Summer Reading 2018
Book Review Assignment - Required
THE ASSIGNMENT - Due 8/5/2018
Book Review
This assignment is 100 Points. You will need to read one novel from the reading list and complete the assignment below. This assignment will be submitted through Turnitin.com. Request to enroll in the Summer Reading Class using the Class ID 18063691 and Password SUM18.
(Length – 3-5 typed - double-spaced - pages)
The idea of a professional book review is to brieflysummarize the ideas of the book, but mainly to give your opinion about the book’s merits – it is a critical analysis of the book. Just like in the literature critique assignment, ‘critical’ does not imply that you are going to be mean or harsh in your review. It means that you are going to evaluate objectively whether the author(s) have fulfilled their objectives in the book, and whether they have used persuasive and unbiased evidence to support their claims. Did you find the book engaging? Persuasive? Did you agree with it? Did you enjoy it? Would you recommend it to others? What is the intended audience of the book? Does it succeed in reaching this audience?
Work hard on making your book review very readable to a general audience. You should have an Introduction, Body(discussion of the book), and clear Conclusion (although these do not have to be broken into explicit sections – you can write this like an essay).
Include:
(1) The title and author of the book you are reviewing
(2) The author’s objective(s) and audience
(3) The author’s main arguments
(4) Your evaluation of the author’s support of his arguments (provide examples)
(5) Your evaluation of the author’s interpretation and success with his/her objectives in writing the book (provide examples)
(6) Comparison with other books or sources if appropriate
(7) Your conclusions about the book
(8) You can rate the book - would you recommend this book to other people?
- why or why not
Be sure to put any quotes from the novel in quotation marks and to cite any sources used.
Novel List
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Throne of Glass Series
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It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vazzini
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Fifth Wave Series by Rick Yancey
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The Mortal Instruments (series)
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Maximum Ride (series)
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The Furnace Series - Lockdown: Escape from Furnace by Alexander Gordon Smith
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Period.8 by Chris Crutcher
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Delirium by Lauren Oliver (trilogy)
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Life as We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer (trilogy)
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The Bunker Diary by Kevin Brooks
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Conviction by Kelly Loy Gilber
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Midwinter Blood by Marcus Sedgwick
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The Lifeboat Clique by Kathy Parks
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The Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline-Probably liked more by girls
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Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
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The Darkest Path- Jeff Hisirch
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A Walk among the Tombstones- Lawrence Block
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Pride and Prejudice- Jane Austen
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The Demon King (series) - Cinda Williams Chima
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Son of the Mob-Gordon Korman
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Into Thin Air-Jon Krakauer
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The Kane Chronicles-Rick Riordan
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The Warrior Heir Cinda Williams Chima
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Sherlock Holmes Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
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Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
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Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
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The Naural by Bernard Malamud
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The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
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Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
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Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
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A Separate Peace By John Knowles
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Dracula by Bram Stoker
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Life of Pi by Yann Martel
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Jayne Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
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The House on Mango Street by Susan Cisneros
Summer Reading Rubric
2018
Book Report
Name: __________________________________________
|
0
Little or None
Below 50%
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1
Limited
50-59%
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2
Some
60-69%
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3
Considerable
70-79%
|
4
Excellent
80-100%
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POINTS
|
|
Introduction
*Title and author of the book
*Author’s objective and audience
Thesis statement
|
Introduces assignment with little or no effectiveness
|
Introduces assignment with limited effectiveness
|
Introduces assignment with some effectiveness
|
Introduces assignment with considerable effectiveness
|
Introduces assignment with a high degree of effectiveness
|
/10
|
|
Body
*Author’s Main arguments
*Transitions between body paragraphs
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Develops the body of the assignment with little or no effectiveness
|
Develops the body of the assignment with little or no effectiveness
|
Develops the body of the assignment with limited effectiveness
|
Develops the body of the assignment with some effectiveness
|
Develops the body of the assignment with considerable effectiveness
|
/15
|
|
Your Evaluation of the author’s support of his/her arguments (provide examples - citations)
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Evaluates the author’s support of his/her arguments provides examples/citations with little or no effectiveness
|
Evaluates the author’s support of his/her arguments provides examples/citations with limited effectiveness
|
Evaluates the author’s support of his/her arguments provides examples/citations with some effectiveness
|
Evaluates the author’s support of his/her arguments provides examples/citations with considerable effectiveness
|
Evaluates the author’s support of his/her arguments provides examples/citations with a high degree of effectiveness
|
/20
|
|
Your evaluation of the author’s interpretation and success with his/her objectives in writing the book (provide examples - citations)
|
Evaluates the author’s interpretation and success with his/her objectives in writing the book provides examples – citations
with little or no effectiveness
|
Evaluates the author’s interpretation and success with his/her objectives in writing the book provides examples – citations
with little or no effectiveness
|
Evaluates the author’s interpretation and success with his/her objectives in writing the book provides examples – citations
with some effectiveness
|
Evaluates the author’s interpretation and success with his/her objectives in writing the book provides examples – citations
with considerable effectiveness
|
Evaluates the author’s interpretation and success with his/her objectives in writing the book provides examples – citations
with a high degree of effectiveness
|
/20
|
|
Conclusion
*Concluding Statement
* Your conclusions about the book
* You can rate the book - would you recommend this book to other people? - Why or why not
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Concludes with little or no effectiveness
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Concludes with limited effectiveness
|
Concludes with some effectiveness
|
Concludes with considerable effectiveness
|
Concludes with a high degree of effectiveness
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/10
|
|
Grammar
* Sentence structure, transitions, punctuation, spelling, capitalization
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Uses grammar with little or no effectiveness
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Uses grammar with limited effectiveness
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Uses grammar with some effectiveness
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Uses grammar with considerable effectiveness
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Uses grammar with a high degree of effectiveness
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/15
|
|
Examples/Citations
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Uses examples/in-text citations with little or no effectiveness
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Uses examples/in-text citations with limited effectiveness
|
Uses examples/in-text citations with some effectiveness
|
Uses examples/in-text citations with considerable effectiveness
|
Uses examples/in-text citations with a high degree of effectiveness
|
/5
|
|
Works Cited
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Uses Works Cited with little or no effectiveness
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Uses Works Cited with limited effectiveness
|
Uses Works Cited with some effectiveness
|
Uses Works Cited with considerable effectiveness
|
Uses Works Cited with a high degree of effectiveness
|
/5
|
|
|
|
|
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TOTAL
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/100
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Summer may be your chance to take a break from school, but you can still continue your learning over the summer and have fun at the same time.
High school students that read during the summer months are more likely to score higher on standardized tests like the SAT, ACT and AP Exams.
While literary classics are vital to developing written and verbal skills, contemporary novels can provide just as much help and influence to students preparing for tests as well as classes.
Taken from the article “Fun, Smart Summer Reading Lists for Students” by Kathryn Knight Randolph - April 17, 2018.