West Po’s English Department has created a list of book suggestions for students to read over the winter break. Mrs. Wendy Rice, one of our school librarians, encourages students to choose one of the books off of the list to read.
“It’s so important to get other people’s points of view, and I think reading helps people to be empathetic to other people,” Mrs. Rice said. “It’s also a really nice escape.”
Here are a few of the suggested books handpicked by West Po’s English teachers.
Books that everyone should read by the time they finish high school:
- The Color Purple, Alice Walker
- Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
- Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
- All Quiet on the Western Front, Erich Maria Remarque
- The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood
Favorite books that are good for high school students:
- Papertowns, John Greene
- Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien
- The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros
- The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath
- Crawlspace, Adam Christopher
Favorite young adult books:
- The Book Thief, Marcus Zusack
- The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Ann Brashares
- The Hate You Give, Angie Thomas
- Percy Jackson, Rick Riordan
Recent books teachers have read that other people should read:
- James, Percival Everett
- The Sympathizer, Viet Thanh Nguyen
- The Midnight Library, Matt Haig
- The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick
- Dark Days, James Baldwin
Whether it’s from this suggested book list or not, students look forward to reading over the long winter break.
“I plan to read over the break, because sometimes it’s just better than watching a movie or show,” Allie Miller, junior said. “I plan to read ‘One Day in December’ to get into the Christmas spirit.”
Raldon Monroy Melgar, junior, said, “I like reading books because it gives me an escape from the real world and it’s interesting to see how characters interact with one another.”
