Short Story by Chinua Achebe. A city-based Nigerian man’s decision to marry a woman from a different ethnic group causes tension with his village-based father. He is from the Igbo ethnic group in which marriages are traditionally arranged by parents and restricted to others within the group.
Short Story by Mary Yukari Waters. In the aftermath of World War 2, a young Japanese mother struggles to deal with the loss of her husband, her young son’s growing Americanisation and dimming memories of his father, and the fundamental shifts taking place in Japanese society.
Novella by Ernest Hemingway. A down on his luck, aging fisherman ventures further out to sea than usual and hooks a giant marlin longer than his small boat. He finally reels it in after a three-day struggle, only to see it “stolen” on the way back to shore.
Short Story by John Cheever. A couple are surprised when a new radio begins to pick up conversations from people in surrounding apartments. The woman becomes obsessed with listening in, and the personal secrets she hears discussed (affairs, marital and financial problems, etc.) change her.
Grade 7-8 Story by Toni Cade Bambara. A feisty African-American girl growing up in New York City is angry over two acts of deceit. The first (a misleading movie title) receives a ‘fiery’ response. The second (an offhand promise made to pacify her as a child) results in tears.