2017 Upper School Reading list

Expand your mind this summer. Read.

In a time when YouTube, streaming video, 24-hour sports coverage, and video games compete for our attention at every turn, Gilman School believes in literature’s unique ability to instill in readers the values of empathy, wonder, and intellectual stimulation. The Summer Reading program promotes reading for pleasure, hoping to establish a lifelong habit in all Gilman boys. While some books have been chosen by the faculty and administration, students also have the opportunity to make choices in line with personal interests. Between the required and choice books, all students will read at least three books over the summer.

The Modern Language Department’s reading requirements and the books for the Elizabeth Woolsey Gilman Prize, one of Gilman’s oldest and most honored awards, are also listed below.

This year’s all Upper School read is The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick. This year’s all Upper School read was selected by the students. Rising seniors recommended titles and the Upper School student body voted to select this book as the All School Read.

We believe strongly in the importance of reading. Buying the Cliff’s Notes, watching films, or using online resources (i.e. Spark Notes) in lieu of reading one of these books cannot substitute for reading the actual text. Students will simply be cheating themselves if they do not read the book itself. Electronic book (e-book) formats (Kindle, Nook, and iPad) are acceptable for completing the readings.

If you have any questions regarding the summer reading program, please do not hesitate to contact any of the three of us.

Robert Heubeck
Upper School Head

Patrick Hastings
Chair, English Department

Diane Fuller
Upper School Librarian

Required Reading

All Upper School students will read The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick

Rising 9th graders will read The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger.

As you read this book, please consider the following questions:

• In what way is Holden a ‘reluctant hero?’
• Do you identify with Holden? Why or why not?
• Do Holden’s observations about society’s “phoniness” ring true to you? Provide an example of modern-day hypocrisy that you have experienced.
  

Rising 10th graders will read Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

• This novel takes place in Nigeria, and the country itself may be considered a character. How is Nigeria struggling to bridge the gap between the traditional and the modern? How is this struggle reflected in Kambili's immediate and extended family?
• Kambili's story is a coming-of-age story. As with all of us, Kambili's growing-up is complicated. How does Kambili find allies in the midst of familial and national upheaval? How does Kambili find peace in the midst of familial and national upheaval?

• What are the consequences of silence, both within a family and outside of it?

• How does one's public persona differ from one's private persona? Is there hypocrisy inherent in this difference?
  

To begin their study of American Literature, rising Juniors taking English at Gilman will read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. Those Juniors taking English at Bryn Mawr will read The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien and those Juniors taking English at RPCS will read Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok.

Rising Seniors will read books assigned for the first semester English Elective they are scheduled to take. For electives offered at Gilman, the summer reading books are as follows:

Creative Writing: Thrill Me by Benjamin Percy

Writers in Revolt: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey

Ulysses: Dubliners by James Joyce

Reading and Writing Fiction: Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You by Peter Cameron

Dante: A Grief Observed by C. S Lewis

Award Winning Novels Since 2000: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman.

Applied Philosophy: Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Noah Harari

Leadership Lit: The Secret Sharer, by Joseph Conrad

African-American Lit: Not In My Neighborhood by Antero Pietila

Lit of the 60s: Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut

Students taking first semester English Electives at Bryn Mawr or RPCS should check the website of that school regarding required books.

Bryn Mawr School Summer Reading

Roland Park Country School Summer Reading

Choice Books All Upper School boys will read one book of their choosing.