LEONIA HIGH SCHOOL
2015 SUMMER READING PROGRAM
Directions and Expectations
Research shows that the ability to read critically improves
with consistent practice. Thus, students who read during the
summer more likely will improve their ability to read than
those who don’t. To help students improve as readers,
Leonia High School has developed a summer program
which gives them considerable choice in selecting a book on
a topic which genuinely interests them. Our summer reading
program aims to promote literacy, improve academic
achievement, build vocabulary, and encourage reading for
enjoyment.
Students will select a book on the list from one of the
subjects on their 2015-2016 course schedule. The reading
list will be available on the LHS website as well as at the
Leonia and Edgewater Public Libraries. During the summer,
students are to read and annotate the book of their choice,
taking notes in the margins, highlighting, and using a reading
log to record thoughts and questions about subject,
character, setting, plot, and main ideas to prepare for an
informal oral assessment in September. If the book is
borrowed from a library, students should use post-its instead
of writing in the book.
During the second week of September, students will meet
with a teacher for a brief discussion about the book—a Book
Chat.
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Students can gain or lose as many as five points
toward the First Marking Period grade for the subject
corresponding to their choice of book.
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Students who do not choose to read will lose five
points from their First Marking Period grade in English.
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Any student who selects a Physical Education
book receives positive or negative points in Health for the
Marking Period in which the student is scheduled for Health.
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Please note: books on the summer reading list do
not substitute for reading assigned for Advanced Placement
classes.
Students will select a summer reading book on or before
Friday, June 19. The following important conditions also
should be noted:
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Students who enroll at LHS after June 23, Moving
Up Day, or who wish to change their reading selection during
the summer must inform Dr. Bertolini before August 1 at
bertolini@leoniaschools.org.
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No student may change a book after August 1—no
exceptions will be permitted.
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No more than 25 students may choose any one
book.
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If a student wants to change a book during the
summer, the book must still be available to select. The only
way to ensure a new book is available is to email Dr.
Bertolini immediately to receive a confirmation of the book
change directly from Dr. Bertolini.
ARCHITECTURE
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Russell Rules, by Bill Russell and David Falkner
Bill Russell shares the insights, the memories, and most
importantly, the essential rules of success which influenced him in
every part of his life, from raising a daughter as a single father to
becoming a successful coach and mentor to others. Russell’s
example epitomizes innovation, teamwork, and leadership. Russell,
winner of eleven championships as a player and coach of the Boston
Celtics and five-time NBA Most Valuable Player, reveals the eleven
lessons that helped him achieve his goals and can help anyone attain
success in their professional and personal lives.
ART
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The Agony and the Ecstasy: A Biographical Novel of
Michelangelo, by Irving Stone
Stone's classic biographical novel brings both the artist and the
man to life in full. The Agony and the Ecstasy offers a compelling
portrait of Michelangelo's dangerous, impassioned loves and the
God-driven fury from which he fashioned some of the greatest works
of art the world has ever known.
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The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown
While in Paris, Harvard professor Robert Langdon is awakened
by a phone call in the dead of night. The elderly curator of the Louvre
has been murdered inside the museum, his body covered in baffling
symbols. As Langdon and French cryptologist Sophie Neveu sort
through bizarre riddles, they are stunned to discover a trail of clues to
an ancient truth hidden in the works of Leonardo da Vinci—clues
visible for all to see, yet ingeniously disguised by the painter.
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Frida, A Biography of Frida Kahlo, by Hayden Herrara
Mexican painter Frida Kahlo was a woman of extreme
magnetism and originality, an artist whose sensual vibrancy came
from her childhood near Mexico City during the Mexican Revolution, a
devastating accident at age eighteen that left her crippled and unable
to bear children, her stormy marriage to muralist Diego Rivera,
occasional love affairs with men as diverse as Isamu Noguchi and
Leon Trotsky, and her association with the Communist Party.
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Girl with a Pearl Earring, by Tracy Chevalier
Chevalier takes readers to a bygone time and place in this
fictional portrait of a young woman who allegedly inspired one of
Vermeer's most celebrated paintings. Girl with a Pearl Earring tells
the story of sixteen-year-old Griet, whose life is transformed by her
brief encounter with genius, even as she herself is immortalized in
canvas and oil.
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Jackson Pollock, by Deborah Solomon
Jackson Pollock is portrayed as a shy, often withdrawn person,
full of insecurities and self-doubt, and frequently unable to express
himself about his art or its meaning. Solomon interviewed 200 people
who knew Pollock and his work to examine the artist's relationships
with his family, his wife and fellow artist Lee Krasner, art patron
Peggy Guggenheim, and the painters Willem de Kooning and Mark
Rothko.
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Life with Picasso, by Francoise Gilot and Carlton Lake
Francoise Gilot met Picasso during the German occupation of
Paris: she was 21; he was 62. For nearly a decade Gilot shared her
life with this giant of the art world, giving birth to two of his children,
working as his model, and sharing his world. This candid, vivid
memoir takes readers behind the Picasso legend to meet the man.
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Rodin: A Biography, by Frederic V. Grunfeld
Auguste Rodin was not only one of the world's greatest
sculptors, but also one of the most remarkable personalities of
modern times: an artist who outraged contemporaries with his
disturbingly unfinished monuments; a sensualist who shocked France
with his scandalous relationships; and a friend to many of the most
gifted writers and artists of his day.
MARKETING & BUSINESS
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David and Goliath, by Malcolm Gladwell
David and Goliath employs individual case studies and
comparisons to provide a wide range of examples in which perceived
major disadvantages in fact turn out to be the keys to the underdog
Davids' triumph against Goliath-like opponents or situations.
Gladwell cites various seeming afflictions which may have
significantly contributed to success, linking dyslexia with the highflying career of lawyer David Boies and the loss of a parent at an
early age with the exceptional research of oncologist Emil J.
Freireich.
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Buyology, by Martin Lindstrom
Buyology is the result of the author’s three-year neuromarketing
study on 2,081 people to identify the effects of brands,
logos, commercials, advertisements, and products on them. The
study was funded by seven corporations, including GlaxoSmithKline,
Hakuhodo, Fremantle, and Martin Lindstrom. The study evaluates
the effectiveness of logos, product placement and subliminal
advertising, the influence of our senses, and the correlation
between religion and branding.
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Super Freakonomics, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J.
Dubner
Levitt and Dubner ask not only tough questions, but also
unexpected ones: What's more dangerous, driving drunk or walking
drunk? Why is chemotherapy prescribed so often if it's so
ineffective? Can a sex change boost your salary? The authors
challenge the way we think, exploring the hidden side of everything
with such questions as: How much good do car seats do? What do
hurricanes, heart attacks, and highway deaths have in common? Are
people hard-wired for altruism or selfishness?
ENGLISH
English 9 and 10
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Scratch Beginnings, by Adam Shepard
Adam Shepard graduated from college feeling disillusioned by
the apathy around him and became incensed after reading Barbara
Ehrenreich's Nickeled and Dimed, a book which left him feeling
hopeless about the working class in America. He set out to disprove
Ehrenreich's theory that those who start at the bottom stay at the
bottom. His plan was simple: with a sleeping bag, the clothes on his
back, $25 in cash, and no help from contacts or college education, he
would head for South Carolina to work his way out of homelessness.
