Summer Reading List

[IceM]

Look, I know there's a thread on the forums already discussing summer classics to read; but if you actually browse through the thread, you'll notice people post book titles and author names with little to no explanation of why such is a valid title.

I need something different.

I'm a 16, soon to be 17 year-old who loves reading yet has little time to do so. For the 2010 summer I've already compiled a list of 10 books I hope to complete in my 64 days of summer vacation; some are for the upcoming English 12 AP class, some for Academic Decathlon, and others for the sake of expanding my literature horizons. But I need help. In my limited scope of literature I'd either overthink the books to read from limited knowledge of authors or read overrated titles for the sake of completing my task, and I'd prefer neither. Where you excellent posters come in handy is this: I'm posting below the list of 10 books I plan on reading. Some MUST be completed. Others are just thoughts. I'd like whomever comes to my aid to personalize what I should read. Excluding the books I MUST read, choose books you think I should read solely because they're great reads. Here's the list.

Grapes of Wrath: Must read for Decathlon
Wuthering Heights: Must read for English 12 AP
Re-read Slaughter-House Five: Must read for essay competition.
Cosmocomics: My choice
Cat's Cradle: My choice
Great Gatsby: My choice
House of the Dead: My choice
Catch-22: My choice
Walden: My choice
The Age of Innocence: My choice.

Excluding the top three must-reads, choose which books I should read over summer. Please consider length, as I probably won't be able to read War and Peace or Anna Karenina that quickly.

Also, provide a couple sentences on why I should read those please. I don't really want to walk in blind with a novel.

Thank you,
IceM

[*Classic*Charm*]

Try Cosmicomics- it'll teach you not to think so hard :wink5:

[qimissung]

You sound awfully urgent, and I'm concerned about your use of the word "should" where books and reading are concerned. It's a very worthy list you have compiled, and if you are interested in reading these books, beyond the ones you must read, then I think you should. :)

[wokeem]

I would highly recommend Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky. It's not terribly long, I finished it within a couple of days (and I'm a somewhat slow reader). It's definitely one of my favorite books of all time, very difficult to put down, and is just fascinating when it comes to portraying the psychological mindset of a killer.

Edit: It looks like you're a Vonnegut fan! I would have to recommend Breakfast of Champions as well, it's my favorite of his works.

[dfloyd]

Crime and Punishment , No! Unless the poster is very precoscious. I doubt if John F. Kennedy, who was a 1,000 words a minute speed reader, could read C&P in two days.

[wokeem]

Haha well, it was under a week. 2 days may have been pushing it a bit on second thought. :biggrin5:

[Leland Gaunt]

1984 by George Orwell-always engaging
The Republic by Plato-can never go wrong with philosophy
Candide by Voltaire-gets it point across in the most melodramatic of fashions
Dracula by Bram Stoker-nice to read the original (that is if you enjoy horror)
Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke- short but poignant
The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams-amusing to no end
Che: A Revolutionary Life by Jon Lee Anderson-brings the legend to a very human level

I will be borrowing a few of the books off your list and add them to mine. Quite a few interesting selections.

[mystery_spell]

Grapes of Wrath: Must read for Decathlon
Wuthering Heights: Must read for English 12 AP
Re-read Slaughter-House Five: Must read for essay competition.
Cosmocomics: My choice
Cat's Cradle: My choice
Great Gatsby: My choice
House of the Dead: My choice
Catch-22: My choice
Walden: My choice
The Age of Innocence: My choice.

The books that you have to read over the summer definitely aren't so bad, especially since you've already read Slaughterhouse Five. Wuthering Heights gets started off a little slowly, but, while reading it, you should appreciate the complexity of the story as well as the way that Bronte writes. It's a beautiful love story on it's simplest level.

The Great Gatsby is a relatively short, pleasant read. It's one of my favorite books that I read during my high school years. It's a nice novel to read poolside or at the beach.

Catch-22 is a classic and one that's bound to help you in the future and on your AP exams. I've never read it myself; however, it's definitely on my list.

I don't think you could go wrong with Cat's Cradle, The Age of Innocence, or Walden. It depends what sort of mood you're in and how much time you end up having. Choose one of those and couple it with Gatsby and Catch-22 as well as your three must-reads, and you have a nice summer reading list.

If you're looking for suggestions that aren't on your list already, I would go with J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, or Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar because they're all relatively short but incredibly interesting reads that really draw you into the story, so you can't put the novel down.

Hope this helps and that you enjoy your summer reading!