Interboro High School
Ninth Grade Summer Reading Packet
Please bring this completed packet to English class on Friday, September 5.
Dear Parent or Guardian:
Please read through the enclosed summer reading requirements for your student to complete this
summer. The purpose of this activity is to encourage our students to read for enjoyment while
maintaining essential literacy skills that we have covered throughout the school year. Use the space
below to write down the title of the book that your student chose to read this summer, and then sign
the bottom of this page after the reading is completed. Please refer to the instructions on the back of
this page for more details. Thank you for your help and support with this important activity!
______________________________________________________________________________
I understand that my child must read one book this summer (Honors students will be reading a book
from this list and The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas) in order to receive full credit on
his or her summer reading grade. I have read the enclosed summer reading requirements, and my
child has read the following title for summer reading this year:
Student’s Name: __________________________________
Book Choice: _____________________________________
Parent/Guardian Signature: __________________________________
1. Students will choose one book from the provided list and complete the included reading log
for the book that he or she selects. Summaries are included to help you make a decision on which
book would be best for your student. **Honors students will also be reading The Count of Monte
Cristo by Alexandre Dumas in addition to their choice from this list.**
2. Students will choose one writing activity from the enclosed packet.
3. In addition to the above, students will complete an in-class assessment on the book of their choice
on Friday, September 5.
4. Fill in the front page of this reading packet, including the parent or guardian signature as proof of
completion. All summer reading activities are part of the first marking period English grade.
_______________________________________________________________________
Ninth Grade Book Choices
The theme for ninth grade English focuses on finding one’s voice through coming of age, survival,
overcoming obstacles, and storytelling. The following selections connect to these themes.
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
The Glass Castle details the story of Jeannette Walls and her family. Constantly short on cash and
food, the family moves around the country frequently and tries to re-settle. Though the family is
dysfunctional, the memoir communicates itself without condemning either of the Walls parents.
Humor frequently fills the work with a light-spirited tone.
The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore
Two kids named Wes Moore were born blocks apart within a year of each other. Both grew up
fatherless in similar Baltimore neighborhoods and had difficult childhoods; both hung out on street
corners with their crews; both ran into trouble with the police. How, then, did one grow up to be a
Rhodes Scholar, decorated veteran, White House Fellow, and business leader, while the other ended
up a convicted murderer serving a life sentence? Wes Moore, the author of this fascinating book,
sets out to answer this profound question. In alternating narratives that take readers from heartwrenching losses to moments of surprising redemption, The Other Wes Moore tells the story of a
generation of boys trying to find their way in a hostile world.
The Short Bus by Jonathan Mooney
Labeled “dyslexic and profoundly learning disabled,” Jonathan Mooney was a short-bus rider—a
derogatory term used for kids in special education. To learn how others had moved beyond labels,
he bought his own short bus and set out cross-country, looking for kids who had dreamed up
magical, beautiful ways to overcome the obstacles that separated them from the so-called normal
world.
The Short Bus is his irreverent and poignant record of that odyssey, meeting thirteen people in
thirteen states who taught Mooney that there’s no such thing as normal—and that to really live,
every person must find their own special way of keeping on. The Short Bus is a unique gem,
propelled by Mooney’s heart, humor, and outrageous rebellions.
The Realm of Possibility by David Levithan
Most readers will find someone they can relate to in this enchanting collection of linked poems that
delve deep and go far beyond the original stereotypes. Twenty teenagers–sensitive outsiders, cruel
popular girls, body-obsessed jocks, gay teens in the throes of first love–take turns pouring their
hearts onto the pages, detailing their loneliness, heartaches, hopes, and joys. All attend the same
high school, and as the book progresses their stories slowly weave together to form a larger view of
the school community. In the first selection, for instance, Daniel talks about his relationship with
Jed; Jed's view of their romance closes the book. Though friendships and romantic relationships
grow and change, character is much more the focus here than plot. Each chapter contains four
points of view, and it will take patient readers to determine who's who and exactly how they are
linked. Thoughtful teens will find much to appreciate here.
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah
This is how wars are fought now: by children, hopped-up on drugs and wielding AK-47s. Children
have become soldiers of choice. In the more than fifty conflicts going on worldwide, it is estimated
that there are some 300,000 child soldiers. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them.
What is war like through the eyes of a child soldier? How does one become a killer? How does one
stop? Child soldiers have been profiled by journalists, and novelists have struggled to imagine their
lives. But until now, there has not been a first-person account from someone who came through this
hell and survived.
In A Long Way Gone, Beah, now twenty-five years old, tells a riveting story: how at the age of
twelve, he fled attacking rebels and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By
thirteen, he'd been picked up by the government army, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found that he
was capable of truly terrible acts.
Name_______________________________________
Book: ___________________________
Poor
Evaluate
How would you rate this book? Why?
Fair
Average
Good
Excellent
Genre
To what genre does this book belong? How does this book fit the requirements of this genre?
Plot Structure
Use the space below to describe the different elements of the novel’s plot. In order to receive
full credit, fill in the boxes thoroughly with complete sentences and specific details.
Exposition
The background information that you get at the beginning of the story.
Who are your main characters? What is the story’s setting (when and where it takes place)?
Rising Action
The events that occur in the story leading up to the climax.
What happens in the story that leads up to the most important event that occurs in the book?
Climax
The high point or turning point of the story.
What is the BIGGEST or most IMPORTANT thing that happens in your book? Explain how it
fits the definition of climax.
Falling Action
The events that occur after the climax.
What happens after or as a result of the climax?
Resolution
The ending of the story.
How are things resolved? How does your story end?
Conflict
What major conflict or conflicts are occurring in your book? A conflict can be between two
characters (example: an argument between two people), a character and nature (example: a
character trying to survive in the wilderness), a character and the rules or traditions of society
(example: a character defying the school dress code), or within a character (example: a difficult
decision that a character has to make).
Theme or Central Idea
Use the space below to describe a possible theme (a moral or lesson that the reader can learn from
the story) for this book. Explain how this is a good theme for this book. What elements of the
book revealed this theme?
Writing Activity
Choose ONE of the following writing activities to complete on the following page. It must be one
page in length. You may attach additional pieces of paper if needed.
1. If you were the author of this book, what would you change in the story? Write about a change
you would make to this book and how this change would improve the story for the reader.
2. Write a journal entry from the viewpoint of one of the book’s characters. In your entry, explain a
problem or conflict that you encountered and how it was resolved.
3. What do you think happens to the main character of your book in the future? Write a letter from
the main character to a friend explaining what he or she has done with his or her life since the
events of the novel took place.
4. Turn the events of this book into a song or poem. Summarize the main events and ideas of the
book in the lyrics.
Writing Activity
I am answering choice # _____.