<p>I can't answer all your questions, but I can give you my $.02.</p>
<p>I believe that people generally take Language then Literature. I took Lang last year and will be taking Lit this year. The real difference between the two, from what I gather, is that Language is based on non-fiction and Literature is based on fiction.</p>
<p>I would say that these are not easy to self-study. I am very good at English, received the English Department award Sophomore year, and learned an EXTENSIVE amount from taking AP Lang junior year. Your writing needs to constantly improve throughout the year. In my class, we did a 40 minute write just about every week before the exam that our teacher graded. His input was invaluable.</p>
<p>I never purchased a prep book, despite my search for one. You just need to constantly prepare by doing timed essays. The books we read in my class were Scarlet Letter, Huck Finn, Great Gatsby, Macbeth [the only fiction that we read]. For the most part, we just kept reading different essays from the Riverside Reader and other sources. Lots and lots of essays and passages.</p>
<p>At least at my school, it is an amazing class that improves the best of the best writers. I highly recommend it.</p>
<p>I agree with blinkangel44 about people usually taking Lang before Lit. However... I "self studied" for the Lang exam last year, and didn't find it to be much of an issue. Granted, I am fairly strong in English, but I don't know that I would have found AP that much more preparation (at my school, at least). Definitely practice writing more, though. In the past year in my English class (honors), we wrote one 6 page persuasive research paper... and that was it.</p>
<p>I definitely agree with fresh42jazz... the class totally depends on your school. My school may have had one student not pass the exam since it's been offering the course. Many 4's and 5's. So it would probably suit you best to ask someone from your school who has taken the course.
And also, your class may not necessarily read the same books.
But I still highly recommend the course :D</p>
<p>i highly recommend the course...in my school, it's a good way to learn how to write better essays and analyze poetry and AP english are harder to study for if you don't already have a knack for it</p>
<p>I took AP Lang last year, and while I really don't enjoy English, I loved that class. Our teacher was amazing, not because of how she taught but what she taught. Of course we read a myriad of novels and plays, (Scarlet Letter, Farenhiet 451, Our Town, A Raisin in the Sun, A Lesson Before Dying, The Red Badge of Courage, Huck Finn, Of Mice and Men, and The Great Gatsby just to name a few lol) but she opened up our eyes to world around us. There would be days when we just went to her class and talked about everything that is happening in our world like the plethora of cases of genocide, the downfall of society, and muchhh more. Now, this was a year long class and my teacher was one of a kind, but I'm sure you would enjoy the AP Lang (if offered) at your school.</p>