Favorite American Lit text?

[klmama]

I'd like to simplify my literature planning this year and use a single textbook for a spine instead of picking and choosing works from a zillion other books. I'll assign novels, of course, and I'm sure I'll end up supplementing, but I'd still like to find a really good text for most of the short stories, essays, and poetry. If you like a particular American literature textbook, what is it?

[Nscribe]

If pressed to select a single text, I think I would go with either a Norton Anthology or Bedford Anthology. The problem is they both tend to be a bit raw in the sense of analysis and explanation of literary elements/devices. What they do well is give you a bound collection of works from a particular time range and location that each tend to be fairly representative examples from the major movements in literature.

 

My issue with most true texts in literature is that they tend to use excerpts or condensed versions of the works included, be very reflective of the popular emphasis of the moment in which they are printed, and in some cases be very cluttered visually. In some of the high school level ones I have looked over the questions are not terribly analytical. The one series I have had others say they did like was Prentice Hall.

 

Another option to consider is a Teaching Company course and read the selections discussed therein. The accompanying course books often have questions to prompt discussion/composition.

 

We go the route of a mix of many resources -- which is what you stated you wanted to avoid.

[klmama]

*Sigh* I've looked at the table of contents for several texts online today. Everything seems to be excerpts from full books I want to cover or poetry and speeches I don't want to use. I'll go see if I can find a table of contents for the Prentice Hall text, as well as for the college anthologies. Thanks for the suggestions.

[3andme]

Another traditional American Lit textbook is Scott Foresman's United States in Literature. This is an older out-of-print series. It is an anthology and comes in two editions. One has the entire Red Badge of Courage and the other features three longer stories by Wharton, James, and Cather.The text incorporates an extensive Handbook of Literary Terms as well as many excellent commentaries and questions on the literary selections. There is a Teachers Edition which includes all selections in both versions as well as additional teacher annotations.

 

This thread has some further discussion of the Scott Foresman series. There is no Table of Contents available online but you can get an idea of the authors and some of the works covered by looking at the calendar for the American Lit course at Scholars Online. They use this textbook and if you click on a date on the calendar, you can see the authors/works covered.

[Nscribe]

Another traditional American Lit textbook is Scott Foresman's United States in Literature. ...

There is no Table of Contents available online but you can get an idea of the authors and some of the works covered by looking at the calendar for the American Lit course at Scholars Online. They use this textbook and if you click on a date on the calendar, you can see the authors/works covered.

 

TY for the links. I remember that Foresman book from long ago, before textbooks really became muddled.