His goal was to have, after one year, $2,500, a working automobile,
and a furnished apartment. Scratch Beginnings shows that success
can come to anyone who is willing to work hard and that America is
still one of the most hopeful countries in the world.
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Zeitoun, by Dave Eggers
Abdulrahman and Kathy Zeitoun run a house-painting business
in New Orleans. In August, 2005, as Hurricane Katrina approaches,
Kathy evacuates with their four young children, leaving her husband
to watch over the business. In the days following the storm he travels
the city by canoe, feeding abandoned animals and helping elderly
neighbors. Then, on September 6, police officers armed with M-16s
arrest Mr. Zeitoun in his home. Told with eloquence and compassion,
Zeitoun is a riveting account of one family’s unthinkable struggle with
forces beyond wind and water.
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The Other Wes Moore, by Wes Moore
Two kids with the same name lived in the same decaying city.
One went on to be a Rhodes Scholar, decorated combat veteran,
White House Fellow, and business leader. The other is serving a life
sentence in prison. Here is the story of two boys and the journey of a
generation. Told in alternating dramatic narratives that take readers
from heart-wrenching losses to moments of surprising
redemption, The Other Wes Moore tells the story of a generation of
boys trying to find their way in a hostile world.
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Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, by Philip K. Dick
By 2021, the World War had killed millions, driving entire
species into extinction and sending mankind off-planet. Those who
remained coveted any living creature, and for people who couldn't
afford one, companies built incredibly realistic copies: horses, birds,
cats, sheep, even humans. Emigrés to Mars received androids so
sophisticated it was impossible to tell them from true men or women.
Fearful of the havoc these artificial humans could cause, the
government banned them from Earth. But when androids didn't want
to be identified, they just blended in. Rick Deckard was a bounty
hunter whose job was to find rogue androids and retire them. But
cornered, androids tended to fight back, with deadly results.
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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou
Sent by their mother to live with their devout, self-sufficient
grandmother in a small Southern town, Maya and her brother Bailey
endure abandonment and the prejudice of local whites. Late, eight
years old, back at her mother’s side in St. Louis, Maya is attacked by
an older man and has to live with the consequences. Years later, in
San Francisco, Maya learns about love for herself and the kindness
of others, her own strong spirit, and the ideas of great authors (“I met
and fell in love with William Shakespeare”), which will allow her to be
free instead of imprisoned. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
established Angelou's reputation as a contemporary AfricanAmerican icon.
English 11 and 12
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Borstal Boy, by Brendan Behan
Brendan Behan was an Irish playwright and novelist, as well as
a youthful revolutionary. In 1939, at age 16, he was arrested in
Liverpool with a suitcase full of high explosives. Borstal Boy is the
autobiographical record of Behan's experiences from that day
through his imprisonment, trial, time in reform school, and final
release. Schools for delinquents in England are called Borstals, and
Behan's account of his years as a "Borstal Boy" is told in vigorous,
dramatic prose.
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Breakfast of Champions, by Kurt Vonnegut
In Breakfast of Champions, one of Kurt Vonnegut’s most
beloved characters, the aging science fiction writer Kilgore Trout,
finds to his horror that a Midwest car dealer is taking his fiction as
truth. What follows is a murderously funny satire, as Vonnegut looks
at war, sex, racism, success, politics, and pollution in America and
reminds us how to tell the truth from the lies.
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The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho
Coelho's novel is about an Andalusian shepherd boy, Santiago,
who travels from his homeland in Spain to the Egyptian desert in
search of a treasure buried near the Pyramids. Along the way he
meets a Gypsy woman, a man who calls himself king, and an
alchemist, all of whom point Santiago in the direction of his quest. No
one knows what the treasure is, or if Santiago will be able to
overcome the obstacles in his path. What starts out as a journey to
find worldly goods turns into discovery of the treasure found within.
The story of Santiago is testament to the transforming power of
dreams and the importance of listening to our hearts.
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The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath
Plath's shocking, realistic, intensely emotional novel tells the
story of a woman falling into the grip of insanity. Esther Greenwood
is brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly
losing her mind. The author draws the reader into Esther's
breakdown with such intensity that her insanity becomes real, even
rational—as accessible an experience as going to the movies.
Penetrating into the darkest, most harrowing corners of the human
psyche, The Bell Jar has become a modern American classic.
LLD / Evergreen
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Cooked, by Carol Karels
In May 1971, Look magazine featured an article entitled
"Chicago's Cook County Hospital: A Terrible Place," which gave an
in-depth look into the largest public hospital in the country, located on
Chicago's dangerous, gang-controlled, drug-infested West Side.
Months later, the author, then a naïve suburban teen, and a hundred
other nursing students began training there, despite newspaper
articles warning that the hospital might close any day. At 'the
County,' where nurse’s duties included swatting flies in the OR and
delousing patients, nurses and doctors were expected to provide care
under the most desperate circumstances. Cooked looks inside the
2,000-bed ghetto hospital, often referred to as a "19th-century sick
house," that provided health care to millions of Chicago's poor.
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Burger Wuss, by Matthew Tobin Anderson
Anthony has never been able to stand up for himself—not until
his girlfriend is in someone else's arms. Then Anthony vows revenge
and devises the Plan, which begins with getting a job at the fast-food
restaurant where his nemesis happens to be star employee. But
when the Plan is finally in place, will Anthony's desire for revenge be
satisfied? Will he prove he's not a wuss? Hoping to lose his loser
image, Anthony’s Plan results in a war between two competing fast
food restaurants.
FAMILY & CONSUMER SCIENCE
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Sous Chef, by Michael Gibney
The back must slave to feed the belly. In this urgent, unique
book, chef Michael Gibney uses twenty-four hours to animate the
intricate camaraderie and culinary choreography in an upscale New
York restaurant kitchen. Here readers will find, in rapid-fire
succession, all the details of what it takes to deliver an exceptional
plate of food—a journey to excellence by way of exhaustion. In a
kitchen where the highest standards are upheld and one misstep can
result in disaster, Gibney helps us to appreciate the thought, care,
and focus which go into creating memorable, delicious fare.
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Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World, by Mark
Kurlansky
Cod: wars have been fought over, revolutions triggered by,
national diets based on, economies and livelihoods have depended
on it. This book spans 1,000 years and four continents. From the
Vikings to Clarence Birdseye, Kurlansky introduces explorers,
merchants, writers, chefs, and fishermen whose lives have been
interwoven with this prolific fish. Chronicling the cod wars of the 16th
and 20th centuries, he blends in recipes and lore from the Middle
Ages to the present, showing how the most profitable fish in history is
today faced with extinction.
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The Classic Ten: The True Story of the Little Black Dress and
Nine Other Fashion Favorites, by Nancy MacDonell Smith
Smith explores the origins, meaning, and remarkable staying
power of the ten staples of feminine fashion: the little black dress, the
white shirt, the cashmere sweater, blue jeans, the suit, high heels,
pearls, lipstick, sneakers, and the trench coat. She traces the
evolution of each item, revealing the history and social significance of
each. Incorporating sources from history, literature, magazines, and
cinema, Smith creates an engaging, informative guide to modern
style.
MATHEMATICS
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Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, by Edwin Abbott
First published in 1884, Abbott's novella is a social satire, an
exhortation to literally think outside the box, a testament to the
universal quest for knowledge and the purity of mathematical truth.
