2016 Summer Reading/Thinking Assignment
for Incoming 10th Grade Pre-AP English II Students
(This includes ALL Pre-AP English II and AGS students)
Why do we have a summer reading assignment?
The key to being a great reader is to read extensively, and the key to being a great writer is exposure to great writing.
Reading is not something that we want you to do just during the school year; life-long learners are also life-long readers.
Summer provides time to enjoy uninterrupted reading and allows students to digest ideas prior to discussing and
interpreting writing techniques in class.
The Novel
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
ISBN: 978-1841954257
This book should be available at most local bookstores including Half Price Books. If you foresee any difficulty in
purchasing a copy of the book, please talk to your 9th grade teacher before the end of the year—we have a limited
supply of copies that we can loan to students.
Why have my teachers selected this novel?
English II is based on world literature, so we’ve selected a novel in which the protagonist explores multiple religions and,
quite literally, journeys the world (it just so happens that his mode of transportation is a lifeboat and his traveling
companion is a tiger). Life of Pi introduces some of the big ideas of our course: truth and fiction, heroes, journeys,
storytelling, culture, etc. Completing the summer reading assignment means you’ll be ready to jump into the curriculum
on Day 1!
The Assignment
Step 1: Read and enjoy the book!
Step 2: Answer the following three analysis questions. Support each answer with evidence from the text (partial
quotations embedded into your sentences). Each answer should be a thoughtful, well-written, and detailed paragraph.
Analysis Questions (answer all three):
1. A sign in the Pondicherry zoo promises to show spectators the most dangerous animal in the zoo. What is
revealed when the visitors pull back the curtain, and how is that idea important to a theme of the novel?
(Remember, a theme is a sentence, not a word or phrase.)
2. Faith is a central topic in the novel, as Pi is a devout follower of three religions. How does the author develop the
motif of faith? (Consider what it reveals about Pi’s character or how it relates to a thematic statement about the
novel.)
3. The officials from the Japanese Ministry of Transport don't believe Pi's story and tell him that what he claims is
not possible. Then, Pi tells another story. Which do you believe? Why? How do the stories relate to truth and/or
reality?
Sample Response
We want to give you an example paragraph, but not to one of the questions you’ll have to tackle. So imagine the
question was this:
How does the setting contribute to the meaning of the novel?
Now imagine that you’ve found a fantastic passage related to setting that is full of detail and imagery:
“The sun was beginning to pull the curtains on the day. It was a placid explosion of orange and red, a great chromatic
symphony, a colour canvas of supernatural proportions, truly a splendid Pacific sunset, quite wasted on me.” (124)
Here’s what your response might look like:
Question:
How does the setting contribute to the meaning of the novel?
For much of the novel, Pi is separated from humanity by being on a lifeboat with a tiger. The endless water
and endless sky are dangerous, on one hand, providing conflicts and obstacles for the protagonist to overcome,
but the beauty of the sky and water are also significant. A scene featuring an amazing sunset reveals Pi’s
isolation. This sun is personified, “pull[ing] the curtains on the day” like one might end a play (124). It’s
interesting that what is real, nature, is being compared to something imagined or make-believe – like actors on
a stage. In fact, there are several contradictions in the passage. The imagery of a natural phenomenon, a
sunset, is compared to man-made works of art like drama, music, and art. The dramatic “explosion of orange
and red” is also described as “placid,” meaning calm (124). The narrator uses language to describe things
merging together (curtains, a symphony, a canvas on which brushstrokes exist together), while he is actually
quite removed from the event. The layers of the metaphor all end with the abrupt phrase “quite wasted on
me” (124). On some level Pi realizes what he is missing in life, but staying alive, just surviving, is the only
reality he can see at the moment.
How will I be graded on this assignment?
This assignment will count as a Level 2 grade for the 1st 6-week grading period. You will be assessed on the following
criteria:

The assignment is complete and typed.

Answers reveal thoughtfulness (insightful, interesting) and thoroughness (detailed, well-written and clear).

Answers include textual evidence that documents the page number(s) where the evidence is found. Embed
your evidence into your paragraphs – do not just retype a full sentence or passage as a stand-alone sentence
into your paragraph.

Responses are a sufficient length. Some people interpret a paragraph to be 4-5 sentences. In an academic
paper, though, a paragraph is typically longer (7-9 sentences). We care more about the sophistication of your
syntax than counting periods, but please provide a thorough response.

Note: This assignment will be submitted to www.turnitin.com in the fall to be sure that work has not been
shared, copied, or plagiarized. You may discuss the book with friends, but please work independently when
answering the questions.
When is this assignment due?

The assignment will be due during the 2nd week of instruction.

There will be additional class assignments that connect to Life of Pi and your summer reading assignment,
including a quiz during the first week of school.
Sparknotes & the Movie
We realize there is a movie based on Life of Pi. Read the book. Trust us.
We also realize that there are websites with plot summaries and quotes from books. Such websites are designed to take
advanced texts and simplify them for the reader. Our expectation is that you read the text we’ve assigned, even if you
have to grapple with some sections. Using online sources when you are expected not to is prohibited in the Austin High
School English department’s plagiarism policy.
Do you have any questions?
If you have any questions over the summer about this assignment, we want you to feel free to contact a 10th grade
teacher for assistance.
Mrs. Webster:
Ms. Holbrook:
[email protected] or 512-358-8781
[email protected]
These teachers may not be your English teacher next year, but they can help you with questions about the assignment.