Report, edit, etc...Posted by Deathawk on 2006-07-09 at 17:02:12
For the summer, I have to read one book. I don't know which one to pick, so you guys can help me 
Anyway, I was sort of looking for the easiest read, rather than the best one to read. But whatever works, as long as it's easy to get it done :3
QUOTE
Malden High School Summer Reading 2006
For Incoming Sophomores
Malden High School students are expected to do some reading over the summer to prepare for the year ahead. Students enrolled inHonors English must read two books on the list; ALL OTHER STUDENTS need to choose one. Students will be quizzed on the summer reading during the first week of school. Each selection is followed by a description to assist students in selecting their books.
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd: 14-year-old Lily Owen, neglected by her father and isolated on their Georgia peach farm, spends hours imagining a blissful infancy when she was loved and nurtured by her mother, Deborah, whom she barely remembers. These consoling fantasies are her heart's answer to the family story that as a child, in unclear circumstances, Lily accidentally shot and killed her mother. All Lily has left of Deborah is a strange image of a Black Madonna, with the words "Tiburon, South Carolina" scrawled on the back. When Lily's beloved nanny, Rosaleen, manages to insult a group of angry white men on her way to register to vote and has to skip town, Lily takes the opportunity to go with her, fleeing to the only place she can think of--Tiburon, South Carolina--determined to find out more about her dead mother.
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card: In order to develop a secure defense against a hostile alien race's next attack, government agencies breed child geniuses and train them as soldiers. A brilliant young boy, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin lives with his kind but distant parents, his sadistic brother Peter, and the person he loves more than anyone else, his sister Valentine. Peter and Valentine were candidates for the soldier-training program but didn't make the cut—young Ender is the Wiggin drafted to the orbiting Battle School for rigorous military training. Ender's skills make him a leader in school and respected in the Battle Room, where children play at mock battles in zero gravity. Yet growing up in an artificial community of young soldiers Ender suffers greatly from isolation, rivalry from his peers, pressure from the adult teachers, and an unsettling fear of the alien invaders.
Candyfreak by Steve Almond: A self-professed candyfreak, Steve Almond set out in search of a much-loved candy from his childhood and found himself on a tour of the small candy companies that are persevering in a marketplace where big corporations dominate. From the Twin Bing to the Idaho Spud, the Valomilk to the Abba-Zaba, and discontinued bars such as the Caravelle, Marathon, and Choco-Lite, Almond uncovers a trove of singular candy bars made by unsung heroes working in old-fashioned factories to produce something they love. And in true candyfreak fashion, Almond lusciously describes the rich tastes that he has loved since childhood and continues to crave today. Steve Almond has written a comic but ultimately bittersweet story of how he grew up on candy-and how, for better and worse, the candy industry has grown up, too. Contains some adult language.
The Life of Pi by Yann Martel: The precocious son of a zookeeper, 16-year-old Pi Patel is raised in Pondicherry, India, where he tries on various faiths for size, attracting "religions the way a dog attracts fleas." Planning a move to Canada, his father packs up the family and their menagerie and they hitch a ride on an enormous freighter. After a harrowing shipwreck, Pi finds himself adrift in the Pacific Ocean, trapped on a 26-foot lifeboat with a wounded zebra, a spotted hyena, a seasick orangutan, and a 450-pound Bengal tiger named Richard. After much gore and infighting, Pi and Richard Parker remain the boat's sole passengers, drifting for 227 days through shark-infested waters while fighting hunger, the elements, and an overactive imagination.
The Hoopster by Alan Sitomer: When assigned to write his first full-length feature article-on racism-for Affairs magazine, Andre Anderson balks: Just because he's black doesn't make him an expert on racism. He tells his boss, "I don't really think it affects me personally all that much." However, as he writes, and begins to observe and think like a writer, he sees racism everywhere. The article he writes receives tremendous positive response for the understanding, feeling and guts displayed in his prose. Unfortunately, the local hate group, the PPA (People for a Pure America), decides to respond and, in a horrifying scene, attacks Andre in a parking lot.
Life is Funny by E.R. Frank: "'He's got poetry,' I go, all choky. 'He's got mad poetry.'" With these words from China about her crush Eric, debut author E.R. Frank begins detailing the lives and loves of 11 Brooklyn teens on the cusp of adulthood. Though the stories are gritty, for every slam there is a triumph. Frank realistically and thoughtfully shows the difficulties and the shining moments of her characters, whose lives intersect in interesting and believable ways. Contains mature language and situations.
