Looking for good American novels to teach

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knute:
I have been asigned to teach language Arts 11 at my public school next year and it’s been a LONG time since I’ve read any American novels. The good news is I’ve been given pretty much free reign as to what books to teach. I’m looking for American novels from any era that will interest today’s 17 year olds, contain solid (maybe even Catholic?) values and build character in youth. Any suggestions?
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I like The Scarlet Letter and think it can certainly be used to teach values like mercy, bravery, and amending one’s life. Chances are eleventh graders have already had to read it at some time or another, though.
Hmm… I’m wracking my brain to remember good American novels I read in high school… I don’t think we read that much by Americans.
 
Tantum ergo:
I would emphatically discourage: Lord of the Flies, Catcher in the Rye, and A Separate Peace–all of which were offered in MY 11th grade class. (Shudder). If those were meant to instill anything in a 16-17 year old’s mind other than cynicism, nastiness, pruience, and the feeling that all adults were hypocritical goons, neither I nor the dozens of people I have discussed the books etc. with discovered it.
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I, too, hated A Separate Peace. However, I totally disagree with the “antisocial” interpretations of Catcher in the Rye that have been so popular. In m opinion, anyone who reads that book in the context of Salinger’s other writings can’t deny the hopeful quality of it. I’m not going to write a whole literary analysis of it here, but I remember reading it on my own in high school and discussing it with friends. Almost all of us felt that Holden changed for the better and would continue to change for the better. I think it’s much easier to put a positive spin on the novel than a negative one, but so many teachers work so hard to put a negative spin on it.

Lord of the Flies, as other posters have pointed out, reinforces the concept of fallen man and serves as a warning.
 
I’m not sure if they have Catholic values, but I would highly recommend two books that are very important in light of the stem cell research issue:
  • Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (be warned, this book has been challenged on sexuality. It actually opposes the world it presents.
 
A couple from my son’s honors class that he really enjoys:

EDIT: Sorry, most of these are not by American authors – but they’re good books! The first on my list below is good AND American.

*Bridge of San Luis Rey * by Thornton Wilder
*Count of Monte Cristo * by Alexandre Dumas (he LOVES this book)
*The Good Earth * by Pearl S. Buck
*Cry the Beloved Country * by Alan Paton (very challenging writing style)

'thann
 
Wow, what opinions! Here are some thoughts. Do not try Moby Dick as it is too deep even for many adults. I don’t know what is wrong with John Steinbeck, particularly the Grapes of Wrath, but apparently some don’t like it. How about Tom Sawyer and then Huckleberry Finn? Most of what Twain wrote is all right but not all. As for Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea is a masterpiece but others like The Sun Also Rises leave a lot to be desired. The Jungle by Upton St. Clair will totally gross out 11th graders.

Most of Jack London’s writing is just too brutal for me. I am thinking now of The Sea Wolf and To Light a Fire. The Call of the Wild is probably all right for children who like animal stories but has its share of brutality too.

Depending on the group, you might consider The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane.
There are any number of recommended book lists out there. You should be reminded of many of the books you have read and can use your experience and the interest of your students to make appropriate choices.
 
The Grapes of Wrath and The Great Gatsby and 1984 were my favorite books from High School. OH! and Animal Farm, The Diary of Anne Frank, Lord of the Flies, Paradise Lost, These are all great books and School Ties if you can find that one. They made a TV movie out of it that was very touching. The Dead Poet Society hmmmm… Don’t know how many of these are American but all great books I think. Im only 22 so I still remember a lot of these and my little sister is almost 17 and she tells me what she likes to read. I’ll ask her when she comes home from school and post some more. Good Luck!
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knute:
I have been asigned to teach language Arts 11 at my public school next year and it’s been a LONG time since I’ve read any American novels. The good news is I’ve been given pretty much free reign as to what books to teach. I’m looking for American novels from any era that will interest today’s 17 year olds, contain solid (maybe even Catholic?) values and build character in youth. Any suggestions?
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That was a very good book and something I think could be turned into a morality lesson. If we dont hold onto our values thats what we could become. I also absolutely LOVE “Like Water For Chocolate” not for high school students though, I read it in my college spanish class and adored it. The english version leaves somewhat to be desired but still a phenominal love story.
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rocklobster:
I’m not sure if they have Catholic values, but I would highly recommend two books that are very important in light of the stem cell research issue:
  • Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (be warned, this book has been challenged on sexuality. It actually opposes the world it presents.
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It might be below their elvel, but I am 16, and read Harper Le’'s masterpeice “To Kill a Mockingbird”. It has the N word but only to show how wrong it is. It has some other profanity, but the book is a classic. It’s the first book I ever read in class that I would honestly pick up to read again and again and again and again and again repeats “and again” untill all the readers have fallen asleep
 
