12 grade sci fi reading options poll

[UffishThought]

I have to pick 4-6 books from this list, to cover in my regular 12th grade sci-fi centered English class next year. Most of the books on the list I've never read, and though I'm going to try my best in the 2 months before school starts, I don't know that I can cover everything.

So--this is what I'm hoping for. I want both votes and specific advice. So please vote for up to 6 of the book options that you think are worth covering in class, and then if you have opinions about or even memories of any of the titles on the list (not just ones you voted for) I'd love to hear what you have to say. Did you like it or hate it? Did you find it simple or confusing? Was it squeaky clean or scarringly vulgar? Do you think 12th graders would be up to it?

[UffishThought]

Bonus: there are a few titles we don't have enough copies for the whole class, but we COULD replace one of the main titles with a literature circle--where the class splits into groups and each groups reads a different novel (usually with some unifying thread) and then they discuss in groups and then again as a class. I'd love any info you have on those books, too, and which ones you'd group into a lit circle and why you picked those ones. They are:

Caves of Steel
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
He, She, and It
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
I, Robot
Lathe of Heaven
Left Hand of Darkness
Stranger in a Strange Land
Andromeda Strain
Elegant Universe
Illustrated Man
Silent Spring

[Dead Cat]

Okay, for the main set, I only voted for The Hot Zone because it's the only one on that list that I actually read in high school (though I did pick up Neuromancer later on, I wasn't a fan, and I don't throw books I didn't like at others if I can help it). I'm 95% sure that HZ is missing the "fiction" in "science fiction," and it is more narrative science nonfiction. The depiction of the scariest diseases in the world are quite gross but it is also pretty interesting.

On the groups list, I've read and would recommend I, Robot and The Left Hand of Darkness. I, Robot can show how our thinking of electronics has evolved over the years and how ironclad rules can force one to think creatively to get around them. The Left Hand of Darkness is obviously good for a discussion on gender, but it can also touch on assumptions we have about the other and our perceived cultural superiority--and, of course, about cold.

[Whistler]

I haven't read any of these books, but I hear that Snow Crash has some sex in it. I have seen the movie Solaris, which has some fun existential themes, but I've never read the book.

[NerdGirl]

I love the Handmaid's Tale. Definitely has sex in it (to a certain extent, that's what it's about - but not in an inappropriate way), but it brings up a lot of very interesting social issues and could provide a lot of topics for interesting discussion.

[Portia]

I approve of any Philip Dick book. Have them watch Blade Runner, too.

[SmurfBlueSnuggie]

Only book on either list I've read is Hitchhiker's Guide. Which, incidentally I would recommend whole-heartedly. It's a fun book, but you can delve deeper into it as well. I actually read a really interesting article recently (http://gizmodo.com/the-fermi-paradox-wh ... 1580345495) that got me wanting to re-read Hitchhiker's Guide to study how Adams views our potential relationship to other societies in the universe. Additionally, the cultural references will make it applicable no matter what else the students get out of it. My high school English teacher selected "less common" high school reading. I loved getting wider exposure, but I really do miss references and struggle when my peers start discussing a book everyone has read. I've worked to catch up on my own, but I really think having "popular" or "common" books as part of a high school curriculum is a good thing.

[vorpal blade]

Dune is the only one I've read on your main list, and I would recommend it. It is memorable and well written. The sequels are of an uneven nature.

I have not read Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clarke, but I liked the author when I was in 12th grade. The summary of the story doesn't sound appealing to me, however. Would have liked it when I was in 12-th grade.

I own Red Mars but wasn't interested in it after reading a few pages.

I've heard good things about "I, Robot." Sort of a prototype for later stories. Written by one of the greats of science fiction, Isaac Asimov. Never read it though. I see Isaac Asimov also wrote Caves of Steel, but I never heard of it before.

Good quotes from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

I enjoyed reading Stranger in a Strange Land. I think today I'd find it boring. Robert Heinlein was one of my favorite authors.

Andromeda Strain was intense and interesting. I recommend Michael Crichton.

The Illustrated Man was also good. Ray Bradbury was a great writer.