My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult: Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate — a life and a role that she has never challenged...until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister — and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable, a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves.
The Handbook for Boys by Walter Dean Myers: Growing up is tough ... really tough. But what if you had a handbook that told you how to figure things out? How to stay out of trouble?
At Duke's Place, Jimmy and Kevin find out that the handbook doesn't need to be written down. It can be as easy as listening to Duke and the old guys talking about their lives. But how can Duke understand what it is to be young now?
Eragon by Christopher Paolini: This book, begun when Paolini was only 15, tells the story of Eragon, a young farm boy, who finds a marvelous blue stone in a mystical mountain place. Before he can trade it for food to get his family through the hard winter, it hatches a beautiful sapphire-blue dragon, a race thought to be extinct. Eragon bonds with the dragon, and when his family is killed by the marauding Ra'zac, he discovers that he is the last of the Dragon Riders, fated to play a decisive part in the coming war between the human but hidden Varden, dwarves, elves, the diabolical Shades and their neanderthal Urgalls, all pitted against and allied with each other and the evil King Galbatorix. Eragon and his dragon Saphira set out to find their role, growing in magic power and understanding of the complex political situation as they endure perilous travels and sudden battles, dire wounds, capture and escape.
Black and White by Paul Volponi: Marcus and Eddie are best friends who found the strength to break through the racial barrier. Marcus is black; Eddie is white. Stars of their school basketball team, they are true leaders who look past the stereotypes and come out on top. They are inseparable, watching each other's backs, both on and off the basketball court. But one night--and one wrong decision--will change their lives forever. Will their mistake cost them their friendship . . . and their future?
For Incoming Sophomores
Malden High School students are expected to do some reading over the summer to prepare for the year ahead. Students enrolled inHonors English must read two books on the list; ALL OTHER STUDENTS need to choose one. Students will be quizzed on the summer reading during the first week of school. Each selection is followed by a description to assist students in selecting their books.
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd: 14-year-old Lily Owen, neglected by her father and isolated on their Georgia peach farm, spends hours imagining a blissful infancy when she was loved and nurtured by her mother, Deborah, whom she barely remembers. These consoling fantasies are her heart's answer to the family story that as a child, in unclear circumstances, Lily accidentally shot and killed her mother. All Lily has left of Deborah is a strange image of a Black Madonna, with the words "Tiburon, South Carolina" scrawled on the back. When Lily's beloved nanny, Rosaleen, manages to insult a group of angry white men on her way to register to vote and has to skip town, Lily takes the opportunity to go with her, fleeing to the only place she can think of--Tiburon, South Carolina--determined to find out more about her dead mother.
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card: In order to develop a secure defense against a hostile alien race's next attack, government agencies breed child geniuses and train them as soldiers. A brilliant young boy, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin lives with his kind but distant parents, his sadistic brother Peter, and the person he loves more than anyone else, his sister Valentine. Peter and Valentine were candidates for the soldier-training program but didn't make the cut—young Ender is the Wiggin drafted to the orbiting Battle School for rigorous military training. Ender's skills make him a leader in school and respected in the Battle Room, where children play at mock battles in zero gravity. Yet growing up in an artificial community of young soldiers Ender suffers greatly from isolation, rivalry from his peers, pressure from the adult teachers, and an unsettling fear of the alien invaders.
Candyfreak by Steve Almond: A self-professed candyfreak, Steve Almond set out in search of a much-loved candy from his childhood and found himself on a tour of the small candy companies that are persevering in a marketplace where big corporations dominate. From the Twin Bing to the Idaho Spud, the Valomilk to the Abba-Zaba, and discontinued bars such as the Caravelle, Marathon, and Choco-Lite, Almond uncovers a trove of singular candy bars made by unsung heroes working in old-fashioned factories to produce something they love. And in true candyfreak fashion, Almond lusciously describes the rich tastes that he has loved since childhood and continues to crave today. Steve Almond has written a comic but ultimately bittersweet story of how he grew up on candy-and how, for better and worse, the candy industry has grown up, too. Contains some adult language.