Abbott tells the story of A Square, a mathematician living in the
second dimension, known as Flatland, whose perceptions of his
universe are turned upside down when he is visited by a sphere from
the third dimension, Spaceland.
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The Universe and the Teacup, by K.C. Cole
K. C. Cole demystifies mathematics and shows us why math
need not be frightening. Using the O. J. Simpson trial, the Bell Curve,
and Emmy Noether, a 19th century scientist whose work was
essential for the development of Einstein's theory of relativity, Cole
helps us see that mathematics is a key to understanding the beauty
of everything from rainbows to relativity.
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A Beautiful Mind, by Sylvia Nasser
John Nash, one of the most brilliant mathematicians of his
generation, spiraled into schizophrenia in the 1950s. Game theory,
his most important work, had become, by the 1980s, the
underpinning a large part of economics. When the Nobel Prize
committee began debating a prize for game theory, Nash's name
inevitably came up, only to be dismissed, since the prize clearly could
not go to a madman. Yet in 1994, Nash, now in remission from his
illness, shared the Nobel Prize in Economics for work done 45 years
earlier.
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Number: The Language of Science, by Tobias Dantzig
Dantzig reveal how the concept of number evolved from
prehistoric times through the 20th century. He shows that the
development of math—from the invention of counting to the discovery
of infinity—is a profoundly human story which progressed by trial and
error, by groping and stumbling. His story demonstrates how
commerce, war, and religion led to advances in math, recounting the
stories of individuals whose breakthroughs expanded the concept of
number and created the mathematics that we know today.
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Euclid in the Rainforest: Discovering Universal Truth in Logic
and Math, by Joseph Mazur
Mazur combines the literary with the mathematical to explore
logic. Through adventure stories and historical narratives populated
with a rich, quirky cast of characters, he reveals the less-than-airtight
nature of logic and the muddled relationship between mathematics
and the real world.
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Outliers: The Story of Success, by Malcolm Gladwell
The most successful people may not be the smartest or hardest
working. Shift rather to where they are from. What about their
culture, family, generation, the idiosyncratic experiences of their
upbringing? Where and when were they born? From Asian
mathematics students to the Beatles, stereotypes can be addressed
through different eyes in Gladwell’s anecdotal account.
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Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic
Savant, by Daniel Tammet
Note: Reserved for Regular and Special Needs Readers—not for
Honors or Advanced Placement)
This unique first-person account offers a window into the mind
of a high-functioning 27-year-old British autistic savant with
Asperger's syndrome. Tammet's ability to think abstractly, deviate
from routine, and empathize, interact and communicate with others is
impaired, yet he's capable of incredible feats of memorization and
mental calculation.
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Girls Get Curves: Geometry Takes Shape, by Danica McKellar
This book tackles all the angles—and curves—of geometry. In
three previous bestselling books, actress and math genius Danica
McKellar shattered the “math nerd” stereotype by showing girls how
to ace math classes and feel cool while doing it. She shows how to
feel confident, get in the driver's seat, and master the core concepts
of high school geometry: congruent triangles, quadrilaterals, circles,
proofs, theorems, and more! Her irreverent, lighthearted approach
opens the door to success in math, while also boosting girls’ selfesteem in all areas of life. Girls Get Curves makes geometry
understandable, relevant, maybe even a little (gasp!) fun for girls.
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A Short History of Nearly Everything, by Bill Bryson
In this book Bryson takes on the oldest, biggest questions we
have posed about the universe and ourselves. Taking as territory
everything from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization, he seeks to
understand how we got from there being nothing at all to there being
us. Attaching himself to some of the world’s most advanced
archaeologists, anthropologists, and mathematicians, traveling to
their offices, laboratories, and field camps, reading their books,
pestered them with questions, apprenticed himself to their powerful
minds, Bryson records his quest, a sometimes profound, sometimes
funny, always supremely clear and entertaining adventure in human
knowledge.
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The Man Who Loved Only Numbers: The Story of Paul Erdös
and the Search for Mathematical Truth, by Paul Hoffman
Based on a National Magazine Award-winning article, this
biography of Hungarian-born Paul Erdös is both a vivid portrait of an
eccentric genius and a layman's guide to some of this century's most
startling mathematical discoveries.
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The Signal and the Noise: Why So Many Predictions Fail—But
Some Don’t, by Nate Silver
Silver examines the world of prediction, investigating how we
can distinguish a true signal from a universe of noisy data. Most
predictions fail, often at great cost to society, because most of us
have a poor understanding of probability and uncertainty. Both
experts and laypeople mistake more confident predictions for more
accurate ones. Silver visits the most successful forecasters in a range
of areas, from hurricanes to baseball, from the poker table to the
stock market, from Capitol Hill to the NBA. He explains and
evaluates how these forecasters think and what bonds they share.
What lies behind their success? Are they good—or just lucky?
MUSIC
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Great Singers on Great Singing, by Jerome Hines
Jerome Hines has interviewed 40 eminent singers, a speech
therapist, and a throat specialist to provide this invaluable collection
of advice for all singers. The collection includes comments by Licia
Albanese, Franco Corelli, Placido Domingo, Nicolai Gedda, Marilyn
Horne, Sherrill Milnes, Birgit Nilsson, Luciano Pavarotti, Rose
Ponselle, Beverly Sills, Joan Sutherland, and many others. It has
been called probably the best book on the subject.
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Song of Names, by Norman Lebrecht
Martin Simmonds’ father tells him, “Never trust a musician
when he speaks about love.” The advice comes too late. Martin
already loves Dovidl Rapoport, an eerily gifted Polish violin prodigy
whose parents left him in the Simmonds’ care before they perished in
the Holocaust. For a time the two boys are closer than brothers. But
on the day he is to make his official debut, Dovidl disappears. Only
40 years later does Martin get his first clue about what happened. In
this novel of music and suspense, Lebrecht unravels the strands of
love, envy and exploitation that knot geniuses to their admirers. In
doing so he also evokes the fragile bubble of Jewish life in prewar
London, the fearful carnival of the Blitz, and the gray new world that
emerged from its ashes.
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Free Play: Improvisation in Life and Art, by Stephen
Nachmanovitch
Free Play is about the sources of creativity, where art in the
widest sense comes from, why we create and what we learn when we
do in the flow of unhindered creative energy. Nachmanovitch reveals
how inspiration arises within us, how it may be blocked, derailed, or
obscured by certain unavoidable facts of life, and how it can be
liberated, so we can speak or sing, write or paint, dance or play in our
own authentic voice.
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The Musician’s Way: A Guide to Practice, Performance, and
Wellness, by Gerald Klickstein
Klickstein combines the latest research with 30 years of
professional experience to provide aspiring musicians with a roadmap
to artistic excellence. He describes strategies to interpret and
memorize compositions, fuel motivation, and collaborate, uncovers
the hidden causes of nervousness to show how musicians can
become confident performers, surveys tactics to prevent musicrelated injuries, and equips musicians to tap their own innate
creativity.
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The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century, by Alex
Ross
Alex Ross, music critic for The New Yorker, weaves together
the histories of the 20th century and its music from Vienna before the
First World War to Paris in the 20s, from Hitler's Germany and
Stalin's Russia to downtown New York in the 60s and 70s up to the
present. Taking readers into the labyrinth of modern style, Ross
draws unexpected connections between the century's most influential
composers and the wider culture.
