Book Summaries for Grades 9 through 12
Need help choosing the books to write about? Scan these summaries to help you get started choosing your books.
George Orwell’s Animal Farm (1945) is a satire of corruption in government. All the characters are animals, which allows for a humorous mocking of humans and our quests for power.
The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1971), by Ernest J. Gaines, takes place in rural Louisiana between 1860 and 1960; though it is fiction, it is based on the historical experiences of African Americans in the United States, and violence African Americans experienced during this time period.
Set in late twentieth century New Mexico, Rudulfo Anaya’s Bless Me, Ultima (1972) is about a boy who accompanies a curandera, a woman who heals people, and what he learns in the process about nature, illness, healing, medicine, and spirituality.
J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye (1951), which takes place in two days and tells the journey of a 16 year old boy who is kicked out of preparatory school and heads to New York City focuses on themes of loneliness, alienation, shallowness, and innocence.
Robert Cormier’s Chocolate War (1993) is about a teenage freshman at a Catholic prep school who makes the football team and is doing well until he gets terrorized by a secret group within the school. This group forces him to refuse to sell chocolates for the annual school fundraiser, and the plot is centered around the consequences.
Chaim Potor’s The Chosen (1967)is the story of the friendship between a Hasidic Jew and a more liberal Jewish teenager (and his father) in Brooklyn at the end of World War II. It focuses on discussions between them about historical religious issues and current practices as well as various intellectual debates.
Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield (1849-50) is about a boy’s life growing up, going to school, his struggles with poverty, the fame he earns as an author, and the realization of his love for a woman.
Set in the 24th century, where book reading is banned because free thinking is considered to be threatening, Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 tells an exciting story about a fireman whose job is to burn books. It tells of his questioning of the practice of book burning, his rebellion against the regime, and his quest to save both himself and books.
Great Expectations (1860), by Charles Dickens, tells the story of the changes “Pip” goes through as he decides to aspire to wealth, the decisions he makes along the way, and the consequences of those decisions. This journey involves lessons about love, revenge, adversity, and honesty.
Homer’s The Odyssey (800 BCE), set in ancient Greece, tells the mystical story of a man’s post-war journey back to his family, his various travails and adventures during this voyage (including interactions with various gods and goddesses), and his struggle to reunite with his wife before she takes the hand of another suitor. (A copy of The Odyssey is in the Glencoe anthology “Course 4.”)
Set on a deserted tropical island, William Golding’s Lord of the Flies (1954) is an adventurous story about a group of English boys who are stranded on the island and the effects of this situation on them. It raises questions about just how civilized these “civilized” boys think they are, but it also raises questions about survival, about the influence of others’ behaviors, and whether rules and laws are restrictive or necessary.
John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men (1937), set in Salinas Valley in central California, is the story of two farm laborers who dream to have a small farm of their own one day. One of them has mental disabilities, and the central drama of the story revolves around a violent accident that he is seen as responsible for.
The Yearling (1986), byMarjorie K. Rawlings, is about life in rural central Florida in the second half of the 19th century; it also tells the story of a boy growing up and his relationship with a fawn who becomes a pet for him. The emphasis of the story is on dealing with various deaths and gaining strength through hardship.
Romeo and Juliet, a tragic play set in 16th century Italy, is about two teenagers who fall in love despite the fact that their families are and have been rivals for decades. William Shakespeare captures the drama and emotions of these two lovers’ struggle. (A copy of this play is in the Glencoe anthology “Course 4.”
All Quiet on the Western Front (1929) begins near the German/French front during WWI and is narrated from the perspective of a soldier who, along with a group of his friends, had been encouraged by his teacher to enlist in the war. The novel tells a powerful story about his realizations about war which include observations about brutality and the death of so many people around him (his friends, too).
Willa Cather’s My Ántonia (1918) takes place in Black Hawk, Nebraska, at the time that European immigrants first began settling there. The story focuses on Ántonia’s family’s economic struggles as farmers, and her admirable strength as a woman who works the fields and raises a family.
Antigone, written in the 5th century B.C. by Sophocles, is a tragedy set in ancient Greece that tells the story of a conflict between a King who passes a law and a strong woman who chooses to disobey the King’s laws in order to follow what she believes is a higher law. (A copy of this play is in the Glencoe Anthology “Course 5.”)
John Gunther’s Death Be not Proud (1949) is a memoir about his own son, who eventually dies from brain cancer. It chronicles a heart wrenching story about his son’s courage to continue with school as well his emotional and physical struggle while fighting cancer.
