Within the AP English Language Curriculum there are certain books that will help you answer free response questions during the exam, as well as some of the multiple choice questions. By reading well, you can get a head start on the other students, greatly improving your score, so start reading! Below is a list of the best AP English reading list and a brief synopsis of each job.
the spring
the spring of ayn rand is a novel that describes howard roark and his journey through his life full of difficulties. Ayn Rand focuses on his objectivist manifesto as she tells Roark’s story and at the same time persuades her audience that the self will triumph over all else. Rand uses amazing rhetorical prowess at the source, making this novel an excellent way to introduce students to the analysis of rhetorical methods and devices. This is important for the second free-response question on the AP® English exam, because that essay question will ask the student to choose how the author uses rhetoric. if you practice with the spring, it will be much easier to find rhetorical devices in a work.
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the scarlet letter
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a story of a young woman who had an affair with a priest. It is a story of sin, guilt, mystery, and adultery as Hester Prynne makes her way through turmoil when she wore a red letter ‘A’ for adultery. This novel was famous for its use of symbolism, making The Scarlet Letter a fantastic tool for looking beyond the surface of a text. This will serve the student well as he or she analyzes various texts during the multiple choice and the free response section of the AP® English Language exam.
The multiple choice test dictates that the student must be able to delve into a passage and see beyond the words. the questions are meant to utilize the critical thinking skills one needs to distinguish the scarlet letter.
village
hamlet by william shakespeare was a play that follows hamlet, the son of the recently assassinated king of denmark. Hamlet was sent into a spiraling depression after his mother remarried and was unable to reclaim the throne. Therefore, Hamlet plots to kill Claudius, the new king. he finally did after his hamartia took over and all was lost. in the end, almost the entire cast was killed.
Hamlet is important to the AP® English exam because Shakespeare uses significant figurative language, form, and other important writing techniques to convey his messages within the play. It is also important to explore Hamlet due to the different format.
because some students have difficulty understanding shakespeare’s iambic pentameter with a performer, reading this work will help the student. Passages from Hamlet often appear in the multiple-choice section of the AP® English exam. having a working knowledge of the work will put the student at an advantage over others in the multiple choice section.
the grapes of wrath
this next novel is a text that uses an important rhetorical device, pathos. pathos is the appeal to the emotions of the audience, and the grapes of wrath show the reader how to captivate an audience with their own emotions. John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath took place during the Great Depression. here we can follow a group of people who have been terribly affected by the lack of food and work. the various Americans they focus on show a different perspective on how horrible the great depression was, the fall and triumph of the human spirit. it’s emotionally engaging and persuasive, which is a wonderful model to keep in mind when thinking about how to write a free-response essay.
the kite runner
Khaled Hosseini’s Kite Runner was a narrative featuring two boys, Hassan and Amir, who grew up in the Middle East. discrimination was covered in this novel, as well as rape culture, blaming the victim, and how to deal with trauma in a negative and positive way.
This novel reveals a different perspective from the Eurocentric visions to which the Western world is accustomed. His cultural perspective brings to light a point that is essential to the AP® language exams, and that is that everyone is going to have a different way of looking at your argument. make it as accessible as possible. In addition, the kite runner is a great example of the use of pathos, a tool that is essential for essays on the AP® English exam. this novel also used narrative as a method to reveal a concept to readers. By reading Kite Runner, the student learns to see the underlying concepts, which is a great skill for the Multiple Choice section of the AP® English exam.
a thousand splendid suns
a thousand splendid suns was the piece that accompanied the kite corridor. Also written by Khaled Hosseini, this text follows three women through their experiences growing up in the Middle East. point of view exploration is useful for a student, because the passages given in the multiple choice section can be confusing in her point of view. Being able to figure out who is speaking and why the author is having them speak is valuable for the exam. the marginalization of women’s experience is highlighted here and the writing is very concise and direct. Because of the concise language, A Thousand Splendid Suns is a great example of how to eliminate redundancy in student free-response essay questions.
the life of pi
Another great skill to have before the AP® English language exam is being able to think outside the box. The Life of Pi by Yann Martel is a novel that centers on Pi, an Indian boy who is shipwrecked with wild animals. These wild animals, real or not, tormented Pi and took him on a journey through spiritual awakening. the reader was told at the end of the novel that there are two stories and that he or she had to choose which one was the real narrative. seeing outside the boundaries of the story will allow the student to see deeper aspects of other texts. this will be helpful when reading sources for the synthesis essay or multiple-choice passages that need extensive analysis.
the winners
The AP® English Language Test emphasizes nonfiction over fiction, which makes the next book even more important. The Overachievers was a work of non-fiction by Alexandra Robbins that followed eight high school students who were believed to be under pressure to get the highest GPA and the “best” college. she puts standardized tests in a very negative light when she reports her findings. This book is important to the AP® English Language Exam because it is a non-fiction source, which represents much of what the sources for the synthesis essay in the free response section of the exam will look like.
as he lay dying
sometimes it’s the journey that matters. In Faulkner’s novel As I Lay Dying, a journey was used to support most of Faulkner’s novel and plot. As I Lay Dying was a southern gothic novel that embodies the dysfunctional family. The family walked forty miles to the city of Jefferson with their dead mother in a coffin. this was his last wish. through calamities the family went to the city and finally buried her decomposing corpse.
