Dear Incoming 10 Grade Student, We are excited to share this year's ...

Dear Incoming 10 th Grade Student,
We are excited to share this year’s summer reading assignment with you. In
addition to reading a required title, you will also have the opportunity to select a title of
your choice to read and enjoy.
Everything you need for summer reading is in the attached handout. For your
convenience, we will be posting all summer reading information on the Island Trees
School District’s Homepage should you require an additional copy of any of these
materials. Your parents will also be receiving a letter at home regarding your
assignments. The public library is aware of our suggested reading list.
Below is an outline of the reading requirements:
1) You are being given a copy of They Cage the Animals at Night to read. In this
packet are two high-interest nonfiction articles about homelessness and the
working poor, topics explored in the novel. Your teacher is looking forward
to rich discussions, so make sure you are prepared. In addition, you will be
assessed on the novel in early September after you return to school.
2) Select a book of your choice to read and respond to the reading with a fun,
creative project. Attached is a “Suggested Reading List” Mrs. Marshall has
prepared for you to help guide your choices, but you may select any book you
wish to read. Also attached is a project list with many options for responding
to your CHOICE BOOK. This project will be handed in to your teacher in
early September after you return to school.
Of course, we encourage you to read more than our requirement and well beyond our list
so that you continue to build your background knowledge, to keep your mind and
imagination sharp, and to inspire you to explore your personal interests.
Happy reading,
The English Department

Island Trees High School
10 th Grade Summer Reading
Nonfiction Articles to Accompany
They Cage the Animals at Night
Directions: The following two articles center on two major topics of interest in They
Cage the Animals at Night: homelessness and the working poor. Read them in
preparation for a class discussion you will be expected to participate in when you
return to school in September. Feel free to mark them up (underline, annotate) as you
read so that you will be prepared to be an active participant.
ARTICLE #1: AFTER HARDSHIP AND HOMELESSNESS, NATIONAL SCIENCE
FAIR HONORS
January 23, 2012
After Hardship and Homelessness, National Science Fair Honors
By KENNETH CHANG
Samantha Garvey, an 18-year-old senior at Brentwood High School on Long Island, flew
cross-country last week to appear on Ellen DeGeneres’s daytime talk show. Her face was
on the cover of Newsday, her hometown newspaper. Her congressman, Steve Israel,
invited her to work in his office in Washington this summer. She has hired an agent to
juggle interview requests.
Ms. Garvey, a semifinalist in the Intel Science Talent Search, is exhilarated by the sudden
celebrity, but said she would not mind when the attention passed and she could spend
more time with her mussels. (Her work on them earned her the honor.)
The Intel contest is the premier science competition for high school students, so all
semifinalists earn time in the spotlight. But Ms. Garvey has received far more than the
299 others this year: She and her family are newly homeless, living in a Suffolk County
shelter.
“It’s not bad,” she said. “It’s a nice place.”
Her parents were injured in a car accident last year. Her father, a cabdriver, was able to
keep driving. Her mother, a nurse’s assistant, could not work for more than half a year.

The eldest of three children, Ms. Garvey tried to help with the family finances, applying
for jobs at Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts. “Nobody called me back,” she said.
The Garveys were evicted from their home on Dec. 31.
Through the turmoil, Ms. Garvey continued working with her mussels, studying a
dynamic that plays out in ecosystems around the world.
The mussel species, Geukensiademissa, or ribbed mussel, is native to Long Island Sound.
The Asian shore crab, Hemigrapsussanguineus, is not. It is a predatory interloper that
arrived in the waters near Cape May, N.J., in 1988, and has since spread from Maine to
North Carolina.
The crabs like to eat mussels.
The scientific question was whether the ribbed mussels would just sit there and be eaten
by the new predator, or had nature provided them with a means of defending themselves?
Ms. Garvey collected mussels from different parts of Flax Pond, a salt marsh on the
North Shore of Long Island. She compared the shell length, width, weight and other
measurements of those that lived where Asian shore crabs were prevalent with those that
lived in areas with few crabs.
She found that the mussels that lived in areas where the crabs were prevalent had thicker
shells. Was that because the Asian shore crabs ate the mussels they could pry open most
easily, leaving thicker-shelled survivors, or were the mussels able to grow greater
protection in response to the predators?
In a laboratory at Stony Brook University, Ms. Garvey put some young mussels in tanks
with the crabs, although the crabs were in cages. In other tanks, mussels lived alone.
After 65 days, she found that the mussels that shared their tank with the crabs had
developed thicker shells than the ones that lived alone.
The finding suggests that chemicals released by the Asian shore crabs in the water set off
a defense mechanism in the mussels: they produce thicker shells that fend off predators.
When the crabs are not around, the mussels do not pad their shells.
During the school year, Ms. Garvey spent about a dozen hours a week on her mussel
research, and much more during the summer. In all, she spent two and a half years on the