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Leonard Bernstein, by Humphrey Burton
Drawing on 30 years' knowledge of Bernstein as both friend
and colleague, as well as the musician's private archive of letters,
Burton paints a compelling portrait of the composer of West Side
Story and one of the most renowned orchestra conductors of this
generation.
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Traps—the Drum Wonder: The Life of Buddy Rich, by Mel
Torme
Buddy Rich, one of the most famous drummers of the Swing
Era, starred in the Artie Shaw and Tommy Dorsey bands. His career
started when he was two years old in his parents' vaudeville act, and
by the time he was four, he was the highest paid child performer in
the world. Torme packs this biography with vivid, often funny,
personal anecdotes from his long friendship with a truly remarkable
percussion artist.
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Testimony, by Dmitri Shostakovich
Testimony was published in October, 1979, by the Russian
musicologist Solomon Volkov, who claimed that it contained the
memoirs of the world-renowned 20th century composer Dmitri
Shostakovich. From its publication, its portrayal of the composer and
his views was controversial: the Shostakovich of the book was
sometimes critical of fellow composers, and most notably was
strongly anti-Soviet in his views. The book also contained comments
on the composer’s own music, indicating that it was intended as
veiled criticism of the Soviet authorities and support for the dissident
movement. The authenticity of the book is still much disputed.
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Who Am I?, by Peter Townshend
The story of a man who is a Londoner and a Mod, wanted The
Who to be called The Hair, loved The Everly Brothers, but not that
"drawling dope" Elvis, smashed his first guitar onstage in 1964 by
accident, inspired Jimi Hendrix's pyrotechnical stagecraft, stole his
windmill guitar playing style from Keith Richards, followed Keith Moon
off a hotel balcony into a pool and nearly died, almost died from drug
and alcohol use, helped rescue Eric Clapton from heroin, is banned
for life from Holiday Inns, is the most literary, literate musician of the
last 50 years who planned to write his memoir when he was 21, and
published this book at 67.
PHYSICAL EDUCATION and HEALTH
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Whale Talk, by Chris Crutcher
Intellectually and athletically gifted, T. J., a multiracial adopted
teenager, shuns organized sports and the gung-ho athletes at his
high school until he agrees to form a swimming team and recruits
some of the school's less popular students for it. The novel focuses
on how T. J. jumbles together a shabby team of student underdogs to
annoy and shame those who sit on top of his high school’s elitist
athletics program.
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Life After You (What Your Death From Drugs Leaves Behind),
by Linda Lajterman
On February 23, 2014, Linda Lajterman found her 19-year-old
son, Danny, dead in his bedroom. He had overdosed on a drug sold
to him by a father in the neighborhood who had been dealing to local
high school students. In her grief, Linda posted a warning on
Facebook, pleading with other parents to resist the “not my son”
mentality. The response was overwhelming. She received thousands
of messages not only from parents in the U.S., but also those in
South Africa, Australia, Europe, and South America. That outpouring
encouraged Lajterman to write this cautionary tale meant to shock
and, she hopes, deter young people from using drugs.
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Sum It Up: A Thousand and Ninety-Eight Victories, a Couple of
Irrelevant Losses, and a Life in Perspective, by Pat Summit
For 38 years Coach Summit has broken records, winning more
games than any NCAA coach in basketball history. She has coached
an undefeated season and co-captained the first women's Olympic
team. She was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame and named
Sports Illustrated Sportswoman of the Year. Despite a devastating
diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer’s, Summit led her Tennessee Vols
to their 16th SEC championship in March, 2012. Summit continues to
be a fighter, facing this new challenge the way she's faced every
other, with hard work, perseverance, and a sense of humor.
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The Last Lecture, by Randy Pausch
When Randy Pausch, a Computer Science professor at
Carnegie Mellon University, was asked to give a “last lecture,” he
didn't have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been
diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave, “Really
Achieving Your Childhood Dreams,” wasn't about dying. It was an
inspiring summary of everything he had come to believe about the
importance of overcoming obstacles, enabling the dreams of others,
and seizing every moment.
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In the Water They Can’t See You Cry, by Amanda Beard
Amanda Beard, aged 14, walked onto the pool deck at the
Atlanta Olympics carrying her teddy bear and left with two silvers and
a gold medal. She competed in three more Olympic games, winning
a total of seven medals, and enjoyed a lucrative modeling career on
the side. Yet despite an astonishing career, Beard felt unworthy of all
her success. With no other outlet for her feelings besides the pool,
she expressed her emotions in self-destructive behavior. Now,
through her renewed faith in herself, the love of her family, and finally
the birth of her baby boy Blaise, Amanda has transformed her life.
This is her inspiring story.
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The Wisdom of Wooden: A Century of Family, Faith, and
Friends, by John Wooden
Hailed by many as the greatest coach in the history of
American sports, John Wooden is as famous for his personal
philosophy as he is for his career achievements. He inspired, guided,
and motivated generations of fans with his bestselling books on
leadership, values, family, and the true meaning of success.
Completed just weeks before his death in June, 2010, in this book
Wooden shares his most treasured memories as he looks back on an
extraordinary life on and off the court.
SCIENCE
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Letters to a Young Scientist, by E. O. Wilson
Edward O. Wilson has distilled 60 years of teaching into a book
for students young and old. Reflecting on his coming-of-age in the
South as a Boy Scout and lover of ants and butterflies, Wilson
threads these 21 letters, each richly illustrated, with autobiographical
anecdotes that illuminate his career and his motivation in becoming a
biologist. At a time when human survival is more than ever linked to
an understanding of science, Wilson insists that success in the
sciences does not depend on mathematical skill, but on passion for
finding a problem and solving it. From the collapse of stars to the
exploration of rain forests and the oceans’ depths, Wilson speaks
eloquently of his love of the innate creativity of science and respect
for human beings’ modest place in the planet’s ecosystem.
·
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot
Henrietta Lacks, known to scientists as cell sample HeLa, was
a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her
slave ancestors, yet her cells, taken without her knowledge, became
one of the most important tools of modern medicine. Although Lacks
has been dead for more than 60 years, HeLa cells have been vital for
developing the polio vaccine; uncovering the secrets of cancer,
viruses, and the effects of the atomic bomb; and in leading to
important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene
mapping. Skloot’s book tells a story of learning the details of Lacks’s
obscure life as well as the curious way in which her cells became so
important.
·
Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood, by Oliver
Sacks
Meet neurologist Oliver Sacks’s extraordinary family, from his
surgeon mother (who introduces 14-year-old Oliver to the art of
human dissection) and his father, a family doctor who imbues in his
son an enthusiasm for house calls, to his “Uncle Tungsten,” whose
factory produces tungsten-filament light bulbs. Sent at age six to a
grim, sadistic boarding school to escape the World War II London
Blitz, Sacks in this book relives the exploits of his chemical heroes in
his own home laboratory.
·
The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness,
Love, and History of the World from the Periodic Table of Elements,
by Sam Kean
The Periodic Table is one of man’s crowning scientific
achievements, but it’s also a treasure trove of stories of passion,
adventure, betrayal, and obsession. Follow the elements carbon,
neon, silicon, and gold as they play their parts in human history,
finance, mythology, war, the arts, poison, and the lives of the
scientists who discovered them. Why did Gandhi hate iodine? Why
did the Japanese kill Godzilla with missiles made of cadmium? And
why did tellurium lead to the most bizarre gold rush in history? Find
out in this book!