The Good Earth (1931), by Pearl Buck, is the story of a Chinese peasant who, through much hardship and toil, becomes a powerful, wealthy landowner. A theme of this story is attachment to the land.
Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities (1859) is set in Paris and London (the two cities) during the time of the French Revolution. It describes the abuses extant in France and the crime that is rampant in England, focusing mostly on the story of a self-exiled French man of the ruling class and his attempt to flee from his past.
Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street (1984), set in Chicago in the late 20th century, tells the story of a Mexican American girl coming of age, which includes her struggles living in a working class family, her discoveries of the expectations placed upon her as a girl growing into a woman, and her hopes and dreams for her future. (This book is easy to read in terms of its vocabulary).
Homer’s The Illiad tells the mythological epic story of the ancient Trojan and Greek war (which took place 500 years before his time) that began as a battle over a woman who was abducted. It is an adventurous story about heroism and courage, and includes divine intervention on the part of several gods.
Julius Caesar (1599) is a tragedy that takes place in Rome, beginning in 44 B.C., about Caesar’s ambition, and a plot against him due to a fear that he will become King. Themes of the play are jealousy and betrayal, and as with all of Shakepeare’s tragedies, this one too is filled with numerous deaths. (This play is in the Glencoe Anthology “Course 5.”)
The Last of the Mohicans (1826) is set in 1757 in what would become upper New York state during the wars between the French and British colonists. It depicts the struggle of the frontiersman sympathetically and represents American Indians in two ways—some are trustworthy to the white people and some are savages—which reveals much about the contemporary ways of thinking about American Indians.
Siddhartha is the story of a young man’s reflective as well as physical journey away from his family. Hermann Hesse tells of the process of reaching true wisdom and peace, and the suffering that is part of this journey toward ultimate peace.
Elie Wiesel’s Night (1958) tells the story of a Jewish boy and the atrocities he experiences at several WWII German concentration camps. It evokes the stark historical realities of this genocide, including the separation of families, forced labor, and the mass murdering of men, women, and children.
Set in Africa at the beginning of the 20th century, Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart (1958) depicts the historical reality of the struggles of African people as a result of British colonialism, including the harmful effects that missionaries had upon the religious and spiritual beliefs and practices of African peoples.
Ernest Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea (1952) tells the story of a fisherman’s two day battle against a fish. It is a parable of many things, among them courage, endurance, aging, and specifically the struggle of man to defeat and conquer nature.
Set in southern Alabama in the 1930s, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) chronicles the trial of an African American man who is accused of a crime he did not commit, in the process revealing much about justice and racism in America.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), by Mark Twain, takes place during the time of slavery, and tells the story of a boy who runs away from an abusive father, taking with him a slave who is trying to get to the north to be free.
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, completed in 1790, is not so much a story about Franklin’s life, but also a record of his advice on how one should live in order to succeed in America and be a productive, hard working member of society. Constructing his life as he wants it to be seen, Franklin’s autobiography is an early advocate for many popular views of the American Dream.
Set in Puritan Boston during the mid 17th century, Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter (1850) is about a woman who has a child out of wedlock, and the judgment and ostracism she receives from her community, of which the church and the preacher are a significant part. The story is also about a relationship between a mother and daughter.
Arthur Miller’s The Crucible (1976) is a quasi-historical play based on events of the Salem witchcraft trials, and takes place in a small Puritan village in the colony of Massachusetts in 1692. Miller provides a social critique of the repressive function of the witch trials, a critique also aimed at oppressive measures of the mid 20th century.
Set during the Great Depression, John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath (1939)tells the story of an Anglo American family in Oklahoma who were just one of many families who, out of economic hardship, were forced to leave their homes and head for California where work had been promised. This novel depicts the physical hardship that farm workers in California suffered during this time period as well as the dehumanizing treatment they received.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby (1925) explores several love triangles, with husbands and wives cheating on each other, but beyond the plot lies a social critique of wealth and prestige and of the shallowness of some human relationships.
John Hersey’s Hiroshima(1989) tells the story of six Japanese survivors of the Hiroshima bombing; the story offers a perspective usually not given in U.S. historical accounts of the war, as it depicts the emotional trauma and destruction that these victims witnessed and experienced.
Tomás Rivera’s And the Earth Did not Devour Him (1995) is a compilation of short stories and vignettes that follows the events of one year in the life of a young Mexican American boy. It tells the story of the strength of a community of migrant workers in the United States in the 1940s and 1950s. Written to expose the abuses and horrors faced by migrant workers, the book recounts some disturbing events through which the boy finds strength in himself and realizes the importance of his community.
