Sophomore Booktalks

1. Sophomore Booktalks Fall 2011

2. Period 1

3. Important Information Books checked out today are due _________ World Literature often contains themes of war and oppression. By its very nature, literature derived from cultures that are much different than ours may contain some information and imagery that will shock audiences in the US. If you have objections (or believe your parents will have objections) to certain types of materials, please be sure to let your teacher and/or Mrs. Will know so that you can get a book that will be just right for you. Please keep in mind that what one student finds offensive might be perfectly appropriate for another student.

4. Three Cups of Tea • One man's campaign to build schools in the most dangerous, remote, and anti-American reaches of Asia.

5. Curse of the ChupaCabraby Rudolfo Anaya • Professor Rosa Medina, a folklorist researching the ChupaCabra, goes to Mexico to track down recent sightings of the creature which kills its victims, particularly goats, by sucking their brains out.

6. Tropical Secretsby Margarita Engle • Escaping from Nazi Germany to Cuba in 1939, a young Jewish refugee dreams of finding his parents again, befriends a local girl with painful secrets of her own, and discovers that the Nazi darkness is never far away.

7. Romeo’s Ex: Rosaline’s Storyby Lisa Fielder • In a story based on the Shakespeare play, sixteen-year-old Roseline, who is studying to be a healer, becomes romantically entangled with the Montague family even as her beloved young cousin, Juliet Capulet, defies the family feud to secretly marry Romeo.

8. Pharaoh’s Daughterby Julius Lester • A fictionalized account of a Biblical story in which an Egyptian princess rescues a Hebrew infant who becomes a prophet of his people while his sister finds her true self as a priestess to the Egyptian gods..

9. Everything Asianby Sung J. Woo • Young David Kim reunites with the father he has not seen in five years while working in the family strip-mall gift shop, an endeavor during which he harbors a secret shame about what he believes to be his father's character flaws.

10. Spudby John van de Ruit • In 1990, thirteen-year-old John "Spud" Milton, a prepubescent choirboy, keeps a diary of his first year at an elite, boys-only boarding school in South Africa, as he deals with bizarre housemates, wild crushes, embarrassingly dysfunctional parents, and much more..

11. Waiting for Odysseusby Clemence McLaren • Presents the story of Odysseus's epic journey through the eyes of his faithful wife Penelope, the sorceress Circe, the goddess Athena, and his old nanny Eurycleia.

12. Hiroshima Dreamsby Kelly Easton • Description: Lin O'Neil, a talented but shy girl growing up in Providence, Rhode Island, develops a close relationship with her Japanese grandmother, who shares Lin's gift of precognition.

13. Oh. My. Gods.by Tera Lynn Childs • When her mother marries a man from Greece and moves the family onto an island in the Aegean Sea, Phoebe's life takes an unexpected turn when she discovers that her new classmates at her exclusive academy are all descendants of real Greek gods--and her very real competition on the track team!.

14. A Thousand Splendid Sunsby KhaledHosseini • Two women born a generation apart witness the destruction of their home and family in wartorn Kabul, losses incurred over the course of thirty years that test the limits of their strength and courage

15. 2nd Period

16. Important Information • Books checked out today are due January 6th • World Literature often contains themes of war and oppression. By its very nature, literature derived from cultures that are much different than ours may contain some information and imagery that will shock audiences in the US. If you have objections (or believe your parents will have objections) to certain types of materials, please be sure to let your teacher and/or Mrs. Will know so that you can get a book that will be just right for you. Please keep in mind that what one student finds offensive might be perfectly appropriate for another student.

17. Quicksilverby Stephanie Spinner • Hermes, Prince of Thieves and son of Zeus, relates why the seasons change, the history of the Trojan War, his friendship with Pegasus, and many more adventures.

18. God Grew Tired of Usby John Buldau • The harrowing consequences and horrors of the Sudanese civil war come to life in an inspirational, eyewitness account that describes one man's experiences, from the terror and violence of his homeland, to his tortuous escape, to the culture shock he experienced as he struggled to adjust to a new life in America.

