I've narrowed the 40+ list of books suggested for the Common Reader in 2010 down to 19. Which one(s) sound good to you? Are any a definite "no"? Please tell me why or why not. Remember, this is mainly for students who will be freshman in fall 2010. Each book is hyperlinked to Amazon for more details.
1. A Mighty Heart by Mariane Pearl
2. American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang.
3. Close Range: Wyoming Stories by Annie Proulx
4. Comfort Food for Breakups: The Memoir of a Hungry Girl by Marusya Bociurkiw
5. Failing Forward: Turning Mistakes Into Stepping Stones for Success by John C. Maxwell
6. Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn
7. Human: The Science Behind What Makes Us Unique by Michael S. Gazzaniga
8. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer
9. Life of Pi by Yann Martel
10. Smashed: Story of a Drunken Girlhood by Koren Zailckas
11. The Art of Learning by Josh Waitzkin
12. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon
13. The Language War by Robin Tolmach Lakoff
14. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie
15. The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon
16. The Tender Bar by J. R. Moehringer
17. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Olvier Relin*
18. Why are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity by Beverly Daniel Tatum
19. Come Back to Afghanistan: A California Teenager's Story by Hyder Akbar*
*Karen’s favorites so far
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
Help in Choosing the next Common Reader
I am on the selection committee for the next Common Reader -- the book we will use next summer and fall like we did Ishmael Beah's A Long Way Gone. Below is the criteria the book must meet. Please look it over and then look at my next blog for the list of books I'm considering and give me your feedback.
1. Topic of book needs to be related to the theme (selection committee may select the theme as titles are selected).
2. Book needs to be accessible to high-school graduates just beginning their college years (consider length - around 250 pages, reading level, topic, relevance, etc.)
3. Book needs to be affordable.(typically this means paperback)
4. Book is applicable to many disciplines.
5. Author is living and available for a campus visit
6. Overall program reflects a diversity of authors and disciplines. (We have used Life on the Color Line, Night, Hunting for Hope, A Woman in Amber, and Nickel and Dimed - On Not Getting By in America and Fast Food Nation, Tipping Point, First They Killed My Father, The Color of Water, Field Notes from a Catastrophe, and A Long Way Gone.)
7. If possible, book will motivate a large enough group of discussion leaders (usually faculty or staff) to volunteer.
See my next blog for some books on the list that I'm considering.
1. Topic of book needs to be related to the theme (selection committee may select the theme as titles are selected).
2. Book needs to be accessible to high-school graduates just beginning their college years (consider length - around 250 pages, reading level, topic, relevance, etc.)
3. Book needs to be affordable.(typically this means paperback)
4. Book is applicable to many disciplines.
5. Author is living and available for a campus visit
6. Overall program reflects a diversity of authors and disciplines. (We have used Life on the Color Line, Night, Hunting for Hope, A Woman in Amber, and Nickel and Dimed - On Not Getting By in America and Fast Food Nation, Tipping Point, First They Killed My Father, The Color of Water, Field Notes from a Catastrophe, and A Long Way Gone.)
7. If possible, book will motivate a large enough group of discussion leaders (usually faculty or staff) to volunteer.
See my next blog for some books on the list that I'm considering.
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