AP English Literature & Composition

About the AP Course Framework

Advanced Placement (AP) courses are college-level curricula administered by the College Board for US high-school students. Each AP English course publishes a Course and Exam Description (CED) that defines learning objectives, skill categories, and the structure of the May AP exam. Reading lists are not centrally mandated — individual AP teachers select texts that align with the CED's skill targets and the course's literary or historical scope.

AP English Literature and Composition (the literature-focused course) draws across British, American, and world literature from the 16th century forward, with strong representation of canonical novels, drama, and poetry. AP English Language and Composition (rhetoric-focused) draws across non-fiction prose, speeches, journalism, and argumentative essays. The two AP English courses overlap by under 20% in typical reading selection.

AP students earn college credit at participating universities by scoring 3 or higher on the May AP exam (1-5 scale). The reading list on this page reflects titles commonly cited in approved AP syllabi as catalogued by the College Board's syllabus audit process. Specific titles vary by teacher; this list aggregates the most-frequently-assigned across audited syllabi.

External references: College Board AP English Course Pages

How to use this AP English Literature & Composition reading list

The book list above represents titles ReadingList has confirmed as referenced by AP English Literature & Composition— either through the framework’s own published documentation, through audited classroom syllabi citing the framework, or through US state and district curriculum guides that map their reading expectations to it. Each book’s detail page links the specific primary source so parents, teachers, and students can verify the citation and locate the official document.

Reading lists evolve. AP English Literature & Composition citations on ReadingList are reviewed on a rolling basis as primary sources publish updates. If you teach or learn under this framework and a title on this page is no longer used (or you know of one that should appear), the ReadingList methodology page explains how to submit a correction with a citation.