English 9 – Summer Reading Guide All rising ninth graders at St. Sebastian’s will read one novel to prepare them for the work required in English 9. Whether at an Honors or a Standard level, students should read the text carefully, perhaps noting in their books information that seems important as they read. These annotations, designed only to help students remember these texts more clearly, might include significant moments in plot, characterization, action, or theme. In the fall when we return, students should expect a discussion of this novel along with a reading test or essay of some kind. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury A dystopic novel, the story focuses on the protagonist Guy Montag, “a fireman whose job it was to start fires, and he enjoyed his job. He had been a fireman for ten years, and he had never questioned the pleasure of the midnight runs nor the joy of watching pages consumed by flames…never questioned anything until he met a seventeen-year-old girl who told him of a past when people were not afraid. Then he met a professor who told him of a future in which people could think. And Guy Montag suddenly realized what he had to do.” Questions to consider as you read: 1. What does the novel suggest about the importance of books, language, and stories? 2. How is Guy Montag the hero of the novel? What traits do he and others (Clarisse, Faber, and Granger) possess that allow them to survive? 3. What is the significance or symbolic importance of fire in the novel? How does Bradbury use fire in different ways to suggest its metaphorical importance? .