AP Summer Reading Assignment
4 min readJun 8, 2016
Alright! So you have officially signed up for AP Lit. You have taken the first step! Now it’s summer time, the warm air is blowing, the ocean is calling, the birds are singing, and you have no idea what to do for summer reading. Have no fear, seniors, I got you.
I have included the actual assignment page below, but it’s pretty generic, so I wanted to clear up a few things.
- READ. Read closely and carefully. Crawl your way through Catch-22, and laugh along the way. The book is a bit insane, but it’s pretty funny if you’re one who allows him/herself to laugh at literature. Take notes on imagery, dialogue, irony, syntax (no… that doesn’t go away), characterization, irony, humor, hyperbole, ambiguity, and did I mention irony? I always recommend you buy a hard copy of your text. Technology is such a splendid thing in that we have so much at our fingertips. Rather than committing to turning a full sheet of paper, we can simply swipe to the left and BOOM — we got a new page. While this instant swipe can be so satisfying, do not deny yourself the joy of interacting with a bound novel. There is something about highlighting right on the pages, about drawing arrows and question marks and exclamation points. I have literally annotated the word “huh?” in my copy — More than once if I’m being honest. Any annotation is a correct annotation. The point is to have a dialogue with the text, to interact and take control of your reading. This relationship then opens us up to a whole new level of understanding and interpretation. Give it a shot.
- CHOOSE YOUR INDEPENDENT NOVEL AND BLOG YOUR RESPONSES. Ok, so this is the area where I will be introduced to your writing skills and reading responses. No pressure. [insert small chuckle here] In all honesty, you will need to spend some time on your annotations with this reading. While I will not be checking your books to see your notes, I will be reading your responses you post to Medium. I hope you get creative here. I hope you post pictures or videos that may relate to your text or even your reaction to the text. I hope you are specific in your conversation. For example, if something makes you angry, explain why. If a character gives you a haunting or confused or inspired feeling, explain why. I am currently reading 19 books (ok, maybe only 3), and one of them is Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. I ran across a line that read, “Sing now, O Muse, of the recessive mutation on my fifth chromosome! Sing how it bloomed two and a half centuries ago on the slopes of Mt. Olympus…” (4). I freaked. Are you seeing this allusion?? Seriously, I freaked. Eugenides managed to take an ancient Greek rhapsode and make him modern day. In just that line, he characterized his speaker as dramatic, educated, and humorous. By simply alluding to Homer’s epic poem of adventure, he effortlessly created a lighthearted character while foreshadowing the twists and turns this narrator will confront through the epic journey ahead. This is the type of response I want. I want you to provide detail in your responses. Don’t tell me you like something — tell me why you like something. Don’t tell me something is interesting — tell me why it’s interesting. Don’t tell me something was awesome or depressing — tell me why something is… ok, we get the point? Quotes from the text are welcomed and encouraged.
- ENJOY. I know summer reading is not on your top ten list of fun summer activities, but I hope that you can find a bit of fun in your reading. Take your books with you to the beach or on your road trip; talk to each other or others about what you are reading. I really can’t express how excited I am to get this class started. AP Lit will challenge you, but it will also help you craft your voice in your writing, the classroom, and even the world. Again, if you have any questions or comments along the way, don’t hesitate to contact me. I am more than happy to provide whatever assistance I can. Happy reading, seniors!
