th Grade Honors assignments.
(You’ll see that information below)
Next school year, we will be reading short stories, poetry, plays, and novels. Prepare to be busy!
Please understand that I require you to read the ACTUAL books – While I do not want you to rely on
Cliffs Notes, Spark Notes, movies or any other internet source/condensed versions for this class (you won’t pass
a single assignment if you do) it is okay if you use them for clarity’s sake.
1) Reading Expectations:
a. Homer’s Iliad Translated by Robert Fitzgerald ISBN 0-374-52905-1 (REQUIRED)
b. Book of Choice (See Below)
Now, before you go getting all extra excited because you think you’re going to get to read the entire Captain
Underpants series again, let me explain what I mean when I say “a book of your choice.” This is an honors
English class, correct? And it’s a high school honors English class, right? So, that means the book your
choice should be one that is both interesting and complex. What do I mean by complex? Let me give you an
example: Animal Farm by George Orwell is literally a book about a group of animals who take over a farm.
However, allegorically speaking it is a book about the Russian Revolution. To understand the deeper
meaning you have to read beyond what’s on the page. That’s what I mean by complex. I’m not super
interested in the simple “who” or the “what” (plot questions: Who died in chapter 3? What happened in
chapter 4) but I am more interested in the “why” and the “how” (analysis questions) Example: Why do you
think the author uses this type of language? What purpose does this serve? How does it advance the theme?
I suspect your first question at this point is “How do I choose the right book?” Glad you asked! Here are a
few options:
Option A: At the very end of this document you will find a long list of suggested reading. It is the same list
you will use during the school year for your outside reading. (You have 6-8 books to read from August to
April) It is a fairly scholarly list containing books you will more than likely see on standardized tests like
the SAT, ACT, AP exams, etc. Is it an exhaustive list? No. Can you suggest other books to be added? Yes.
This just offers some suggestions.
Option B: Go to www.lexile.com and click on the “Don’t Know Your Lexile Measure” link. This will lead
you to a page that will allow you to determine what your Lexile level is and suggest books for you to read
that suit where you are now as a reader. (You can also find your Lexile level on your individual CRCT
report) Note: just because a book has a low Lexile doesn’t mean isn’t complex. Animal Farm has a Lexile
of 1170 while The Hunger Games has a Lexile of 810 and they are both great texts to analyze.
Option C: Go online and Google “books for high school students” and see what catches your eye. Here are
a few links to try:
http://www.lexpublib.org/50BooksInHighschool
http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/478.Required_Reading_in_High_School
http://www.npr.org/2012/08/07/157795366/your-favorites-100-best-ever-teen-novels
Your book can be fiction or non-fiction, a novel or a play. Again, your choice. Just make sure it’s something
you can discuss intelligently.
A Couple of Thoughts When Choosing Your Book
1) Be realistic: While I will certainly admire your willingness to read War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy with
all of its 1216 pages, please choose a book that you can have read comfortably by the time school starts.
(Now if you just WANT to spend the next month reading Tolstoy by all means do that but I would not want
to be you…)
2) Use Spark Notes as a study guide BEFORE you start reading: Yes. I am a really English teacher and
yes I said it was okay for you to use Spark Notes. Spark Notes, if used correctly for the purpose with which
they was intended, is a great resource to help you better understand a text, especially if you’ve chosen one
from my list. Before you read each book or chapter read all the information from Spark Notes first. This will
help you understand who the characters are, what the plot is, etc. so you can focus on decoding the
language.
3) ANNOTATE—ANNOTATE—ANNOTATE! So this is less a tip and more a requirement. There are
two ways you can read, actively or passively. Passive reading is what you do when you read a book for
enjoyment. In other words, you are reading the book for fun, not really concerned about retaining all the
information. Active reading is the opposite. When you read actively, you are taking notes in your book,
highlighting words that are unfamiliar or unusual, asking questions of the text (Ex: “Why does Romeo trust
the Friar so much more than his own father?” ), etc. The purpose of annotating is to make sure you have a
thorough understanding of the text. While there is no one way to annotate a text, here is what I tend to use in
my texts (feel free to create your own system):
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
Circle symbols
Bracket off examples of motifs
Underline examples of themes
Squiggly-line major characters/descriptions
Write questions of comprehension in the margins
Write questions of further confusion at the end of each chapter that later will have my answers
Write brief summaries of my thoughts on what happened at the end of each chapter
Make notations of patterns seen
Highlight in 1 color important terms (definitions/explanations will be found at the top/bottom of
the page)
l. Highlight in another color solid examples of figurative language and write brief explanations in
the margins next to it (i.e., similes, metaphors, personification, euphemism, foreshadowing,
alliteration, anaphora, etc.) You may not find examples of everything in every text.
m. Highlight in another color examples of rhetorical devices (i.e., allusions, foils, paradoxes, irony,
hyperboles, ethos, pathos, logos, allegories, parallelism, tone, etc.) You may not find examples
of everything in every text.
Regardless of your system, I should see several examples of each of the above findings.
Some examples of how to annotate can be found on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzrWOj0gWHU (Shorter Version)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pf9CTJj9dCM (Longer Version)
2) News Article Requirement:
It is important that students are familiar with what is currently happening in the world as this will be useful
when writing argumentative essays, an essay format that is widely utilized throughout the rest of your high
school career. Therefore you will complete the following:
1. COLLECT two news articles that can be connected to your chosen novel in some way. These articles
must be from reputable sites (CNN, NY Times, Chicago Times, newspapers from other countries). Do
NOT try to use FOXNEWS, Colbert Report, The Daily Show, or any pundit shows.
