11th Grade AP Lang Summer Reading - MAPPS

MHS 11 th
Grade AP Language & Composition Summer
Reading
Welcome to AP Language and Composition – one of the most challenging English courses offered at MHS! This summer’s
reading requirements are a required non-fiction AND one contemporary choice from the book list below. Along with reading
both books, you will also be required to complete two assignments that are explained in this packet.
Read the following nonfiction novel:
“In Cold Blood” by Truman Capote
Truman Capote and the Legacy of In Cold Blood is the anatomy of the origins of an American literary landmark and
its legacy. Ralph F. Voss was a high school junior in Plainville, Kansas in mid-November of 1959 when four
members of the Herbert Clutter family were murdered in Holcomb, Kansas, by “four shotgun blasts that, all told,
ended six human lives,” an unimaginable horror in a quiet farm community during the Eisenhower years. No one in
Kansas or elsewhere could then have foreseen the emergence of Capote’s book–which has never gone out of print,
has twice been made into a major motion picture, remains required reading in criminology, American Studies,
sociology, and English classes, and has been the source of two recent biographical films.
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AND……Choose ONE of the following:
The novel is a superb intertwining of personal and
political history in Jackson, Miss., in the early 1960s.
Stockett focuses on the fascinating and vastly different
multilayered stories of maids and mistresses in the
nascent years of the civil rights movement
The anchor of The O'Reilly Factor recounts one of the
most dramatic stories in American history—how one
gunshot changed the country forever. In the spring of
1865, the bloody saga of America's Civil War finally
comes to an end after a series of increasingly harrowing
battles. President Abraham Lincoln's generous terms for
Robert E. Lee's surrender are devised to fulfill Lincoln's
dream of healing a divided nation, with the former
Confederates allowed to reintegrate into American
society. But one man and his band of murderous
accomplices, perhaps reaching into the highest ranks of
the U.S. government, are not appeased.
A Lesson Before Dying, is set in a small Cajun
community in the late 1940s. Jefferson, a young
black man, is an unwitting party to a liquor store
shoot out in which three men are killed; the only
survivor, he is convicted of murder and sentenced to
death. Grant Wiggins, who left his hometown for the
university, has returned to the plantation school to
teach. As he struggles with his decision whether to
stay or escape to another state, his aunt and
Jefferson's godmother persuade him to visit
Jefferson in his cell and impart his learning and his
pride to Jefferson before his death. In the end, the
two men forge a bond as they both come to
understand the simple
and defying—the expected.
Larson tells the stories of two men: Daniel H. Burnham, the architect responsible for the 1893 Chicago World's Fair's construction,
and H.H. Holmes, a serial killer masquerading as a charming doctor. Burnham's challenge was immense. In a short period of time,
he was forced to overcome the death of his partner and numerous other obstacles to construct the famous "White City" around
which the fair was built. His efforts to complete the project, and the fair's incredible success, are skillfully related along with
entertaining appearances by such notables as Buffalo Bill Cody, Susan B. Anthony, and Thomas Edison. The activities of the
sinister Dr. Holmes, who is believed to be responsible for scores of murders around the time of the fair, are equally remarkable. He
devised and erected the World's Fair Hotel, complete with crematorium and gas chamber, near the fairgrounds and used the event
as well as his own charismatic personality to lure victims.

In Cold Blood assignment:
Note: The plagiarizing of material for summer reading is strictly prohibited!
(1) Each of the novels has different methods of titling chapters. As you read, write the chapter name or title of the chapter
in the left hand column.
(2) In the right column, you must summarize the chapter in 2-3 sentences ONLY. This will truly test your ability to
summarize and evaluate the information you’ve read. Titles and summaries can be hand written on this form or typed
separately, but are due on the first day of school. If needed, you may extend this form to include all chapters.
Chapter Number and Title
2-3 Sentence Summary
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

13.
Chapter Number and Title
2-3 Sentence Summary
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
Note: The plagiarizing of material for summer reading is strictly prohibited!

Choice Book Reading Assignment
Double Entry Journal
(1) Enjoy your novel! All of these novels have been carefully selected by your teachers and are among their own
favorites.
(2) As you read, use post-its, bookmarks, or highlighters (if it’s your book) to indicate passages you feel are
important, especially detailed, unforgettable, insightful, exciting, special – passages that evoke a strong
emotional response from your or that get you thinking.
You will need five (5) passages that represent the beginning, middle and end of the novel you read.
(3) Record these passages in the left column of a typed table. These passages could be a few words to a few
sentences long. Be sure to copy the passage exactly as it appears in the work and record the page number
where the passage is found. If you want to take something out of a passage to shorten it, use […] to indicate
where you took something out. See the example of the following page for help.
(4) Respond to each passage. Each response should be about 100-200 words long. Responses shorter than 100
words will not be accepted. Your responses are your opportunity to show that you are an active reader: you
think while you read.
Suggested responses include:
Question: Ask about something that puzzles you. For example, Could this really happen Are people really this
polite/mean/romantic/religious/selfish/violent, etc. What does this word mean the way it’s used here Why did
the author choose this way to describe a place/character/action, etc.
Predict: What will happen next Where do you think this is leading For example, who is the killer Will these
characters fall in love or end up together Will the ending be a happy one
Clarify: What do you understand now that you did not before Have your questions been answered Were your
predictions accurate Do you understand or appreciate something you didn’t before
Connect: Text-to-Text: (what other works or literature, film, art, etc. does this remind you of What makes the
connection for you) Text-to-self: (Is there some connection between the words on the page and your life) Textto-world:
(Do you see some reflection of the world or of society here)
Evaluate: Give your opinion of the character/event/word choice or style/message. What makes this passage
effective What do you like or dislike about it
(5) Your table MUST be typed, printed and ready to be submitted on the first day of school.
(6) A sample entry from Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” is on the following page

Sample Double-Entry Journal Assignment
Your Name
Your Teacher’s Name
AP Language and Composition
Title of Your Book
Date
Double-Entry Journal Assignment for “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Passage with Page Number
“Dill’s voice went on steadily in the darkness: ‘The thing
is, what I’m tryin’ to say is – they do get on a lot better
without me, I can’t help them any. They ain’t mean.
They buy me everything I want, but it’s now-you’ve-gotit-go-play-with-it.
You’ve got a roomful of things. I-gotyou-that-book-so-go-read-it
[…]
To Kill a Mockingbird, page 143
Response
Dill has just run away from home and explains to Scout
what his home life is like. Although his parents seem to
give him everything he wants, what is missing is affection.
They do not want to be bothered with him, so they buy
him toys and books to keep him occupied, when what
he really wants is attention and real love. Like many of
my friends, Scout at first thinks the fact Dill’s parents let
him do whatever he wants is great. Dill doesn’t have his
parents on his case all of the time. He has freedom!
When I think about it, though, it makes me sad that
parents would treat a child like that. Every kid wants to
feel loved and wanted by his/her parents. This could be
considered a type of child abuse: instead of physically
hurting Dill, they hurt him by neglecting his emotional
needs. Now I see why Dill would want to run away to
the Finch house where Scout and Jem’s dad, Atticus,
shows true love, interest and concern for his children.