Summer Reading at Rivers

To create a shared literary experience in the community, Rivers requires its students to participate in a summer reading program.
To create a shared literary experience in the community, Rivers requires its students to participate in a summer reading program. The books listed below, by department and class, are required for students and will be discussed and written about in their classes in the fall.

ALL UPPER SCHOOL BOOK

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon

The goal of this all-Upper School required reading is to create a shared literary experience for all Upper School students, teachers, and advisors, one that will allow us a wide range of follow-up opportunities next fall. All students are expected to complete this book by the start of the 2005-2006 academic year. Hopefully, this selection will be an entertaining, enriching read.

ENGLISH DEPARTMENT

Grade 9

The Color of Water, by James McBride

12 Angry Men, by Reginald Rose (and watch the Henry Fonda film)

Grade 9 Honors

The Power of One, by Bryan Courtenay

Eleni, by Nicholas Gage

12 Angry Men, by Reginald Rose (and watch the Henry Fonda film)

Grade 10

The Bean Trees, by Barbara Kingsolver

A Lesson Before Dying, by Ernest Gaines

Grade 10 Honors

A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving

A Separate Peace, by John Knowles

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, by Dai Sijie

Grade 11

Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson(Required)

You must read one of the following books in addition:

The Color Purple, by Alice Walker or

The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold or

A Farewell to Arms, by Ernest Hemingway

Grade 11 AP

Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson

Huck Finn, by Mark Twain (Penguin Edition)

East of Eden, by John Steinbeck (Penguin Edition)

Grade 12 AP

Atonement, by Ian McEwan

The God of Small Things, by Arundhati Roy

Henry V, by Shakespeare (and watch the Branaugh film)

Grade 12 Electives

Psychological Literature: The Lottery and Other Stories, by Shirley Jackson (Farrar ed. ISBN 0-374-51681-2)

Journalistic Writing: All the President’s Men, by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward

Autobiography: Angela’s Ashes, by Frank McCourt

Literature of Moral Conflict: Catch-22, by Joseph Heller

Expository Writing: Best American Essays of the Century, ed. Robert Atwan (ISBN 0-618-15587-2)

You must read the essays by these writers: Twain, James, Hemingway, Hurston, Stein, Frost, Baldwin, Herr, Thomas, and Early. Also read five other essays of your choice in this text.

HISTORY DEPARTMENT

AP U.S. History

Undaunted Courage, by Stephen Ambrose

LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT

Latin II Honors

Art of Nemesis, by Stephen Saylor

Latin III Honors

Catilina’s Riddle, by Stephen Saylor

Latin IV Honors

Venus Throw, by Stephen Saylor

Latin V Advanced Placement

The Aeneid, translation by Allen Mandelbaum

French III Honors

Le Petit Nicolas et les Copains, Continental Book Company

French IV Honors

Cinq Contes, by Guy de Maupassant, Continental Book Company

French V Advanced Placement

Les Fourberies de Scapin, by Moliere, Continental Book Company

Spanish II Honors

Pásalo bomba Packet (prepared by Rivers Spanish teachers, available in the Rivers bookstore)

Spanish III Honors

Lazarillo de Tormes, EMC Publishing

Spanish IV Honors

Congreso en Granada, to be mailed after purchase in Spain.

Spanish V Advanced Placement

Don Quijote de la Mancha, Primera parte y Segunda parte, EMC Publishing

MIDDLE SCHOOL

As part of the Middle School curriculum, students must read extensively for pleasure. Students should remember to keep track of what they’ve read and remember to turn in their form on the first day of classes.

In addition, Middle School students must choose and read one book from the following list:

The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread, by Kate Dicamillo

A Mango Shaped Space, by Wendy Mass

The Bomb, by Theodore Taylor

Maus, by Art Spiegelman

Detectives in Togas & Mystery of the Roman Ransom, by Henry Winterfeld (Note: Both books must be read with this choice.)

Hatchet, by Gary Paulsen

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by J. K. Rowling

The Man Who Counted: A Collection of Mathematical Adventures, by Malba Tahan

Life of Pi, by Yann Martel

The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold

The Pearl, by John Steinbeck

Nory Ryan’s Song, by Patricia Reilly Giff

The Sea of Trolls, by Nancy Farmer

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, by Mark Haddon

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