For the last time, Sarah, stop sitting on Chuckles. He’s only small and there aren’t many teenagers in his natural marine environment, so he’s not exactly suited to carrying you around.

Good afternoon everyone *sigh*. Today we are talking about whether you should read all of your A-Level or GCSE set texts for English Literature.

Do I Need to Read the Whole Book or Play for My Exams?

Technically it is possible to do well in your exams without reading the whole text but you have to get very lucky. So, basically, yes read the whole thing. Please read it, I’m begging you, I don’t want to spend another 64 years in this hole.

How Does Reading All of My Set Texts Give Me an Advantage?

In my opinion, as a Goblin created entirely to help you do better in your GCSEs and A-Levels, there is no more important way of preparing for your exams. Here’s why:

• You must know the entire story of the text to be prepared for any question and get full marks in the A01 component (understanding and describing the plot).

• You will get to know the characters like friends, family members, and enemies. You will know how they think, how they behave, and what motivates them.

• You will have a deeper understanding of the themes and messages the author is trying to convey (send) to you.

• You will know the context of your memorised quotes, who said them, why, and what the character or narrator attempted to do at that moment.

• You will develop an innate (natural and easy) understanding of the environment and challenges of the world your story is set in.

• You will become accustomed to (used to) the author’s writing style and values which will help you interpret any section of the text you are asked to analyse.

• You will have consumed the material in the way the author designed you to, meaning you have the full experience and are able to consider it as a whole.

• You won’t need to guess, remember, or bull-fluff your way through things, you will know the answer and give it with confidence.

Summing Up

So in summary, reading the entire text gives you an unbeatable advantage when it comes to knowledge of the text, the author, and the context, as well as making it easier for you to answer questions and do so more confidently, there really aren’t good reasons not to spend a few evenings getting to know your text in full. Don’t forget, if reading is a slog (pain/boring/hard work) you can always look for an audiobook version, and many GCSE and A-Level texts come with audio revision guides included!

…no, Simon, you may not use our lesson time to make a saddle for Chuckles.