The Life of Pi by Yann Martel: The precocious son of a zookeeper, 16-year-old Pi Patel is raised in Pondicherry, India, where he tries on various faiths for size, attracting "religions the way a dog attracts fleas." Planning a move to Canada, his father packs up the family and their menagerie and they hitch a ride on an enormous freighter. After a harrowing shipwreck, Pi finds himself adrift in the Pacific Ocean, trapped on a 26-foot lifeboat with a wounded zebra, a spotted hyena, a seasick orangutan, and a 450-pound Bengal tiger named Richard. After much gore and infighting, Pi and Richard Parker remain the boat's sole passengers, drifting for 227 days through shark-infested waters while fighting hunger, the elements, and an overactive imagination.
The Hoopster by Alan Sitomer: When assigned to write his first full-length feature article-on racism-for Affairs magazine, Andre Anderson balks: Just because he's black doesn't make him an expert on racism. He tells his boss, "I don't really think it affects me personally all that much." However, as he writes, and begins to observe and think like a writer, he sees racism everywhere. The article he writes receives tremendous positive response for the understanding, feeling and guts displayed in his prose. Unfortunately, the local hate group, the PPA (People for a Pure America), decides to respond and, in a horrifying scene, attacks Andre in a parking lot.
Life is Funny by E.R. Frank: "'He's got poetry,' I go, all choky. 'He's got mad poetry.'" With these words from China about her crush Eric, debut author E.R. Frank begins detailing the lives and loves of 11 Brooklyn teens on the cusp of adulthood. Though the stories are gritty, for every slam there is a triumph. Frank realistically and thoughtfully shows the difficulties and the shining moments of her characters, whose lives intersect in interesting and believable ways. Contains mature language and situations.
My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult: Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate — a life and a role that she has never challenged...until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister — and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable, a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves.
The Handbook for Boys by Walter Dean Myers: Growing up is tough ... really tough. But what if you had a handbook that told you how to figure things out? How to stay out of trouble?
At Duke's Place, Jimmy and Kevin find out that the handbook doesn't need to be written down. It can be as easy as listening to Duke and the old guys talking about their lives. But how can Duke understand what it is to be young now?
Eragon by Christopher Paolini: This book, begun when Paolini was only 15, tells the story of Eragon, a young farm boy, who finds a marvelous blue stone in a mystical mountain place. Before he can trade it for food to get his family through the hard winter, it hatches a beautiful sapphire-blue dragon, a race thought to be extinct. Eragon bonds with the dragon, and when his family is killed by the marauding Ra'zac, he discovers that he is the last of the Dragon Riders, fated to play a decisive part in the coming war between the human but hidden Varden, dwarves, elves, the diabolical Shades and their neanderthal Urgalls, all pitted against and allied with each other and the evil King Galbatorix. Eragon and his dragon Saphira set out to find their role, growing in magic power and understanding of the complex political situation as they endure perilous travels and sudden battles, dire wounds, capture and escape.
Black and White by Paul Volponi: Marcus and Eddie are best friends who found the strength to break through the racial barrier. Marcus is black; Eddie is white. Stars of their school basketball team, they are true leaders who look past the stereotypes and come out on top. They are inseparable, watching each other's backs, both on and off the basketball court. But one night--and one wrong decision--will change their lives forever. Will their mistake cost them their friendship . . . and their future?
Anyway, I was sort of looking for the easiest read, rather than the best one to read. But whatever works, as long as it's easy to get it done :3
Report, edit, etc...Posted by TuPingu(EAST) on 2006-07-09 at 17:26:16
Read Enders game... I've "Heard" it was good. You might like it.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Kow on 2006-07-09 at 17:45:25
Enders Game. You will like it.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by (SEN)Dante50 on 2006-07-09 at 18:15:12
You must read Ender's Game. Pwnage!
Report, edit, etc...Posted by RedNara on 2006-07-09 at 21:01:50
Read the shortest one lol haha. I havent read any of thoes books, I'm right now reading tale of two cities... ewww.... I hate that book. Dont even know if my school has summer reading... I should go check.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Mp)7-7 on 2006-07-09 at 22:37:03
You should read the Harry Potter Books, those are my favorite, I hate reading books and those are the only ones that I enjoy reading. You have to read all of them though!
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Mini Moose 2707 on 2006-07-09 at 22:44:10
Ender's Game was the only one of those I've read. If you like science fiction stories, go with that.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Mp)7-7 on 2006-07-09 at 22:47:00
I also recommend that if you read Harry Potter, watch the movies first, Because the books are better than the movies and when I read the books then watched the movies and I was mad because they left out a lot of parts that were really important.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by DT_Battlekruser on 2006-07-09 at 23:16:32
Ender's Game is by far the easiest to understand and the simplest of those books, plus it's great fun to read.
