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!

Summer Beach Reads (For the Beach and Other)

If you were counting on your summer being full of dramatically lounging on a 50's beach chair and wearing your swimsuit accessorized with very heavy jewelry and lipstick, you've probably been disappointed by now. Not only were the 50's beach chairs just like ours, but not everyone's summer consists of 116 days at the beach. Unless you live on the cover of Seventeen magazine, your summer is going to take you plenty of places besides the California coast. For a realistic teen reader, you're going to need more than a cutesy book with a pink cover to get you through. Appearing with the right book can help you through whatever your summer has in store- even if it isn't a magazine cover shoot.


Summer Camp

Summer camps have admittedly never been my favorite moments of the summer, but while packing your mess kit, hiking boots and secret stash of candy, the right book is essential. Reading about someone who is hungrier, more tired, and possibly worse-looking than you at the moment can always lift your spirits. Try Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer, the journal of a high school sophomore as an asteroid hits the moon, setting off a chain reaction of apocalypse-like events. This book has always stuck out in the typically cheesy genre of End of the World Fiction to me. It reads so realistically- reminding me of  The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, and even at times, my own journal (although I, at the moment, am not starving). To help you brush up on your more intense survival skills, bring along The Hunger Games (do I really need to include who wrote this book? Does someone in the world not know?). My camp counselors have never been able to understand why I already know how to tie tourniquets and how long iodine should settle while purifying water. Suzanne Collins taught me.

Summer Internship

The summer internship circuit seems to be run by the Gwen Stacys of the world, whether you're interning at Oscorp or not. (Yes, I just HAD to mention Spider-Man in this post.) It's pretty easy to be intimidated by your co free-workers who've figured out how to pull off those frumpy intern t-shirts that don't match with anything in your closet, wear their eyeliner like Emma Stone, and also more often then not, are geniuses. Lunch break is a great time to plow through your summer English reading assignment and look cool while you do it, too- who says you have to mention you don't read Lord of the Flies all the time for fun? Leave the question open, and be the sophisticated-ly intimidating one who always eats up classics- while getting your homework done. If you're one of the lucky ones without summer reading, try a classic by choice- The Poisonwood Bible by Barbra Kingsolver  and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak are two of my favorite contemporary classics- code word for thick, classy and fun.

Rainy Summer Days

Rainy days in the summer are some of my favorites (although the girls hanging out in jewelry and lipstick on the beach probably don't appreciate them). Virtually any book is good- and dramatic- when you're sitting next to a rainy window in an old sweater, but to make your day complete, try pulling out your favorite old comfort book to read again. Something remembered from the good old days when we watched Hannah Montanna and flare jeans were in style. Nothing too intense- I like to re-read something by Shannon Hale (Goose Girl or Princess Academy)  or Gail Carson Levine (Ella Enchanted, The Two Princesses of Bamarre).  

Under the Covers

No school in the morning means stashing your flashlight and reading under the covers (or, leaving the lights just plain on, for those of us who've given up on secrecy). This summer situation is where it's smart to get all your geeky pleasures out of the way. Don't waist  all your good AA batteries on something you could be reading on that beach. Just like in any genre, this one is not completely full of gems. But before this summer's up, you'd better have Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card under you belt- which despite the cover ever on the link I put up, is completely worth it. Afterwards, if you're lonely and ready for a rip-off or two of the book I just made you read (albiet some pretty fun ones) read The Maze Runner series by James Dashner. Not to mention, thrillers work just as well under the covers. Read Unwind by Neal Shusterman- you'll be up all night wondering what kind of crazy author could write something so psychotic and clever . . . and what sort of disturbing hobbies he must enjoy in his free time.



Summer Beach Reads

I guess these people in the world need a section of the blog, too. Summer Beach Reads is a staple category of fiction for a reason. However, contrary to some people's belief, you can still have fun and romance with a Beach Read and not be reading . . . this. If you're not craving a Sarah Dessen novel (I never am, all that much), try the lesser known (why, I have no sane idea) Janette Rallison books- they're like watching your favorite RomCom, but better, because you look slightly smarter while you do it, and . . . they're just better. Both authors write for the same audience, but Janette Rallison would beat Sarah Dessen in a death match. And she'd find some really witty dialogue to throw into the fight. I've never recommended these to anybody who hasn't come back grinning, bouncing up and down, and dying to get their hands on another one of these books. Truly. Try Just One Wish or My Fair Godmother to get you started.

Check in next week to learn how to survive summer reading assignments . . . soon as I finish my summer reading assignment.