Contemporary Literature
Reading Requirements
2010-2011
All students will be required to read The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls, The Curious Incident of
the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon, and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time
Indian by Sherman Alexie (first literature circles).
In addition, students will select one title from the Cultural Identity lists and at least two titles
from the general Contemporary Literature book lists (all attached).
These six books and contemporary short story fiction and nonfiction anthologies will be the
primary texts for this course.
Most of the reading opportunities for this course contain mature subject material.
Accepted college bound reading will almost always have at least one issue that is controversial in
some societal arena. The required readings are milder in their content but still contain some
mature experiences for the characters as well as a fair amount of mature language. It is
important that we have input from parents/guardians giving permission for the books students
read in this class. Parents/guardians will be asked to devote time to discuss titles as a family in
order to make sure that the reading and instruction of this literature will provide the best possible
learning experiences for the students.
Tiered book lists are provided as a way for students to have some choice for reading in the latter
part of the course. They are generally based on lexile reading levels and higher level content
with Tier III being the most advanced Tier. Most Tier III books are advanced in both reading
level and content. Tier II books are still commonly accepted college preparatory reading for high
school students but most have lower lexile levels (slightly easier reading but still challenging in
content). Tier I reading lists contain many books at easier reading levels that may require
diversified conferencing, presentation, and writing assignments to ensure college prep learning
experiences. The online book lists do not fall neatly into each tier. The lists are flexible and
students may propose other choices or levels for a book based on conferences with the instructor
and parents/guardians.
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Cultural Identity List Tier III for Literature Circles (small group)
Empire Falls
Angela's Ashes
Blue Highways
Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, The
Circle of Friends
Foxfire Collection
House of the Spirits
Joy Luck Club
Kite Runner, The
Memoirs of a Geisha
On Beauty
Patterns of Childhood
Strange Relations
Sula
Snow Falling on Cedars
The Night My Mother Met Bruce Lee
Three Cups of Tea
Zeitoun
Zlata's Diary: A Child's Life in Sarajevo
Russo, Richard
McCourt, Frank
Least Heat-Moon, William
Kamkwamba, William
Binchy, Maeve
Univ. of GA Anthropology Dept.
Allende, Isabel
Tan, Amy
Hosseini, Khaled
Goldman, Arthur
Smith, Zadie
Christa Wolf
Levitin, Sonia
Morrison, Toni
Guterson, David
Rekdal, Paisley
Mortensen, John
Eggers, Dave
Filipovic, Zlata
Cultural Identity list: Tier II
A Lesson before Dying
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Bless Me, Ultima
Candyman
The Cay
The Devil’s Arithmetic
Eagle Blue: A Team, a Tribe, and a High
School Basketball Season in Arctic Alaska
The Grass Dancer
Good Roots
Honor and Duty
The Wedding
Earnest J. Gaines
Betty Smith
Rudolpho Anaya
Simone Poirier-Bures
Theodore Taylor
Jane Yolen
Michael D’Orso
Susan Power
Lisa Watts (Ed.) Forward by R. L. Stine
Gus Lee
Dorothy West
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Cultural Identity list: Tier I From original lists compiled by Nancy Keane found at
http://nancykeane.com/rl/1000.htmATN
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American Chica By Marie Arana
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Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes, Chris Crutcher
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Stoner And Spaz By Ron Koertge
Bad Boy By Walter Dean Myers (Autobiography)
Billy By Laura Roybal
Black Like Me
Books By Laurence Yep
Born Confused By Tanuja Desai Hidier.
Buried Onions By Soto (And Others By Soto)
Child Of The Owl By Laurence Yep
Emergence, By David R. Palmer
Life In The Fat Lane By Bennett
Monster By Walter Dean Myers (And Others)
No Condition Is Permanent By Cristina Kessler(2000)
Remix By Budhos (Nonfiction About Teens Who Have Come To This Country From Many Different
Countries)
 Rite Of Passage, By Alexei Panshin
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Stones Of Mourning Creek By Diane Les
Tangerine By Bloor
The Birthday Of The World And Other Stories, By Ursula K. Leguin
The Skin I'm In By Sharon Flake
What Are You?: Voices Of Mixed-Race Young People By Pearl Fuyo Gaskins, Published 1999 By
Holt.
