12th Grade AP English Literature and Composition
2014 Summer Reading Assignment
Required Reading (Students must read all 3 texts*):
1. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
2. Native Son by Richard Wright
3. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
*We highly encourage you to purchase your own copy of these books so that you can annotate the text. However, if you wish
to borrow copies from the school, they are available for check out.
For AP Literature, we assume you have read and know Shakespeare’s Hamlet. If you have not read it or you cannot remember
much about the play, please consider doing so during the summer. If you have read any of the above, assigned works, you will
need to read them again for annotation. A close reading will help you to be successful.
English Department, North Springs Charter High School
Ms. Beveridge: [email protected] || Ms. King [email protected]
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AP Literature and Composition
2014 Summer Reading Assignment Acknowledgment
I have received and read the requirements for the 2014 Summer Reading Assignment for AP Literature and Composition. I
understand and acknowledge that I am expected to complete all of the reading and corresponding reader response logs by the
first week of August 2014.
Print Name:
Email address:
I completed the following 11th grade ELA course (Circle):
AP Lang
11th American Lit
11th Honors
Teacher(s):
Student’s Signature:
Date:
AP Literature and Composition Reader Response Logs
Reading a Work and Responding To It Actively
Sometimes readers confuse a cursory reading with an active reading. A quick reading of a work is little more than that: for
example, you might read an entire story and not be able to say anything about it at all. A more careful, active reading, however,
enables you to understand and respond to questions about meaning and organization. Obviously, we must first follow the
work and understand its details. At the same time we must respond to the words, get at the ideas, understand the implications
of what is happening, and apply our own experiences to verify the accuracy and truth of the situation and incidents, to
appreciate the characters and their solutions to the problems they face, and to articulate our own emotional responses. In
short, as active, participating readers, we should assimilate the work into our minds and spirits. (Literature: An Introduction to
Reading and Writing, Second Edition. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1989.)
For your Summer Reading, you will be required to complete reader response logs whereby you will read and respond actively
to literature. Reading logs should be completed as you read.
The following 12 literary terms are required on all reading logs. PLEASE NOTE: you are required to include 20
entries for each Reading Response Log. Therefore, you must find 8 additional terms to include. Read the blurb
following the definition to complete your reading log entries.
1. Tone/Shifts – the writer’s attitude toward the topic; identify the writer’s tone and any shifts in tone that occur; words that describe
an author’s tone might include critical, angry, sympathetic, caustic, sarcastic, satirical, etc.
2. Style – anything a writer does which distinguishes him or her from other writers; identify elements of the writer’s style of writing,
what makes him or her unique
3. Theme – the main idea or message of a literary work; state a theme for the work using a complete, general statement
4. Setting – the time and place of the story’s action; identify the place and time of the action, note any shifts in setting as well
5. Writer’s Intention – what the writer intended to convey to the reader; identify the writer’s purpose
6. Conflict(s) – a struggle between two opposing forces; identify ALL conflicts including internal (man vs. himself) and external (man
vs. man, man vs. society, man vs. nature)
7. Point of View/Shifts – the vantage point from which the story is told; identify the point of view of the work, first person, third
person, and any shifts in point of view
8. Mood/Shifts – the feeling or atmosphere that the work gives off; identify the atmosphere or mood of the work, including any shifts
in mood
9. Characterization Methods – the method a writer uses to familiarize the reader with the characters in a work; identify the
methods of characterization the writer uses, including behavior, speech, physical description, thoughts and feelings, thoughts and feelings of other
characters toward the main character
PLEASE NOTE: These 3 terms DO NOT require definitions.
10. Personal Connections – identify how the reading relates to your prior experience
11. Personal Response – identify your reactions to the reading AS YOU READ
12. Title’s Significance – identify how the title relates to the work…consider foreshadowing, if applicable
13. Literary Technique of your choice
14. Literary Technique of your choice
15. Literary Technique of your choice
16. Literary Technique of your choice
17. Literary Technique of your choice
18. Literary Technique of your choice
19. Literary Technique of your choice
20. Literary Technique of your choice
For each of the above items (except personal responses, connections, and title’s significance), you must do the following:

First, define the term. For example, tone is the writer’s attitude toward the topic. Use the definitions listed above. Please do
not define the term in your own words.

Second, provide evidence (an example) from the reading. Include excerpts in quotation marks.

Third, discuss the implications of the use of this technique. How does it affect the reading? What is the impact of its
use? This is the analysis of the text.
A checklist is attached to help you meet these requirements. Use the reading log template below for use throughout the school
year. This can be a real time saver. For example, definitions will always be the same so why re-type them on every reading log?
You must include a minimum of 20 entries on your reading log. Each of your entries should include a page number that
corresponds to your response. You must be specific and complete in your entries. Do not label your entries. If you explain
your entries, we will be able to tell what type of entry it is (see sample). Your reading log must be set up in the following
manner.
AP Lit Reading Log Template – Please use the following format for your Reading Log for each text.
Name _________________________________ The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Page # Definition of Term
Example from Text
22
Tone is the writer’s attitude towards Steinbeck’s tone is clearly observed
the topic.
in the passage: “provide the actual text
from the novel here.” His tone is critical
and angry toward the banks and
how they treat the poor.
Implication/Impact
Steinbeck’s tone impacts the novel
in several ways… (Explain. Explain.
Explain.)
AP English Lit Reading Log Checklist:
Use the following checklist for your reading log. You should have 20 entries for each text.
1. _____ Tone/Shifts:
Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
2. _____ Style:
Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
3. _____ Setting:
Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
4. _____ Conflicts:
Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
5. _____ Theme:
Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
6. _____ Intention:
Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
7. _____ Mood/Shifts:
Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
8. _____ Point of View:
Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
9. _____ Characterization: Defined _____
Example _____
Implications _____
10. _____ Title’s Significance
11. _____ Personal Response
12. _____ Connection
Additional Techniques:
13. _________________
14. _________________
15. _________________
16. _________________
17. _________________
18. _________________
19. _________________
20. _________________
Defined _____
Defined _____
Defined _____
Defined _____
Defined _____
Defined _____
Defined _____
Defined _____
Example _____
Example _____
Example _____
Example _____
Example _____
Example _____
Example _____
Example _____
Implications _____
Implications _____
Implications _____
Implications _____
Implications _____
Implications _____
Implications _____
Implications _____
Additional literary techniques you could consider: motif, hyperbole, understatement, allusion, paradox, diction/syntax,
allegory, imagery, extended metaphor, flashback, foreshadowing, symbolism, etc.