Summer English Reading

English is the only school subject you can consistently depended on to give you a grade for liking to read. English teachers throw out novel reading assignments the way French teachers drink Diet Coke (which is to say, constantly, if you haven’t taken French). A novel as summer homework, though, can be hard to tackle, even as a big reader. Usually you’ve been assigned a book that’s easy to avoid at the bottom of your beach bag- too heavy, with one of those ‘Barnes and Noble Classics’ covers. But now it’s August- time to get down to business. Finishing your summer reading without late nights and headaches is still possible.

Watch the Movie

Reading all 1,000 pages of The Count of Monte Cristo isn’t very tempting. At least, not when all you know about the novel is that it probably will at some point involve a count, and he will live on Monte Cristo. Probably. 

            Get familiar with the story you’re about to read. Watching the movie before you read the book is not cheating. Cheating is bringing your math notes to the ACT. Cheating is counting the Percy Jackson movie as studying Greek mythology. But getting exposure to a difficult novel can help hold your interest later. As you read, you’ll have a better image in your head, and through a dry patch, you’ll be able to push through, knowing what’s going to happen next. Reading Monte Cristo, you can now know that his son looks like Henry Cavill and is secretly Superman.

Cast Your Novel

In some instances, there is no Henry Cavill to watch out for. You might not be reading Romeo and Juliet either. So if your book’s stubbornly stingy, there are other solutions. My second favorite method is called casting your novel, as you probably figured out by now. Treasure Island might have felt as dry as . . . an island? (I’m running out of good ones that relate to the classics) but try imagining that cute kid from third period as Jim Hawkins- and your seventh grade math teacher would be perfect as Long John Silver. If watching those two running around in peg legs and tights isn’t interesting enough, you have very high expectations for life.

Stop Wasting Time

You’re finally warming up to the idea of actually finishing that bowling ball in your beach bag (I’m still referring to the book, although I’d feel sorry if you have an actual bowling ball in your beach bag as well). Choosing an amount of pages or number of minutes to read can make it feel like work, but having a time and place to read each day can help you be consistent. Pick a situation to read where your summer won't be in the way- set your phone aside, get comfortable, and plow through a chapter or two. 

Read for Yourself
It can be hard to complete an assignment for a class you've never been to before. I've heard scary things about the teacher. Should I use black or blue ink on my annotations? Will anybody be able to read my notes? Don't be scared to mark the book up in a way that makes sense to you- even if it means writing in a reference a teacher won't understand, or drawing devil horns above the name of the character you hate most. Hold your own attention by reading the way you want and leaving the kind of trail through the book that makes sense to you- not what you think the teacher wants to hear. 

Earn a Reward 
Sometimes the hardest thing about summer reading is knowing there's a much more interesting book sitting on your nightstand than the one your teacher assigned to you. If you have a novel you're dying to finish, try disciplining yourself by allowing yourself to read it only after you've done your summer reading. Shoot for a day to have your reading done and plan a celebration for yourself. Even for a reader like you, not every book is going to be easy. So congratulate yourself on a job well done when you've made it to the end!

Check in next Friday for your last scoop on summer reads before heading back to school!