Cover: The Compact Reader, 12th Edition by Jane Aaron; Ellen Repetto
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The Compact Reader

Short Essays by Method and ThemeTwelfth Edition ©2022 Jane Aaron; Ellen Repetto

The Compact Reader offers an innovative dual organization; it can be taught rhetorically or thematically.  Each rhetorical method is paired with an engaging thematic topic so that readings display the full range and flexibility of writing in each mode. Selections average just two or th...
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ISBN:9781319413330

ISBN:9781319244613

ISBN:9781319521820

Cover: The Compact Reader, 12th Edition by Jane Aaron; Ellen Repetto

Flexible. Effective. Compact.

The Compact Reader offers an innovative dual organization; it can be taught rhetorically or thematically.  Each rhetorical method is paired with an engaging thematic topic so that readings display the full range and flexibility of writing in each mode. Selections average just two or three pages in length, so that students can read them quickly, analyze them thoroughly, and emulate them successfully. A brief guide to reading and writing, detailed chapter introductions, and two final chapters on working with sources serve as a mini-rhetoric, providing students with the support they need. For instructors who want a concise, affordable, effective resource for teaching the connection between form and content, The Compact Reader is the perfect choice.
Writing instruction is enhanced when combined with Achieve for Readers and Writers, a flexible, integrated suite of online tools developed to support feedback, peer review, revision, and reflection. Assessments and practice opportunities in Achieve increase student engagement and save you time.

Features

34 short essays provide solid, realistic, and engaging models, including these:

  • David Sedaris uses humor to explore the difficulties in learning a second language in “Me Talk Pretty One Day.”
  • Sarah Vowell offers a personal insight into the unfolding debate over Confederate memorials in “America’s Statue Wars Are a Family Feud.”
  • In “The Darkest Moment of My Life,” Amy Tan narrates a caving adventure that was eye-opening, despite its absolute darkness.

Annotated paragraphs begin each chapter, illustrating key rhetorical moves and offering an accessible introduction to each rhetorical method.

Each chapter (12 in total) provides a model student essay to encourage and inspire students.

A brief guide to reading and writing in Part One, detailed chapter introductions in Part Two, and Part Three on working with sources serve as a mini-rhetoric, providing students with all the support they need. The four introductory chapters include a sample essay followed by a thorough analysis to illustrate critical reading; a students response to the essay in multiple drafts; and ample coverage of the elements of effective writing, from thesis to word choice.

New to This Edition

Diverse and inclusive readings arranged by rhetorical method.
More than half of the models in the twelfth edition come from writers of color and members of the LGBTQ community. These readings present a mix of real student work, noteworthy emerging voices, and well-known favorites.

  • Student Maisha M. Prome, in “Momentum,” recalls in vivid detail an exhilarating moment from her childhood in Bangladesh.
  • In a paragraph from Stories from the Edge, poet Jimmy Santiago Baca enumerates the reasons for wanting to teach himself how to read and write while in prison.
  • With wit and empathy, Slate editor Dan Kois picks apart the problems in Kermit and Miss Piggy’s relationship in “It’s Time for the Muppets to Give a Different Couple the Spotlight.”
  • Jose Antonio Vargas, in a paragraph from his memoir Dear America, examines the links between immigration and racism.

Engaging new themes appeal to students’ imaginations, focusing on relevant and timely topics: Seeking Education (Chapter 7); Confronting Stereotypes (Chapter 9); Working Together (Chapter 10); and Protesting Racism (Chapter 14).

A set of new selections anchors the overview of critical reading and writing in Part One. A relatable new essay by Toni Morrison highlights issues of work and identity while illustrating a model of close reading. A new student-annotated paragraph inspired by a striking image demonstrates how to analyze visuals thoughtfully. Finally, a  new student essay in successive drafts analyzes Morrison’s text and asserts an argument of its own in how to balance work and family commitments.

Enhanced support for key writing challenges. Based on instructor feedback, Chapters 2 and 3 now provide concrete suggestions on writing introductions and conclusions, more attention to developing thesis statements, and a new focus on using transitions to improve coherence. New graphic organizers in Part Two help students visualize how to structure an essay for each rhetorical method. Expanded coverage of researched writing in Chapter 15 offers updated guidance on finding and evaluating sources and conducting keyword searches.

“The text has everything needed for a composition course.”
--Marie Eckstrom, Rio Hondo College

“This book is a good combination of writing instruction, example essays that help students think through rhetorical and thematic concepts, and writing prompts that are useful and understandable to students.”
--Casey J. Rudkin, Great Basin College

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Table of Contents

PART ONE: A COMPACT GUIDE TO READING AND WRITING
1 READING       
Reading Attentively
Reading Critically      
Analyzing a Sample Essay
*Toni Morrison, The Work You Do, The Person You Are
Reading Visuals
Visual Image: Father and Daughter, photograph by Clay Benskin
 
2 DEVELOPING AN ESSAY
Getting Started
Forming a Thesis        
Drafting
     
3 REVISING     
Reading Your Own Work Critically
Using a Revision Checklist
Clara Marquez’s Revised Draft

4 EDITING
Checking for Common Errors
Making Sentences Clear and Effective  
Choosing the Best Words
Using an Editing Checklist
Clara Marquez’s Editing and Final Draft
*Clara Marquez, A Fair Balance (student essay)

PART TWO:  SHORT ESSAYS BY METHOD AND THEME
5 NARRATION: Facing Fear    
Reading Narration
Analyzing Narration in Paragraphs   
*David Treuer, from The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee         
Michael Ondaatje, from Running in the Family
Developing a Narrative Essay        
Langston Hughes, Salvation       
Jennifer Finney Boylan, In the Early Morning Rain  
*Eric Rowley, A Flight to Remember (student essay)  
Additional Writing Topics                             

