Reading is truly one of the most important and valuable survival tools. It illuminates your imagination and broadens your horizons by practically developing your language skills. It is where you discover a ‘best friend’, build confidence and grow mentally and emotionally. Reading is also a great hobby to help you relax and enter a “different world”, thereby relieving boredom, listlessness and daily stress.
Our English Department recommends engaging with different genres such mystery, drama, fantasy, thriller, non-fiction etc. as well as varying the reading sources to include poetry. While this may seem daunting, our Heads of English, Ms. Els in our Junior College and Ms. Botha in our Senior College, have put together a list of books to get you started on your reading journey.
For Grade 4 – Grade 7, Ms. Els recommends:
- Diary of the Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney
- Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan
- Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz
- Horrid Henry series by Francesca Simon
- Goosebumps series by R. L. Stine
- Dork Diaries series by Rachel Renée Russell
- Secret Seven series by Enid Blyton
- Famous Five series by Enid Blyton
- Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
- Nancy Drew series by Carolyn Keene
- Hardy Boys series by Franklin W. Dixon
- Animal Magic series and other books by Holly web
- The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
- Any books by Roald Dahl
For Form 1 (Grade 8) – Form 5 (Grade 12), Ms Botha recommends all teens read the following books before they turn eighteen:
- A wrinkle in time by Madeleine L’Engle
- Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate
- The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
- Wonder by R J Palacio
- The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
- The Hate you give by Angie Thomas
- Educated by Tara Westover
- I know why the caged bird sings by Maya Angelou
Remember to start small and grow as you become a reader. In the words of Nelson Mandela, we encourage each one of our students to “Be a lifelong student, read as many books as possible.”
