Are you a college-bound middle or high school student looking to read the best of literature that universities will have expected you to read before arriving on campus? If you're someone who loves to read, you probably can't wait to get started. But what if you are a reluctant reader who knows you'll have to read this stuff and try to at least make a stab at understanding it? 

Either way, we're going to bring these essential novels to life and enjoy the ride!

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝑳𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓

Nathaniel Hawthorne is a quintessential 19th-century American author, most noted for his dark romantic novels that highlight the best and worst of humanity. Hawthorne is known for his novels 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝑳𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 and 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘎𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴.

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝑳𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 has deep themes that are relevant to our lives and culture today. Do we see ourselves in the judgment of a society that casts a woman out from among their tightly controlled circle? How do we recognize hypocrisy? Socratic discussion, engaging conversations, and hands-on projects that incorporate art, poetry, and a few other surprises will round out our five weeks as we discover Hawthorne's 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝑳𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓.

𝑶𝒇 𝑴𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑴𝒆𝒏

John Steinbeck wrote compelling mid-century literature from his Pacific Coast home in California. He lived and worked alongside migrant farmworkers up and down California's farming and coastal regions, and he drew many of his novels' themes from the human struggle he witnessed and experienced. The Nobel Prize in Literature (1962) was awarded to John Steinbeck "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humour and keen social perception."

𝑶𝒇 𝑴𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑴𝒆𝒏 is not overwhelming in its scope but it has deep themes that are relevant to our lives and culture today. How do we treat the marginalized in our society? How do we provide equal opportunities to all? How do capitalism and The American Dream help or hold us back? Socratic discussion, engaging conversations, and hands-on projects that incorporate art, poetry, and a few other surprises will round out our three weeks as we discover Steinbeck's 𝑶𝒇 𝑴𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑴𝒆𝒏. 

𝑾𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑯𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔

𝑾𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑯𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔 is hailed as one of the most important novels of the Western literary canon. When originally published in 1847, 𝑾𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑯𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔 was controversial for its depictions of mental and physical cruelty, including domestic abuse, and for its challenges to Victorian morality and religious and societal values. Socratic discussion, engaging conversations, and hands-on projects that cover themes, an analytical essay, and character connections will round out our five weeks as we discover Brontë's 𝑾𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑯𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔.

Our course will look like this:
Week One: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘓𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳: Background Lecture and pre-reading discussion
Week Two: Read and discuss chapters
Week Three: Read and discuss chapters, essay assigned
Week Four: Read and discuss chapters
Week Five: Read and discuss chapters
Week Six: 𝘖𝘧 𝘔𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘦𝘯: Background Lecture and pre-reading discussion
Week Seven: Read and discuss chapters 1-3, essay assigned
Week Eight: Read and discuss chapters 4-6
Week Nine: 𝘞𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘏𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴: Background Lecture and pre-reading discussion
Week Ten: Read and discuss chapters
Week Eleven: Read and discuss chapters, essay assigned
Week Twelve: Read and discuss chapters
Week Thirteen: Read and discuss chapters and semester wrap-up

Each College-Bound Reader course is designed to prepare you for college and university-level literature analysis. Please keep reading below if you have any concerns regarding each book's content.

-To round out a high school semester, add either:
Essentials for Reluctant Writers Semester I (academic essay writing) 𝘰𝘳
Essentials for Reluctant Writers Semester II (creative writing) 𝘢𝘯𝘥
High School English: Read Literature Like a Professor (literary analysis)

Experience a treasure trove of literary brilliance with my When Women Write courses, highlighting extraordinary female authors. Immerse yourself in a world of captivating storytelling and powerful narratives. The curated selection includes: 𝘑𝘢𝘯𝘦 𝘌𝘺𝘳𝘦, 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘪𝘯, 𝘓𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘞𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯, 𝘈 𝘛𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘭𝘺𝘯, 𝘛𝘰 𝘒𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘢 𝘔𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘣𝘪𝘳𝘥, 𝘚𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 & 𝘚𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘌𝘮𝘮𝘢, 𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘫𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘦, 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘕𝘪𝘭𝘦, 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘕𝘰𝘯𝘦, and 𝘔𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘌𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴. I also offer the three novels included in this semester-long course as individual classes.

See you in class!