Dream High School Reading List

          Hello Book Nerds!

          As a college student majoring in English Literature with a Secondary Education Emphasis, I've often dreamed about creating book lists for High School curriculums.  So here is an opportunity for me to do so!  I've included books that my teachers had us read (both the ones I liked and the ones I disliked but learned a lot from) plus the ones I wish we'd studied.  I know this list is overly optimistic about the amount of time a High School English class would be allowed to allot to reading, but I can dream!  So without further or do, from Freshman year to Senior year, here is my dream High School reading list!

FRESHMAN YEAR:

1.  A Midsummer Night's Dream
(By William Shakespeare)

A unit on Shakespeare is just what is needed to start a high school experience off right.  So many students are taught from a young age that Shakespeare is extremely dull and difficult.  Proving them wrong and giving them a glimpse of how much fun Shakespeare can be is beneficial and will add to their reading skills.  Nearly all students will have to study Shakespeare at some point in their schooling career.  This play is a wonderful starting point.

2.  Romeo and Juliet
(By William Shakespeare)

Though I am not shy about my dislike of this particular play, it is unfortunately considered a classic.  I will admit that it has some literary merit, despite my dislike of it, and I know many people enjoy it.  Therefore I have added it to our Shakespeare unit.

3.  Much Ado About Nothing
(By William Shakespeare)
This is my all-time favorite Shakespeare play!  I know it is not as complex as many of his works, but Beatrice and Benedick are two of my favorite literary characters.  I love their witty banter!

4.  Shakespeare's Sonnets
(By William Shakespeare)

This would be a good way to transition into a poetry unit after Thanksgiving.  Perhaps there could even be a project to create a gift of poetry for a Christmas present.

5.  A Christmas Carol
(By Charles Dickens)

One of the best Christmas stories ever written!  This would be a nice one to have everyone take turns reading out loud.

6.  The Outsiders
(By S. E. Hinton)

Many students who dislike reading have been known to love this particular book.  I will not say I completely understand why, but anything to get more teenagers reading.

7.  Lord of the Flies
(By William Golding)

The book is very educational on the idea of a world without rules.  It is an interesting exploration of how a society, social classes, and superstitions are created.  I remember having an enjoyable time completing a project on this unit.  Others decided to created maps of the island, write poems, or to build game boards based off the characters and plot.  I chose to write a sequel to the book.  It was meant to be only a few pages long, but my over-achiever side took over and in the end it was somewhere around thirty pages.  I've never written horror before, and there were times that I scared myself while writing that story.

8.  The Hunger Games
(By Suzanne Collins)

I'm sure many people are surprised to see this book on the list.  However, I have several good reasons.  For one thing, I have a friend who's mother had her students do a unit on the book and it turned out very well.  Since it is such a popular series it is another great opportunity to convert teenagers into at least mild book lovers.  As for the literary merit, I think it would be absolutely fascinating to have discussions comparing the Hunger Games to today's social media and the gladiatorial games of ancient history.

9.  To Kill a Mockingbird
(By Harper Lee)

A wonderful classic!  A nice long book to end the year on.  Since Harper Lee is writing a sequel many students might be interested enough to add it to their summer reading list.  Watching the movie adaptation would be a good treat right before summer.  

SOPHOMORE YEAR:

1.  Animal Farm
(By George Orwell)
A shorter book full of amazing symbolism to start the year off.  It's a good classic to help study the genre of dystopian fiction.  I remember having this as required summer reading for my advanced English class.  I wish we'd come back and had more discussions about the political and societal themes in the book.  This would be a fun book to do some sort of art project with.

2.  Speak
(By Laurie Halse Anderson)
Speak is a young adult novel about a high school girl who's ostracized by her peers.  As a result she nearly stops talking all together and we get a good look at her internal thoughts during the school year.  The themes deal with some tough issues, but it's a book that just might convince students suffering from similar troubles to get help.  It also might draw the sympathy of potential bullies and show them that they can't know what kind of horrible things their victims have been through to make them the way they are.

3.  Hamlet
(By William Shakespeare)
What High School curriculum would be complete without this play?  My Senior English teacher had us watch a filmed version of the play to help us understand some of the subtler themes.  It's also a good one to read out loud.

4.  As You Like It
(By William Shakespeare)
To continue the mini-Shakespeare unit, we have my second favorite of Shakespeare's plays.  With the great mix of comedy and deep characters, I'd have the class read it out loud with each of them reading a part.

5.  Anne of Green Gables
(By Lucy Maud Montgomery)
I know this isn't usually on any of the curriculum, but this would be the perfect book for studying character.  There people in the story are so different and have such deep motivations and backgrounds that the students could probably pick one and write a whole essay on them.  Just think about the complexities of Marilla's character.  And come on!  Who can say no to that spunky, imaginative, red-headed Anne "with an 'e'"?

