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sladkaya

the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes 'awww!'

Wednesday, February 1

life changers

i'm going to be teaching this AP English course next year, which consists mainly of reading works of fiction, discussing, and writing papers. i'm trying to think of what books i will teach since, as i understand, it's completely up to me. how is an english teacher supposed to pick several books out of thousands that i love? i'm thinking crime and punishment, song of solomon, grapes of wrath, light in august, hamlet, but the list goes on. i want to do some contemporaries, like a heartbreaking work of staggering genius, but i really can't pick.
so i thought i'd find out what books YOU would teach, were you doing an AP class, or at least, what books have been most influential for you, or which ones you think prepared you for college the best.

posted by sladkaya @ 13:54  

5 Comments:

  • At 01 February, 2006 16:42, Blogger Hubs said…

    Chinua Achebe: Things Fall Apart

     

  • At 01 February, 2006 16:56, Blogger LuccyM33 said…

    Vonegut? no...too much for the small town kids.

    Hesse? no...too deep for high school.

    I know...9 stories by J.D. Salinger

    its broken down into nine stories, so your students won't be intimidated by a long read.

    (and it kicks ass)

    I LOVe the idea of HWSG. No. I haven't finished it yet. Maybe one of your students can read it for me and give me the ending.

     

  • At 01 February, 2006 17:55, Blogger Camille said…

    I second the Things Fall Apart nomination. I read that in high school and its good to get a persective on literature that isn't just American or European. Give me like a week and I could find my syllabus from my AP English class from high school, you know how much of a pack rat I am. I just can't seem to remember everything we read... definately King Lear, probably some Mark Twain, a novel called The River Why by David James Duncan which if you haven't read it yet then I have failed you as a friend, hm... so many good things to choose from! You know that to this day AP English was one of my most challenging classes ever and the teacher I had, Mrs. Rowan, saying she was my favorite teacher ever doesn't even begin to explain. I'm so excited you get to teach that class. God, have I ranted enough on this topic? :)

     

  • At 01 February, 2006 18:01, Blogger ceci n'est pas said…

    the brothers karamazov

    for whom the bell tolls

    the plague (or heart of darkness)

    leaves of grass

    walden

    franny and zooey

     

  • At 02 February, 2006 07:46, Blogger sladkaya said…

    i think if i had to choose one russian novel, it'd be crime and punishment. it reads like a suspense novel, yet the writing is amazing, and i like the discussion topic of why dostoevsky changed his original form of writing in the first person (re: the murder scene). though, brothers karamazov is amazing. i'm starting master and margarita, my FAVORITE novel ever (anyone wanna read my thesis??) with my book club, so we'll see how that one fares with these kids. there are so many different levels.
    like the leaves of grass nomination, too.
    and since Things Fall Apart has been noted by two people, i'm going to have to check that one out now.
    thanks all!

     

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