work, as part of a research curriculum that Rebecca Grella, a Brentwood High School
chemistry teacher, successfully pitched to administrators eight years ago.
More than 60 students now take part. Ms. Grella, a doctoral candidate at Stony Brook,
took advantage of her university connections to match Ms. Garvey with Dianna Padilla, a
professor in the ecology and evolution department at Stony Brook, for the mussel
research.
Brentwood is a melting-pot community with more of a reputation for gangs than for
budding scientists, but last year, Ms. Grella’s efforts paid off when three of her students
were named Intel semifinalists.
This year, two weeks after her family became homeless, Ms. Garvey found out she was
among this year’s semifinalists.
She said she could not imagine what her life would be like if she had not had the
opportunity to study mussels. “Maybe flunking out of school, honestly,” she said.
Instead, she hopes to attend Brown or Yale. Ms. DeGeneres’s show has already given her
a $50,000 scholarship.
On Tuesday, Samantha Garvey went to Washington. She met with John P. Holdren, the
president’s science adviser. Steve Israel, her congressman, who had invited her there,
gave her a personal tour of the Capitol. She met John Boehner, the speaker of the House,
and Nancy Pelosi, the minority leader. She had dinner with Jane Lubchenco,
administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Then, as a guest of Mr. Israel, she attended the State of Union address. “That was really,
really cool,” she said.
Afterward, Mr. Israel gave her a printed copy of the speech, signed by President Obama.
The next morning back home — for now, that is still the homeless shelter — Ms.
Garvey woke up and checked the Web site of the Intel Science Talent Search, where she
learned that she was not one of the 40 finalists. “I was O.K. with it,” she said. “I was
definitely O.K. with it.”
Then she went to Manhattan for an appearance on the “Today Show” on NBC.

“Now it’s time to relax,” she said.
Life will soon resume an air of normalcy. A day after Intel announced its semifinalists,
Suffolk County officials said they had found a home for the Garveys.
Ms. Garvey said the best part of the past couple of weeks was to “hopefully inspire the
people who heard what I had to say.” On the flip side, she said, “the worst thing is the
lack of sleeping.”
The Garveys may finally move into their new home this weekend, and Ms. Garvey said
she hoped to get back to the laboratory and her mussels next week.
ARTICLE #2: THE WORKING POOR ARE NOT GETTING BY IN AMERICA
The Working Poor Are Not Getting By in America
Poverty, 2012
"Despite working hard, too many American families are struggling to get by, advance to
the middle class and provide a secure future for their children."
In the following viewpoint, the Working Poor Families Project asserts that many lowincome
working families struggle and do not earn enough for financial security. Working
for poverty-level wages and inadequate benefits, adults in these households, the project
claims, pay much greater portions of their salaries to rent, are much less likely to have
health insurance, and do not have the skills and education to succeed in the current
economy. Therefore, the project recommends that federal policies advance the skills of
working adults and help low-income families meet their basic needs. The Working Poor
Families Project is a national initiative that advocates for low-income working families.
As you read, consider the following questions:
1. How does the project address the myth that low-income working families do not work?
2. What national figures does the project cite for working adults and their education and
skills?
3. What were the numbers of low-income working families in the United States in 2006,
as stated by the project?
America's low-income working families typically include men and women who work as
cashiers, custodians, child care workers, health care aides and security guards—workers
who constitute the backbone of an increasingly service-based economy. They work hard,
pay taxes and strive to achieve a brighter economic future for their families. But they lack

