- Aug 9, 2001
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That's awesome! Did you get to do the scene with the strippers?
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AFLW 2024 - Round 8 - Chat, game threads, injury lists, team lineups and more.
Best book that you HAD to read
- Thread starter Uncle Steve
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That's awesome! Did you get to do the scene with the strippers?
top 3 books that I had to read.
1. To Kill A Mocking Bird
2. Brave New World
3. Z for Zachariah
1. To Kill A Mocking bird I would probably have read anyway though as I had heard so much about it and was looking forward to moving up a year to when it was part of the school text
2. Brave New World - would definitely not have read this one had it not been firced upon me at school. I have since bought it many years later and have re-read and can now accept and understand why it was a chosen text. Ended up loving it.
3. Z for Zachariah - again would never have picked this one up - was made into a movie I think with Anthony Irons in it. Two people are the only survivors after nuclear war - a boy and a girl and they hate each other but the world relies on them for procreation!
1. To Kill A Mocking Bird
2. Brave New World
3. Z for Zachariah
1. To Kill A Mocking bird I would probably have read anyway though as I had heard so much about it and was looking forward to moving up a year to when it was part of the school text
2. Brave New World - would definitely not have read this one had it not been firced upon me at school. I have since bought it many years later and have re-read and can now accept and understand why it was a chosen text. Ended up loving it.
3. Z for Zachariah - again would never have picked this one up - was made into a movie I think with Anthony Irons in it. Two people are the only survivors after nuclear war - a boy and a girl and they hate each other but the world relies on them for procreation!
Are you serious? I can't stand it. It is so obvious in it's 'hidden' messages, there is no way I am going to do my exam on it.
I have enjoyed reading 'Dream Stuff' by David Malouf this year. He is an amazing writer.
But, I must say the Shakespeare plays are the ones I enjoy reading the most, especially MacBeth and Romeo and Juliet. The first time I read MacBeth I did not know what the hell was going on, but once you actually analyse it, it's a fantastic story.
Over Sea, Under Stone... read that in grade 6.
Bridge to Terebithia... year 7... good book. But sad!
I've read Lord of the Flies, with used to be studied in year 10.. does that count? Great book.. but once again very sad, lol
The most memorable... gotta be Romeo and Juliet, which we're studying now in English. I can easily relate to Mercutio, Romeo-s best mate, which is why I love it so much... but its crap after Mercutio dies!
Bridge to Terebithia... year 7... good book. But sad!
I've read Lord of the Flies, with used to be studied in year 10.. does that count? Great book.. but once again very sad, lol
The most memorable... gotta be Romeo and Juliet, which we're studying now in English. I can easily relate to Mercutio, Romeo-s best mate, which is why I love it so much... but its crap after Mercutio dies!
Catcher in the Rye was OK.
MacBeth was tolerable.
My favoruite is probably The Brush-Off by Shane Maloney.
MacBeth was tolerable.
My favoruite is probably The Brush-Off by Shane Maloney.
- Thread starter
- #33
Wow - you people have set off a few memories that I'd thoroughly forgotten about.
To Kill a Mockingbird seems to be a popular choice here. I was forced to read that in year 11 - and promptly forgot all about it - but I agree, it is a damn fine book. The best "forced" book I read in senior high school.
Someone else mentioned Z for Zachariah - another good choice. I read that in year 8, I think. I loved all those post-apocalyptic novels.
Naughty Monkey suggested Bottersnikes and Gumbles and Superoo of Mungalongaloo - I read both of these fine books in primary school, although neither was forced upon me. In fact Bottersnikes was read to the class by one of my primary school teachers - so I guess I was forced to listen to it, if not read it. This is a damn fine book, and should be mandatory reading for any Aussie pre-teen!
Keep 'em coming people - you are awakening a lot of fond memories!
To Kill a Mockingbird seems to be a popular choice here. I was forced to read that in year 11 - and promptly forgot all about it - but I agree, it is a damn fine book. The best "forced" book I read in senior high school.
Someone else mentioned Z for Zachariah - another good choice. I read that in year 8, I think. I loved all those post-apocalyptic novels.
Naughty Monkey suggested Bottersnikes and Gumbles and Superoo of Mungalongaloo - I read both of these fine books in primary school, although neither was forced upon me. In fact Bottersnikes was read to the class by one of my primary school teachers - so I guess I was forced to listen to it, if not read it. This is a damn fine book, and should be mandatory reading for any Aussie pre-teen!
Keep 'em coming people - you are awakening a lot of fond memories!
NYPomme
Senior List
Quick question - being English, we are often weened on so-called classics such as Dickens, Hardy, D.H Lawrence, Shakespeare etc.
What native Australian writers are celebrated to the extent that they make school reading lists?