·
Living Color—The Biological and Social Meaning of Skin Color,
by Nina G. Jablonski
Jablonski investigates the history of skin color, showing how
our body's most visible trait influences our social interactions in
profound and complex ways. Beginsning with the biology and
evolution of skin pigmentation, she explains how skin color changed
as human beings moved around the globe, explores the relationship
between melanin pigment and sunlight, and examines the
consequences of rapid migrations, vacations, and other lifestyle
choices on skin color today.
·
Visions: How Science Will Revolutionize the 21st Century, by
Michio Kaku
Physicist Michio Kaku examines the great scientific revolutions
that have dramatically reshaped the 20th century—quantum
mechanics, biogenetics, and artificial intelligence—and shows how
they will alter science and change the way we live now and in the
future.
·
Prey, by Michael Crichton
In Prey, best-selling author Crichton introduces bad guys which are too
small to be seen with the naked eye. Like Crichton’s Jurassic Park, this novel
blends modern technology, science, and fiction to warn us of developments in
science and engineering, in this case nanotechnology, genetic engineering, and
artificial intelligence. It provides an entertaining way to learn something new and
possibly frightening while enjoying an interesting story.
SOCIAL STUDIES
Modern World History Honors
•
The Prince, by Niccolo Machiavelli
The Prince is a master plan for seizing and holding power. It
remains to this day a realistic, prophetic work on what it means to be
in charge. In 1512, Machiavelli was removed from his administrative
post in Florence, Italy. Angry and with time on his hands, he sat
down to write a guide to leadership. He envisioned a world operating
without ordinary ethical or moral values. His ideal leader would
possess a ruthless combination of skills. Intriguing, funny, and
frightening, The Prince remains essential reading for every student of
government or power politics.
Modern World History
•
Timeline, by Michael Crichton
Timeline, a science fiction novel, tells the story of a group of history
students who travel to 14th century France to rescue their professor.
The book continues Crichton's long history of combining technical
details with suspenseful action in his books. The novel spawned
Timeline Computer Entertainment, a computer game developer that
created the PC game published by Eidos Interactive in 2000. There
is also a movie called Timeline based on the book, which was
released in 2003.
Modern World History Foundations
•
Mary, Bloody Mary, by Carolyn Meyer
The story of Mary Tudor's first-born child to Henry VIII of
England, this is a classic fairy tale: a princess who is to inherit the
throne of England is separated from her mother, abused by an evil
stepmother who has enchanted her father, stripped of her title;,and
forced to care for her baby stepsister, who inherits Mary's right to the
throne. But this isn’t a children’s tale; tt actually happened. Believe it
or not, it's all true.
Advanced Placement U. S. History I
•
1776, by David McCulloch
McCulloch tells two gripping stories: how a group of squabbling,
disparate colonies became the United States, and how the British
Empire tried to stop them from becoming a nation. A story with a cast
of amazing characters, from George III to George Washington, to
ordinary soldiers and their families, this exhilarating book is one of the
great pieces of historical narrative.
·
Killer Angels, by Michael Sharra
Killer Angels is a historical novel about America’s Civil War.
The book tells the story of the four days of the Battle of Gettysburg,
beginning on June 30, 1863, as the troops of both the Union and the
Confederacy move into battle around the town of Gettysburg,
Pennsylvania, through the doomed charge by General Pickett’s army
three days later. Character-driven, it is told from the perspective of
various protagonists.
United States History I
•
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, by Harriet Jacobs
This autobiographical novel was written by an escaped slave in
1861, based on the author’s life as a slave, explaining how she
gained freedom for herself and, later, for her children. Jacobs
attacked the traditional presentation of slavery found in sentimental
novels by exploring both the struggles and sexual abuse that female
slaves faced on plantations. She also examined how the system
affected mothers trying to protect their children. Jacobs speaks to
white women in the North who do not fully comprehend the evils of
slavery. She makes direct appeals to their humanity, hoping to
challenge their views about slavery as an institution.
•
Rise to Rebellion: A Novel of the American Revolution, by Jeff
Shaara
Rise to Rebellion is a historical novel which outlines the events
leading up to the American Revolution. The book begins with the
Boston Massacre and continues through the signing of the
Declaration of Independence. The events of the time are portrayed
through the perspectives of numerous characters, including British
sentry Hugh White, lawyer John Adams, inventor Benjamin Franklin,
General George Washington, Governor Thomas Hutchinson, and
Abigail Adams. This book provides an understanding of how the new
nation came to break its colonial bonds with Great Britain to strike out
on its own.
U. S. History I Foundations
•
Al Capone Does My Shirts, by Gennifer Choldenko
Al Capone Does My Shirts is a historical novel for young adults by
award winning author Gennifer Choldenko. When 12-year-old
Moose Flanagan moves to Alcatraz Island in 1935 after his father
gets a job as a prison guard and electrician, he wonders if he'll ever
be able to fit in. Other children live on the island, but he does not
have another boy his age who likes baseball as he does. He and the
warden's daughter, Piper, take the ferry to San Francisco for school.
She claims that Al Capone, the infamous gangster, works in the
laundry room. This is an interesting look at America during the
Depression. It is also an examination of one of America’s most
famous prisons.
Advanced Placement U. S. History II
·
The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair
This novel became famous chiefly for its exposé of America’s
meatpacking plants. The author spent almost two months laboring in
a Chicago slaughterhouse, observing the working conditions and the
lives of the immigrant workers. The book tells a story of the Rudkus
family, immigrants from Bohemia struggling to survive. The family
members endured horrific working conditions, deceitful authorities,
dire poverty, physical injuries, and death. Sinclair, a Socialist, blamed
all their problems on the evils of capitalism. His book soon became a
nationwide best seller. Shortly after the publication of The Jungle,
Congress passed and Roosevelt signed the Pure Food and Drug Act
of 1906.
United States History II
•
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and
Redemption, by Laura Hillenbrand
“In boyhood, Louis Zamperini had been an incorrigible delinquent,
breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the rails.
As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running,
discovering a talent that carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within
sight of the four-minute mile. By May 1943, the athlete had become
an airman, embarking on a journey that led to a doomed flight, a tiny
raft, and a drift into the unknown.” (Tom Walsh)
·
The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair
See above under Advanced Placement U. S. History II.
U. S. History II Foundations
·
Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final
Solution in Poland, by Christopher Browning
This book presents the shocking account of how a unit of average middleaged Germans became the cold-blooded murderers of tens of thousands of Jews
before and during World War II as the Nazis rose to power. Browning shows
what they did to make the Holocaust happen and how they were transformed
psychologically from ordinary men into active participants in one of the most
monstrous crimes in human history.
Social Studies Electives
Advanced Placement Economics
Summer Reading: Exploring a Theme
Students will choose a topic and then read several works by
selected authors on that topic. Readings should include a minimum
of two authors and comprise at least 150-180 pages.
Suggested Topics and Authors:
Marketing to Women
•
What Women Want: The Global Market Turns Female Friendly,
by Paco Underhill
•
Why She Buys: The New Strategy for Reaching the World’s
Most Powerful Consumers, by Bridget Brennan
•
Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping, by Paco Underhill
•
Buyology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy, by Martin
Lindstrom
Baseball
Baseball and Sabermetrics: “Casey Stengel, meet Bill James”
•
Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, by Michael
Lewis
•
The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, by J. C.
