Week 1: Un-Textbook

Un-Textbook selections

Week 2: For my first unit, I am very interested in delving deeper into Homer's Odyssey. My freshman English class in high school was an introductory course into classical literature and one of our reading assignments was excerpts from the Odyssey. In learning more about this piece of literature, I hope to also know a bit more about the background of Greek epic poetry in general.

Week 3: I would love to read the King James Version of the Gospel of Mark. In the past, I have read this book of the Bible in other translations but have never attempted to read it in this particular version. Different translations have varying connotations, and it will be interesting to see how the language in the KJV affects the account of Jesus's life.

Week 4: For the next unit, I would like to take a look at Arabian Nights. There's an interesting story here: I played the violin in symphony orchestra in high school, and one of the pieces that we played was the ballet Scheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov. Our conductor told us the background of the piece and ever since, I've been fascinated and have wanted to learn more. I would love to get a chance to read the literature that inspired the music.

Week 5: After 1,001 Nights, it would make sense to follow it up with another frametale, Tales of a Parrot. It will intriguing to see the parallels between the two forms of storytelling.

Week 6: My parents are Chinese immigrants and I grew up with Asian cartoons. One of these was a series about the life of the Monkey King. Again, this is a piece of literature that I would like to explore further due to a past experience with it. It will be fun to revisit the characters in these tales to whom I was introduced in childhood.

Week 7: In addition to the Monkey King, I would love to read Chinese Fairy Tales. My parents occasionally would read me traditional bedtime stories and I am curious to see if any of the tales that they told me are familiar.