Silent Spring is one of those misleading propaganda pieces disguised as literature.

So, for the most part I prefer the books on your bonus list. Many of them were written by the great writers of science fiction.

[The Moo]

Handmaid's Tale has a lot of great messages, but depending on the area where you live, you may get parents who are not pleased with the sexual themes. I read Dune both in junior high and then again recently. It has a lot of great political messages and imagery that I don't remember noticing when I was younger. I'd definitely recommend Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. It is probably my favorite Dick story. And I second having them watch Blade Runner. I, Robot is the intro to the laws of robotics that still seem to underlie a lot of science fiction with robots, though many of them explore how to best violate them. I LOVE Robert Heinlein, but in Stranger in a Strange Land you're going to have some minor sexual themes which may make some students uncomfortable. On the other hand, I've also heard that something in that book was the inspiration for the invention of the waterbed, which was all that in the 70's and early 80's. I don't remember much about Illustrated Man, but I do remember enjoying it when I read it at about that age.

[Portia]

Did you see the New Republic article today on Robert Heinlein? It was near-unreadable (the author had a really awkward writing style), but I gleaned that the many caromed through a staggering variety of political viewpoints.

[Portia]

Also, I think that parents are kidding themselves if they think that they can shield high school seniors from sexual themes. I can understand with high school freshmen, but if approximately half of one's students are sexually active, it seems that it could be something they could handle.

I read books with (mild) sexual content for a good half-decade before I ever had sex myself. If you count Shakespeare, that initiation came even earlier.

Only 16% of teens have had sex by age 15, compared with one-third of those aged 16, nearly half (48%) of those aged 17, 61% of 18-year-olds and 71% of 19-year-olds.[1] There is little difference by gender in the timing of first sex.
On average, young people have sex for the first time at about age 17, [2] but they do not marry until their mid-20s.[3]

[The Moo]

I read books with (mild) sexual content for a good half-decade before I ever had sex myself. If you count Shakespeare, that initiation came even earlier.

As did I, but that doesn't stop some parents I have encountered from being overly concerned. I've even read about some groups being offended by boys talking like little boys in the dorms in Ender's Game. I don't necessarily think they are right, but as a teacher, it is a concern you need to be prepared to handle when/if it comes up.


Re: Heinlein
He very definitely had a wide variety of political views over the years and even wrote a few entertaining political essays. I would be kidding myself if I didn't admit that some of his viewpoints colored my own political beliefs more than others.

[Shrinky Dink]

Big yes to "Caves of Steel", "I, Robot", and "Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy"!!!

Caves of Steel was fun to read because it made me wonder about all the technological advances that could and would come about. It also was cool to see how Isaac Asimov was so revolutionary to see the future in such great detail (same goes for I, Robot). I like Caves of Steel because it can also launch readers into other Asimov sci-fi mysteries. I, Robot is also great because it really is just a collection of short stories, which can lead to students having to write their own, possibly following the three laws.

Hitchiker's is just awesome. I like that it is more modern, yet still shows great literary characteristics. It's also a pretty fun read. Students could even come up with their own unorthodox and ridiculous situations that just might work in a creative writing piece.

[Yarjka]

Dune is classic sci-fi stuff, definitely top of the list. I love how it is set so far into the future that a completely different society can be imagined, it helps put things into perspective. It also has the benefit of introducing key themes that reappear in sci-fi literature more generally. Dune is a point of departure for many authors.

The Tarkovsky film Solaris from 1972 is easily one of the best films ever made, so it would be great to expose the students to it. Having read the book they may be more interested in the manner of storytelling used by the filmmaker.

I, Robot is pretty important too with its Three Laws of Robotics. These are referenced extensively in pop culture and it would be a good idea to expose students to the source, and also to Asimov's writing, which is phenomenally easy to read. Perhaps pair this with Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, so some read the first book and some read the second book and you can discuss robotics from the different perspectives.

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is fun, I'd probably suggest reading it at the end after the students have been exposed to the basic premises and methods of sci-fi so they can enjoy some of the references and breaks with tradition more.