What books should I read for the AP English Literature exam?
Everyone who prepares for the English Literature and Composition AP Exam wonders how many books to study for the open question on the exam. While there is no single answer to this question, it is safe to say the more, the better — as long as you know them well. Be sure to cover several periods and genres.
At a minimum, try to know your way around one Shakespearean tragedy and at least two 20th-century plays. You should also study a minimum of at least one 19th-century and two 20th-century novels. More would be better.
Think about reviewing some of the works you read in 10th or 11th grade. Choose works you like. Review the works carefully. A few years ago, a large number of students wrote on Romeo & Juliet on the open question on child-parent conflicts. But very few remembered the play well, probably because they had read it two or three years before and had not reviewed it.