the earnings necessary to meet their basic needs—a struggle exacerbated by soaring
prices for food, gas, health care and education.
One out of four working families with children—a total of 9.6 million working
families—is low-income.... These families pay a higher percentage of their income for
housing than other working families, are far less likely to have health insurance, and
often lack the education and skills that enable others to succeed in today's skills-driven
economy.
At the same time, low-income working families, contrary to popular myth, work hard.
Adults in low-income working families worked on average 2,552 hours per year in 2006,
the equivalent of almost one and a quarter full-time workers. Despite working hard, too
many American families are struggling to get by, advance to the middle class and provide
a secure future for their children.
Since the Working Poor Families Project's last report in 2004, the conditions for working
families in America have worsened.... The number of low-income working families with
children has increased by more than 350,000. This increase is alarming as it occurred at a
time of solid national economic growth.
Income inequality increased among working families by almost 10 percent in recent years
as indicated by the widening gap between the share of income received by the highestearning
working families and the share received by the least affluent ones. This growing
disparity between poor and wealthy families affects more and more children, with more
than 21 million children living in a low-income working family. And more low-income
working families find it difficult to secure affordable housing or access to health care.
One key factor is that America's educational systems continue to poorly prepare workers
for jobs requiring higher skills. At the same time, the economy is comprised of a larger
share of low-paying jobs, with an increase of 4.7 million jobs paying a poverty-level
wage from 2002 to 2006.
A major challenge moving ahead will be to raise the education and skills of America's
workers to meet the needs of the changing economy. Almost one-half of all job openings
require more than a high school education, yet as noted in the report of the National
Commission on Adult Literacy [Reach Higher, America: Overcoming Crisis in the U.S.
Workforce], 88 million adult workers are not prepared for these positions; 25 million of
these adult workers lack a high school degree or its equivalent. At the same time,
combined federal and state government resources for such programs as adult education or
skills development serve approximately one-tenth of the need.

Experience shows that public policies that promote education and skills development,
quality jobs, health care and family leave are effective ways to foster family economic
security. With elections preparing to reshape administrations in Washington and many
state capitals, fresh and immediate attention to these issues is needed.
A Fifty-State Economic Issue
A new administration in Washington will have the opportunity to strengthen federal
policies on behalf of America's working families. But state resources and policies remain
critical to the economic prospects of working families. And states have many reasons to
devote attention to these families' needs.
The problem is sizeable.
As measured in 2006, all states have a significant number of low-income working
families. California and Texas each have more than a million low-income working
families, while Florida and New York each have more than 500,000. Even the five states
with the smallest percentage of such families (New Hampshire, Maryland, Connecticut,
Massachusetts and New Jersey) are home to roughly 500,000 of these families
collectively.
In 13 states, 33 percent or more of working families are low income, and two states,
Mississippi and New Mexico, have 40 percent or more. In eight states, 40 percent or
more of the children of working adults reside in low-income families.
Economic opportunity is not equally shared.
In 13 states, 50 percent or more of minority working families are low income. By
comparison, there is not one state where white working families represent half of the lowincome
population. At most, in West Virginia, one-third of white working families are
low income.
In seven states, more than one-third of low-income working families have a parent
without a high school degree, with one state, California, exceeding 50 percent. Among
working families that are not low income, only 10 percent nationally have a parent who
did not complete high school.
Too many jobs offer low wages and inadequate benefits.

Nationally, more than one in five jobs, or 22 percent, is in an occupation paying wages
that fall below the federal poverty threshold. In eight states, more than one-third of all
jobs are in poverty-wage occupations.
Nationally, 39 percent of low-income working families include a parent without health
insurance. Fifteen states have 40 percent or more; two states, Texas and New Mexico,
have 50 percent or more.
Conditions in the states vary substantially across the country as do state commitments to
working families. State policies related to the minimum wage, taxes, financial aid for
postsecondary education, health care and paid family leave affect the ability of working
families to prosper and achieve economic advancement. All states can strengthen their
policies to better serve low-income working families.
A Call for Stronger Policies
Federal policy has not adequately addressed the array of issues critical to low-income
working families, and too few states have focused on the needs of working families or
quality of jobs. However, some states have taken actions that provide direction for other
states to follow.
States are developing innovative policies.
State governments are strengthening policies that affect low-income working families in
two key ways: 1) investing in programs to advance the skills of adult workers; and
2) helping to meet the basic household needs of working families.
States are investing in adult workers primarily by improving education and skilldevelopment
policies that help workers compete in the new economy. This includes
working with employers to raise the basic education and literacy levels of workers and
allocating financial aid to adults seeking to attend community colleges. Nationwide
efforts, including the National Governors Association's Pathways to Advancement,
Charles Stewart Mott Foundation's State Sector Strategies, Ford Foundation's Bridges to
Opportunity and the Joyce Foundation's Shifting Gears initiatives, have supported
comprehensive policy reform at the highest levels of state government.
To meet the needs of working families, states are strengthening policies related to pay
and benefits. Half of the states now maintain a minimum wage above the federal wage
standard, and some states are doing more to provide paid parental leave for family and

medical needs and to lower tax rates on the working poor. A number of states have
recently created commissions to identify better policies to reduce family poverty.

