Amethyst Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 I'm trying to put together my dd16's literature course for next year. There are plenty of classics that I want to cover with her, but since some of them are pretty dense, I'd like to intersperse them with some more contemporary literature. I'm looking for books that would meet all 3 the following criteria. I'm looking for books that a high school student might actually choose to read on his/her own just for the sake of enjoyment. I'm looking for books from the 21st century (maybe 1990's). I'm looking for books that have something worthwhile to say. My first choice of a book that would cover all these criteria would be Feed by M.T. Anderson. Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy58103 Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 These may not all be appropriate for your DD16 due to some graphic violence/sex, but here are some "contemporary" novels I have enjoyed: The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho Atonement, Ian McEwan Freedom, Jonathan Franzen The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini Life of Pi, Yann Martel A Prayer for Own Meany, John Irving The Road, Cormac McCarthy White Teeth, Zadie Smith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 (edited) ... some more contemporary literature. I'm looking for books that would meet all 3 the following criteria... - books that a high school student might actually choose to read on his/her own just for the sake of enjoyment. - books from the 21st century (maybe 1990's) - books that have something worthwhile to say ...Any suggestions? I have NOT yet read the books marked with ** so PREVIEW. The others I can vouch for as ones I would have handed to my older teens (definitely some mature themes but not extreme or graphic in intensity), are pretty decently written, and would have been something my own teens might have chosen to read on their own. Lighter Contemporary Ideas - something by Bill Bryson ** - one of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency books by Alexander McCall Smith (not deep, but always encouraging and charming) Contemporary, not deep/subtle, but worthwhile 2004 -- Curious Incident of the Dog of the Dog in the Night-Time (Haddon) -- novelty of an autistic first person narrator 2006 = Soul Surfer (Hamilton) -- autobiography of teen surfer who lost her arm to a shark and returned to surfing 2012 ** Wonder (Palacio) = novelty of a main teenage character with severe deformity Deeper Contemporary Ideas 1990 -- The Joy Luck Club (Tan) 1995 -- Sophie's World (Gaarder) -- not masterfully written, but lots to discuss (philosophy movements) 2002 -- Peace Like A River (Enger) -- may "trigger" for those who have been abused 2003 -- Life of Pi (Martel) 2004 -- Gilead (Robison) -- probably not a teen choice, but a lovely message of the beauty of ordinary life 2005 -- The Book Thief (Zusak) 2005 -- ** Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Foer) 2006 -- ** The Road (McCarthy) 2007 -- Auralia's Colors (Overstreet) -- first of a quadrilogy 2007 -- ** Three Cups of Tea (Mortensen) -- controversy over how honest the author was 2008 -- The Hunger Games (Collins) -- JMO -- ONLY this first book of the trilogy is worth a read/discussion 2009 -- ** The Help (Stockett) 2010 -- Anathem (Stephenson) -- not deep or masterfully written, but brings up interesting ideas for discussion 2011 -- Shades of Grey (fforde) Older But Timeless Ideas 1973 -- I Heard The Owl Call My Name (Craven) -- similar to Gilead 1974 -- House of Stairs (Sleator) -- not deep or masterfully written, but discussion-worthy (behavior modification; dystopic society) 1974 -- Watership Down (Adams) -- lack of female characters; but discussion-worthy (echoes of The Aeneid; forms of gov't) 1975 -- Tombs of Atuan (Le Guin) -- #2 of Earthsea trilogy; Wizard of Earthsea (#1) and Farthest Shore (#3) also worthwhile Edited March 8, 2016 by Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted July 15, 2013 Author Share Posted July 15, 2013 These may not all be appropriate for your DD16 due to some graphic violence/sex, but here are some "contemporary" novels I have enjoyed: The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho Atonement, Ian McEwan Freedom, Jonathan Franzen The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini Life of Pi, Yann Martel A Prayer for Own Meany, John Irving The Road, Cormac McCarthy White Teeth, Zadie Smith Thanks for this list. I did think of adding Life of Pi to the list for my dd, so I think I'll include that. Others here I'm familiar with but don't want to include for her (for various reasons), but there are a few here that I'm going to investigate. Thanks for the suggestions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted July 15, 2013 Author Share Posted July 15, 2013 I have NOT yet read the books marked with ** so PREVIEW. The others I can vouch for as ones I would have handed to my teens (not extreme or graphic in sex, violence or intensity of theme), are pretty decently written, and would have been something my own teens might have chosen to read on their own. Lighter Contemporary Ideas - something by Bill Bryson ** - one of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency books by Alexander McCall Smith (not deep, but always encouraging and charming) Deeper Contemporary Ideas 2002 -- Peace Like A River (Enger) 2003 -- Life of Pi (Martel) 2004 -- Gilead (Robison) -- probably not a teen choice, but a lovely message of the beauty of ordinary life 2005 -- ** Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Foer) 2006 -- ** The Road (McCarthy) 2007 -- Auralia's Colors (Overstreet) -- first of a quadrilogy 2007 -- ** Three Cups of Tea (Mortensen) -- controversy over how honest the author was 2008 -- The Hunger Games (Collins) -- JMO -- ONLY this first book of the trilogy is worth a read/discussion 2009 -- ** The Help (Stockett) 2010 -- Anathem (Stephenson) 2011 -- Shades of Grey (fforde) Older But Timeless Ideas 1973 -- I Heard The Owl Call My Name (Craven) 1975 -- Tombs of Atuan (Le Guin) Thanks for these suggestions. I'll be investigating many here. (ps. I agree only the first of the Hunger Games is worthwhile.