Reviews for One Hundred Great Essays (Penguin Academics Series)

The average rating for One Hundred Great Essays (Penguin Academics Series) based on 2 reviews is 5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2019-07-17 00:00:00 Mark Gonzalez I have looked at the contents of several anthologies of essays but they all seem to have a few good ones and a lot of mediocre ones. Even the good ones may not be the best by those essayists. Not this collection. This one is packed with the best essays by the best essayists. I didn't read or intend to read it from cover to cover but did a selective reading to cover authors whom I have liked or about whom I have come across in my past readings. The ones that I liked are: 'How we listen' by Aaron Copeland 'The interpretation of dreams' by Sigmund Freud 'Nowhere man' by Pico Iyer 'The medium is the metaphor' by Neil Postman 'The din in the head' by Cynthia Ozick 'The mother tongue' by Amy Tan

Review # 2 was written on 2011-08-03 00:00:00 William Monk I realize there's a newer edition out, so I'm not 100% certain what specific essays were removed or added. I think despite that major detail this collection is still a great find, because of the variety of essays. There's a great mix of dry essays, entertaining gems, and essays that could be said to be somewhere in between, which I think is important for students to be exposed too. It included "The Vindication of the Rights of Women," and "A Modest Proposal" to more modern essays that deal with topics of language acquisition and culture such as "How to Tame a Wild Tongue" to Judy Brady's "I Want a Wife." The topics are diverse and range from social to political issues. Due to the publication range of the essays in the collection, anyone can mix and match cultural issue to particular writing style if you are inclined to do so. Each essay has a mini intro to the essays and background information on the author who wrote the essay. After each essay there are 3 writing prompts that students can do, though not all of the particular prompts may suit your individual tastes or needs. (I consider them more as a potential assignment and just an added bonus as opposed to writing assignments that must be completed with each essay.) I think if you're planning on teaching Pre AP/AP Language/AP Literature this collection is a great resource to have, though I suspect that those in Pre AP and AP Language may benefit more than an AP Lit class. Overall, great find, and something I think you should consider having your school look into if you are considering purchasing new material for the English department.