This novel can be directly related to the free-response questions on the AP® English Language Test, because every supporting detail makes a difference. As if all the characters in As He Lay Dying contributed to Faulkner’s overall plot.
freakonomy
In this nonfiction text, the author explores a different topic in each chapter, from fooling teachers to legalizing abortion and reducing poverty. he does this by using other sources and bringing in other data. This is important for the AP® English Language Test, because the free-response questions on the test will require you to use a certain number of the sources provided to make your argument. without this skill you won’t get good results.
a long road traveled: memories of a child soldier
Have you ever felt that studying for AP® exams is too difficult? well, your problems will definitely be put into perspective with this upcoming novel. Gone are the memories of a boy, Beah, who grew up in Sierra Leone amid violence. he was taken into an army at a young age and became a child soldier. after becoming addicted to drugs, beah was rehabilitated by unicef.
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This nonfiction book is another great addition to your AP® English repertoire, because learning to analyze a memoir and pick out the important parts of the plot will help you answer multiple-choice questions and write your essay.
how starbucks saved my life
how starbucks saved my life is another memoir. this is about an executive who loses his job and has to work at starbucks to make a living. the main character learns from his supervisor about minorities and really hard work.
This nonfiction work uses time and facts to convey a message. these concrete details and support allow the author to deftly persuade the audience. the credibility that the author creates for himself is a tool that the student will need to create for himself. The student can do this by maintaining clear and persuasive language as Starbucks saved my life did.
profiles in value
Do you have a love for history? then profiles in courage is for you. is a collection of nonfiction autobiographies written by john f. Kennedy after investigating the senators who tried to prevent the civil war from happening.
the historical relevance of work showing how people can do great deeds at a terrible time. this message is even more powerful after having read each of the autobiographies. doing something like this and adding lots of supporting examples to your argument will make a big impact.
When reading this work, the student gets used to working with real life texts, which will be mainly the free response sources for the synthesis essay.
1984
George Orwell’s 1984 was a dystopian novel about a man who was trapped in a world where it seemed like the older brother was always watching. The man, Winston, initiates a sexual relationship with a woman and begins to rebel against totalitarian society. Winston did this until he was tortured at the end of the novel.
1984 is orwell’s cautionary tale that argues very well. Orwell shows examples of what will happen to society, why it will happen, and the effects of this. If he can select the rhetorical methods presented by Orwell and answer questions about persuasive technique, then he will be more prepared for the multiple choice part. this is because the multiple choice section contains passages with rhetorical devices that the student must be able to identify. practicing with 1984 will prepare the student for that.
a room of your own
We will now journey into the world of feminism for A Room of One’s Own, an essay by Virginia Woolf. This non-fiction piece revealed the plight of the woman and how a woman in that time period lived. Woolf used her persuasive writing in order to reveal the problem of the repression of women. She did this predominantly by using a bedroom as a symbol for equality. Woolf convinced her readers that women deserve a room of their own.
virginia woolf was an attractive author not only because of her persuasive talent. she used grammar, diction, and syntax to really enhance her own writing and, in turn, her plot. an example of this is in the title of the essay. A Room of One’s Own is a feminist essay, but Woolf specifically uses the word “one” instead of “she.” This careful diction allowed Woolf to push for equality in all aspects of her argument, from her style to the words themselves.
politics and English language
this essay by george orwell shows the murky political language that english is becoming. criticizes politicians who make lies ring true, causing conflict within the nation. Orwell lays out his solutions in points very clearly, showing how the print should look.
This essay is important to do well on the AP® English exam, because if you follow his advice on the economics of language, then you will clarify your argument. Orwell’s problem with language was that people muddied his arguments with it, so be sure to read and follow his advice.
outliers
This non-fiction book is by Malcolm Gladwell, who argues that he knows the success story. He illustrates how to succeed at everything from ice hockey to amassing Bill Gates’ level of wealth.
this is important to improve your score, because not only does this author seem to have the recipe for success, but he also presents a clear argument that is a wonderful example for making an argument.
the unknown citizen
the unknown citizen is a poem that was written by w. h. Auden criticizes individualism in America that he does not believe exists. auden also spoke of an earlier time. this was a time when individuals were only to be known by number. then he talked about the control of government agencies that micromanage people’s lives.
