LibGuides: Prep School Library: Summer Reading

Summer Reading Introduction

All 9-12th grade students must read a minimum of three new books by the first day of classes in the fall. Some of this reading is required, some is of your own choosing. Below, we have listed the required titles for each grade, and for your free-choice books, there are lists of faculty favorites and other free-choice suggestions on this site to help give you ideas.

To fill out your free-choice books, you can pick titles from lists on this site, or different books by the same authors, or other books that interest you and are somewhat comparable in reading level. (If you are concerned that one book you have is too light or easy, then perhaps pair it with something more challenging.) Have fun choosing: talk to your friends, talk to your family, talk to your teachers. Spend time browsing online for something that seems interesting —whatever it takes to find books that you like and that keep you reading. You can also ask Ms. Friedlander, the PS Librarian, for a recommendation, or fill out the Summer Reading Book Match form.

Be prepared to discuss your choices when school begins in the fall. (Please also note that, while juniors and seniors must choose a book from the 11th and 12th Grade Summer Reading Symposium, students from other grades are welcome to read these as well.)

Note: Many AP courses have required books as well, and while these count as part of your overall three, they are not listed on this site. Visit the Advanced Course Summer Reading Site for more details.

Required Reading: 9th and 10th Grade

Required Books

Below are the required titles for each grade (which of course count as part of the three books you have to read this summer). Since you will want your required books to be fresh in your mind in the fall, be careful about reading these too early—it might be best to start the summer with your free-choice books.

Entering 9th Grade

Entering 10th Grade

English—Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
History—Animal Farm by George Orwell

Required Reading: 11th and 12th Grade Symposium

Juniors and Seniors, as part of your three summer books, you must read at least ONE of the following titles, representing very different kinds of reading and championed by teachers from around the school. When classes begin in the fall, be prepared to answer questions about, and to discuss, the book that you chose. (And be sure to choose a book that you have not read before.)
(Note: We also encourage 11th and 12th graders to include a classic work as one of their free-choice books. One great way to handle this is to choose a novel that you “missed” in 9th or 10th grade because different classes read different books. So you might try Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, or something comparable in order to help fill in your literary gaps.)

Severance by Ling Ma
ISBN: 1250214998
Candace Chen works at a boring office job in Manhattan, trying to get by -- until a mysterious plague hits New York and spreads rapidly through the country, zombifying its victims and sending the survivors scattering across the country. But Candace has a secret, and when it's discovered by the leader of the cult she joins to survive, she has to weigh the promises of safety with the risks of setting out on her own. This novel is funny, insightful, and full of suspense: It's a pandemic story, but not one that you have read before.
James by Percival Everett
ISBN: 0385550367
Percival Everett’s James retells the story of the runaway enslaved man who accompanies Huck down the Mississippi River in Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This time, the book is brilliantly narrated from James' perspective, and his voice is powerful in its condemnation of the society in which he lives. While the novel starts off as a tight companion piece to Huck Finn, it ultimately takes the reader onto new adventures and experiences, and you can appreciate the life James carves out for himself whether you have read Twain's classic or not.
Sam by Allegra Goodman
ISBN: 0593447832
This novel follows the titular Sam as she navigates girlhood and young adulthood with a single mother and largely absent father. Sam isn’t interested in academics, but she is passionate about rock climbing. Ultimately, Sam forges a path for herself that looks different from the one the adults in her life imagined for her but is nonetheless uniquely—and triumphantly— her own.
Merchants of Doubt by Naomi Oreskes; Erik M. Conway
ISBN: 1608193942
"The science is not settled, so we could be wrong" is a phrase you might have heard, but this argument for inaction, based on a flawed understanding of how science works, has been deliberately used to obscure scientific consensus. Merchants of Doubt exposes this modern American history of sowing doubt about the dangers of smoking, acid rain, ozone holes, and climate change. It also reveals the errors in understanding that underlie this politically and financially motivated science denial and how to correct them.
Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu
ISBN: 0307948471
Interior Chinatown is a strange, post-modern, satirical novel that follows the life of Willis Wu, a persistently typecast Taiwanese-American actor who desperately wants to transcend bit parts and land a coveted "Kung Fu Guy" role on the silver screen. The Washington Post called it “One of the funniest books of the year,” but it also asks readers to re-examine the complexities and contradictions lurking within the pursuit of the "American Dream."
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
ISBN: 1635577802
In a mysterious house, with rooms that stretch in infinite directions, Piranesi lives alone in search of what a mysterious visitor describes as "A Great and Secret Knowledge." What is the knowledge that Piranesi seeks? Can the visitor be trusted? How did Piranesi find himself in this house? These questions will keep you turning the pages, but the real power in this stunning novel is a deeply personal exploration of identity and the pursuit of truth.
The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick
ISBN: 0547572484
In this sci-fi novel, the Axis powers have won the Second World War, and the United States has been divided between Germany and Japan. Slavery is legal once again, and most people must hide their identities from the fascist government. As Americans anticipate a war between the two global superpowers, a book about an alternate reality — one where the Allies won — has begun to secretly circulate. This American classic forces us to contemplate reality and contingency, begging the question of what is real and how we can challenge our perceived reality.
Greetings from Bury Park by Sarfraz Manzoor
ISBN: 0307388026
Discover the amazing true story of a Pakistani immigrant raised in a working-class neighborhood on the outskirts of London who had his life's trajectory forever altered by a chance encounter with the musical stylings of Bruce Springsteen. This book is for anyone who has ever wanted to love, stand up, scream, try, run, join in, understand, start over, win, speak out, or dream.

Not sure what to read for your free choice options?

If you need a free choice book and you don't know what to read, fill out the SUMMER READING BOOK MATCH form! Ms. Friedlander can help you find something you'll enjoy.