Book Chat

1. Book Chat

2. What is a Literature Circle? A literature circle is a students' equivalent of an adult book club, but with greater structure, expectation and rigor. The aim is to encourage thoughtful discussion and a love of reading in young people. The true intent of literature circles is "to allow students to practice and develop the skills and strategies of good readers" (DaLie, 2001).

3. The Books Preview the following books and decide which one interests you, challenges you, and you can imagine talking (and writing!) about. All of our novel choices are DYSTOPIAN. We will explore this genre.

4. Divergentby Veronica Roth Summary: The future citizens of Chicago live in a society that is divided into five factions, each one meant to uphold a particular virtue of humanity: Abnegation (the selfless), Amity (the peaceful), Candor (the honest), Dauntless (the brave) and Erudite (the intelligent). On a given day each year, all sixteen-year-olds take an aptitude test that will tell them which faction they are best suited for, after which they must decide whether to remain with their family or transfer to a new faction. Sixteen-year-old Beatrice Prior was born into an Abnegation family, but selflessness has never come naturally to her like it does her brother, Caleb. She feels lonely and constricted by her environment and feels like she doesn't belong. When the time comes for Beatrice to take her aptitude test, the results are inconclusive…

5. Deliriumby Lauren Oliver Summary: They didn’t understand that once love -- the deliria -- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holloway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.

6. Life As We Knew Itby Susan Beth Pfeffer Summary: Miranda's disbelief turns to fear in a split second when a meteor knocks the moon closer to the earth. How should her family prepare for the future when worldwide tsunamis wipe out the coasts, earthquakes rock the continents, and volcanic ash blocks out the sun? As summer turns to Arctic winter, Miranda, her two brothers, and their mother retreat to the unexpected safe haven of their sunroom, where they subsist on stockpiled food and limited water in the warmth of a wood-burning stove. Told in journal entries, this is the heart-pounding story of Miranda's struggle to hold on to the most important resource of all — hope — in an increasingly desperate and unfamiliar world.

7. The Dead and the Goneby Susan Beth Pfeffer Summary: Life as We Knew It enthralled and devastated readers with its brutal but hopeful look at an apocalyptic event—an asteroid hitting the moon, setting off a tailspin of horrific climate changes. Now this harrowing companion novel examines the same events as they unfold in New York City, revealed through the eyes of seventeen-year-old Puerto Rican Alex Morales. When Alex's parents disappear in the aftermath of tidal waves, he must care for his two younger sisters, even as Manhattan becomes a deadly wasteland, and food and aid dwindle.     With haunting themes of family, faith, personal change, and courage, this powerful novel explores how a young man takes on unimaginable responsibilities.

8. Ugliesby Scott Westerfeld Summary: Uglies is set in a future post-scarcity dystopian world in which everyone is turned “Pretty" by extreme cosmetic surgery upon reaching age 16. It tells the story of teenager Tally Youngblood who rebels against society's enforced conformity, after her newfound friends Shay and David show her the downsides to becoming a "Pretty". They show Tally how being a "Pretty" can change not only your look but your personality. It deals with adolescent themes of change, both emotional and physical.

9. All Good Children by Catherine Austen Summary: Quick-witted, prank-pulling graffiti artist Maxwell Connors is more observant than the average New Middletown teenager. And he doesn't like what he sees. New Middletown's children are becoming frighteningly obedient, and their parents and teachers couldn't be happier. As Max and his friend Dallas watch their classmates transform into model citizens, Max wonders if their only hope of freedom lies in the unknown world beyond New Middletown's walls, where creativity might be a gift instead of a liability.

10. The Chrysalids by John Wyndham Summary: Imagine living in a world where an extra toe on a newborn will automatically result in the death of the baby, a pig with more hair than normal will be put down, and corn kernels that are not in perfectly formed rows will necessitate burning an entire field. This is the world of David Strorm, the main character in the novel. As a young child, he often dreamed of a city filled with objects considered fantastical in his world, such as flying machines and carts that move without horses. However, as David grows older, he realizes that he has the ability to communicate telepathically with certain other children. This ability means that David would be considered to be a Blasphemy in his community. David does not understand the severity of such status until he meets Sophie, a girl who was born with an extra toe on each foot. David befriends Sophie and keeps her secret. When her secret is discovered by another boy in the district, Sophie and her family are forced to flee. As a result David realizes that, if his secret is discovered, he will suffer dire consequences… Themes examined in The Chrysalids include the inevitability of change, man’s inhumanity to his fellow man, ignorance, and bigotry. Despite being over 50 years old, the ideas expressed in this science-fiction novel are still timely today. This novel is an excellent reader for individuals who are avid readers of classic science-fiction.