Island Trees High School
Suggested Summer Reading List
2013
The titles listed below have been selected from various sources – some are best sellers
and award winners, many are found on reading lists for other schools districts across
Long Island. All have received excellent reviews in various review journals. I hope as
you explore the list you will find a title that sparks your interest, makes you think and ask
important questions, mostly I hope there is a title that will instill in you the desire to read
another and perhaps another and yet another. The titles span a wide range of topics and
levels of difficulty. Many are fiction although you will find some non-fiction sprinkled
in for good measure. Be sure to check out other books by these authors.
---Happy Reading,
---Mrs. Marshall, Island Trees High School Librarian
Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian – Alexi Sherman
Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation is determined
to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to
attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school
mascot. Heartbreaking, funny, and beautifully written, The Absolutely True Diary of a
Part-Time Indian, which is based on the author's own experiences, coupled with poignant
drawings that reflect the character's art, chronicles the contemporary adolescence of one
Native American boy as he attempts to break away from the life he thought he was
destined to live.
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
Nearing the end of his life, Enzo, a dog with a philosopher's soul, tries to bring
together the family, pulled apart by a three year custody battle between daughter Zoe's
maternal grandparents and her father Denny, a race car driver.
Between Shades of Gray – Ruta Sepetys
Fifteen-year-old Lina is a Lithuanian girl living an ordinary life--until Soviet officers
invade her home and tear her family apart. Separated from her father and forced onto a
crowded train, Lina, her mother, and her young brother make their way to a Siberian
work camp, where they are forced to fight for their lives. Lina finds solace in her art,
documenting these events by drawing. Risking everything, she imbeds clues in her
drawings of their location and secretly passes them along, hoping her drawings will make
their way to her father's prison camp. But will strength, love, and hope be enough for
Lina and her family to survive? This powerful tale of heartbreak and hope is sure to
haunt readers long after they finish the last page.

Code Name Verity – Elizabeth Wein
When “Verity” is arrested by the Gestapo, she's sure she doesn’t stand a chance. As a
secret agent captured in enemy territory, she’s living a spy’s worst nightmare. Her Nazi
interrogators give her a simple choice: reveal her mission or face a grisly execution. A
Michael L. Printz Award Honor book that was called “a fiendishly-plotted mind game of
a novel” in The New York Times, Code Name Verity is a visceral read of danger, resolve,
and survival that shows just how far true friends will go to save each other.
Curious Case of Benjamin Button – F. Scott Fitzgerald
In 1860 Benjamin Button is born an old man and mysteriously begins aging backward.
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," a witty and fantastical satire about aging, is
one of Fitzgerald's most memorable stories.
Divergent (series) – Veronica Roth
In a future Chicago, sixteen-year-old Beatrice Prior must choose among five
predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life, a decision made more
difficult when she discovers that she is an anomoly who does not fit into any one group,
and that the society she lives in is not perfect after all.
Fault in our stars --John Green
Sixteen-year-old Hazel, a stage IV thyroid cancer patient, has accepted her terminal
diagnosis until a chance meeting with a boy at cancer support group forces her to
reexamine her perspective on love, loss, and life
For One More Day – Mitch Albom
This is the story of Charley, a child of divorce who is always forced to choose between
his mother and his father. He grows into a man and starts a family of his own. But one
fateful weekend, he leaves his mother to secretly be with his father - and she dies while
he is gone. This haunts him for years. It leads him to depression and drunkenness. One
night, he decides to take his life. But somewhere between this world and the next, he
encounters his mother again, in their hometown, and gets to spend one last day with her -
the day he missed and always wished he'd had. He asks the questions many of us yearn to
ask, the questions we never ask while our parents are alive. By the end of this magical
day, Charley discovers how little he really knew about his mother, the secret of how her
love saved their family, and how deeply he wants the second chance to save his own.

