Ms. Valenteen's Classes

Independent Reading Assignment for AP Human Geography                    Ms. Valenteen

DUE ON WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 31 (Yes, that’s Halloween, but it’s also the last day of the first quarter.)

 

Please email me with any questions: patricia.valenteen@ouhsd.k12.ca.us

I will be traveling throughout the summer, so it may take up to a week for me to reply

 

DIRECTIONS

1. Look over the list of books below and select TWO to read. You may want to read the descriptions of each book on Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com.

Since I am a fan of bookstores and libraries, I encourage you to either borrow the book from the public library OR from our amazing school library OR purchase it from a local bookstore. 

Mrs. Figs Bookworm (93 E. Daily Drive) offers a 10% discount to students for required reading and she will be setting aside a section for this reading list in the store.

 

Please note: some of the books have mature themes, so please consult with your parent/guardian when making your choice.

 

We will have twice a week for 15 minutes, so you’ll have a little time in class to read, but you’ll also want to set aside some time for reading at home.  You will read one more book during the year from this list. 

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1. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah

2. A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson

3. Across China by Peter Jenkins

4. Amazon Extreme by Colin Angus and Ian Mulgrew,

5. An Unexpected Light by Jason Elliot

6. Arctic Dreams by Barry Lopez

7. Beyond the Sky and the Earth by Jamie Zeppa

8. Blue Highways by William Least Heat-Moon,

9. Bones of the Master by George Crane

10. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West by Dee Brown

11. City of Joy by Dominique Lapierre

12. Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World by Mark Kurlansky

13. Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches by Marvin Harris

14. Dear Zari: The Secret Lives of the Women of Afghanistan by Zarghuna Kargar

15. Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing

16. Facing the Congo by Jeffrey Taylor 

17. Germania: In Wayward Pursuit of the Germans and Their History by Simon Winder

18. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond

19. Half the Sky by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl Wudunn

20. How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization by Franklin Foer 

21. How the Irish Saved Civilization: The Untold Story of Ireland's Heroic Role from the Fall of Rome to the Rise of Medieval Europe by Thomas Cahill

22. How the States Got Their Shapes by Mark Stein

23. I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb

24. I Dreamed of Africa by Kuki Gallmann

25. Isaac’s Storm by Erik Larson

26. Opium Nation by Fariba Nawa

27. Outcasts United: The Story of a Refugee Soccer Team That Changed a Town by Warren St. John

28. River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze by Peter Hessler

29. Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky

30. Songs to an African Sunset by Sekai Nzenza-Shand

31. States of Mind by Brad Herzog

32. The Geography of Nowhere: The Rise and Decline of America's Man-Made Landscape by James Howard Kunstler

33. The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson

34. The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann

35. The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way by Bill Bryson

36. The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan

37. The Road to El Cielo: Mexico's Forest in the Clouds by Fred Webster and Marie S. Webster

38. They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky: The True Story of Three Lost Boys from Sudan by Benjamin Ajak

39. This Cold Heaven: Seven Seasons in Greenland by Gretel Ehrlich

40. Unbroken: An Olympian's Journey from Airman to Castaway to Captive by Laura Hillenbrand

41. Where am I Wearing?: A Global Tour to the Countries, Factories, and People That Make Our Clothes by Kelsey Timmerman 

42. Why Geography Matters More Than Ever by H.J. de Blij

 

1. As you read your selected book, look for any recurring themes that deal with economic, socio-cultural, political, or environmental issues, and explain at least three instances of each ESPeN element.  (For 12 total)

ESPeN is an acronym for Economic, Socio-Cultural, Political, and eNvironmental. We use the ESPeN model to analyze important issues and events…and then write a thoughtful piece about the issue at hand.

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What you’re looking for under each category:

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Economic: Who is profiting economically? How is the economy impacting or being impacted by the issue? (wages, jobs, stock markets, businesses, consumers, government contracts, outsourcing, taxes, unemployment, job opportunities, fair trade, etc.) What is the financial status of the book’s subject(s)? How does that status affect their lives?

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Socio-Cultural: How do issues in the book impact society? What social & cultural elements (behavior, communication, beliefs, religion, education, language, technology, customs, traditions, food, dress, art) are impacting or impacted by the issue?

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Political: How is the government responding or creating issues discussed in the book? Are the people communicating with their leaders about change? Are the people oppressed by the government? Are laws unjust, changing, being challenged, etc.? What are authorities or people in positions of power doing about the issues?

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eNvironmental: How does the issue impact the environment? How does the environment influence the situation? What are other connections between the issue and the surrounding environment? How does the physical geography affect events in the book?

 

(ESPeN text from Tirza Estrada, OHS)

 

If you have questions about how to write an ESPeN, email me at patricia.valenteen@ouhsd.k12.ca.us OR do a Google search. There are several sites that explain the process.

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NOTE: Use MLA format (12-font, Times Roman, double-space, etc.) Your answers must be in complete sentences, with correct spelling and grammar.