Freshman Year Reading 2011 Catalog

BEACON PRESS
THE CROWN
PUBLISHING GROUP
Broadway
Crown
Crown Business
Crown Forum
Doubleday Image/Religion/
Business
Harmony
Monacelli
Ten Speed Press
Three Rivers Press
Watson-Guptill
WaterBrook/Multnomah
Fodor’s
Princeton Review
DC COMICS
HATHERLEIGH PRESS
KUPERARD
FResHman YeaR
MARK BATTY
PUBLISHER
MELVILLE HOUSE
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
NEW YORK REVIEW
OF BOOKS
NORTH ATLANTIC
BOOKS
ReadIng 2011
OSPREY PUBLISHING
OTHER PRESS R e c om me nded T iT le s
POWERHOUSE BOOKS
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INCLU
Best Prac DES:
CANADA
THE RANDOM HOUSE Program tices &
PUBLISHING GROUP from the ming Ideas
Random
Ballantine First-Yea House
Advisoryr Reads
Bantam Random House, Inc. Board
Del Rey
Delacorte
Dell
Delta
Dial Press
ESPN
Modern Library
One World
Presidio
Random House
Spiegel & Grau
Villard
RIZZOLI
SHAMBHALA
SMITHSONIAN BOOKS
SOHO PRESS
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VERTICAL
WELCOME BOOKS
From Our Desk to Yours . . .
dear Freshman Year Reading director:
As a leading book publisher we firmly believe in the importance of engaging in a dialogue with
you and drawing upon your feedback to better guide our efforts. erefore, with this seventh
edition of our annual Freshman Year Reading catalog, we are proud to offer the knowledge,
creativity, and experience of our inaugural Random House First-Year Advisory Board.
e Random House First-Year Advisory Board was launched in the summer of 2010 with an
intensive two-day summit at our new York city headquarters. e board members—dr. Rebecca P.
campbell of northern Arizona University, dr. steven Girardot of Georgia institute of Technology,
and dr. daphne Rankin of Virginia commonwealth University—met with a variety of publishing
professionals, including editors, publicists, marketers, and sales representatives, to learn more
about the publishing industry and to discuss the needs of common reading program facilitators.
in addition to attending these meetings, board members also took part in roundtables about topics
such as Best Practices, ideas for programming, and how to best share program experiences with
others.
e board also examined our Freshman Year Reading catalog and generated numerous ideas for
its improvement, many of which have been implemented in this edition. in particular, we hope that
you find the addition of a “Key Facts” box useful. is informational section highlights important
points about each featured text in a color-coded, bulleted fashion, so you can easily identify what
you need to know about a particular book or author. Key points such as which schools have
previously selected the book, the book’s key themes, and the author’s availability for campus visits
are listed there. Also included in this year’s catalog is a special two-page “Best Practices” spread,
created with the input of the Advisory Board as well as our authors.
in addition to this print resource and our common Reads blog, we have also extended our digital
social media network with a common Reads Facebook page and Twitter account. Please refer to
the facing page to find these communities on the web. in addition to providing important news and
updates on these sites, we also occasionally give away free books!
As this year unfolds, we will continue to utilize the
expertise of the Random House First-Year Advisory Board;
their invaluable feedback and input will help us to serve you
better and support you in your programming.
Please dive in to our improved catalog and join us on the
web. We look forward to continuing the dialogue.
sincerely,
Authors chat with attendees and sign books at the 2010
Random House First-Year Experience® (FYE) Luncheon
michael d. Gentile
director, Academic marketing
Random House, inc.
1745 Broadway
new York, nY 10019
Tel. (212) 782-8387
Fax (212) 940-7381
) mgentile@randomhouse.com
Featured Authors at the 2010 Random House First-Year Experience®
(FYE) Luncheon. Clockwise from left: Bill Strickland, Thomas Mullen,
Dana Canedy, Carlotta Walls LaNier, Warren St. John
CONTENTS
life stories—memoir, Biography, and Autobiography ............................................................2
Fiction to Talk About ..................................................................................................................24
inspiration and Guidance ..........................................................................................................34
Best Practices and Programming ideas ......................................................................centerfold
History and society ....................................................................................................................42
life & college Guides..................................................................................................................52
Go Green ......................................................................................................................................56
social Action ................................................................................................................................60
Philosophy ....................................................................................................................................65
money matters ............................................................................................................................66
christian interest ........................................................................................................................68
index ..............................................................................................................................................70
order Form ..................................................................................................................................74
Legend
HC = Hardcover • TR = Trade Paperback • MM = Mass Market • NCR = No Canadian Rights
examInatIon CopIes
examination copies are available to instructors seeking titles to review for adoption consideration.
The exam copy prices are as follows: $3.00 for each paperback priced under $20.00, and 50% off the
retail price for all hardcovers and paperbacks priced at or over $20.00. examination copies are limited
to ten per instructor per school year and can only be mailed to valid U.s. addresses.
To order, use the order form at the back of this catalog. examination copies must be prepaid with a
check or money order made payable to Random House, inc., or order online at
www.randomhouse.com/academic/examcopy. offer only valid in the United states. All requests are
subject to approval and availability. Please allow 2–4 weeks for delivery.
JoIn tHe Random House netwoRk
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Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/commonreads
@CommonReads
Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/commonreads
Visit our blog: www.commonreads.com
Random House, Inc. • academic dept. • 1745 Broadway • new York, nY 10019
)
rhacademic@randomhouse.com
FIST STICK KNIFE GUN To view trailer and official website for the documentary
Waiting for ‘Superman,’ featuring Geoffrey Canada, go to:
A Personal History of Violence www.WaitingForSuperman.com
By Geoffrey Canada
A new edition, including the story of the founding of