2. PRINT out a copy of the news articles and type a response to each one that includes the following
information:
a. A summary of the events discussed in the article in your own words.
b. Make a connection to America, yourself, or how the events discussed could affect America.
c. What surprises you about the information in the article?
d. Make a connection to your chosen novel with a minimum of 2 textual examples and citations
from both readings. Follow the CEI Model (Claim, Evidence, and Interpretation [Reasoning]).
Check out this video on YouTube for What CEI is: https://youtu.be/tiFXmvDqVh0
3) In Class Essay Requirement:
One of the reasons why annotating is so important is because one of your first assignments (to be
completed in class) will be a timed essay. There are certain things I expect you to have mastered already:
spelling, subject-verb agreement, proper sentence structure (no fragments or run-ons please), capitalization,
proper punctuation, etc. What I will be looking for primarily is how well you are able to develop your ideas
and put them on paper. Your in-class essay will be much more a rough draft than a final product. To give
you a head start, here is the essay prompt:
Choose a complex and important character in a novel or a play that might, on the basis of the character’s actions
alone, be considered evil or immoral. In a well-organized assessment, explain both how and why the full
presentation of the character in the work makes us react more sympathetically than we otherwise might. Avoid
plot summary.
OTHER BOOKS NEEDED:
DO NOT READ DURING THE SUMMER: These books will be read in class.
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Homer’s Odyssey (Translated by Robert Fitzgerald) ISBN: 0-374-52574-9
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Thank You for Arguing by Jay Heinrichs
Final Words….
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The skills you cover in this class are absolutely essential to achievement in the upper grades and beyond. This
being the case, we have to be in “top form” every day to insure that we finish the year with the skills needed for
future success.
In addition to an excellent attitude and everything mentioned above, the materials listed below are highly
suggested for this class (For August):
 One 1 ¼ ” 3 ring binder (or larger) (Please make sure it has the clear sleeve in the front) OR a 5
Subject Notebook
 Divider pages for binder (6 to 8)
 Posit Notes (Different Colors)
 Blue or Black ink pens
 Highlighter
 Notebook paper
 1 Composition Notebook
 Access to Computer and the Internet
 Access to Printer
 Index Cards (Lots of them)
 A dictionary/thesaurus app on your smart phone or a copy of a dictionary/thesaurus
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This may seem like one of the hardest classes you will take, but it WILL be one of the most rewarding. I AM
EXCITED TO SEE YOU GROW AS A STUDENT!
~ Mrs. Holliman
Outside Reading Book List
African/African American Authors
1. The Salt Eaters
2. Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary
3. The Blacker the Berry
4. A Gathering of Old Men
5. The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman
6. A Lesson Before Dying
7. To Be Young Gifted and Black
8. A Raisin in the Sun
9. Mules and Men
10. Race Matters
11. Fences
12. Parable of the Sower
13. Iola Leroy
14. The Secret Life of Bees
15. Quicksand and Passing
16. Biography of an Ex-Colored Man
17. Up from Slavery
18. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
19. Things Fall Apart
20. The Bluest Eye
21. Go Tell It On the Mountain
22. The Simple Stories
23. Cry, the Beloved Country
24. The Invisible Man
25. Black Boy
26. Lucy
27. Incidents in the Life of A Slave Girl
28. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
29. The Souls of Black Folk
30. Roots
31. The Autobiography of Malcolm X
32. Middle Passage
Bambara
Myers
Thurman
Gaines
Gaines
Gaines
Hansberry
Hansberry
Hurston
West
Wilson
Butler
Harper
Kidd
Larsen
Johnson
Washington
Angelou
Achebe
Morrison
Baldwin
Hughes
Paton
Ellison
Wright
Kincaid
Jacobs
Douglass
DuBois
Haley
Haley
Johnson
I’d like some other Asian or Hispanic Authors
Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories
The House on Mango Street
The Education of Little Tree
Picture Bride
Cisnero
Cisnero
Classics
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Aneid
The Illiad
Cyrano de Bergerac
My Antonia
Picture of Dorian Gray
Virgil
Homer
Rostand
Cather
Wilde
6. Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
7. Siddartha
8. Uncle Tom’s Cabin
9. The Inferno
10. The Hobbit
11. Twelve Angry Men
12. Around the World in 80 Days
13. The Count of Monte Cristo
14. Great Expectations
15. Tuesdays with Morrie
16. King Lear
17. The Merchant of Venice
18. A Midsummer Night’s Dream
19. The Great Gatsby
20. The Martian Chronicles
21. Fahrenheit 451
22. Pygmalion
23. Ender’s Game
24. Mythology (Edith Hamilton)
25. The Old Man & the Sea
26. The Pearl
34. Heart of Darkness
27. Glass Menagerie
28. 1984
29. Animal Farm
Joyce
Stowe
Dante
Tolkien
Rose
Verne
Dumas
Dickens
Albom
Shakespeare
Shakespeare
Shakespeare
Fitzgerald
Bradbury
Bradbury
Shaw
Card
Hamilton
Hemingway
Hemingway
Conrad
Williams
Orwell
Orwell