Bradbury
•
Francona: The Red Sox Years, by Terry Francona
•
Logic of Life, by Tim Harford
Motivation
•
Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, by
Daniel Pink
•
Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and
Happiness, by Cass Sunstein
•
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop
Talking, by Susan Cain
•
The Power of Negative Thinking, by Bob Knight
Malcolm Gladwell (the author of all the following titles)
•
The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big
Difference
•
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
•
Outliers: The Story of Success
•
David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling
Giants
•
What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures
Advanced Placement Government and Politics
·
13 American Arguments; Enduring Debates That Inspire and
Define Our Country, by Howard Fineman
NBC analyst Howard Fineman has written an examination of
the nation’s most important political debates. His objective was to
“cut through the noise of the day and try to show a comprehensive
and nonpartisan overview of our public life and how it works.”
Tracing events from Adams’s Alien and Sedition Acts of 1789, he
progresses through the George W. Bush administration’s secrecy
surrounding warrantless surveillance after 9-11.
Advanced Placement World History
·
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, by
Jared Diamond
Diamond argues that both geography and the environment
played major roles in determining the shape of the modern world,
which runs counter to the usual theories that cite biology as the
crucial factor. He claims that the cultures that were first able to
domesticate plants and animals were then able to develop writing
skills, as well as make advances in the creation of government,
technology, weaponry, and immunity to disease, which has placed
them in the forefront of world civilization.
Economics
•
The Call of the Mall: A Walking Tour Through the Shopping
Mall, by Paco Underhill
Paco Underhill is an expert in the realms of economics and
marketing. In this book he explores the modern American Mall and
the culture it has spawned. In a fascinating examination, he shows
students things which they have been looking at for years but haven’t
always seen. Detailed and intriguing, it provides a road map to the
shopping centers so many of us visit every weekend.
Ethics / Contemporary America
·
Dead Man Walking, by Helen Prejean
In 1982, Sister Helen Prejean became the spiritual advisor to
Patrick Sonnier, a convicted killer of two teenagers who was
sentenced to die in the electric chair of Louisiana's Angola State
Prison. In the months before his death, the Roman Catholic nun
came to know a man as terrified as he had once been terrifying. She
came to know the families of the victims and the men whose job it
was to execute him, men who often harbored doubts about the
rightness of what they were doing. A profoundly moving spiritual
journey through our system of capital punishment, it is a book that is
both enlightening and devastating.
Sociology
·
Contagious: Why Things Catch On, by Jonah Berger
What makes things popular? If you said advertising, think
again. People don’t listen to advertisements; they listen to their
peers. But why do they talk about some products and ideas more
than others? Why are some stories and rumors more infectious?
What makes online content go viral? Wharton School marketing
professor Jonah Berger reveals the secret science behind word-ofmouth and social transmission. Discover how six basic principles
drive all sorts of things to become contagious, from consumer
products and policy initiatives to workplace rumors and YouTube
videos.
WORLD LANGUAGES and ELL
Chinese
Chinese I
•
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, by Lisa See
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is a brilliantly realistic journey
back to an era of Chinese history that is as deeply moving as it is
sorrowful. With the period detail and deep resonance of the bestselling Memoirs of a Geisha, this lyrical, emotionally charged novel
delves into one of the most mysterious of human relationships:
female friendship.
•
Shanghai Girls, by Lisa See
Until their father gambled away the family fortune, Pearl and
May Chin were Shanghai beauties who led charmed lives. When
midnight struck in 1937, these formerly carefree sisters were sent to
California to become wives for wealthy Chinese immigrants. Their
difficult journey takes them through squalid villages, an American
internment camp, and trials which will make them closer, yet more
jealous and competitive. Shanghai Girls displays the trials which the
sisters faced in a realistic, highly intriguing manner guaranteed to
hold your interest.
Chinese II
•
The Man Who Loved China, by Simon Winchester
In sumptuous, illuminating detail, Simon Winchester, bestselling
author of The Professor and the Madman, brings to life the
extraordinary story of Joseph Needham—the brilliant Cambridge
University scientist, freethinking intellectual, and practicing nudist who
unlocked the most closely held secrets of China, once the world's
most technologically advanced country, during the many years he
lived and traveled in that country.
•
Dreams of Joy, by Lisa See
In her bestsellers Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Peony in
Love, and, most recently, Shanghai Girls, Lisa See has brilliantly
illuminated the powerlul bonds of mother love, romantic love, and
love of country. Now, in her most powerful novel yet, See returns to
these timeless themes, continuing the story of sisters Pearl and May
from Shanghai Girls, also including Pearl’s strong-willed nineteenyear-old daughter, Joy.
Chinese III H
•
River Town, by Peter Hessler
In the heart of China's Sichuan province, amid the terraced hills
of the Yangtze River valley, lies the remote town of Fuling. Like
many other small cities in this ever-evolving country, Fuling is
heading down a new path of change and growth, which came into
sharp focus when Peter Hessler arrived as a Peace Corps volunteer,
the first time in more than half a century that the city had an American
resident. While Hessler taught English and American literature at the
local college, his students taught him about the complex processes of
understanding which take place when one is immersed in a radically
different society. River Town is an unforgettable portrait of a city
seeking to understand what it was and what it someday will be.
•
Country Driving, by Peter Hessler
From the bestselling author of Oracle Bones and River
Town comes the final book in his award-winning trilogy on the human
side of the economic revolution in China. In his new book Peter
Hessler, who has been called one of the West’s most thoughtful
writers on modern China, illuminates the vast, shifting landscape of a
traditionally rural nation that, having once built walls against
foreigners, is now building roads and factory towns that look to the
outside world as it develops into a world power.
Chinese IV Honors
•
Oracle Bones, by Peter Hessler
A century ago, outsiders saw China as a place where nothing
ever changes. Today the country has become one of the most
dynamic regions on earth. In Oracle Bones, Peter Hessler explores
the human side of China's transformation, viewing modern-day China
and its growing links to the Western world through the lives of a
handful of ordinary people. In a narrative that gracefully moves
between the ancient and the present, East and West, Hessler
captures the soul of a country undergoing a momentous change
before our very eyes.
•
The Joy Luck Club, by Amy Tan
In 1949 four Chinese women—drawn together by the shadow
of their pasts—begin meeting in San Francisco to play mah jong,
invest in stocks, eat dim sum, and "say" stories. They call
themselves the Joy Luck Club. Nearly forty years later, after one
member has died, her daughter comes to take her place, only to learn
of her mother's lifelong wish and the tragic way in which it has come
true. The revelation of this secret unleashes an urgent need among
the women to reach back and remember. In this extraordinary work
of fiction, Amy Tan writes about what is lost—over the years, between
generations, among friends—and what is saved.
French
French II
•
L’enfant qui parlait aux animaux, by Roald Dahl
A turtle has landed on a resort beach in Jamaica and everyone
wants to kill it for the meat and its shell. A small boy David becomes
hysterical and tries to save the turtle. His parents explain that he is
very sensitive to animals, so they volunteer to buy the turtle from the
resort owner. While they are haggling over the price, David talks to
the turtle and tells it to swim away. During the night the boy himself
disappears, and next day two local fishermen come back with a crazy
story—they have seen David riding the turtle out in the middle of the
ocean!