Harlem children’s Zone
l ong before President Barack obama praised his work as

“an all-encompassing, all-hands-on-deck anti-poverty effort
that is literally saving a generation of children” and First lady
michelle obama called him “one of my heroes,” Geoffrey canada
was a small, scared boy growing up in the south Bronx. His
childhood world was one where “sidewalk boys” learned the codes
of the block and were ranked through the rituals of fist, stick, knife,
New Updated
Edition and, finally, gun.
“a more powerful depiction of the tragic life of urban children and
a more compelling plea to end ‘america’s war against itself’ cannot
be imagined.” —The New York Times Book Review
“a slim, revealing volume that should be required reading for
anyone who has ever negotiated the complicated hierarchy of ‘rep’
and revenge on city streets.” —Boston Globe
Also available:
Beacon Press | TR | 978-0-8070-4461-2 | 192pp. FIST STICK KNIFE GUN
$14.00/$16.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
A Personal History of Violence NEW
A True Story in Black and White
By Geoffrey Canada; Adapted by Jamar Nicholas
KeY FActs: in a stunning pairing, acclaimed comics
Themes: Coming of Age, Perseverance, Regionalism: creator Jamar nicholas presents canada’s
New York/Urban Interest raw and riveting account, one of the most
authentic and important true stories of
Discussion Guides: Teacher’s Guide Available urban violence ever told.
Alternative Formats: eBook “Geoffrey Canada’s realistic yet hopeful voice
finds fresh expression through the comic style of Jamar Nicholas. Canada’s
account of his childhood and the role that violence played in shaping his
experiences provides hard-won and crucial lessons.”
—Pedro A. Noguera, Peter L. Agnew Professor of Education at New York University
“Jamar Nicholas is a master of his craft—his drawings are full of life and truly
stunning.” —Bryan Lee O’Malley, creator of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
“I wish every city had a Geoffrey Canada.” —President Bill Clinton
Beacon Press | TR | 978-0-8070-4449-0 | 144pp. | $14.00/$16.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
alternative Formats: eBook
About the Author: Geoffrey canada

