High school reading list

[Upgradable]

Should I ask that my daughter read Little Women?

Her fall musical will be Little Women, and she's anticipating in participating. I was distressed that she and none of her friends had read the Louisa May Alcott story. I think it's a right of passage for all young women to read Little Women and A Tree Grows In Brooklyn. I told her she needed to read it before auditioning for the musical version. She threw a hissy!! She is 16 years old.

Do you think I'm unreasonable expecting that she experience some American Literature before she reaches college?? She has me thinking I'm a Monster!

 

[packrat]

Does she not like to read? Or does she think b/c it's old it's not a good story? I've never read the *actual* book..no idea why come to think of it..I'll have to run to the library tomorrow. Anyway, when I was really little..3rd grade? My mom bought me a ton of those little Moby Dick abridged classics. I read Little Women so many times I couldn't begin to count. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Robinson Crusoe, so many of them. Maybe if she read the abridged version first she would be more interested in it?

 

[Sabine]

Ah, 16...the age when you need to learn the art of communicating an idea while making her think it's *her* idea in the first place or else she'll rebel against it with all her might because mom suggested it.

I definitely think she should read it and would enjoy reading it, but how to go about actually getting her to read it? No clue

However, I taught HS English and am an avid reader and love the classics, and I've never read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn! I'll add that to my list though, just one that must have slipped through the cracks.

 

[Bunny007]

I've read that book at least a dozen times and have never finished it. I refuse to read further than the part where Amy steals Jo's man. I couldn't even finish the movie! Still, great book.

As great as it is though, I don't think you can make her read any particular book, or expect her to enjoy it if you succeed. Maybe you were joking about "making" her read it, I don't know. If she enjoys reading, I'm sure she'll get around to Little Women at some point in her life.

Seriously though, Amy !

 

[Kaleigh]

Should I ask that my daughter read Little Women?

Her fall musical will be Little Women, and she's anticipating in participating. I was distressed that she and none of her friends had read the Louisa May Alcott story. I think it's a right of passage for all young women to read Little Women and A Tree Grows In Brooklyn. I told her she needed to read it before auditioning for the musical version. She threw a hissy!! She is 16 years old.

Do you think I'm unreasonable expecting that she experience some American Literature before she reaches college?? She has me thinking I'm a Monster!

No YOU are not a monster. I think it's a shame she hasn't read it already. Now that the fall musical is Little women, she needs to read it.. Tell her it will give her a better perspective..

My DD just graduated college and read many classics for HS.. But she wasn't really into them.. So guess what?? She is now doing them all over again. Moby Dick is on her bed side table.. She works full time, but likes to read before bed and wants to read or re read all the classics.

I hope your daughter will read it, and wish her good luck!!!

 

[ForteKitty]

uppy- i hated that book. the man-stealing was so wrong, and i couldn't stand the girls. i thought they were pretty whiny, and much preferred stephen king, grisham, anne rice, and even the encyclopedia when i was looking for a good read. I'm sorry.

 

[jas]

Hmm, I agree that it's nearly impossible to "force" a 16-year-old to read a book...

Does she want a major role in the show? If so, the background information in the book (i.e. Character "back story") may actually help with her audition. It's also something she can bring up if there is any chit-chat w/ the director during the audition. (i.e. I"m auditioning for Amy because, while I hate the bratty skank, in the chapter where Beth dies, Amy does xyz that shows a depth of feeling that I'd like to try to bring to the part." Or something like that.

 

[Haven]

I can tell you that the research consistently shows that choice is among one of the best predictors of whether a reader will comprehend and/or enjoy a particular piece she reads.

ETA: I recently reread Little Women for my book club, and found it far less enjoyable as an adult than I did as a child. (We were reading Jo's Boys, but I wanted to reread Little Women before I read that.) Anyway, the time to read Little Women, if ever, is as a little woman. I think I was 12 or so when I first read it, and I really remember adoring the entire thing. As a 29-year-old, well, not so much.

Though, I still stand by my original post that people are far more likely to enjoy what they choose to read for themselves. Sounds obvious, but as a teacher I can tell you that our educational system has yet to grasp the concept.

 

[MissMina]

I have always loved reading but A Tree Grows In Brooklyn traumatized me for years.

 

[phoenixgirl]

My dad got me to read Harry Potter by telling me I just had to read the first 20 pages and that I didn't have to finish it if I didn't like it by that point. Maybe that would work? Of course, I thought he was annoying for doing so, but I did keep reading and finish books 1 and 2. I didn't like it enough to get into it further, though.

 

[Callisto]

I really enjoyed the book and read it when I was about her age. If nothing else, perhaps you could convince her that she should at least get a copy of the musical script and read that.

 

[gemgirl]

I do agree with Haven in that choice has everything to do with a reader actually reading and comprehending a book, and actually finishing it. When I was in elementary school, we received a list of four books to read during every summer vacation. I remember one of the books being "Sink the Bismarck", and I can tell you truthfully that even as an A-type personality/ honor student, I never read that book. I couldn't get myself passed the first ten pages. I was completely uninterested.

