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Posted By: Elsa Nov 30, 2002 - 05:47 pm

Hello!
I am a newcomer to this site, and I registered specifically to ask for advice. I am a tenth grade English teacher, and next semester I plan to start a new "book club" project. I love sci fi and fantasy, and I think that having my students read books in these genres will be refreshing in a school setting. So, I am looking for titles that are appropriate for tenth graders in a school setting. The books that I choose must provoke thought, be good reads, and be around 300 pgs. So far, I am planning on offering Kindred by Octavia Butler and Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. I am looking for 3 more titles to offer, so that students can pick the book that sounds most interesting to them. Although I love sci fi and fantasy, I haven't read all too much in these genres... Please let me know if there are any books you could recommend!!!
Thanks
Elsa

Posted By: Odrade Dec 01, 2002 - 10:33 am

I iamgine you have already condisered the Fellowship of the Ring series by Tolkien. That is a good starting point though for those new to the fantasy world. If you have students with kinda high reading and comprehension levels, for sci-fi, you might condsider Dune by Frank Herbert. Hyperion by Dan Simmons might be a good one for sci-fi too.

One authoer writes both sci-fi and fantasy, Tad Williams. His books are great, but they might be too long for some 10th graders. His primary Fantasy series is called Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn. The Actual book names are 1) the Dragonbone Chair, 2) The Stone of Farewell 3) To Green Angel Tower, Part 1, 4) To Green Angel Tower Part 2. His sci-fi is Otherland.

A lot of sci-fi comes in the series format though, so if that is not what you are looking for, you are going to have a harder time. Oh, if you are looking for a sci-fi book i have seen read at the 10th grade level, but a little lower in ability, try The Giver. I can't remember the author.

Good Luck and have fun!!!

Posted By: Elsa Dec 01, 2002 - 12:49 pm

Thanks for the advice. I thought about using Tolkien, but I'd rather them read something they've never heard of, and also something that they can't watch a movie of. Dune is a good idea too, but I'm thinking that it will be too long. The Giver (Lois Lowry) is probably too short and too easy, although I'll keep it in mind in case I have any low-level students.

I'll have to check out Dan Simmons and Tad Williams! Reading a book in a series is fine with me, as long as the first book is sufficiently interesting. (Or do any of the books in the series stand alone, i.e., can they be read without reading the first one?)

Thanks again!

Elsa

Posted By: Orrenflam Dec 02, 2002 - 04:24 am

On the sci fi front, I'd recommend Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. Lots of great material for a high school discussion.

Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke.

Ursula Le Guin's The Lathe of Heaven or Lefthand of Darkness.

In the fantasy genre, try Nina Kiriki Hoffman's The Silent Strength of Stones or The Red Heart of Memory. The main characters in these books are teenagers.

Le Guin's Earthsea Trilogy would be a good place to start, too.

Your choice of Octavia Butler is a good one; and Ender's Game would give lots of material for discussion, too.

You'll have to tell us how the class is going!

Posted By: Iznardi Dec 02, 2002 - 05:36 am

Orreflam's recommendations of Fahrenheit and Childhood's End are excellent--those are timeless, and have gripping themes for discussion.

If you are doing several books, you might want to include on "classic" like War of the Worlds or Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea, so that students can look at how scifi began, and what the writing style and themes were like early on, as opposed to more recent material.

You should keep in mind that both Childhood's End and War of the Worlds touch heavily on religious concepts and were written to be deliberately unsettling. Alas Babylon and Canticle for Leiberwitz are two more that fall in that category.

Posted By: Bmat Dec 02, 2002 - 06:00 am

Brave New World gives a lot to think about.

Posted By: Orrenflam Dec 02, 2002 - 12:38 pm

So does Ayn Rand's Anthem, which I recall reading in high school.

Posted By: Elsa Dec 12, 2002 - 12:11 am

So I've narrowed down my choices and I want to know what you guys think!!! (I've been anxiously waiting a week for this site to come back online!)

Kindred - Octavia Butler (Awesome book, I've read it)

Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card (I'm half-way thru and I love it)

The Dispossessed - Ursula LeGuin (Haven't read it yet)

Alas, Babylon - Pat Frank (Haven't read it yet)

Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke (Haven't read it yet)


Also in the running: Pawn of Prophecy and A Red Heart of Memory (haven't read either)

So I have a lot of reading to do. From the looks of Pawn of Prophecy, it seems to be too magical with too many references to Gods for a high school class. But I've just read the first 2 pages so far, so what do I know?!! Also, I hear that The Dispossessed is one of Ursula LeGuin's best books, which is why I chose it - but would the 1st book in the EarthSea trilogy be better? This book was less than 200 pgs, so I was thinking it might be too short.

As you can see, I'm leaning toward sci fi books, because I'm thinking that in these books there are more parallels to the real world that can be discussed. Would you agree with this or not?

Elsa

Posted By: Odrade Dec 12, 2002 - 10:36 am

about dune, it is probably not a good idea for 10th graders. it is pretty complicated, and many adults have a hard time with. But if you are looking for a challenge...

Posted By: Twilight Mar 12, 2004 - 02:33 am

I agree that Dune is a bit too complicated. In response i would recomend Tomorrow When the War Began, Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials Series" and the dragonlance chronicles (dragons of aurtum twilight, dragons of winter night and dragons of spring dawning). The last one in paticular offers a good blen of magic, combat, beliverble characters while being a relativly easy read. Also if the reader gets tolike it there are plenty of other books in the DL worldto pickup (this was the series that got me into reading inter first place).

Posted By: Aldan Mar 12, 2004 - 08:56 am

What is your favorite character race in DL?

Posted By: Twilight Mar 16, 2004 - 08:59 pm

Silver Dragons are my fav. with halfelves follwoing close behind. (both have a good balence of magic might and inteligence). and there seems to be a lot of emotional depth to those characters that realy make a reader feel for them.

Posted By: Aldan Mar 17, 2004 - 08:30 am

Oh, I'm SO glad you didn't say "kenders". *Aldan swats a non-hairy-footed halfling with pointy ears away from his pocket*