19. My Swordhand is Singingby Marcus Sedgwick • In the dangerous dark of winter in an Eastern European village during the early seventeenth century, Peter learns from a gypsy girl that the Shadow Queen is behind the recent murders and reanimations, and his father's secret past may hold the key to stopping her.

20. Shanghai Shadowsby Lois Ruby • From 1939 to 1945, a Jewish family struggles to survive in occupied China; young Ilse by remaining optimistic, her older brother by joining a resistance movement, her mother by maintaining connections to the past, and her father by playing the violin that had been his livelihood.

21. Radiant Darknessby Emily Whitman • Persephone runs off to the Underworld with Hades, with whom she has fallen in love, but when her mother Demeter threatens to destroy the earth to save her, Persephone finds a way to come back once a year, bringing Spring

22. Habibiby Naomi Shihab Nye • When fourteen-year-old Liyanna, her younger brother, and her parents move from St. Louis to a new home between Jerusalem and the Palestinian village where her father was born, they face many changes and must deal with the tensions between Jews and Palestinians.

23. Heaven of Drumsby Ana Gloria Moya • During the Argentine struggle for independence, national hero Manuel Belgrano lives through political and personal intrigue amid racial discrimination while harboring his own contempt for Rivas, a wealthy Spanish businessman who is haunted by his lover Maria's adoration for Belgrano.

24. Waiting: A Novel of Uganda at Warby GorettiKyomuhendo • Alinda and her family experience fear, violence, and terror when the army invades their town while trying to escape rebel troops.

25. Nobody’s Princessby Esther Friesner • Determined to fend for herself in a world where only men have real freedom, headstrong Helen, who will be called queen of Sparta and Helen of Troy one day, learns to fight, hunt, and ride horses while disguised as a boy, and goes on an adventure throughout the Mediterranean world.

26. Koyal Dark, Mango Sweetby KashmiraSheth • Growing up with her family in Mumbai, India, sixteen-year-old Jeeta disagrees with much of her mother's traditional advice about how to live her life and tries to be more modern and independent.

27. Chenxi and the Foreignerby Sally Rippin • When Anna, an Australian art student, moves to Shanghai for her studies, she feels alienated as a foreigner until she befriends Chenxi, her fellow student and guide, and becomes entangled in his political activism.

28. Here’s to You, Jesusa!by Elena Poniatowska • A story set against seminal events in twentieth-century Mexican history follows JesusaPalancares de Aguilar from her childhood, through her role in the Mexican Revolution and difficult marriage, to her post-revolutionary criminal career.

29. Purple Hibiscusby ChimandaNgoziAdichie • Growing up in a wealthy Nigerian home with a tyrannical father, Kambili and her brother, find happiness during a visit to their Aunty Ifeoma, but as Kambili enjoys her freedom and falls in love, the country begins to fall under a military coup.

30. Anila’s Journeyby Mary Finn • In late eighteenth-century Calcutta, half-Indian half-Irish Anila Tandy finds herself alone with nothing but her artistic talent to rely on, searching for her father who is presumed dead.

31. Period 3

32. Important Information • Books checked out today are due _________ • World Literature often contains themes of war and oppression. By its very nature, literature derived from cultures that are much different than ours may contain some information and imagery that will shock audiences in the US. If you have objections (or believe your parents will have objections) to certain types of materials, please be sure to let your teacher and/or Mrs. Will know so that you can get a book that will be just right for you. Please keep in mind that what one student finds offensive might be perfectly appropriate for another student.

33. Sphinx’s Princessby Esther Friesner • Although she is a dutiful daughter, Nefertiti's dancing abilities, remarkable beauty, and intelligence garner attention near and far, so much so that her family is summoned to the Egyptian royal court, where Nefertiti becomes a pawn in the power play of her scheming aunt, Queen Tiye.

34. Zoya’s Story • Follows the experiences of a 23-year-old member of the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan who witnessed the rise of the Taliban and risked her life to challenge the edicts against women in her country.