Freedom Writers Diary – Freedom Writers with Erin Gruwell
Tells the story of how young English teacher Erin Gruwell confronted the problem of
racial and ethnic intolerance in her classroom, and features excerpts from the diaries of
her students, now known as The Freedom Writers.
Ghosts of War: the True Story of a 19-year-old GI – Ryan Smithson
Ryan Smithson joined the Army Reserve when he was seventeen. Two year later, he was
deployed to Iraq as an Army engineer. In this memoir, readers march along one GI's
tour of duty. This is an account of the motivations and life of a contemporary soldier.
Graceling – Kristin Cashore
In a world where some people are born with extreme and often-feared skills called
Graces, Katsa struggles for redemption from her own horrifying Grace, the Grace of
killing, and teams up with another young fighter to save their land from a corrupt king.
Glass Castle: a memoir – Jeanette Walls
The second child of a scholarly, alcoholic father and an eccentric artist mother discusses
her family's nomadic upbringing from the Arizona desert, to Las Vegas, to an
Appalachian mining town, during which her siblings and she fended for themselves while
their parents outmaneuvered bill collectors and the authorities. What is so astonishing
about Jeannette Walls is not just that she had the guts and tenacity and intelligence to get
out, but that she describes her parents with such deep affection and generosity. Hers is a
story of triumph against all odds, but also a tender, moving tale of unconditional love in a
family that despite its profound flaws gave her the fiery determination to carve out a
successful life on her own terms.
The Hate List – Jennifer Brown
Sixteen-year-old Valerie, whose boyfriend Nick committed a school shooting at the end
of their junior year, struggles to cope with integrating herself back into high school life,
unsure herself whether she was a hero or a villain.
The Hobbit – J. R. R. Tolkien
Bilbo Baggins, a respectable, well-to-do hobbit, lives comfortably in his hobbit-hole
until the day the wandering wizard Gandalf chooses him to take part in an adventure
from which he may never return.

The Hour I First Believed – Wally Lamb
When high school teacher Caelum Quirk and his wife, Maureen, a school nurse, move to
Littleton, Colorado, they both get jobs at Columbine High School. In April 1999, while
Caelum is away, Maureen finds herself in the library at Columbine, cowering in a cabinet
and expecting to be killed. Miraculously, she survives, but at a cost: she is unable to
recover from the trauma. When Caelum and Maureen flee to an illusion of safety on the
Quirk family's Connecticut farm, they discover that the effects of chaos are not easily put
right, and further tragedy ensues.
House Rules by Jodi Picoult
A teenager with Asperger's syndrome--smart, quirky, with a passion for crime scene
analysis--winds up on trial for murder. It focuses on what it means to be different in our
society and gives insight into Asperger’s and others who are on the Autism Spectrum.
Hunt for Red October - Tom Clancy
A deadly serious game of hide-and-seek is on. The CIA's brilliant young analyst, Jack
Ryan, thinks he knows the reason for the sudden Red Fleet operation: the Soviets' most
valuable ship, the Red October, is attempting to defect to the United States.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lack – Rebecca Skloot
Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor
Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her
cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in
medicine. This story documents how scientists took cells from an unsuspecting
descendant of freed slaves and created a human cell line that has been kept alive
indefinitely, enabling numerous discoveries in science.
It’s Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life – Lance Armstrong
The world-champion cyclist recounts his diagnosis with cancer, the grueling treatments
during which he was given a less than twenty percent chance for survival, his surprising
victory in the 1999 Tour de France, and the birth of his son.
Just One More Day – Gayle Forman
Sparks fly when American good girl Allyson encounters laid-back Dutch actor Willem,
so she follows him on a whirlwind trip to Paris, upending her life in just one day and
prompting a year of self-discovery and the search for true love.