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 The Glass Castle - Walls The Help - Stockett My Sister's Keeper - Picoult Outliers - Gladwell Steve Jobs - Isaacson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 I am working on the same project with the AP exam in mind. Not an easy project! I have gone through Ms Effie's list of everything that has appeared on the AP exam since the 70's and highlighted the past 4 years. Almost all contemporary books that I have never read. :( I have also been through every online AP Syllabus I can find. Life of Pi, The Kite Runner, and Things Fall Apart all appear to be front runners in that criteria. Books by Margaret Atwood are also popular. I am planning to read these in the next few weeks to see if they are good choices for dd. Sorry I don't have any great recommendations but I will be following this thread! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanvan Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 Thinking about this thread I am realizing I do not read a lot of contemporary fiction. My one suggestion would be Wallace Stegner's Angle of Repose though I do think there is some type of sexual scene toward the end--but it's such a wonderful book I'll probably have Ds read it anyway and be sure to discuss. I remember that scene b/c it seemed out of place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted August 9, 2013 Author Share Posted August 9, 2013 Thanks for replying, everyone. I'm always interested in hearing about book ideas. Some of these suggestions, even if I didn't add them to my dd's list, I've added them to my own list of books to-be-read! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candid Posted August 9, 2013 Share Posted August 9, 2013 Two books that you must read as a set. They are amazingly good, but the first book has some really bad things happen which involved both violence and s*x. These things happen to well drawn, sympathetic characters so they are challenging. On its own this is an great novel, but coupled with its sequel it is amazing. http://www.amazon.com/The-Sparrow-Ballantine-Readers-Circle/dp/0449912558/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376061238&sr=8-1&keywords=sparrow http://www.amazon.com/Children-God-Ballantine-Readers-Circle/dp/044900483X/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_y Note: these may appear to be science fiction, they certainly work in that genre but the writer has gone way beyond genre fiction writing and I have never seen them shelved with science fiction because of the quality of her writing (this said by someone who reads science fiction). They also include religious themes but not in a proselytizing, everything's all right if you are an X sort of way (and as a Christian, I can even imagine some other folks being offended by how the themes are handled). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bugs Posted August 9, 2013 Share Posted August 9, 2013 Two books that you must read as a set. They are amazingly good, but the first book has some really bad things happen which involved both violence and s*x. These things happen to well drawn, sympathetic characters so they are challenging. On its own this is an great novel, but coupled with its sequel it is amazing. http://www.amazon.com/The-Sparrow-Ballantine-Readers-Circle/dp/0449912558/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376061238&sr=8-1&keywords=sparrow http://www.amazon.com/Children-God-Ballantine-Readers-Circle/dp/044900483X/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_y Note: these may appear to be science fiction, they certainly work in that genre but the writer has gone way beyond genre fiction writing and I have never seen them shelved with science fiction because of the quality of her writing (this said by someone who reads science fiction). They also include religious themes but not in a proselytizing, everything's all right if you are an X sort of way (and as a Christian, I can even imagine some other folks being offended by how the themes are handled). :iagree: Yep, loved both! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted August 10, 2013 Author Share Posted August 10, 2013 Two books that you must read as a set. They are amazingly good, but the first book has some really bad things happen which involved both violence and s*x. These things happen to well drawn, sympathetic characters so they are challenging. On its own this is an great novel, but coupled with its sequel it is amazing. http://www.amazon.com/The-Sparrow-Ballantine-Readers-Circle/dp/0449912558/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376061238&sr=8-1&keywords=sparrow http://www.amazon.com/Children-God-Ballantine-Readers-Circle/dp/044900483X/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_y Note: these may appear to be science fiction, they certainly work in that genre but the writer has gone way beyond genre fiction writing and I have never seen them shelved with science fiction because of the quality of her writing (this said by someone who reads science fiction). They also include religious themes but not in a proselytizing, everything's all right if you are an X sort of way (and as a Christian, I can even imagine some other folks being offended by how the themes are handled). Thank you. I have never heard of either of these. They sound interesting. I'm going to add them to my list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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