•
Les frousses de Zoe: Le metro de l’horreur, by Gudule
For the first time, Zoe takes the subway all by herself! She
begins at Direction Chaussée d’Antin to go to her grandmother. On
the way passes stops for Châtelet … Pont-Neuf … Palais Royal …
Porte du Sphinx? But what happened all of a sudden? She finds
herself in the middle of the desert … at the pyramids. What can she
do to find her way safely to her destination?
French III
•
Le faucon déniche, by Jean-Come Nogues
After he dared to keep the master’s falcon for himself, Martin
could be sent to jail for the rest of his life. In France during the Middle
Ages this is a very severe offense. But Martin does not care, and
nothing or no one will stop him.
•
Béquille, by Peter Hartling
In the early days of peace following World War II, refugees like
Thomas, aged 12, wander across Europe searching for food, families,
connections of any kind. In Vienna, Thomas is sheltered by a onelegged man known as Crutches, a former German officer who, unlike
Thomas, despises Nazism. Together they make their way back to
Germany, a trip that both deepens their attachment to one another
yet signals a painful and inevitable parting. Hartling says his story “is
about the struggle to begin again when all seems to be lost.” By the
end, when the question of whether Thomas will find his mother alive
after leaving Crutches for her is answered, the book achieves
overwhelming power.
French IV Honors
•
Le Journal de Ma Yan, by Ma Yan adn Pierre Haski
In a drought-stricken corner of rural China, an education can
be the difference between a life of crushing poverty and the chance
for a better future. But money is scarce, and the low wages paid for
backbreaking work aren't always enough to pay school fees. Ma
Yan's heart-wrenching, honest diary tells of her struggle to escape
hardship and bring prosperity to her family through her persistent,
sometimes desperate, attempts to continue her schooling. First
published in France in 2002, the diary of Ma Yan created an
outpouring of support for this courageous teenager and others like
her, which led to creation of an international organization dedicated to
helping these children, all because of one ordinary girl's extraordinary
diary.
•
Les trois mousquetaires, by Alexandre Dumas
The three best of the disbanded King’s Musketeers— Athos,
Porthos, and Aramis—join a young hotheaded would-be-Musketeer,
D'Artagnan, to stop Cardinal Richelieu's evil plot: to form an alliance
with enemy England by way of the mysterious Milady. Rochefort, the
Cardinal's right-hand man, announces the official disbanding of the
Musketeers. These three, however, refuse to throw down their
swords: Athos the fighter and drinker, Porthos the pirate and lover,
and Aramis the priest and poet. Arriving in Paris to join the
Musketeers, D'Artagnan uncovers the Cardinal's plans, and the four
set out on a mission to protect King and country.
Advanced Placement French
•
Presentation de Nathalie Froloff, Perrault
Skin of Donkey, Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood,
Cinderella—who would have believed these tales of childhood, a
thousand times told, a hundred times adapted, were composed by a
contemporary of the century of Louis XIV? Like the Fables of the
Fountain or The Thousand and One Nights, the Tales of Perrault sail
between pleasure in the text, edifying instruction, and playful
entertainment. This ambiguity enables them to nourish our
imaginations, as we dip back to them always with happiness, always
surprised by the boundless ingenuity which hides behind these
stories which one believes to be known by heart.
•
Maigret et le clochard, by George Simenon
A homeless man is found beaten and unconscious along the
banks of the Seine. Renowned Belgian Inspector Maigret must
connect him to a past—and fine a possible motive for his attempted
murder. The investigation provides Maigret with a chilling look at
those who have rejected society and the small measure of justice it
offers them.
Latin
Latin I
•
Cleopatra's Daughter, by Michelle Moran
At the dawn of the Roman Empire, when tyranny ruled, a
daughter of Egypt and a son of Rome found each other. Selene's
legendary parents are gone. Her country taken, she has been
brought to the city of Rome in chains, with only her twin brother,
Alexander, to remind her of home and all she once had. This novel
tells the story of her struggle to win her freedom.
•
The Silver Pigs, by Lindsey Davis
Falco is a Roman informer with a nose for trouble. In the
Roman Forum, where pretty Sosia flees for her life, he rashly decides
to save her—and regrets the move. She has stolen Imperial gold
ingots. A senator's daughter, Helena Justina, is connected to traitors
Falco has sworn to expose. The snooping plebe faces a murderous
cabal as he strives to seek justice.
Latin II
•
The Eagle of the Ninth, by Rosemary Sutcliff
Set in Roman Britain, this story tells of a young Roman officer
who sets out to discover the truth behind the mysterious
disappearance of the Ninth Legion, in which his father served, which
marched into the mists of Northern Britain and never returned.
Marcus Aquila hopes to turn the disgrace of the loss of this legion into
a symbol of Rome’s power at its empire’s border.
•
The Last Legion, by Valerio Massimo Manfredi (translated by
Christine Feddersen Manfredi)
As the Western Roman Empire begins to collapse in 470 AD, a
small band of British Roman soldiers make a long journey to Rome.
They arrive to find the city in chaos, but they hope to revive the spirit
of the empire by rescuing the young son of the last Emperor,
Romulus Augustus, from barbarian invaders.
Latin III
•
Julian, by Gore Vidal
A remarkable bestseller about the fourth-century Roman
emperor who famously tried to halt the spread of Christianity, Julian is
widely regarded as one of the 20th century’s finest historical novels.
Emperor Julian the Apostate, nephew of Constantine the Great, was
one of the brightest yet briefest lights in the history of the Roman
Empire.
•
Pompeii, by Robert Harris
All along the Mediterranean coast, the Roman empire’s richest
citizens are relaxing in their luxurious villas, enjoying the last days of
summer. The world’s largest navy lies peacefully at anchor in
Misenum. Tourists are spending their money in the seaside resorts
of Baiae, Herculaneum, and Pompeii. But the carefree lifestyle and
gorgeous weather belie an impending cataclysm, and only one man
is worried what may happen.
Latin IV
•
I, Claudius, by Robert Graves
Considered an idiot because of his physical infirmities, Claudius
survived the intrigues and poisonings of the reigns of Augustus,
Tiberius, and the mad Caligula to become emperor in 41 A.D. A
historical novel set in 1st century AD Rome by classical scholar and
poet Robert Graves, the book is written as an autobiographical
memoir by Roman emperor Claudius.
•
Memoirs of Hadrian, by Marguerite Yourcenar (translated by
Grace Frick)
Both an exploration of character and a reflection on the
meaning of history, Memoirs of Hadrian has won international acclaim
since its first publication in France in 1951. In it Marguerite
Yourcenar reimagines the Emperor Hadrian's arduous boyhood, his
triumphs and reversals, and finally, as emperor, his gradual
reordering of a war-torn world, writing with the imaginative insight of a
great writer of the twentieth century whhose style is as elegant and
precise as those of the Latin writers of Hadrian's own era.
Spanish
Conversational Spanish I
•
Esperanza Rising, by Pam Munoz Ryan
Esperanza thought she'd always live with her family on their
ranch in Mexico—she'd always have fancy dresses, a beautiful home,
and servants. But a sudden tragedy forces Esperanza and Mama to
flee to California during the Great Depression and settle in a camp for
Mexican farm workers. Esperanza isn't ready for the hard labor,
financial struggles, or lack of acceptance she now faces. When their
new life is threatened, Esperanza must find a way to rise above her
difficult circumstances, for Mama's life and her own depend on it.