Good books we read at school:
primary school: Chronicles of Narnia, Hobbit
senior school: Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household
- Banned
- #35
Chant of Jimmy Blacksmith
Picnic at Hanging Rock
Both crap and boring.
- Thread starter
- #36
Patricia Wrightson (The Nargun and The Stars), Ruth Park (Harp in the South, Poor Man's Orange, Playing Beatie Bow), Judith Wright (poetry).
These authors have churned out the most mundane tripe ever to grace the written page. Nevertheless it gets included in Senior School curricula solely because it is perceived as quintessentially "Australian" by those who set the texts. No matter if it's two-dimensional and devoid of theme. Just so long as it's set in colonial Sydney, or based on the Aboriginal dreamtime, then it's in.
It is a pity that the decent Aussie authors (eg Peter Carey) were not English. If they were, then their novels might stand a chance of making the high school reading lists. To be Aussie, and not write about convicts, aborigines or wombats, is to commit literary suicide.
- Oct 25, 2001
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Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak, boy was that guy a tripper. I bought it for my godson so he could share the same nightmares, now he rolls his terrible eyes and bares his terrible teeth. The monsters rumpus to a heavy techno beat in his version.
All the Shakespeare stuff at school was good despite being badly taught and 400 years old. I wasn't expecting to enjoy any of it until I saw Polanski's MacBeth and that woke me up a bit. Pity he missed some of the nuances in the text. "Let it come down"-the murderer is talking about the rain, not some lame trap, Roman! A bit got lost in the translation.
I liked the Nargun and the stars, although know what you mean about Aussie literature. Aussie authors need to stick a gumleaf in the flyleaf to get on the VCE curriculum.
All the Shakespeare stuff at school was good despite being badly taught and 400 years old. I wasn't expecting to enjoy any of it until I saw Polanski's MacBeth and that woke me up a bit. Pity he missed some of the nuances in the text. "Let it come down"-the murderer is talking about the rain, not some lame trap, Roman! A bit got lost in the translation.
I liked the Nargun and the stars, although know what you mean about Aussie literature. Aussie authors need to stick a gumleaf in the flyleaf to get on the VCE curriculum.
Bruce Dawe was the best of the Aussie poets - wrote a poem about footy !!
I think they are doing a bit of Tim Winton at schools now (glad I'm not at school as I think he is rubbish).
David Williamson would be the main Aussie playwright - which is Ok if its The Club, Don's Party or other old ones - his newer stuff is ordinary.
I think they are doing a bit of Tim Winton at schools now (glad I'm not at school as I think he is rubbish).
David Williamson would be the main Aussie playwright - which is Ok if its The Club, Don's Party or other old ones - his newer stuff is ordinary.
kaysee
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I was late on the reading scene ... I had hardly read a novel since grade 7 until Christmas last year (I am now 28). Whilst I had always read plenty of Non-Fiction material about History, Mythology, Phylosphy etc I had never been interested in reading Fiction novels.
Since late last year I have read the 4 Harry Potter books... thought they would be a good reintroduction to novels since 10 year olds are reading them and then I read The Hobbit and then read Lord of the Rings.
I consider Lord of the Rings the best book I have read... and I am now in the process of reading it again.
Cheers
SKC
Since late last year I have read the 4 Harry Potter books... thought they would be a good reintroduction to novels since 10 year olds are reading them
and then I read The Hobbit and then read Lord of the Rings.I consider Lord of the Rings the best book I have read... and I am now in the process of reading it again.
Cheers
SKC
Remember having to read them aloud in class, one person per page? Inevitably I would get bored trying to read as slowly as they were and would skip ahead. Once I accidentally finished the whole book in class.
Here are some I remember:
Year 8
February Dragon (okay)
Sun On The Stubble (average)
Year 9
The Outsiders (the best)
10 Little ******s aka And Then There Were None (also really good)
Year 10
Z For Zachariah (blew goats!!!)
A Patch of Blue (dumb ending)
To Sir With Love (not bad)
The Taming Of The Shrew (I liked it)
Year 11
To Kill A Mockingbird (really good)
The Grapes of Wrath (overrated)
MacBeth (not bad)
Pygmalion (personal fave because I got to be Eliza Doolittle)
Year 12
Fly Away Friggin' Peter (hated hated hated)
Dags (try-hard)
Hamlet (not bad)
Here are some I remember:
Year 8
February Dragon (okay)
Sun On The Stubble (average)
Year 9
The Outsiders (the best)
10 Little ******s aka And Then There Were None (also really good)
Year 10
Z For Zachariah (blew goats!!!)
