FaisalH Posted June 23, 2013 Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 Hey Guys, Im starting IB next year and im taking english A SL and these are the books we will be covering Nineteen Eighty Four George Orwell The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald A Streetcar Named Desire Tenessee Williams Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays Oscar Wilde The VisitFriedrich DürrenmattI was wondering are any of these books good> if you have taken them or read them? any opinions will be helpfulThanks in advance Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Award Winning Boss Posted June 23, 2013 Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 1984 and The Great Gatsby are good books. A Streetcar Named Desire is a good play, it took me a while to actually appreciate it but it ended up being one of my favourites out of the 4 plays I studied. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaisalH Posted June 23, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 Sorry the books are The great Gatsby.1984.A Streetcar named desire,The visit,Thinngs Fall Apart,The importance of being earnest, Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charliepants Posted June 23, 2013 Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 We read Things Fall Apart in English class, and it's really good. Getting 1984 and The Great Gatsby soon. I've heard they're really good, especially 1984. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MainRostand Posted June 24, 2013 Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 1984 is really good and Things Fall Apart as well. (It's pretty tragic as well, lol) Those are the ones I've read, at least. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GirlwiththeBlueBox Posted June 24, 2013 Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 I read 1984, The Great Gatsby and Things Fall Apart this past year in English A HL.It took me a while to get into both GG and 1984, but once I did the pages seemed to fly by. I loved both and the discussions we had in class were amazing and thought-provoking. I loved 1984 for the way it made me think and reconsider the world I know. The ending was rather sad but then again, a lot of the best books in the world have sad endings. I really liked GG because of its sad ending and the morals it taught me, and the imagery and language were beautiful. By the end of the book, I grew really attached to the characters and I was sad when it ended.Things Fall Apart was ok. It was hard to get into and it has a lot of subplots that seem meaningless at first. The language isn't hard at all, unlike GG, but occasionally the simplicity of the language is a bit tedious. The characters aren't as connectable and there isn't a lot of character development throughout the book, but it gives the reader a unique perspective on colonisation in Africa. Caucasians and Europeans generally think of colonisation as a great triumph for man because they brought civilisation to the 'backwards' nations of Africa, but if you read the book, you see colonisation through the eyes of a Nigerian. The Nigerians in the novel experienced so many terrors and by the end of the book, you feel a genuine hatred towards the missionaries. It's a pretty good book and I can see why it's a classic, but of the books I read this past year, it definitely wasn't my favourite. My favourite would have to be a tie between Great Gatsby, 1984 and Hamlet. They were all amazing and I enjoyed reading them, hope you do as well! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Absolutely Positively Posted June 24, 2013 Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 Like the others already said, 1984 and The Great Gatsby are great books. I liked other plays from Dürrenmatt better than The Visit, but The Visit is certainly a good one. It's sort of a combination between tragedy and comedy which creates a nice effect. The Visit is well-written and you'll have a lot to analyze and think about. It's rather meant to involve the audience in a debate than to entertain them so if you're expecting the latter, you'll be disappointed. Nevertheless, if you like dramaturgy, you'll like The Visit. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaisalH Posted June 24, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 Thanks everyone this was a great help Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
yii yann Posted June 24, 2013 Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 Streetcar was fantastic! If you can, watch the movie with Marlon Brando as Stanley. It'll really help you visualize what exactly is going on. Plus the play is a goldmine for content when you're doing the exams Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaisalH Posted June 24, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 Thanks again guys but has anyone read the importance of being earnest? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
susanne Posted June 24, 2013 Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 why do you get such good books...urgghh, all we've got so far is some sh*tty romance that everyone hates (except for One Flew Over Cuckoo's Nest, that was awesome) Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmileBeloved Posted June 24, 2013 Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 Loved the Great Gatsby. Loved Streetcar named Desire. Things fall apart was pretty good as well.If you're open-minded, you'll enjoy IB English. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aegle Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Thanks again guys but has anyone read the importance of being earnest?The Importance of Being Earnest is an awesome play. (It's an Oscar Wilde play). Your class's book choices are great! I really enjoyed reading 1984 (not as part of school, but just for fun) and I just loved Streetcar (we studied this for IB English).I haven't read any of the other books, but I might start The Great Gatsby once the exams are over. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
theboro76 Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 I have read 1984, which I loved and was a fantastic book, which I loved. And things fall apart, which i read 100pages of and hated, so much so I couldn't continue. However, I have a friend who read tfp and loved it. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ak18 Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 I've read The Importance of Being Earnest, 1984, and The Great Gatsby. All three were interesting reads and there was definitely a lot to analyze. Once i really got into the books, the pages seemed to fly. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackcurrant Posted August 11, 2013 Report Share Posted August 11, 2013 These are all fine choices. It would be interesting to know which you found most fun to read.1984 is one vision of the future; the other (the more likely, and very much in evidence already) is Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley. It is this one which provides Neil Postman's image of society "amusing itself to death"..How will you judge Okonkwo, in Things Fall Apart, I wonder? Have fun! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Jeeves Posted August 18, 2013 Report Share Posted August 18, 2013 The Importance of Being Earnest is such an excellent play. Very Wilde. It's almost a French farce in terms of plot (opera geek here) but it's funny and there are some absolutely wonderful lines. I'm sure you'll like it! 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IBKID4lyf Posted August 18, 2013 Report Share Posted August 18, 2013 What a great reading list! I love the Orwell and the Fitzgerald. They are not easy books to read but they are really interesting! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppop828 Posted August 22, 2013 Report Share Posted August 22, 2013 Gatsby is good Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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