IB English 12
2013 Summer Assignments
Mrs. Regen and Mr. Pasko
harriet.regen@cms.k12.nc.us; brent1.pasko@cms.k12.nc.us
Welcome SENIORS! I look forward to getting to know you as you begin your final stretch towards graduation and
new horizons. In order to prepare for English, you need to do TWO things this summer. Feel free to email me
with any questions.
1. DRAFT A COLLEGE ESSAY
For this assignment, you are to choose 1 of the 500-word essays required in the application of one of the colleges
you’re interested in. You must bring a completed draft of this essay to class on the very first day, ready to hand in.
Here are some stipulations:
 The draft must be typed, double-spaced, and must be within 50 words of the word-count.
 You must include at the top of the page, the question or prompt, exactly as it is worded in the
application AND the college/university for which it is required.
 Use the standard heading which we’ll continue to use all year. In the upper right hand corner,
type name, date turned in, then class period. Ex:
Summer Whethers
August 27, 2013
B-4th Period
 Your draft should be thoughtful and well-crafted.
2. READ A MEMOIR
For this assignment, you are to choose one of the following memoirs to read. Our first few days of class will be
spent discussing language, voice, and style—elements that you as sophisticated writers should be aware of in your
own work. As you read, first, mark 5 (five) passages that you find particularly eloquent, surprising, unusual,
poetic, or stylistic—ones that are memorable, either because of the ideas they present or the way the writer
presents them.
Next, consider the following: Tobias Wolff, author of the grim memoir This Boy’s Life, wrote, “Memory has its
own story to tell. Memoirists are not writing proper history but rather what they remember of it, or, more
accurately, what they can’t forget.” In view of this quote, and with regard to your text as a whole, respond in 500 750 words to any or all of the following questions: To what extent, if any, is memoir credible? What authority does
it have? In what way does your memoir reveal what it means to be human? Does your memoir reveal the truth?
Should it?
You must bring a copy of the book to class on the first day with your excerpts marked, and with the typed response
in hand. Choose one of the following—there’s something here for everyone! Choose with care and go online or
browse the bookstore/library to help you decide.
Paula
Growing Up
All Over But the Shoutin’
Angela’s Ashes
Reading Lolita in Tehran
When I Was Puerto Rican
The Glass Castle
Black Boy
Memoirs
The Color of Water
The Bell Jar
This Boy’s Life
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
The Bookseller of Kabul
Running With Scissors
The Year of Magical Thinking
A Walk in the Woods
It Happened on the Way to the War
Traveling Mercies
My First Coup D’Etat
Isabel Allende
Russell Baker
Rick Bragg
Frank McCourt
Azar Nafisi
Esmeralda Santiago
Jeanette Wall
Richard Wright
Pablo Neruda
James McBride
Sylvia Plath
Tobias Wolff
Dave Eggers
Asne Seierstad
Augusten Burroughs
Joan Didion
Bill Bryson
Rye Barcott
Anne Lamott
John Dramani Mahama