Summer Reading Choices

1. Summer Reading Choices for incoming RAHS 9th graders

2. Why read on summer break? • A 2006 study of ACT results showed that what makes some students ready for college (and others not ready) is an ability tounderstand difficult literature. • At RAHS, we want all of our students to be ready for college! • Therefore, ALL RAHS STUDENTS need to pick at least TWO books from the summer reading lists to stay in the practice of academic reading!

3. How do I choose? • It doesn’t matter which two titles you pick. Ask your English teacher what might be good choices for you. • There will be opportunities throughout your 9th grade English class to use this in writing and analysis work. • The following choices are in order of reading level (easiest to most difficult)– pick one you think you CAN read, but also make sure it’s one you WILL enjoy!

4. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian By Sherman Alexie This novel details 14-year-old Arnold “Junior’s” life on the Spokane Indian Reservation and his decision, upon encouragement from his high school teacher, to go to an all-white public high school in the off-reservation town of Reardan, Washington. The novel has 65 comic illustrations which sometimes act as punchlines while also revealing Arnold’s character and furthering the plot.

5. Black and White By Paul Volponi Marcus and Eddie are best friends who found the strength to break through the racial barrier. Marcus is black; Eddie is white. Stars of their school basketball team, they are true leaders who look past the stereotypes and come out on top. They are inseparable, watching each other’s backs, both on and off the basketball court. But one night– and one wrong decision– will change their lives forever.

6. Four Miles to Pinecone By Jon Hassler Tom Barry’s summer starts off bad and only gets worse. He not only has to write a paper during the summer, but he sees his best friend rob a store. He doesn’t tell a soul about it, but then later in the summer, at his uncle’s resort in the Minnesota woods, Tom becomes part of something much worse. The stakes are higher and this time his life is on the line.

7. The Hunger Games By Suzanne Collins 16-year-old KatnissEverdeen lives with her mother and young sister. She regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister’s place in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. But for Katniss, survival is second nature and without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. If she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh life against love.

8. The Secret Life of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd Set in South Carolina in 1964, this novel tells the story of Lily Owens whose mother was killed when Lily was very young. When her black “stand-in mother” insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily decides to spring them both free. This is a remarkable novel about divine female power and the bond between mothers and daughters.

9. Bless Me, Ultima By Rudolfo Anaya Set in the small town of Guadalupe, New Mexico, Antonio Marez y Luna (Tony) tells his story from the memories of his adult self, who reflects on his growing up. This is a tale of good and evil, of life and death, of myth and reality that challenges young Tony’s beliefs about God, his family and his destiny. His progress in learning about life is grounded in Ultima, an aged and wise member of the community who passes on her wisdom and knowledge to Tony.

10. The Hobbit By J.R.R. Tolkien Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum, and the spectacular world of Middle-earth recounts of the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent.

11. The Warrior’s Heart By Eric Greitens An adaptation of his best-selling memoir, Eric Greitens details his evolution from average kid to globe-traveling humanitarian to warrior, training and serving with the most elite military outfit in the world: the Navy SEALs. Along the way, readers will be asked to consider the power of choices, of making the decision each and every day to act with courage and compassion so that they’ll grow to be tomorrow’s heroes.

12. Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon By Steve Sheinkin In December of 1938, a chemist in a German laboratory made a shocking discovery: When placed next to radioactive material, a Uranium atom split in two. That simple discovery launched a scientific race that spanned 3 continents. In Great Britain and the United States, Soviet spies worked their way into the scientific community; in Norway, a commando force slipped behind enemy lines to attack German heavy-water manufacturing; and deep in the desert, one brilliant group of scientists was hidden away at a remote site at Los Alamos. This is the story of the plotting, the risk-taking, the deceit, and genius that created the world's most formidable weapon. This is the story of the atomic bomb.

13. As you read, please consider (and take notes on) the following: • What repetitions or patterns can you find in the book? • What life lessons does the book teach? • What motivates the specific characters? • Choose a passage (2-10 pages) you think is significant and explain its importance. • Keep track of questions you have as you read.