6.  The Hound of the Baskervilles
(By Arthur Conan Doyle)
Since Doyle was famous for hating his most famous creation of Sherlock Holmes.  It'd be interesting to do practice writing a research paper on this unwilling author.  Either that or it would be a good opportunity to do a genre study on mysteries and how the Sherlock stories both fit into it and influenced it.

7.  Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Speckled Band
(By Arthur Conan Doyle)
Doyle's Sherlock stories made a big impact on modern forensics and having two of them to compare would be very educational for the students.  (Plus this is one of my favorite Sherlock short stories.)

8.  Uncle Tom's Cabin
(By Harriet Beecher Stowe)
Here's a nice long classic to end the year with.  I'd make sure that we focused on the fascinating historical background of the book, as well as the huge influence it had once it was published.  The students could apply many of the things they'd learned over the year.

JUNIOR YEAR:

1.  Fahrenheit 451
(By Ray Bradbury)
Don't burn the books!  Since junior year can be so busy and exhausting, here's a little reminder for the students about what life might be like without books.  This dystopian story will remind them to be thankful for our freedom to think for ourselves.

2.  The Importance of Being Earnest
(By Oscar Wilde)
Okay, this is one of my absolute favorite pieces of literature!  The amazing satire and ridiculous antics of the characters never fail to make me laugh.  It's a wonderful one to be read out loud.

3.  And Then There Were None
(By Agatha Christie)
Just in time for Halloween, we get to read a tale by one of the best who-done-it writers of all time.  It might be an interesting study in character motives.

4.  Macbeth
(By William Shakespeare)
I know.  More Shakespeare.  But there are certain pieces that everyone should read at some point because Shakespeare is referenced so often in our culture today.  Macbeth is a great story that discusses the debate of fate versus choice.

5.  Little Women
(By Louisa May Alcott)
Many young men might groan when they see this on the book list, an unfair prejudice based solely on the title and the fact that the main characters are women.  It is one of the best stories of growing up and family ever written.  Both male and female readers can benefit greatly from this book.

6.  Little Men
(By Louisa May Alcott)
Little Women's sequel will at the very least make the boys stop complaining about the name.  However the themes are just as potent and beautifully executed.  Students will be able to compare and contrast the two books.  The broad range of character types in both books will ensure that all of the students have someone to identify with.

7.  The Book Thief
(By Markus Zusak)
This book is a great opportunity to examine the concept of the narrator.  For those of you who don't know, the novel is narrated by Death.  The power of words is an important theme in this World War II book about a foster child living in Germany.

8.  Pilgrim's Progress
(By John Bunyan)
Since this book is mentioned in Little Women, it's a good way to help clear up any questions.  It's also a wonderful study of analogy.


SENIOR:

1.   Of Mice and Men
(By John Steinbeck)
A sobering and moving classic, whether read in the play or the book version.  Another good study of characters.

2.  The Screwtape Letters
(By C.S. Lewis)
Screwtape, a demonic figure, writes letters full of detailed advice to Wormwood on how to undermine the Christian faith and promote sin in this complex and fascinating tale by C.S. Lewis.

3.  Pride and Prejudice
(By Jane Austen)
Nothing can rival the wit and brilliance of Austen's characters and lively plots.  The way she portrays the intricate interactions and relationships is definitely worthy of deeper study.  I dare any male student to scoff at the girlishness of this book after I'm done teaching it!

4.  The Odyssey
(By Homer)
Though this book is long and complicated, it's a wonderful reference for seniors to have under their belts for when they move on to college.  Students can study the Greek gods alongside this book, which are mentioned in hundreds if not thousands of other pieces of literature.

5.  The Oedipus Cycle
(By Sophocles)
A right proper Greek tragedy.  The concept of choruses and other aspects of Greek theater can be studied though this depressing yet classic tale.

6.  Jane Eyre
(By Charlotte Bronte)
Jane Eyre is often considered to be on top of the list of most influential and strong literary females of all time right next to Hermione Granger.  Along with themes of feminism and a look at class systems, Bronte gives us a heroine who has such a respect for herself that she's willing to give up everything in order to stay true to herself.

7.  The Hobbit
(By J.R.R. Tolkien)
I think this would be a great treat to end the year and high school in general with.  There are plenty of great literary merits and interesting lessons to be got from this book.  But more than anything, it's a good reminder that reading for pleasure can be extremely fun as well as beneficial.

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          There we are!  Four entire years of reading!  Hopefully this would make proper, lifelong bookworms out of them!  

          Here is a quick list of books that I was forced to read or that are popular in curriculums that I intentionally didn't include for one reason or another:

1. Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
2. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
3. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
4. The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald
5. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
6. A Separate Peace by John Knowles
7. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer 
8. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
9. The Pearl by John Steinbeck
10. Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
11. My Antonia by Willa Cather
12. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

          Thoughts?  Opinions?  Books you liked?  Books you didn't?  Books you though I should have included?

Sincerely, 

The Crazy Book Lady