Penn Wood High School Green Ave. Campus
2015 Summer Reading Challenge
We require all students coming into high school to read at least three (3) books over the summer: one
nonfiction text and two fiction texts. You must select books from the appropriate list and choose from
the projects listed below. All projects must demonstrate a complete knowledge of the text.
• Look at the grade you will be entering in September for your correct list.
• You need to complete a project for each of the three books to demonstrate your understanding.
Bring in your finished projects during the first weeks of school. (The first project is due at the
end of the first full week of school, with projects two and three at the end of weeks two and
three, respectively).
• Remember to bring a marble notebook in September for your English class.
Summer FICTION Project Options:
(must be written in blue or black ink or typed in double-spaced, 12 pt, Times New Roman font)
Character’s Diary—Imagine you are a character in the book. You do not have to select the main
character. Write at least five diary entries (minimum of ½ page each) that this character might have
made concerning the events that take place throughout the novel.
Interview—Write a minimum two page interview between you and a main character of the text. Your
interview should explore questions that you wondered about during your reading, and the answers
should show your understanding of the character being interviewed. Be sure that both questions and
answers demonstrate deep thinking and an understanding of the content of the novel.
Summer NONFICTION Project Options:
(must be written in blue or black ink or typed in double-spaced, 12 pt, Times New Roman font)
Double-Entry Journal—As you read, choose ten passages from the text (be sure to include passages that
span the book) and place them on the left hand side of the paper. Include the page number. On the
right hand side of each passage, write a one-paragraph response to that passage.
Reaction Paper—Write a minimum two page reaction paper to the text, explaining your thoughts on the
text and whether or not you agree or disagree with the ideas the author presents.
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11 Grade Selections
Nonfiction
• Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell
• And Still We Rise: The Trials and Tribulations of 12 Inner City Students by Miles Corwin
• Half and Half: Writers on Growing Up Biracial and Bicultural by Claudine C. O’Hearn
• Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich
• Triangle: The Fire That Changed America by David Von Drehle
• The Radioactive Boy Scout: True Scout of a Whiz Kid and His Homemade Nuclear Reactor by Ken
Silverstein
• Hellhound on His Trail: The Stalking of Martin Luther King Jr. and the International Hunt for His Assassin
by Hampton Sides
Fiction
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
• Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
• Rebound by Bob Krech
• Hurricane Song by Paul Volponi
• The Healer by Michael Blumlein
• Behind You by Jacqueline Woodson
• The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Alexie Sherman
th
12 Grade Global Citizens Selections
Nonfiction
• Zeitoun by Dave Eggers
• Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia by Jean Sasson
• A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah
• Skeletons on the Zahara: True Story of Survival by Dean King
• Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi
• The Future of Life by Edward O. Wilson
• Almost a Woman by Esmeralda Santiago
• Brother, I’m Dying by Edwidge Danticat
Fiction
• City of Beasts by Isabel Allende
• The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith
• Sold by Patricia McCormick
• A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
• Yoruba Girl Dancing by Simi Bedford
• The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
• Motherland by Vinita Vijayaraghavan
• Finding Miracles by Julia Alvarez