You might suggest to your daughter that having the advantage of being completely familiar with the material and knowing a little more than everyone else, will help her to choose the part she'd like to audition for and it will help her to play that part better. Also that the advantage of being one step ahead of everyone else in life and knowing more, no matter what the circumstance (college interviews, job interviews, etc.), will help her to achieve whatever goal she sets for herself. My dad drilled that notion into my head and it stuck and it worked for me.

 

[soocool]

A couple of things my DD does for reading (because she is so many Honors and AP courses, there is a ton of reading) is use Spark Notes http://www.sparknotes.com/ - is free for a lot of classics- it gives character descriptions and chapter synopsis. She also downloads audio books to her ipod so she can listen whenever she has a spare moment (getting dressed in the morning, eating breakfast, etc). As a last resort she will also watch the movie that may focus on the essential points that they will cover in class (Many of the books they had to read for English and Social Studies was also supplemented by the movie version that they had to often compare and contrast).

This will take you directly to the spark notes for Little Women:http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/littlewomen/Perhaps if she reads through this she may get interested in reading the book and even seeing the movie.

 

[dragonfly411]

I'm sorry.... did you say she is 16... and threw a hissy?

In all seriousness. I did musicals in highschool. I would approach it this way. Let her know that she won't fully understand the musical or its characters without reading the books. She will be better able to act out the musical if she knows what the story actually was.

I really wish more schools had it as required reading for girls at a younger age but alas.

 

[anitabee]

you may not want to hear this, but i'm a high school teacher. i teach mostly social studies (used to teach special ed) and usually teach an english class each year. if you're interested in her increasing her reading repertory, the last thing i would do is force her to read a particular book. personally, i've never read little women and i actually teach english. should i read it? maybe. probably.

when a student is forced or highly pushed into doing something they don't want to do, they become resistant and resentful.

she's already 16. i think she's beyond the age where you can make her read a certain book. now, if you provided incentives for her to read ANY novel (if she's not much of a reader), i.e. after reading and discussing one or two books with me, we'll go for a mother/daughter afternoon of lunch and movie or something like that.

the bottom line is that i fear by forcing her to read that book, you may be turning her off of reading in general.

 

[TravelingGal]

Don't push it. I was an English major, so I did enjoy reading. I don't think I got through Little Women. I hated it.

 

[KimberlyH]

I would start a family book club of sorts. You take turns picking a book each month and read and discuss. That way she's reading the things you want her to and you'll get to have some great conversations with her daughter and learn about some of her interests too. It could be an opening for som fantastic discussions about both books and life.

 

[movie zombie]

i read this at a much younger age than your daughter and think it should be required reading.......especially for young women of age 12 or perhaps younger. however, at 16 she should be allowed to pick and read the literature she wishes. perhaps auditioning for the play will mean discussions with others besides her mother that will motivate her to read this classic.

Mo-Zo

 

[Upgradable]

Thank you everyone for your great comments and ideas! I do want to emphasize the fact that I would NEVER force her to do something that she doesn't want to do. I would just love to be able to convince her of the value inherent in some things that at 16 seem of little point. I'm just a frustrated mom watching her little girl grow up try to find a path of her own. It was sooo much easier when I would just pick out her cute little matching outfits or put a bandaid and a kiss on her skinned knee.

 

[Lady_Disdain]

I've read that book at least a dozen times and have never finished it. I refuse to read further than the part where Amy steals Jo's man. I couldn't even finish the movie! Still, great book.

[...]

Seriously though, Amy !

You mean the man that Jo had turned down and moved to a different city to avoid? Sorry, lost her chance

 

[Brown.Eyed.Girl]

Bearing in mind that I don't have children and your daughter is 16, but do you think an incentives program for reading classics might work?

I think it's important that teens read SOME classics (but I'm biased, as an English major) but she'll probably resent you if you make her read it. So why not give her a choice of say 3 classics and incentivize reading one, some or all of them?

ETA: I never liked Little Women. Little House on the Prairie and Anne of Green Gables was way more my style. Actually, I'm rereading the entire Little House series now

 

[swimmer]

I loved Little Women when I was in 5th grade, but for a 16yr old today it might be archaic and irrelevant...sort of like how Heathers was the coolest movie ever for sleepovers back in the day and now it is just laughable...except for the blowing up the school during a pep rally bit. Some "classics" age better than others. Though anything is better than the sexually repressed vampire series that my hs students all seem to be reading now.

Sink the Bismark? Dear lord, what a random choice!

 

[elrohwen]

I was one of the only 16 year olds I knew who actually read the classics and I've never read that book. So no, I don't think it's weird that she hasn't read it and I don't think she has to. Sure, it would be nice for her to read some classic literature at some point, but won't her HS or college make her do that? Haven't they made her do that already?