6 DESCRIPTION:  Experiencing a Sense of Place               
Reading Description                                  
Analyzing Description in Paragraphs               
Joan Didion, from South and West               
*Pam Houston, from Deep Creek         
Developing a Descriptive Essay
*Maisha M. Prome, Momentum (student essay)
*Dagoberto Gilb, The Quake That Rocked Mexico City, and Brought Its People Together
Amy Tan, The Darkest Moment of My Life                                              
Additional Writing Topics 
        
7 EXAMPLE:  Seeking Education                
Reading Examples                         
Analyzing Examples in Paragraphs                                                  
*Gish Jen, from The Girl at the Baggage Claim           
*Jimmy Santiago Baca, from Stories from the Edge                
Developing an Essay by Example    
Perri Klass, She’s Your Basic LOL in NAD                
David Sedaris, Me Talk Pretty One Day                        
Olivia Melendez, The Chinese Kindergartener (student essay)         
Additional Writing Topics 

8 DIVISION OR ANALYSIS: Looking at Popular Culture        
Reading Division or Analysis 
Analyzing Division or Analysis in Paragraphs   
*Andy Mulvihill, from Action Park     
Luci Tapahonso, from Sign Language  
Developing an Essay by Division or Analysis
*Dan Kois, It’s Time for the Muppets to Give a Different Couple the Spotlight               
Leslie Jamison, Sublime, Revised 
Saanya Ojha, Plastic Perfection: A Closer Look at Barbie (student essay)
Additional Writing Topics 

9 CLASSIFICATION: Confronting Stereotypes                    
Reading Classification                              
Analyzing Classification in Paragraphs                          
Scaachi Koul, from One Day We’ll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter         
*Joy Harjo, from Crazy Brave               
Developing an Essay by Classification             
*Mindy Kaling, Types of Women in Romantic Comedies Who Are Not Real
Jonathan R. Gould, Jr., The People Next Door (student essay)        
Harrison Candelaria Fletcher, White  
Additional Writing Topics

10 PROCESS ANALYSIS: Working Together           
Reading Process Analysis      
Analyzing Process Analysis in Paragraphs
*Edward O. Wilson, from Letters to a Young Scientist
*Trevor Noah, from Born a Crime
Developing an Essay by Process Analysis        
*Mary Roach, Forty-Two Minutes and Holding . . .
*Lauren Collins, Fragrant Harvest
*Kristen Shaul, Coffee (student essay)
Additional Writing Topics 

11 COMPARISON AND CONTRAST: Feeling at Home         
Reading Comparison and Contrast 
Analyzing Comparison and Contrast in Paragraphs 
Maya Angelou, from Letter to My Daughter
Firoozeh Dumas, from Laughing without an Accent
Antonio Ruiz-Camacho, Souvenirs                  
Brian Jaehyung Kim, Double Identity (student essay)         
Barbara Lazear Ascher, The Box Man           
Additional Writing Topics

12 DEFINITION: Pursuing Happiness              
Reading Definition     
Analyzing Definition in Paragraphs              
Carlin Flora, from “The Pursuit of Happiness”   
*Zadie Smith, from “Joy”                                                
Developing an Essay by Definition
*Peter Singer, Chimpanzees Are People, Too
Jessica Sayuri Boissy, One Cup at a Time (student essay)    
Julia Alvarez, The Practice of Gracias            
Additional Writing Topics

13 CAUSE-AND-EFFECT ANALYSIS:  Understanding Science and Technology
Reading Cause-and-Effect Analysis
Analyzing Causes and Effects in Paragraphs                  
Ross Andersen, from “Pleistocene Park”
Diane Ackerman, from The Human Age
Developing an Essay by Cause-and-Effect Analysis
*Richard Preston, What New Things Are Going to Kill Me?   
Derek Thompson, The Making of Hits 
Kaitlyn Haskie, A Paradigm Shift: Indigenous Peoples in the New Millennium (student essay)  
Additional Writing Topics

14 ARGUMENT AND PERSUASION: Protesting Racism      
Reading Argument and Persuasion
Analyzing Argument and Persuasion in Paragraphs
*Jose Antonio Vargas, from Dear America
Martin Luther King, Jr., from “Letter from Birmingham Jail”                            
Developing an Argumentative and Persuasive Essay                              
Zoe Krey, Questionable Coverage: Police Brutality Is Only Part of the Problem (student essay)
Brent Staples, Confederate Memorials as Instruments of Racial Terror 
Ernest B. Furgurson, The End of History?   
*Sarah Vowell, America’s Statue Wars Are a Family Feud
Additional Writing Topics 

Part Three: Brief Notes on Writing Research Papers
15 WORKING WITH SOURCES  
Responding to Readings              
Researching a Subject            
Writing a Research Paper         

16 CITING SOURCES IN MLA STYLE           
Documentation Models    
Sample Research Paper
Jarrod Ballo, Women and Children First (student essay)

Glossary                                                                                                   
Index of Authors and Titles
Guide to the Elements of Writing

Headshot of Jane E. Aaron

Jane E. Aaron

Jane E. Aaron is a professional writer and editor as well as an experienced teacher. She is the author of the best-selling Little, Brown Handbook and The Compact Reader. She has served as consultant, editor, or writer on more than a dozen other textbooks for the first-year composition.

Headshot of Ellen Kuhl Repetto

Ellen Kuhl Repetto

Ellen Kuhl Repetto is an editor and writer who has contributed to more than twenty composition readers, handbooks, and rhetorics. She is the author of The Bedford Reader and The Compact Reader.

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Jane Aaron; Ellen Repetto | Twelfth Edition | ©2022 | ISBN:9781319413354