 Who Will Tell My Brother, Marlene Carvell
 Yell-Oh Girls! Edited By Vickie Nam
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Contemporary Literature Book List Tier III
TITLE
A Clockwork Orange
A Prayer for Owen Meany
A Separate Peace
Anil's Ghost
Atonement
Bean Trees, The
Blind Assassin, The
Brave New World*
Bluest Eye, The
Catch 22*
Fahrenheit 451*
From the Corner of His Eye
Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Grave Digger's Daughter, The
Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The
Hobbit, The
In Cold Blood
In the Lake in the Woods
Lisey's Story
On The Road
Once and Future King*
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Ordinary People
Portrait in Sepia
Rabbit at Rest
Rabbit is Rich
Red Tent, The
Roving Mind, The
Screwtape Letters, The*
Slaughterhouse Five
The Help
Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon
White Oleander
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Franny and Zooey
AUTHOR
Burgess, Anthony
Irving, John
Knowles, John
Ondaatje, Michael
McEwan, Ian
Kingsolver, Barbara
Atwood, Margaret
Huxley, Aldous
Morrison, Toni
Heller, Joseph
Bradbury, Ray
Koontz, Dean
Larsson, Steig
Oates, Joyce Carol
Shaffer and Barrows
Tolkein, J.R.R.
Capote, Truman
O'brien, Tim
King, Stephen
Kerouac, Jack
White, T. H.
Kesey, Ken
Guest, Judith
Allende, Isabel
Updike, John
Updike, John
Diamant, Anita
Asimov, Isaac
Lewis, C. S.
Vonnegut, Kurt
Stockett, Kathryn
Morrison, Toni
Fitch, Janet
Pirsig, Robert
Salinger, J.D.
*Initial publishing date prior to 1960 but still commonly considered contemporary literature
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Additional Tier III Contemporary Literature Book Lists
Nobel Prize winning literature (choose those published since 1960)
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/index.html
Pulitzer Prize winning literature fiction or nonfiction (choose those published since 1960)
http://www.pulitzer.org/awards/2010
http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/Fiction
http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/General-Nonfiction
Tier II Book Lists (Make sure the books you choose are published after 1959)
Adult Books for High School Students (ATN)
http://nancykeane.com/rl/113.htm
Ayers and Crawford’s list from their book
http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2004-05-23-great-books-list_x.htm
Ask
http://contemporarylit.about.com/od/readinglists/tp/contempList10.htm
Banned Books – from the ALA and Office for Intellectual Freedom
http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/frequentlychallenged/challengedclassics/index.cfm
Christian
http://www.southlandchristianschool.org/forms/HSReadingListSCS.pdf
http://www.cpyu.org/Page.aspx?id=106561
http://atn-reading-lists.wikispaces.com/Christian+fiction
Christian Fiction (ATN)
http://nancykeane.com/rl/308.htm
College Bound Reading List from Arrowhead Library System
http://als.lib.wi.us/Collegebound.html
USA Today – specifically mentions Alexie.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2004-05-23-high-school-books-list_x.htm
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Tier I Book Lists
(Make sure the books are contemporary: published after 1959. Some of these
books will also work in the other Tiers, so be sure to check the level and date of the book with the
instructor. )
Maximum Ride Series, James Patterson
High School Book Club (ATN)
http://nancykeane.com/rl/1141.htm
If you really aren’t jumping for joy over books
http://atn-reading-lists.wikispaces.com/Reluctant+Readers+(HS)
Student picked
http://atn-reading-lists.wikispaces.com/12th+grade+favorites+-+2002
Stanford University High School list
http://studentaffairs.stanford.edu/haas/bringabook/highschool
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