 

[packrat]

I don't remember being "forced" to read anything in school really. Freshman English we read a couple Poe stories and I was the only one who'd read them before (ahh those little Moby Dick books are the best), and then Sophomore year I took a Novels class and had to read 1 book from each genre and answer questions about it, which was far and away my favorite class of all during HS.

BEG, you make me want to run downstairs and get out my Little House books-I haven't read them in ages! I love when books feel like I'm hanging out w/an old friend.

 

[Brown.Eyed.Girl]

I don't remember being "forced" to read anything in school really. Freshman English we read a couple Poe stories and I was the only one who'd read them before (ahh those little Moby Dick books are the best), and then Sophomore year I took a Novels class and had to read 1 book from each genre and answer questions about it, which was far and away my favorite class of all during HS.

BEG, you make me want to run downstairs and get out my Little House books-I haven't read them in ages! <b>I love when books feel like I'm hanging out w/an old friend.</b>

Yes, exactly! There are some books I've read and reread so much that I could tell you the entire story, but the familiar words and characters and places just feel so homey.

I'm reading The Long Winter now.

 

[Gypsy]

Yeah. I hated that book too. Sorry. I don't think you are a monster. But I do think that... well (not to open a can of worms) but it sounds like your irritation is misplaced. It's not the schools job to educate your kids in a vacuum. If you think something should happen, make it happen. You don't need to school to back you up mom, you're a parent. If you want your kids to read something, tell them to read it. GIve them a reward for it, and make it a family activity.

Say to your daughter. I loved that book, why don't we get a couple of copies and read it together. Then we'll have a celebratory THING when we're done. Go out to dinner, go to tea for the girls, go to the bookstore and have her pick out another book she likes to read, go to the mall and get her a pair of goes. But make it an activity. And if she doesn't go along with it, talk to her, tell her it's important to you, and come up with a plan to make it happen. Parent's pursuade teenagers, that's just the way it is. You can't just buy them things and order them around, but you can make something important to them and have fun with it.

I think that you are blaming the school for something you are entirely in control of. They can't please every parent. I mean, what if I had a kid and HATED that story and wanted the Secret Garden read instead, or something. Why should the school have to deal with me and you? When your kid can read Little Women, and mine can read Secret Garden... and still read whatever the school has determined they should read.

 

[katamari]

I would start a family book club of sorts. You take turns picking a book each month and read and discuss. That way she's reading the things you want her to and you'll get to have some great conversations with her daughter and learn about some of her interests too. It could be an opening for som fantastic discussions about both books and life.

My mom and I have had a "book club" since I was in HS. Basically, we each read books together and alternate who suggests them. It has been great for our relationship and gets us talking about issues we may not otherwise. When I was in HS, she basically suggested the Classics when it was her turn. I don't think I would have been receptive to her just telling me to read something, but since it felt like a negotiation that I also had power in, I thought it was very cool and quite "adult" at the time. I did really hate some of her suggestions, though--still do--and Little Women would have been on my "hated it" list.

 

[packrat]

I don't remember being "forced" to read anything in school really. Freshman English we read a couple Poe stories and I was the only one who'd read them before (ahh those little Moby Dick books are the best), and then Sophomore year I took a Novels class and had to read 1 book from each genre and answer questions about it, which was far and away my favorite class of all during HS.

BEG, you make me want to run downstairs and get out my Little House books-I haven't read them in ages! <b>I love when books feel like I'm hanging out w/an old friend.</b>

Yes, exactly! There are some books I've read and reread so much that I could tell you the entire story, but the familiar words and characters and places just feel so homey.

I'm reading The Long Winter now.

This past winter was one of those Record winters that people will talk about for years and years, and it made me think of that book, and that if it were back in that day, we'd've been out in the lean-to twisting straw for heat.

 

[swingirl]

I remember reading Little Women and found it very long and boring although I loved the movies that have been made. It's not that I don't like to read. I just found it long for no good reason.

But if you really think it's an important piece, read it to her. Yep, that's what I said. Being read to is enjoyable and might make the listener want to pick it up herself. Your enthusiasm could for the story rub off.

 

[AGSHF]

Uppy,

I adored the book as a 5th grader and remember crying through Beth's death, etc. I thought my daughter would love it as well, so I picked it up for her when she was in 5th grade. She loves reading in general and inhales entire books at a sitting. Anyway, the archaic style didn't thrill her and she must have just breezed through the book. When I eagerly asked her how she felt about the tragedy of Beth's death, she asked me, "Beth died?!" I was beside myself.

Bottom line is, the classics I loved aren't the classics she'll love. There is so much great young adult literature available today that as long as your daughter is reading, she'll be fine.

If you feel that she should at least be exposed to Little Women, I suggest borrowing the audio book version for her from the library. That's way, it's painless and maybe it'll pique her interest.