I read it this year in 10th grade, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mocking Bird. Cry the Beloved Contry is another nice read.

But stay away from books like “Heart of Darkness”. Some might find it offenceive…I found it offenceively boring. It’s about this guy telling a story about Marlow…who is telling a story!
 
Someone mentioned John Steinbeck.
I just finished East of Eden for the 3rd time.
Excellent book.
 
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OriginalJS:
Wow, what opinions! Here are some thoughts. Do not try Moby Dick as it is too deep even for many adults. I don’t know what is wrong with John Steinbeck, particularly the Grapes of Wrath, but apparently some don’t like it. How about Tom Sawyer and then Huckleberry Finn? Most of what Twain wrote is all right but not all. As for Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea is a masterpiece but others like The Sun Also Rises leave a lot to be desired. The Jungle by Upton St. Clair will totally gross out 11th graders.

Most of Jack London’s writing is just too brutal for me. I am thinking now of The Sea Wolf and To Light a Fire. The Call of the Wild is probably all right for children who like animal stories but has its share of brutality too.

Depending on the group, you might consider The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane.
There are any number of recommended book lists out there. You should be reminded of many of the books you have read and can use your experience and the interest of your students to make appropriate choices.
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I have to say I disagree with much of what you said. Some of them I haven’t read at all so I have no opinion.
  • Jack London “To Light a Fire”. I read this in 6th grade as a participant in “Great Books” which was apparently a group put together for 6th graders interested in literature. (I always loved to read so the teacher ID’s me as a good candidate). We all read above the typical 6th grade level, granted, but we were still only 10, and NONE of us had a problem with the story. And it’s one I have never forgotten. (I was also a very sheltered child, if this helps give it any credibility).
  • I agree with your assessment of Moby Dick. I’ve read parts and couldn’t keep my eyes open.
  • In general, I cant’ stand Hemingway. I had to read his works in high school, Jr. year, and can’t stand his style. Unfortunately, he was a favorite of the teacher and I got a bad grade for giving my opinion of his lackluster writing style. I read “The Old Man and the Sea” and could barely keep my eyes open. Usually all over literature, I literally forced myself through that class. I’ve harbored a strong dislike for all things Hemingway ever since.
  • Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle”. I read it between 9th and 10th grade as I took 20th Century America as a summer class to make room for an elective course that upcoming sophomore year. If 11th graders AREN’T grossed out then Sinclair hasn’t done his job. He was a muckracker, and the whole point of his books was to use the brutality of real life in that age to get the attention of people so that something woudl be done about it. I equate him with Operation Rescue, and Sinclair probably turned people off as much as they do for their respective causes. In any case, 11th graders, or even younger, can learn a lot from Sinclair and his writing is very much period writing. It is an education unto itself and these days students of that age NEED to read something like this to get them out of their self-indulgent heads.
Just my 2 cents!

Interesting thread…like a mass book review! 🙂
 
Deliverance by James Dickey - More than any other book perhaps, Deliverance challenged my sense of moral authority, and for that reason alone, it is incredible.

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess - Wonderful meditation on the importance of free will and autonomy and the relationship of good and evil.

Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury - The power of words and art and dream.

Mother Night by Vonnegut - The only real un-Vonnegutian Vonnegut book. WWII. Espionage/war crimes … where does the line between being a patriot end and being a traitor begin? Fascinating and powerful down to the very last line.

Animal Farm by George Orwell - Not merely about the Bolshevik Revolution, but about humanity as a whole.

Others:

Darkness at Noon by Arthur Koestler
The Human Comedy by William Saroyan
Camp Concentration by Thomas Disch

Not sure why people are so turned off by Steinbeck … The Grapes of Wrath is astounding.