Leviathan – Scott Westerfield
Aleksandar Ferdinand, prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is on the run. His own
people have turned on him. His title is worthless. All he has is a battle-torn Stormwalker
and a loyal crew of men. Deryn Sharp is a commoner, a girl disguised as a boy in the
British Air Service. She's a brilliant airman. But her secret is in constant danger of being
discovered. With the Great War brewing, Alek's and Deryn's paths cross in the most
unexpected way taking them both aboard the Leviathan on a fantastical, around-the-world
adventure - one that will change both their lives forever.
Life and Death of Adolf Hitler – James Cross Giblin
Filled with a wealth of black-and-white archival photographs, a riveting glimpse into the
life of Adolf Hitler, from his childhood to his astonishing rise as dictator of Germany and
his final days in an embattled bunker under Berlin, reveals a brilliant, yet deeply
disturbed, individual who became one of the most influential people of the twentieth
century.
Life of Pi – Yann Marte
Pi Patel, having spent an idyllic childhood in Pondicherry, India, as the son of a
zookeeper, sets off with his family at the age of sixteen to start anew in Canada, but his
life takes a marvelous turn when their ship sinks in the Pacific, leaving him adrift on a
raft with a 450-pound Bengal tiger for company.
The Long Run: A New York City Firefighter’s Triumphant Comeback from Crash
Victim to Elite Athlete – Matt Long
The Long Run is an emotional and incredibly honest story about NYC firefighter Matt
Long’s determination to fight through fear, despair, loneliness, and intense physical and
psychological pain to regain the life he once had. The book chronicles Matt’s road to
recovery as he teaches himself to walk again and a mere three years later, to run in the
2008 New York City Marathon—a gimpy seven-and-a-half hour journey through the five
boroughs. “Running saved my life,” Matt says, and his embrace of the running
community and insistence on competing in the marathon has inspired many, turning him
into a symbol of hope and recovery for untold numbers of others.
Matched – Ally Condie [series]
All her life, Cassia has never had a choice. The Society dictates everything: when and
how to play, where to work, where to live, what to eat and wear, when to die, and most
importantly to Cassia as she turns 17, whom to marry. When she is Matched with her
best friend Xander, things couldn't be more perfect. But why did her neighbor Ky's face
show up on her match disk as well?

The Memory Keeper's Daughter – Kim Edwards
A #1 New York Times bestseller by Kim Edwards, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter is a
brilliantly crafted novel of parallel lives, familial secrets, and the redemptive power of
love--In a tale spanning twenty-five years, a doctor delivers his newborn twins during a
snowstorm and, rashly deciding to protect his wife from their baby daughter's affliction
with Down Syndrome, turns her over to a nurse, who secretly raises the child.
Nineteen Minutes – Jodi Picoult
In the aftermath of a small-town school shooting, lawyer Jordan McAfee finds himself
defending a youth who desperately needs someone on his side, while detective Patrick
Ducharme works with the primary witness--the daughter of the judge assigned to the
case.
Rules of Survival – Nancy Werlin
Seventeen-year-old Matthew recounts his attempts, starting at a young age, to free
himself and his sisters from the grip of their emotionally and physically abusive mother.
By the author of The Killer's Cousin. Jr Lib Guild. An ALA Best Book for Young Adults.
Scorpio Races – Maggie Stiefvater
Nineteen-year-old returning champion Sean Kendrick competes against Puck Connolly,
the first girl ever to ride in the annual Scorpio Races, both trying to keep hold of their
dangerous water horses long enough to make it to the finish line.
Secret Life of Bees – Sue Monk Kidd
When Lily's fierce-hearted black "stand-in mother," Rosaleen, insults three of the town's
most vicious racists, Lily decides they should both escape to Tiburon, South Carolina—a
town that holds the secret to her mother's past. There they are taken in by an eccentric trio
of black beekeeping sisters who introduce Lily to a mesmerizing world of bees, honey,
and the Black Madonna who presides over their household. This is a remarkable story
about divine female power and the transforming power of love—a story that women will
share and pass on to their daughters for years to come
Speak -Laurie Halse Anderson
A traumatic event near the end of the summer has a devastating effect on Melinda's
freshman year in high school.