Chances are you'll end up reading Xenocide or Children of the Mind later for school anyway. Both are part of the Enders Game series and are a whole lot more philisophical than the Ender's Game itself.
Chances are you'll end up reading Xenocide or Children of the Mind later for school anyway. Both are part of the Enders Game series and are a whole lot more philisophical than the Ender's Game itself.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by FaiLuRe. on 2006-07-09 at 23:29:54
7-7 Uhh...Harry Potter isn't on that list...and what you said is like book blasphemy. You never watch movies first!
On Topic: Ender's Game. Good read.
On Topic: Ender's Game. Good read.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Demon on 2006-07-09 at 23:53:04
Pick a book that intrests you instead of picking the easiest read. Though the odds that you'll pick a book that both bores you and you don't understand is fair on both sides.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Deathawk on 2006-07-10 at 00:22:34
Have any of you read any of the other books besides Ender's game? I think I might be going with that, just because the massive favoring of this book.
I was thinking of reading Hoopsters before this, though.
I was thinking of reading Hoopsters before this, though.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Demon on 2006-07-10 at 00:39:53
From just reading the 2 previews you provided, Enders goes over Hoopsters in my book.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Moronic_Moe on 2006-07-10 at 03:07:39
QUOTE
The book Ender's Game takes place on Earth in the future. Earth has been attacked twice by an alien species called Buggers, nearly destroying the human race. Mankind begins training young geniuses to become soldiers and commanders to fight in Earth's defence if the Buggers should ever attack again. Ender is extremely intelligent, and at the age of six years old, he goes to Battle School to be trained. Ender quickly rises to the top in Battle School and begins training in order to command Earth's fleet.
http://sfbookcase.com/viewbook.asp?bookno=531
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Mp)7-7 on 2006-07-10 at 07:24:33
QUOTE(FaiLuRe. @ Jul 9 2006, 11:29 PM)
7-7 Uhh...Harry Potter isn't on that list...and what you said is like book blasphemy. You never watch movies first!
On Topic: Ender's Game. Good read.
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On Topic: Ender's Game. Good read.
[right][snapback]521113[/snapback][/right]
I didnt know he had to pick just from that list, My Bad, I wouldnt choose the Secret Life of Bees only because I hated that, the others I havent read.
I was just recommending watching the movies first because after reading the books then watching the movies I hated the moie because it left out a lot of good parts, I dont like the movies as uch as the books.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Voyager7456(MM) on 2006-07-10 at 08:28:40
The Ender's Game series is brilliant. Eragon is good too, but I think Ender's Game is better.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by DiscipleOfAdun on 2006-07-10 at 09:48:31
I'd also suggest Ender's Game. It's pretty easy reading, and I'd expect most people who like science fiction to like it. Fact of the matter, when I first got it, I ended up finishing it in one sitting(7-8 hours of reading). There aren't many books that can do that to me....
Report, edit, etc...Posted by KaboomHahahein on 2006-07-10 at 22:49:28
Choose Ender's Game. My friend read it and said it was a pretty good book and easy to understand. (I lol at "summer reading")
Since we don't get that much discussion going on, this is moving to Null.
Since we don't get that much discussion going on, this is moving to Null.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Dr.Shotgun on 2006-07-11 at 01:52:38
Damn Young Adult novels. If you want something intelligent, try "The Man who was Thursday" by G.K Chesterton
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Demaris on 2006-07-11 at 02:54:54
Ender's Game.
Plus Shadow of the Hegemon, Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, and Ender's Shadow.
Awesome books.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by RexyRex on 2006-07-11 at 03:15:04
Ender's Game, because you're visiting a Starcraft oriented website.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Centreri on 2006-07-11 at 10:10:23
Yeah. I didn't like the more philosophical ones, though. Just Enders Game and the 'Shadow of the (Hegemon, Ender, etc)' series.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by Voyager7456(MM) on 2006-07-11 at 10:12:46
Yeah, I agree with you Centeri. I enjoyed Ender's Game and Speaker for the Dead, but kind of lost interest after that. I loved all of the Ender's Shadow series though.
Report, edit, etc...Posted by fritfrat(U) on 2006-07-11 at 12:41:31
Only ones I have read are Ender's Game and Life of Pi. Both are very good.. you'd probably get more out of Life of Pi, but Ender's Game would be a lot more fun to read