Blog Number Four.

The good, the bad and the ugly of school assigned texts.

There are many great books, but the worst part about reading, in my opinion, is when you are forced to read a book. In New Paltz High School, I will say that the english department does a fine job at choosing a selection of books with variety, and different themes. This year in AP Literature, the books assigned were pretty good, with a few exceptions ofcourse. I personally enjoyed reading Their Eyes Were Watching God, and Brighton Beach Memoirs. Both books were entertaining to me, and they weren't extremely complex. I'm the type of student who doesn't understand hidden messages, and deeper meanings in books very much. I like to read books that I can relate to, and books that entertain me. I like books that answer the question presented in the beginning. I don't like books that leave the reader confused, and without any type of answer. Unfortunately, students do not always get their way in school, and they are forced to read a work of literature for a grade, whether they like it or not. This year in AP Literature, my least favorite book was Heart of Darkness. I feel it was too complex for me, and all of the biblical allusions had me confused, because I am not deeply religious. The downfall of having to read books in a class that you don't particularly care for, is that you might not understand it as clearly as somebody else does, and when it counts as a grade, it is extremely important to understand. This has happened to me in my life before, and my grades have been affected by it. On the other hand, books that you have to read in school that you do enjoy make things so much easier. It's a great feeling to understand a book 100% and then go to school and take a test on it and have confidence. Although I don't mind some books that are mandatory to read in high school, I will always enjoy reading independently, because I will always have the choice of what interests me. Reading makes you stronger in all aspects of academics in my opinion, and to me, I would rather read books that I enjoy and understand, rather than books that make no sense to me and leave me confused.