Also: Kafka, Poe, Twain, C.S. Lewis, Flannery O’Connor

Also (again): I haven’t read it yet, but Thomas Berger’s Little Big Man is supposed to be life-altering.

Good luck! 🙂
You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.

~ Ray Bradbury ~
 
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Emly:
But stay away from books like “Heart of Darkness”. Some might find it offenceive…I found it offenceively boring. It’s about this guy telling a story about Marlow…who is telling a story!
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That’s one of my favorite short stories. Some more of my favorites from high school:

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (Very different from the movie, great lesson about screwing around with genetics)
Lord of the Flies
Last of the Mohicans by Hawthorne
Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein (great lesson on civics and civic duty)
 
Addendum to my previous post:

Apparently, I subconsciously disregarded the word “American” in the thread’s title. Sorry, I’m such a dope.

That leaves out:

C.S. Lewis
George Orwell
Anthony Burgess
Arthur Koestler
& Kafka

Still … these guys all wrote great books. 😉

In their stead, let’s add:

On the Road by Jack Kerouac - Admittedly, not the most Catholic book in the world, but it is incredibly poetic and representative of an era of American life … not only that, but it captures the true American Spirit (if there is such a thing) … (at least I think it does)

and …

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller - Perfect demonstration of the absurdity of war and one of the most enjoyable books I’ve ever read.

There … and both those guys are American! How 'bout that.
 
Catcher in the Rye I think can be read by people 16 or older…I read it. It has sexual content, and profanity, but it never praises it…Holden even says he thinks you should love a girl you have sex with, but he never follows his own rules.

Stinebeck’s “Of Mice and Men” was also pretty decent, but it was only okay, it wasn’t great. High schools always seem to pick these sorts of books…their just “okay”.

Herrashema by John Herrsie is gorey, but it shows the horrors of the atomic bomb, following the lives of 6 japenease peoples, includeing two doctars, a Priest, a Methidest rev., and a widow.

Fharenhieght 451 was a excelliet book, and Brave New World, which does contain sexual content, shows the future of the world vamped by communism, and sex. It shows the posible direction the world could be going…not that the world will end up like the one in the boook, but the aditudes towards life, and religion, are going in that direction.
 
A few classics:

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Red vs. Blue by Michael C. O’Malley
Fireworks Day by Victor Church
 
Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
  • I read this on my own while still in late elementary school, so I think most 11th graders should be able to follow the story and understand the messages without being bored. (I was a mature reader who was blessed with a mother and grandmother who were always avid readers.)
Roots by Alex Haley
  • This book is long, powerful and at times quite disturbing. However, it is also depicting violence from a historical and not a horror movie type of perspective. I was in 9th grade when the mini-series was brought over to the US bases in Europe for kids and adults to watch. I read the novel afterward and I found it engaging even after seeing the whole series.
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
  • This is a great book about mothers and daughters. It is written by an American woman of Chinese descent who is a modern writer. The story jumps back into the past into the mothers’ lives in China before they came to America at times with some painful memories. I remember the great relationship dynamics but I would check it for inappropriate sexual content before assigning it because it has been a long time since I read it. It had some qualities that reminded me of The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck which I read in 11th grade and also enjoyed.
BTW My 2 cents on The Red Badge of Courage is that all of the boys were avidly reading that book in my 7th grade English class. None of the girls enjoyed it. When it turned up on the reading list as a choice in the 11th grade “advanced English” I almost cried since I had been reading things like Homer the year before. The only 2 guys who picked that book were football players who didn’t feel like stretching themselves at that point in the year. Please don’t assign that book with no options in the 11th grade. I remember it as definitely NOT appealing to girls at that age!
 
In my sophomore english class, we read a short story called “The Lady or the Tiger” by Frank R. Stockton. After reading it, our teacher asked us to write our own ending, since it had a cliffhanger. I wrote a great one. The princess tried to kill her lover by having him chose the tiger, but as the tiger springs, the man actually kills the tiger with a small dagger (I didn’t remember anything about the rules, so I decided to improvise). Then he turns to the king and professes his love, winning the woman he loves. I got a hundred for actually combining both outcomes.
 
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