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English 121: Humanities Literature
Extra Credit: Book Response
Dr. Gian Pagnucci
Extra Credit Book Response
Students may earn up to 15 points by
writing an Extra Credit Book Response Paper. You may write this paper
for any of the following books/films:
- Balzac and the Little Chinese
Seamstress
- Identity Crisis
- Sailing Alone Around the Room
- Field of Dreams
To write an Extra Credit Book Response,
choose one of the 4 options below.
Option 1: The Sequel
Write a letter to the author(s)
of the novel or writer of the film. Discuss, in detail, what the author could do to
write a sequel (a follow-up) to
this book. Explain why your group would like the author to write the sequel in
this particular way. If you choose this option, first look up the book
and the author at
Amazon.com to make sure no sequel to the book already exists. If a
sequel does exist, read about it at Amazon and then make sure your own
suggestions for a sequel are different from the existing sequel. Note in
your letter if a sequel does exist to the book. When your group finishes
the letter, you might do a search at
Google to see
if you can find an email address for the author so your group can actually send
the letter to the book's writer (as well as sending it to Dr. Pagnucci,
of course).
Option 2: The Movie
Write a plan for how to turn the
novel your group read into a feature film. (This type of a plan is often
called a movie synopsis.) Explain who you would cast for the main
characters and why you would pick those people. Explain what chapters
you would cut from the novel to make the film shorter (most films are
kept under two hours, which means you really can't turn every page of a
book into a movie scene). Explain what chapters would be vital to the
movie. Also explain how you would begin and end the film, noting changes
you might need to make to the way the novel begins and ends. If you
choose this option, first look up your book title in the
Internet Movie
Database (IMDb) or
Yahoo! Movies
to make sure your book hasn't already been made into a film. If your
book has already been made into a film, read about the film and then
plan a radically different movie that could be made from your book. For
example, the book Dangerous Liaisons
was originally translated into a film which retained the book's original
focus on the romantic tragedy experienced by some 18th century French
aristocrats. But later, a different film, called
Cruel Intentions, was made about
the book; this second film was set in a modern United States high
school. Now that's a radical retelling of a book! So, if your book has
already been made into a film, try to think up some interesting way to retell
the story in a new time and/or setting.
Option 3: The New Reader
For this option, write a letter
to a specific person in which your group tries to convince the person that they
should read the novel you've just finished. You must select a real
person someone in your group actually knows as the audience for your letter (and, when you
are done, I encourage you to send the letter to them). The person should
not be another member of the class. In your letter, discuss
why this book is worth reading. You might want to include a few good
quotes from the book and discuss a main character and/or theme from the
book. Your letter also should explain specifically why you think your
friend would like this book. Why would this novel be a good choice for
them? If you choose this option, be sure
not to give away the ending to your book. No one likes to hear
how a book ends before they read it.
Option 4: The Lousy Novel
I figured I'd better throw in one option for people who read a novel
they didn't like. So here it is. If you read a novel that everyone in
your group thought
was lousy, that's ok, it can happen. In the case of a book your group
didn't enjoy, write a letter to
the novel's author(s) explaining how the book could be improved. What
changes would you gropu want to make to the novel to make it better? What parts would
you keep as they were? What sorts of revisions would make this a novel
more worth reading? When you finish your letter, and if you are very brave,
you might do a search at
Google to see
if you can find an email address for the author so you can actually send
your letter to the author. In this case, since your letter is a bit
critical of the book, make sure you include some positive comments as
well about the novel you read. Even if you thought the novel you chose
was bad, there must have been a few good things about it. So focus on
some of the good points before you start criticizing. No one wants to
hear all negative comments!
Extra Credit Book Response
Requirements
Your Book Response should meet these basic requirements:
- in the upper right-hand corner,
write the words "Extra Credit Book Response Option" and list 1, 2, 3, or 4 to
match your selection
- also in the upper-right hand
corner print the date, your full name, and your email addresses
- also in the upper-right hand
corner list the author and title of the novel/film you are writing
about
- use an 11 or 12 point font
- double space your book response
- staple all pages together
- write 2-4 full pages for your
response, no matter which of the four options you choose
- you must complete this extra
credit assignment individually
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