35. Mountains Beyond Mountainsby Tracy Kidder • A portrait of infectious disease expert Dr. Paul Farmer follows the efforts of this unconventional Harvard genius to understand the world's great health, economic, and social problems and to bring healing to humankind.

36. Once on a Moonless Nightby Dai Sijie • Presents the story of the search for an ancient silk scroll inscribed with a lost Buddhist sutra, and one woman's search for her lost love.

37. Gringolandiaby Lyn Miller-Lachmann • In 1986, when seventeen-year-old Daniel's father arrives in Madison, Wisconsin, after five years of torture as a political prisoner in Chile, Daniel and his eighteen-year-old "gringa" girlfriend, Courtney, use different methods to help this bitter, self-destructive stranger who yearns to return home and continue his work.

38. The Time it Snowed in Puerto Ricoby Sarah McCoy • It is 1961 and Puerto Rico is trapped in a tug-of-war between those who want to stay connected to the United States and those who are fighting for independence. Verdita has always been safe and secure in her sleepy mountain town, but she must find the strength to decide what sort of woman she'll become.

39. Absent a Miracleby Christine Lehner • Losing her dream job as a radio talk-show host, New Yorker Alice Fairweather takes a spelunking vacation with her family and ailing dog but finds the venture challenged by a family friend's effort to get his aunt canonized, a new friendship with an eccentric hagiographer, and an impulsive trip to Nicaragua.

40. Wanting Morby Rukhsana Khan • Based on a true story, Jameela, a young girl living in war-torn Afghanistan, must struggle to find her place in the world after her mother dies and she is moved to Kabul with her drunken father

41. Swift as Desireby Laura Esquivel • Jublio is a telegraph operator and interpretor until the telegraph becomes obsolete. Now Jublio lies on his deathbed, mute and estranged from his wife. The daughter must figure out how to begin communication again between her parents and make them see that keeping secrets always leads to unhappiness.

42. The Smileby Donna Jo Napoli • In Renaissance Italy, Elisabetta longs for romance, and when Leonardo da Vinci introduces her to Guiliano de Medici, whose family rules Florence but is about to be deposed, she has no inkling of the romance--and sorrow--that will ensue.

43. Period 4

44. Important Information • Books checked out today are due _________ • World Literature often contains themes of war and oppression. By its very nature, literature derived from cultures that are much different than ours may contain some information and imagery that will shock audiences in the US. If you have objections (or believe your parents will have objections) to certain types of materials, please be sure to let your teacher and/or Mrs. Will know so that you can get a book that will be just right for you. Please keep in mind that what one student finds offensive might be perfectly appropriate for another student.

45. Things I’ve Been Silent Aboutby AzarNafisi • A memoir offers a portrait of the author's family and childhood in Iran, centered around her powerful mother and her manipulative fictions about herself, as she reflects on women's choices and her own struggle to free herself from her mother's influence.

46. My Life as Emperorby Su Tong • A naive fourteen-year-old prince finds himself unexpectedly named as emperor of an entire nation and is shaped by the power, cruelty, decadence, and intrigues of the royal court.

47. Keeping Cornerby KashmiraSheth • In India during World War I, thirteen-year-old Leela's happy, spoiled childhood ends when her husband since age nine, whom she barely knows, dies, leaving her a widow whose only hope of happiness could come from Mahatma Ghandi's social and political reforms.

48. Peony in Loveby Lisa See • In seventeenth-century China, three women become emotionally involved with "The Peony Pavilion," a famed opera rumored to cause lovesickness and even death.

49. Measuring Timeby HelonHabila • LaMamo and Mamo are separated when LaMamo escapes to pursue his dream of becoming a soldier, but when religious zealots incite the people to violence, he returns home to battle the enemy and to be reunited with his twin brother.

50. The Falconer’s Knotby Mary Hoffman • Silvano and Chiara, teens sent to live in a friary and a nunnery in Renaissance Italy, are drawn to one another and dream of a future together, but when murders are committed in the friary, they must discover who is behind the crimes before they can realize their love.