Picture Bride (1987), by Yoshiko Uchida, is a novel based on the stories of several hundred Japanese "picture brides" whose arranged marriages with Americans brought them to the United States in the early 20th century.
John Knowles’ A Separate Peace (1975), whichtakes place in the 1940s in rural New Hampshire at an all-boys prep school, tells the story of two boys and their competitive friendship, and what one of the boys learns, through this friendship, about violence and aggression.
Set between WWI and WWII in Florida, Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937) is a powerfully gripping story about the growth of a young African American girl into a strong, independent woman, her various experiences with three husbands in her life, and the burdens of various oppressions.
Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun (1959)is about an African American family trying to claim their right to the American Dream. It is a story about hope in the midst of oppression and racism, including economic struggle as well as the different difficulties the various members of the family face.
Death of a Salesman (1949), by Arthur Miller, is a drama that explores ways a salesman/father’s behavior and actions influence those of his sons and wife, including his obsession with success.
As You Like It (1599), a comedy by Shakespeare, focuses mainly on a series of episodes involving two pairs of lovers and some humorous misunderstandings that take place and drive the plot.
Richard Wright’s Black Boy (1945) is an autobiography covering his life from age 4 to 19, and though it is the story of one man’s life, it intends to reveal the atrocities and the cruelties experienced by African Americans living in the South in the first part of the twentieth century. Further, it depicts how racism affects African American families.
Set in the 7th century AF (after Ford), A. Huxley’s Brave New World (1932) depicts a world where the caste system is firmly in place and people are conditioned to accept the position they have been allotted in life. It raises questions about the loss of individual freedom in a society that is regulated by science to be supposedly free of troubles, and engages issues of genetic manipulation occurring in contemporary society.
Beowulf is a poem written in Old English (10th century, hence a translation is recommended) and tells of two events in the hero’s life: his fighting of a monster, and his combat against a dragon. Though a challenging read, this poem is an action packed adventure.
Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales (approximately 1387) is a collection of humorous stories about love, deception, revenge, marriage, and gender roles that maintain their humor even hundreds of years later. Further, the social commentary Chaucer provides is no less relevant to a 21st century reader.
Set in a late 19th century Scandinavian country, Henrik Ibsen’s Doll’s House (1879)describes the ways finances affect a family and its decisions, while considering the subjugation of the individual in familial relations.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1818) tells the story of a scientist who creates a being that is perceived as a monster. One of the themes of the novel is man’s attempt to control nature, but it also contains themes of fatherhood and alienation.
Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels (1726) is a satire of English political parties and religious factions, philosophy, science, history, and human reason. Though written about 18th century England, its social commentary is relevant to issues in contemporary America of the 21st century.
Set in Denmark, Shakespeare’s Hamlet (1602),explores a young man’s struggle to make a decision while it deals with universal questions about revenge, jealousy, anger, and loss of a loved one.
Set in the Congo in Africa in the late nineteenth century, Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness (1902) tells the story of ivory traders and their economic exploitation of the native people. Conrad provides a critique of the racism that is often used to attempt to justify colonization and the exploitation of people.
Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1970) is set for the most part in Stamps, Arkansas, but also takes place in San Francisco and St. Louis, in the 1930s and 40s. It is about an African American girl, who is the narrator, and how she learns to be strong as she struggles against racism every day.
Set in New York City in mid-20th century America, Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man (1952) is narrated by a nameless African American man who tells the story of his invisibility—of the ways white people view him and of the assumptions made about him on a daily basis. The text, while challenging, is especially thought-provoking as it provides some insightful critiques of racism in America that are still very much relevant today.
Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre (1847) takes place in 19th century England and tells the story of an English woman who is in love and is about to be married, but discovers a hidden secret of her fiancée that interrupts the marriage ceremony. To find out the secret you’ll have to read the book!
Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club (1993)is set in late 20th century America, and tells the story of four women who have immigrated from China, their struggles in the past, their relationships with their daughters, their friendships with each other, and how these daughters struggle with identity, with being of Chinese ancestry in America.
Macbeth (1606)is a Shakespearian tragedy about two generals in Scotland, a prophecy, attempts to avoid the prophecy, and the various murders that ensue; the play is filled with death, destruction, ghosts, and war.
Set in early 20th century Ireland, James Joyce’s Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man (1915) is an autobiographical novel about a boy’s coming of age, including his sexual adventures and his ensuing guilt, his days as a student, and the necessity for him to leave his country.
Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights (1847) is a gothic novel set in 19th century England on an estate, and tells the story of a misunderstanding that prevents two people from marrying and the tragedies that ensue. It is a story of illness, death, revenge, and the confinement and unhappiness that result from an unwanted marriage.