The Cambridge set texts for the 2010 and 2011 FCE exam are:
Wilkie Collins: The Woman in White (Black Cat or any edition)
Michael Chrichton: Jurassic Park (Macmillan or any edition)
Both recommended texts are graded readers. You may read one or both. These books are not discussed in the oral exam at all. They are the basis to answer a choice of optional writing tasks in Part 2 of the Writing Paper.
The Woman in White Fiona Joseph has a great ten-minute podcast to introduce you to the book The Woman in White. Her tips are spot on. You should be very well prepared to choose one of the set text writing options, which can be an essay, an article or a letter.
The range of set books recommended by Cambridge for the FCE exam has been full of classic authors. Most of the books are read in their unabridged editon. If you are one of those students who loves reading and needs advice with titles to quench your reading thirst, here is a good reading list created by OM. They also provide free downloads with information about the authors as well as some of their most famous books.
One final thought...
Apart from the recommended abridged readers, I would advise you to include some original work in your personal reading list. But most importantly, choose books you like! If you find a novel or story never ending, perhaps it's time to go and discover other titles that confirm reading can be a great pleasure.
I am usually asked this question: What do you recommend reading to learn English at my level? As if there existed the answer to such a question! (or I were the person to answer it). Whitman's words in the great poem Song of Myself come to my rescue:
"You must find out for yourself"
So as a teacher, I will confine myself to help you find out for yourselves.
Basically, it is a spot for people to list the books on their shelves at home and then discuss them with like-minded readers.
My site rating 5/5:
Well organised
intuitive interface
no private info required
up to 200 books listed for free
and best of all: no need to download anything!
This is what I a call a very good website.
How can that site help me with my exam preparation?
I knew you would ask that. Well, for starters...
You can find your set texts
Read what real people are saying about them
Leave your own comment and practice your English in a real –should I say virtual- situation!
You might even find a pal there who, surprisingly enough, has read the same books you love. Nice thing, isn't it?
Then if you refine your search a bit, you may find opinions that sound natural and full of that vocabulary you need when you are asked to review a book for your set text question. You are not supposed to imitate a New York Times book critic in your exam composition. Nope.
We are trying to learn words people like you or me use when talking books. Perhaps you have noticed that most FCE course books teach you adjectives to describe people, places, ways of looking, ways of you-name-it, but what's missing? Words for those books you adore, other than 'great' or 'very good'.
Let’s try it out together
Here I’ve created an fceblog group for you (a kind of book talk forum). Want to join the discussion? If you can't figure out how to join through the site, leave us your user name to get an invitation. If you create one for your own classmates, leave us a message or a comment here to find you! http://www.librarything.com/groups/fceblog
And where are the links to all exam set texts? I told you, you must find out for yourselves...
I chose those editions just because other people have saved them, so we are not alone there. Not that I mean to recommend them...(some are pretty expensive actually!).
On second thoughts, I do recommend reading any edition of Whitman’sLeaves of Grass. By far an awesome, flabberghasting book!
Every year Cambridge ESOL renews two books on the reading list for the Writing Paper –Part 2.
The Cambridge ESOL set books for 2007 are:
A.J. Cronin, The Citadel (Penguin Readers or any edition)
* Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Three Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (Penguin Readers or any edition)
* George Orwell, 1984 (Penguin Readers or any edition)
Arthur C Clarke, 2001: A Space Odyssey (Penguin Readers or any edition)
Richard Prescott, Officially Dead (Heinemann ELT)
*Set also in 2006. All publishers suggested by Cambridge ESOL.
For details of where to find the 2006 books online, see our previous posting. Now let’s have a look at the newly added books on the list.
Officially Dead
This is a simplified book for upper-intermediate students (2200 headwords). The paperback edition is 120 pages long and brings a CD. This is not available for free. However, the publishers offer downloadable worksheets with answers in Pdf format on their site here:
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from Magic."
More Food for Thought Arthur C Clarke. Net – Home to all things Clarkean. http://www.arthurcclarke.net/ This site includes a collection of interviews with Arthur Clarke. I recommend reading this one done back in 1993 at the writer’s home in Sri Lanka for Wired magazine. The author talks about the reality he envisioned and the future he foresees including telecommunications and virtual reality. There are a lot of debatable ideas there.
Teachers –and why not students- might enjoy this one too. Here Clarke discusses the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in education.
And what about the famous Space Odyssey film? Coming up soon on the FCE Blog. Stay tuned!
Choosing your book When we think of extensive reading we mean reading for pleasure. Of course it is not pleasurable to stop your reading to look up 20 new words in the dictionary per page! Take into account your level of English when choosing the books from the ESOL set texts –graded or full versions. Ideally you should be able to get a good hint at the meaning of the words from context and use the dictionary only for those unknown words which are a key to understanding the story. Predicting, guessing and carefully selecting words to further investigate are part of the skills you learn when reading longer texts.
Purpose of reading the set book: reading extensively Cambridge list of set texts usually includes a number of classics. Students sometimes complain that those stories are set in a distant past, with past problems and 'old fashioned' vocabulary. Indeed if you want to learn how people speak today, there are other sources to go to –we discussed some options in a previous posting. Yet, there are countless advantages for language learners who acquire the habit of extensive reading. To mention but a few:
you can learn collocations
you can improve reading comprehension
you get lots of cultural information
Remember that good writers have always been great readers! Speaking of writing...
Let’s talk about the writing task
Is this one of the easiest or more difficult options in the writing paper?
If you choose it in the hope of finding an easy task, it is probably not one of the easiest options. It is true that you can think about what to say about the book beforehand. You will not have to think of something completely new to write about. Do I have to remember the entire book?
Yes, you do. But remember the task is not about retelling. You will show evidence of your reading by briefly referring to relevant moments of the story- that is all.
Will there be any questions about the set book in the oral exam?
Films can be of help; however, they do not replace reading a book. Through a film, you access to someone else's reaction to the book. You will need to have your own opinions about the text to write your criticism.
How to read the book preparing for the set book option
Do your note taking while reading the book. Classify your notes with headings such as vocabulary to talk about the plot, setting or main characters.
Part 2 – Question 5: Analysing your options
Type of writing tasks
Sample Questions
You will have to produce an original piece, so it is not possible to have a ready made composition. But you can certainly have decided on a number of ideas about the story and characters. Your writing is a personal and critical view of the book. Your own reaction and evaluation of it is expected.
Where to find examples and sample answers
The Penguin Readers Teacher’s Guide to Preparing for FCEby Carolyn Walker (Pearson 1999) is a booklet written for teachers; however, students preparing the exam on their own can find it helpful.
Useful pages for students Pages 6, 7 and 8 include brief descriptions of the type of text you will produce, style, target reader, organisation and content. A detailed analysis of your response to the book as well as exam tips.
Useful worksheets for students 2- FCE question types. The 10 examples given are taken from UCLES 1997- 1998 sessions.
3- A sample essay. Based on WutheringHeights, it includes questions to analyse how the task was achieved.
5- Analysis of the plot. A chart to take your notes while reading.
10- Personality chart. There is a collection of adjectives to help you describe main characters.
14- Evaluating the book. Set of model sentences to include your opinion of the book.
All the examples and explanations in the Penguin Guide are based on the novel WutheringHeights by Emily Brontë. Definitely one of my favourite novels. You can find the book and study notes here (Pdf available on the site).
Phillips, Brian and Bourneuf, Annie. SparkNote on WutheringHeights. 1 Oct. 2006.
The Cambridge set texts for the 2010 and 2011 FCE exam are:
