Summer Reading

2023 Portsmouth Abbey School

Summer Reading

 

Dear Students,

 

Though summer presents us with a welcome break from academic life, it's important to keep your minds active between the months of June and August. Reading a novel or two is one of the best ways to maintain your sharpness during this time—hence the tradition of "summer reading" in secondary schools. 

 

With that in mind, see below for Portsmouth Abbey's 2023 summer form readers. We have selected the novels from a fairly diverse range of authors, with an eye toward contemporary, engaging fiction. We hope that the experience of reading and thinking about your novel will resonate with topics that you have encountered (or will soon) in your classrooms here at the Abbey. Cognizant of the ubiquity of screens in our lives, we encourage you to engage in the reading process fully and phyisically: buy a hard copy of the book, put aside distractions, and set aside time to read thoughtfully. Shortly after you return to school, you will be asked to display your knowledge of the assigned book and discuss it with your peers.

 

Have a great summer!

 

Sincerely,

The English Department

 

Summer Form Readers 2023-24 School Year

 

 

Form III: 

                 The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein

 

Form IV: 

                The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis

 

Form V: 

                 Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

 

Form VI: 

                 Hamnet  by Maggie O’Farrell