This poem will be helpful, because the exam focuses on real-world critiques within unfamiliar texts. The poem was about criticizing the world Auden lived in, which makes this poem great practice for the exam.
silent spring
silent spring was an environmental look at society written by rachel carson. This non-fiction book focused on the destruction of bird species due to pesticide contamination. this book led to the banning of the dangerous pesticide ddt.
This was a great book to read, because this was an argument that won the day. carson got what he wanted and also spread awareness for his cause. this is what you want to do on test day. Silent Spring was also a work of non-fiction; therefore, intense job analysis will be good practice for the ap® test.
utopia
Utopia of Thomas More was a book that was written in 1516 in Latin. this was written to convey his ideas about political, social, and religious norms in society. strong arguments are encouraged by more’s use of fiction. Because of this, Utopia is valuable work to gain practical knowledge for the AP® English exam. more’s use of fiction is a popular and effective way to persuade, and knowing this will help you on the multiple choice portion of the exam.
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Since Utopia was written in a much older vernacular, this gives students a different approach to prose that will come in handy if older texts appear on the exam.
king lear
one of shakespeare’s most famous plays, king lear, is another great play to have in your repertoire. This tragedy was about a man named Lear who divides his estate among his three daughters based on how well they flatter him. Naturally, it all fell apart as human nature destroyed Lear.
it was important to keep in mind on test day, because test writers love to include an excerpt from shakespeare in the multiple choice section, and this is one of shakespeare’s most famous plays. being able to distinguish this job will set it apart from others.
julius caesar
julius caesar is another famous play by william shakespeare. Despite the fact that the play is called Julius Caesar, the psychological tragedy focuses more on the patriotism of Brutus and his guilt.
The surprising language used in the play made the play stand out. figurative language is so convincing that it would be remiss if we had not mentioned it. To have a great argument, you may need some beautiful figurative language, and this is a great example. In the multiple choice section, you will have to choose certain figurative language terms, so it will be useful to practice identifying them in this paper.
the handmaid’s tale
The Handmaid’s Tale is a work of fiction that speculated the dystopian future of a Christian theocracy that overthrows the United States government. This is another example of how working with a concrete, definite message through fiction will make your argument cement in the minds of your readers.
While this may not be possible for writing fiction on your AP® English language test, you’ll get extra practice breaking down that plot under the layers of fable. Analysis is extremely important in all aspects of the AP® English Language Test, from the multiple choice to the free response section.
kabul beauty school
deborah rodriguez, the author of the novel kabul beauty school, writes in her book about her experiences traveling to war-torn afghanistan. This moving story reveals the social and political problem of war-torn nations and the treatment of women.
This more modern novel is a great addition to your reading list, because the message of equality is sent throughout this novel, using subtlety and plenty of poignancy. this appeal to emotions allows the audience to get closer to the argument and accept it. doing this on your exam will give you an advantage.
also, being able to think in different ways, as rodriguez does, will allow you to see different angles in the multiple choice sections. some questions don’t have a straight answer and need to be thought of differently.
the great gatsby
The Great Gatsby, a novel by Fitzgerald, is the story of an outsider who meets a man named Gatsby. Gatsby is a rich man who covers up his insecurities and traumas by throwing extravagant parties. Symbolism runs rampant in this tale as the “green light” that Gatsby longingly gazes upon represents his unattainable love, his Daisy. Unfortunately, Gatsby’s life ends when he is shot at the end of the novel.
fitzgerald uses amazing precision and beautiful phrasing to get his point across. he looks at gatsby as he looks at society, once again showing that symbolism. This is a great way to strengthen his argument and practice identifying different figurative speech elements for the multiple choice section.
the crucible
The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller that focuses on the Puritans and the Salem Witch Trials. The Salem Witch Trials originated when girls blamed men and women they didn’t like to get rid of them. this work focuses on how religious zeal can cause mass hysteria and paranoia.
Having that dramatic aspect added to a historical aspect gives the work even more strength. the story focuses on how characterization can feed into a plot or message.
By revealing the character of the individual, you can enhance your essays. You can also think of this idea in terms of applying what you know to the questions you are given in the multiple choice section. if you are unsure about one of the questions, then apply a job that you understand to the question. this may illuminate the answer.
in cold blood
In Cold Blood was written by Truman Capote to document the murders of Herbert Clutter. the author conducts extensive research on these murders and on the criminal disorder itself in order to convey his message. without this ability, he won’t be able to properly answer his free response questions. After all, the most important part of free response essays is the argument of it. he needs to be able to make a claim and back it up like capote does.
In addition, the nonfiction element of Capote’s work ties in well with other passages you’ll see on your multiple choice section of the AP® English Language Test.
read for success
This ap® English reading list, while not including all the books that will be useful during the ap® English test, is a great place to start and end. This is a lot of reading material, and completing this list will increase your AP® score.
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