The Help – Kathryn Stockett
Limited and persecuted by racial divides in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, three women,
including an African-American maid, her sassy and chronically unemployed friend, and a
recently graducated white woman, team up for a clandestine project.
38 Witnesses – Kitty Genovese Case – A.M. Rosenthal
It remains one of the most notorious deaths in New York City history not because of who
was murdered but because of the circumstances: 28-year-old Kitty Genovese was brutally
murdered, in an attack that took nearly thirty minutes and had thirty-eight witnesses...not
one of whom did a thing to stop the murderer or even call for help. It is part memoir, part
investigative journalism, and part public service.
"[Rosenthal] told a stunning, tragic story and called each one of us to account for averting
our eyes—and hearts—and voices." —Mike Wallace, 60 Minutes
You – Charles Benoit
In his stunning young-adult debut, Charles Benoit mixes riveting tension with an
insightful—and unsettling—portrait of an ordinary teen in a tale that is taut, powerful,
and shattering. An enthralling story of fifteen-year-old Kyle and the small choices he
does and doesn't make that lead to his own destruction

ISLAND TREES HIGH SCHOOL
CHOICE BOOK SUMMER READING PROJECT CHOICES
Directions: After enjoying a book of your choice, either one you selected from the
“Suggested Reading List” or one of your own picks, select ONE of the following
projects to complete.
• Your written responses should be no longer than two handwritten or typed
pages, please.
• All artistic projects should be done on an 8 ½ x 11 piece of paper- no bigger,
please.
• Be creative and have fun!
1. Do a double entry journal. On the left side of the paper, identify five significant
quotes from the novel. On the right side, explain what you believe to be the
significance of each quote. Each explanation should be a paragraph long.
2. Do a Question and Answer Interview with one of the characters from the book.
Ask her/him questions that you are curious about regarding plot, theme, setting,
conflict, and/or other characters. They may not be YES/NO questions. Include at
least 5 questions and 5 answers. In total, your interview should be 1-2 pages in
length.
3. Choose your favorite passage from the novel. Copy it down, word for word and
do a close, analytical reading. Discuss what you found appealing about it. Here
are some questions to guide you: Did it help to reveal something about a
character? Did it contain the conflict? Was it an answer to a question? What
makes this passage so vital to the understanding of the novel?
4. Who Should Read This Book Profile: Do a top-ten list. Begin with “You should
read this book if…” Each entry should be specific to the characters, plot, setting,
conflict, and themes of the novel. In addition, write a well-developed paragraph
that offers a brief review of the novel.
5. Which character do you love, dislike, admire, or want others to get to know and
why? Describe the most memorable character(s) in detail. Pull specific quotes
and/or details from the novel to substantiate your claims in a detailed written
response of 1-2 pages.

6. Draw a scene or a new cover for your novel designed to entice readers. On a
separate piece of paper, write a well-developed paragraph of 10-12 sentences
designed to promote the book to readers.
7. What is the WOW factor in your novel? What drew you in, kept you there, and
would make others want to read it? Fully explain the WOW factor in a welldeveloped
response that includes details, quotes, and specific references to the
book – 1-2 pages.
8. Write a letter to one of the characters in the book. Ask questions about his/her
motivations, comment on his/her actions, find out what the novel may not reveal,
but you are longing to know! Include details, quotes, and/or specific references to
the book – 1-2 pages.
9. Discuss the cause and effect relationships you found in the novel. For example,
you could discuss how one character’s actions lead to another reaction or event. In
addition, you could discuss how the outcome of one event led to another. Include
details, quotes, and specific references to the book – 1-2 pages.
10. Summarize the book in poem form (minimum 20 lines). You may or may not
choose to rhyme your lines; perhaps free verse would better suit your needs. Be
creative, use figurative language, and include specific details and references to the
book. Be creative.
11. You’re the reporter. Write a front page news story or a report live from the scene.
Make sure the story is at least 250 words. PROOF your work and include a
headline.
12. Design a time-line for the events of the novel. Include at least 10 events and write
at least three sentences for each event. Include drawings, clip art, or graphics to
illustrate the events your chose. Be neat and complete.
13. Compare and contrast the book with another you have read. If similar, explain at
least three similarities; if different, explain at least three differences. Your
response should include specific details and references to the book.
14. Write a radio advertisement persuading the public why they should buy and read
this novel. Use persuasive language and terminology and make specific references
to the novel. Must be at least 2 minutes long.

15. Discuss in depth the relevance of the title. Here are some questions to help guide
you in your analysis: Is the title symbolic? Does the title reveal a significant
aspect of the plot, conflict, or character? Is it a fitting title? 1-2 pages.
16. Write a letter to the author. Ask questions, raise points, make comments. 1-2
pages.
17. On 8 ½ x 11 paper, draw a movie poster advertising the story, and cast a real actor
in each character’s role. Use magazine pictures, computer printouts or drawings.