Historical Non-Fiction books for AP U.S. History summer reading, which should I choose?

Question

For my AP US History class I need to choose two books off the list below. Which should I choose based off ability to hold interest and flow of the book? If you haven't ready many of these books and you know where I could find good summaries of what the books are about that would be great to!

Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy
Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houstin
Hiroshima by John Hershey
Founding Brothers-The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph J. Ellis
The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley with Malcolm X
Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
Warriors Don't Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals
Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
The Feminie Mystique by Betty Friedan
Coming of Age in Mississippi by Anne Moody

Answer 1

Hiroshima is great. It's an account of 6 survivors of the Hiroshima bombing. They recount the first few days and explain how their lives have been forever changed. It is very real, and should not be forgotten.



Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee is great, also. It's a narrative of the white man's conquest of the American land as the Indian victims experienced it.



Found Brothers is great, too. The title is self explanatory--founding fathers.



The Jungle recounts the deplorable conditions of the Chicago stockyards at the turn of the century.



The Grapes of Wrath is the desperate flight of tenant farmers from Oklahoma during the Depression.



Profiles in Courage is a series of profiles of Americans who took courageous stands in public life.



I would read Grapes of Wrath as it flows and is difficult to stop reading.

Answer 2

Since you're going to read these books, why do you need summaries?

Profiles in Courage is a pretty easy read, I think.

The Grapes of Wrath is a great book, but very long.

The Femine Mystique is wonderful and very readable! I'd recommend that.

If you need more specifics, talk with a librarian.

Edit: BTW, it occurs to me that many of these are historical fiction, not non-fiction.

Answer 3

There are hundreds of great books! Visit your local library... they usually have summer reading suggestions and great selections of books: here are a few that I thought of Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer Like Sisters on the Homefront by Rita Williams-Garcia I Hadn't Meant to Tell You This by Jacqueline Woodson The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams Zel by Donna Jo Napoli Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers I Am the Cheese by Robert Cormier Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman Hoop Dreams by Ben Joravsky Falling Leaves: The Memoir of an Unwanted Chinese Daughter by Adeline Yen Mah The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

Answer 4

Wow, that's a great list! I think I'd pick Profiles in Courage, Autobiography of Malcom X, The Jungle and the Grapes of Wrath, they are all my favorites...OMG and THe Feminine Mystique...How are you ever going to choose? I know, I'm no help at all..I think probably the most interesting would be Profiles in Courage and The Feminine Mystique

Answer 5

-'Johnny Got His Gun' by Dalton Trumbo is one of the BEST anti-war books EVER! Metallica's song 'One' is based on the movie they did of that book, tho they differ a bit. Have to say that it's slow going for maybe the first half, but I get chills even thinking about the end! It's humbling

-Wounded Knee is depressing, as many non-fiction works about American Indians are

-what about 'Black like me'? cause Malcom X's bio is on there. It deals with descrimination/civil rights/etc

Answer 6

Johnny Got His Gun... it's a tough book to get through (in terms of what happens, not that it's boring), but I'd read that one.

Answer 7

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair - google it if you want to know what it's about.