Summer Reading for AP Language and Composition
BOOKS:
All students:
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Between Heaven and Hell: A Dialog Somewhere Beyond Death with John F. Kennedy, C. S. Lewis
& Aldous Huxley, Peter Kreeft.
Hiroshima, John Hersey
Reading Lolita in Tehran, Azar Nafisi
Students who have NOT taken CP or Honors British Literature at CDS
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Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
Students who have already taken CP or Honors British Literature at CDS*
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Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
*All work must be ready for turn in on the second day of class. The summer work, in totality, will make up a significant part of the 1 st
quarter grade. You may not use Cliff Notes, Spark Notes, or other similar study aides on-line or in print. You also may not use other
people as a “resource.” This is to be your work, and you will be asked to “honor code” that you followed this guideline and that you read
each book in its entirety.
ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTION:
Classic non-fiction: Hiroshima
Frustrated by Japan’s refusal to surrender to the Allies in World War II, President Harry Truman
authorized the first atomic bomb to be dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6,
1945. Shortly thereafter, a second bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki, and the Japanese finally
surrendered, thus ending World War II. Since 1945, the debate has raged as to whether the atomic bomb
should have been used to end the war. Shortly after the bombing, news reporter John Hersey entered a
shattered Hiroshima to chronicle his observations in this non-fiction account. At the very least, his work
causes readers to ponder the nature of man, the horrors of war, and the future of our world in an
increasingly nuclear age.
With this narrative, you are required to maintain a double-entry response journal. The journal
entries can be hand written or typed. Perhaps the easiest and most portable way to do this is to use a
spiral notebook. In the journal, you will cite FIVE meaningful passages from the book, as evenly spaced
throughout the book as possible. In other words, this will involve writing excerpts directly from the book
and noting the page numbers from the text. Then, on the facing pages (or in the facing column if you
choose to divide the page into two columns), you will write personal responses to the passages. (If you
prefer typing, it is probably easiest to type each passage followed by the response.) Each response can
explain how the selected passage makes you feel or how the passage relates to an event in your life. (Note
that you are NOT writing summaries of the passages. Also note that what you quote are “passages,” not
single sentences. A “passage” is at least several sentences in length.) Your responses should be a
minimum of 200 words each for a total of 1000 words minimum. (Put the word count in parentheses
next to each response.)
Contemporary Memoir: Reading Lolita in Tehran
Author Azar Nafisi narrates her experience of teaching English in Iran during the years of the
Islamic Revolution. While providing a glimpse into the world of educated Iranians, Nafisi weaves a
narrative that shows the intersection of the personal, political, and religious lives of her, her friends, and
her students.
With this memoir, you are required to maintain a double-entry response journal. The journal
entries can be hand written or typed. Perhaps the easiest and most portable way to do this is to use a
spiral notebook. In the journal, you will cite FIVE meaningful passages from the book, as evenly spaced
throughout the book as possible. In other words, this will involve writing excerpts directly from the book
and noting the page numbers from the text. Then, on the facing pages (or in the facing column if you
choose to divide the page into two columns), you will write personal responses to the passages. (If you
prefer typing, it is probably easiest to type each passage followed by the response.) Each response can
explain how the selected passage makes you feel or how the passage relates to an event in your life. (Note
that you are NOT writing summaries of the passages. Also note that what you quote are “passages,” not
single sentences. A “passage” is at least several sentences in length.) Your responses should total a
minimum of 200 words each for a total of 1000 words minimum.. (Put the word count in
parentheses next to each response.)
A Study in Argument: Between Heaven and Hell
President John F. Kennedy, writer Aldous Huxley, and theologian C.S. Lewis all died on
November 22, 1963. Author Peter Kreeft has crafted an imaginary conversation that could have taken
place between the three just after death before they all went to their respective “eternal destinations.”
Each of the three represents a different philosophy and world view as they primarily discuss the life and
claims of Christ.
As you read, carefully follow the arguments back and forth. Then, watch how Lewis begins
catching the other two in their own traps, using argument and logic to make a strong case for the veracity
(truthfulness) of Christianity. To help you discern some of the key points, answer the questions provided
at the end of this document this document.
Classic “dystopian” fiction: Brave New World
This famous work is a frightening look at a future society that in several ways we seem to be
moving toward now. Since we will be doing a significant study of Brave New World in the first two weeks
of school, you do not need to create a journal or do any other written work. However, it is expected you
will annotate (highlight, underline, write margin notes) as you go along for comprehension purposes.
Expect some sort of quiz on one of the first days of class. You will be having a few additional quizzes plus
writing a major paper on the novel.
Classic fiction: Crime and Punishment
Students who have already taken CP or Honors British literature at CDS will read Crime and
Punishment, one of the novels you would be reading in senior English classes. With this novel, you are
required to maintain a double-entry response journal. The journal entries can be hand written or typed.
Perhaps the easiest and most portable way to do this is to use a spiral notebook. In the journal, you will
cite FIVE meaningful passages from the book, as evenly spaced throughout the book as possible. In other
words, this will involve writing excerpts directly from the book and noting the page numbers from the
text. Then, on the facing pages (or in the facing column if you choose to divide the page into two columns),
you will write personal responses to the passages. (If you prefer typing, it is probably easiest to type each
passage followed by the response.) Each response can explain how the selected passage makes you feel or
how the passage relates to an event in your life. (Note that you are NOT writing summaries of the
passages. Also note that what you quote are “passages,”not single sentences. A “passage” is at least
several sentences in length.) Your responses should total a minimum of 200 words each. (Put the word
count in parentheses next to each response.)
QUESTIONS FOR BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL
Directions: Please type the question in your word processor and italicize it. Then, underneath, in regular
type, answer each question, skipping a space between each one. Some of the questions will require only a
sentence or two; some will require a full paragraph. . *Note: This is to be solely your own work.
From pp. 37-56
1. Why can’t Jesus be a good man if He is not divine?
2. Why is the statement “There are no absolutes” self-defeating?
3. In your own words, describe Jesus’ claim to divinity.
4. Why does Kennedy want to avoid logic?
5. List Lewis’ four divisions of humanity. What’s his point?
From pp. 56-85
1. How is Jesus unlike all other sages?
2. In what way does Lewis argue that Kennedy would be “dishonest” by not accepting the conclusion to the aut
deus aut homo malus argument?
3. How does Lewis support his belief that Jesus claimed to be divine?
4. How does dropping the miraculous wholly change Christianity?
From pp. 85-114
1. According to Huxley, what is God’s relationship to morality?
2. How does hell follow necessarily from creation and free will?
Final Question: What impacted you the most from reading this fictional debate? (50-75 words)
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If you have any questions about this assignment, please contact Mr. Hicks at
shicks@covenantday.org