A Patch of Blue (dumb ending)
To Sir With Love (not bad)
The Taming Of The Shrew (I liked it)
Year 11
To Kill A Mockingbird (really good)
The Grapes of Wrath (overrated)
MacBeth (not bad)
Pygmalion (personal fave because I got to be Eliza Doolittle)
Year 12
Fly Away Friggin' Peter (hated hated hated)
Dags (try-hard)
Hamlet (not bad)
Mr Eagle
Bird-brain
Bridge to Terebithia...was that the one where the book ends with the girl dying when she falls off the bridge trying to get into Terebithia without the boy after he gets forced to go elsewhere? Likewise, I recall the ending but nothing else.
Catcher in the Rye and Chaim Potok's The Chosen were both on my high school curriculum, and both great books. But the first one I remember enjoying being forced to read was Skymaze by Gillian Rubenstein. Bloody ripper of a novel it was! Weird Jappo computer game takes over these kids' lives and they begin to be unable to separate the game from reality...
Catcher in the Rye and Chaim Potok's The Chosen were both on my high school curriculum, and both great books. But the first one I remember enjoying being forced to read was Skymaze by Gillian Rubenstein. Bloody ripper of a novel it was! Weird Jappo computer game takes over these kids' lives and they begin to be unable to separate the game from reality...
A good book I read in Year 9 was "Looking For Alibrandi." Great read, but the movie was not so great.
This year for English we had to read Maestro, and I had no probs with reading that one over and over, because I loved that book. Most of my classmates thought it was ****, but I loved it. Please, no-one ever, ever voluntarily read 'Montana 1948.' It is honestly the worst book! :S Had to read/study that in English this year.
The first of the Tomorrow series - 'Tomorrow, When the War Began' we never had to study but it's on our school's book list. Anyone who gets the chance, read that, and the next 6. They're great. And you're lucky, you don't have to read the first 6, then wait six months for the ending And while I'm on the subject of recommending books, "Willow Tree and Olive" is the most beautiful book I've ever read. Story of a Greek girl and her differences with her culture etc and then she gets sick, mentally.
This year for English we had to read Maestro, and I had no probs with reading that one over and over, because I loved that book. Most of my classmates thought it was ****, but I loved it. Please, no-one ever, ever voluntarily read 'Montana 1948.' It is honestly the worst book! :S Had to read/study that in English this year.
The first of the Tomorrow series - 'Tomorrow, When the War Began' we never had to study but it's on our school's book list. Anyone who gets the chance, read that, and the next 6. They're great. And you're lucky, you don't have to read the first 6, then wait six months for the ending
And while I'm on the subject of recommending books, "Willow Tree and Olive" is the most beautiful book I've ever read. Story of a Greek girl and her differences with her culture etc and then she gets sick, mentally.Originally posted by BomberGal
A good book I read in Year 9 was "Looking For Alibrandi." Great read, but the movie was not so great.
The first of the Tomorrow series - 'Tomorrow, When the War Began' we never had to study but it's on our school's book list. Anyone who gets the chance, read that, and the next 6. They're great. And you're lucky, you don't have to read the first 6, then wait six months for the ending
You just mentioned my two favourite books from highschool. Well I had to read Looking for Alibrandi in year 9, and loved it. I never studied the tomorrow series, it was put on the year 9 curriculum the year after I was in year 9, but when looking for books in about year 7 or year 8, I just happened to pick that one up to buy while I was on holiday. The series was supposed to finish after book 3 actually, but we greedy bloody readers had to have a proper finish. I bought the last one in my first year of uni, although I was out of the aim audience by then, but that series was just too addictive, I had to find out the ending you know? I gave the whole series to my sister, but she won't read them
I absolutely hated Montana 1948 as well. Nearly failed year 12 English, because the entire thing was just too boring to bother about.
Yeah, we had to read that for Year 11 and I actually didn't mind it. I can't remember why I liked it but just remember that I did. Interesting that BomberGal hated it - perhaps it would be easier for guys to like the story than girls due to the relationships between the father and two brothers? Might see if I still have it and reread it.
Another I liked was a play by Arthur Miller called A View from the Bridge. This was for Year 12 and some elements of the story happened to mirror what was going on in my own life at the time. We were fortunate enough to have a small production group come out and perform the play for us (after we had read the book) which, looking back, was pretty good for a run-of-the-mill public school. Will definitely reread this one before the end of summer.
Could not stand the small parts of Wuthering Heights I bothered to read but I was much younger when I was supposed to read it - 15 IIRC. Perhaps after all this time I might be able to relate to the passion felt by the main characters. Might read again.
Border Crossing was okay.
Can't really think of any others that I had to read through high school.
Good thread.
rocker_oz33
TheBrownDog
l dont normally read many books.
The doors book
and danny surgarmans book are the books l can remmember reading and liked.
The doors book
and danny surgarmans book are the books l can remmember reading and liked.
Tomorrow when the war began-Great read
TKAM-Also very very clever and thought-provoking
TKAM-Also very very clever and thought-provoking
