"A crash course in English literature"--Cover.

Includes character lists, summaries, plot overviews, major themes, symbols and quotations, author biographies and historical contexts for 150 books.

"A crash course in American literature"--Cover.

A guide to the greats in British literature! From Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Charles Dickens' Tiny Tim to Jane Austen's Mr. Darcy and Shakespeare's Juliet, British authors have created some of the most compelling characters in all of literature. But too often, textbooks reduce these vibrant voices to boring summaries that would put even an English dean to sleep. English Lit 101 is an engaging and comprehensive guide through the major players in American literature. From romanticism to modernism and every literary movement in between, this primer is packed with hundreds of entertaining tidbits and concepts, along with easy-to-understand explanations on why each author's work was important then and still relevant now. So whether you're looking for a refresher course on key English literature or want to learn about it for the first time, English Lit 101 has all the answers--even the ones you didn't know you were looking for.

The first comprehensive collection of hands-on exercises that bring active learning to the literature classroom This is the first comprehensive collection of hands-on, active learning exercises for the college literature classroom, offering ideas and inspiration for new and veteran teachers alike. These 101 surefire lesson plans present creative and interactive activities to get all your students talking and learning, from the first class to final review. Whether you are teaching majors or nonmajors, genres or periods, canonical or noncanonical literature, medieval verse or the graphic novel, this volume provides practical and flexible exercises for creating memorable learning experiences. Help students learn more and retain that knowledge longer by teaching them how to question, debate, annotate, imitate, write, draw, map, stage, or perform. These user-friendly exercises feature clear and concise step-by-step instructions, and each exercise is followed by helpful teaching tips and descriptions of the exercise in action. All encourage collaborative learning and many are adaptable to different class sizes or course levels. A collection of successful approaches for teaching fiction, poetry, and drama and their historical, cultural, and literary contexts, this indispensable book showcases the tried and true alongside the fresh and innovative. 101 creative classroom exercises for teaching literature Exercises contributed by experienced teachers at a wide range of colleges and universities Step-by-step instructions and teaching tips for each exercise Extensive introduction on the benefits of bringing active learning to the literature classroom Cross-references for finding further exercises and to aid course planning Index of literary authors, works, and related topics