•
How Tia Lola Came to (Visit) Stay, by Julia Alvarez
Moving to Vermont after his parents split, Miguel has plenty to
worry about! Tía Lola, his quirky, carismática, and maybe magical
aunt, makes his life even more unpredictable when she arrives from
the Dominican Republic to help take care of him and his little sister,
Juanita.
Spanish I
•
The Tequila Worm, by Viola Canales
Sofia comes from a family of storytellers. She tells how she
grew up in the barrio, full of the magic and mystery of family
traditions: making Easter cascarones, celebrating el Dia de los
Muertos, preparing for quinceanera, rejoicing in the Christmas
nacimiento, and curing homesickness by eating the tequila worm.
After she receives a scholarship to an elite boarding school, Sofia
longs to explore life beyond the barrio, even though it means leaving
her family to navigate a strange world of rich, privileged kids. It's a
different mundo, but one where Sofia's traditions take on new
meaning and illuminate her path.
•
The Queen of Water, by Laura Resau
Born in an Andean village in South America, Virginia lives with
her large family in a small, earthen-walled dwelling. In her village of
indígenas, it is not uncommon to work in the fields all day, even as a
child, or to be called a stupid Indian by members of the ruling class of
mestizos, or Spanish descendants. When seven-year-old Virginia is
taken from her village to be a servant to a mestizo couple, she has no
idea what the future holds. Based on a true story, The Queen of
Water recounts one girl's unforgettable journey to self-discovery.
Spanish II
•
When I Was Puerto Rican, by Esmeralda Santiago
Santiago writes lyrically of her childhood on her native island of
Puerto Rico, the circumstances which forced her mother to bring her
and her siblings to America, and of her bewildering years of transition
after she moves to New York City.
•
How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, by Julia Alvarez
Uprooted from the family home in the Dominican Republic, the
four Garcia sisters—Carla, Sandra, Yolanda, and Sofia—arrive in
New York City in 1960 to find a life far different from the genteel
existence of maids, manicures, and extended family they left behind.
What they have lost, and what they find in their new life, is revealed in
15 interconnected stories.
Spanish III
•
How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of
Globalization, by Franklin Foer
Soccer is much more than a game, or even a way of life. It
provides a perfect window into the cross-currents of today’s world,
with all its joys and sorrows. Franklin Foer tours the world of soccer,
shining a spotlight on the clash of civilizations, the international
economy, and just about everything in between through the lens of
soccer, or futbol, the world’s favorite game.
•
The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains,
by Nicholas Carr
Part intellectual history, part popular science, part cultural
criticism, The Shallows sparkles with memorable vignettes—
philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrestling with a typewriter,
psychologist Sigmund Freud dissecting the brains of sea creatures,
writer Nathaniel Hawthorne contemplating the thunderous approach
of a steam locomotive—even as it plumbs profound questions about
the state of our modern psyche. This is a book that should change
the way we think about media and our minds.
Spanish IV
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Let Me Speak, by Domitila Barrios (translated by Victoria Ortiz)
This classic book contains the testimony of Domitila Barrios de
Chungara, wife of a Bolivian tin miner. Blending firsthand accounts
with astute political analysis, Domitila describes the hardships
endured by Bolivia's vast working class and her own efforts at
organizing women in the mining community.
•
College Unbound: The Future of Higher Education and What It
Means for Students, by Jeffrey J. Selingo
Selingo offers a critical examination of the current state of
affairs and pressing issues faced by students and parents. He
profiles institutions like Arizona State University and the University of
Central Florida which lead the way into the future. He claims that the
class of 2020 will have a college experience radically different from
the one their parents had, for the college of the future will be
personalized, leaner, and better able to arm students with the skills
they need to enter the workforce of tomorrow. College (Un)bound,
intended as a great resource for prospective students, will change the
way you think about higher education
ELL
Basic
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My Brother’s Keeper: Virginia’s Civil War Diary: Book One, by
Mary Pope Osborne
Virginia Dickens, who has promised to keep a journal for her
older brother Jed, finds plenty to write about: Pennsylvania
Volunteers arrive in the town square reporting a big battle in Virginia,
calling for more men to join their ranks. The Battle of Gettysburg
follows, and suddenly, Ginny’s quiet town is filled with injured. Jed
has joined the Union army and is found wounded in a makeshift
hospital. With Ginny’s nursing he recovers, and afterward Ginny is
able to witness President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.
·
The Cage, by Ruth Minsky Sender
After Mama is taken away by the Nazis, Riva and her younger
brothers cling to their mother’s brave words to help them endure life
in the Lodz ghetto in Poland. Then the family is rounded up,
deported to Auschwitz, and separated. Now Riva is alone, a prisoner
in the worst of the World War II death camps.
Intermediate I
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Kira-Kira, by Cynthia Kadohata
Glittering: that's how Katie Takeshima’s sister Lynn makes
everything seem. After Katie and her family move from a small
Japanese community in Iowa to Georgia, Lynn teaches Katie to look
beyond tomorrow. When Lynn becomes ill, the whole family begins
to fall apart, and it is up to Katie to remind them that there is always
something glittering in the future.
·
Things Not Seen, by Andrew Clements
Bobby Phillips wakes up and can’t see himself in the mirror.
Not blind, not dreaming, just plain invisible. There doesn't seem to be
any reason for Bobby’s new condition, which means no school, no
friends, no life—he's a missing person. Then he meets Alicia.
Although she’s blind, Bobby can't resist talking to her, trusting her.
Yet Bobby knows that his invisibility could have dangerous
consequences for his family.
Intermediate II
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Tuck Everlasting, by Natalie Babbit
Blessed with—or doomed to—eternal life after drinking from a
magic spring, the Tuck family wanders about trying to live as
inconspicuously and comfortably as they can. When ten-year-old
Winnie Foster stumbles on their secret, the Tucks take her home and
explain why living forever at one age is less of a blessing than it might
seem.
•
Where the Lilies Bloom, by Vera Cleaver
Mary Call has promised her dying father to keep her brother
and sisters together forever on the mountain, and never to take any
help from strangers. She is determined to keep her word. At first she
is sure she can manage. Romey, Ima Dean, and Devola help gather
herbs to sell in town; the riches of the mountains will surely keep the
family clothed and fed. But then winter comes, and Mary Call has to
learn that the land where the lilies bloom is also a cruel, unforgiving
place, and it may take more than a promise to keep her family
together.
American Culture and Transition
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Breaking Through, by Francisco Jimenez
Francisco, aged 14, and his family are determined to make a
living when they arrive in California from Mexico. They struggle to
stay together and deal with many challenges, such as prejudice,
poverty, and long hours of hard labor. Francisco and his family teach
each other English, are encouraged by their teachers, and learn to
adapt to their new life in California despite the hardships they face.
·
Johnny Tremain, by Esther Forbes
In 1773 in Boston, Johnny Tremain is fourteen, apprenticed to a
silversmith. He is gifted and lords his skills over the other
apprentices, until one day his hand is horribly burned by molten
silver. Johnny’s dream of becoming a silversmith is now over.
Depressed, Johnny finds work as a dispatch rider for the Committee
of Public Safety, a job which puts him in touch with Boston patriots—
and the excitement that will lead to the Tea Party and the Battle of
Lexington.