geoFFReY Canada grew up in the South Bronx. Since 1990 he has been the president and chief
executive officer of Harlem Children’s Zone, an organization that offers a comprehensive range of
services to over 10,000 children in a nearly 100-block area of Central Harlem. Harlem Children’s Zone has
been featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, 60 Minutes, The Today Show, Good Morning America, and
Nightline, and has been recognized in The New York Times. In October 2005 Canada was named one of
“America's Best Leaders” by U.S. News and World Report. He is featured in the film Waiting for ‘Superman.’
2 www.CommonReads.com
A Message from Geoffrey Canada
When my memoir, Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence, was first published
in 1995, it told the story of my life growing up in the south Bronx as both a victim of violence
and as a perpetrator for my own survival. Things in my neighborhood and in many
neighborhoods across the country have not improved since i was young. in fact, they’ve
grown worse. Violence has always been a problem, but it has never been as deadly as it is
today. in 2009, the children’s defense Fund reported that nearly nine children and teens are
killed every day as a result of gun violence. With more guns and more drugs available on the
streets than ever before, what chance do kids today have of surviving, let alone thriving, in the
world that has been provided for them?
This year my publisher, Beacon Press, has released a revised edition of Fist Stick Knife
Gun, updated to reflect some of the work that has been done over the last fifteen years. At
Harlem children’s Zone, where i am now the president and ceo, we have grown to serve
nearly one hundred city blocks, reaching more than ten thousand children with free
programming and support. one way that we accomplish this is by placing trained and caring
adults in the middle of these underserved communities, in order to let these children know
that they are not alone out there. in Fist Stick Knife Gun i describe what it was like for me to be
in the middle of the violence, with nowhere to run and no one to turn to. in the years since i
wrote it, i have worked to protect the children who are still trapped in that difficult place.
in addition to the revised edition of my memoir, Beacon Press has also released a new
graphic novel adaptation of Fist Stick Knife Gun by cartoonist and illustrator Jamar nicholas.
This new version brings the book into the twenty-first century in a fresh and exciting way. it
offers a new tool for understanding the circumstances and psychology of the children who
must face violence every day.
The problem of youth violence cannot be solved from a distance. While i believe it is
essential that people begin to understand the
crisis that our children face, it is more important
that they start taking steps to protect them. i
hope that these two new editions of Fist Stick
Knife Gun will inspire today’s students, parents,
activists, and concerned citizens to take these
steps. When i was in college, i was absolutely
focused on one thing: how to improve the
outcomes for the kinds of kids i knew growing
up. i still dream of the day that we find the
answer to that question.
Jamar nicholas and geoffrey Canada at the
Random House second annual author event Geoffrey Canada
for nYC educators
Life Stories—Memoir, Biography, and Autobiography 3

STRENGTH IN WHAT REMAINS Website: www.TracyKidder.com
To view video of Tracy Kidder’s presentation at
By Tracy Kidder the 2009 First-Year Experience® Conference in
Orlando, FL, go to: http://tinyurl.com/yaud5t6
Finalist for the 2009 National Book Critics Circle Award
Now in
paperback T racy Kidder, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and author of the
college common reading program classic Mountains Beyond
Mountains, has been described by the Baltimore Sun as the “master
of the nonfiction narrative.” in this new book, Kidder gives us the
superb story of a hero for our time. deo arrives in America from
Burundi in search of a new life. Having survived a civil war and
genocide, and plagued by horrific dreams, he lands at JFK airport
with two hundred dollars, no knowledge of the english language,
and no contacts. He ekes out a precarious existence delivering
groceries, living in central Park and learning english by reading
dictionaries in bookstores. Then deo meets the strangers who will
change his life, eventually pointing him in the direction of
columbia University, medical school, and a life devoted to healing.
With Strength in What Remains, Kidder breaks new ground, telling
an unforgettable story as he travels back with deo over a turbulent
life in search of meaning and forgiveness.
“that 63-year-old tracy kidder may have just written his finest
work—indeed, one of the truly stunning books I’ve read this year—
is proof that the secret to memorable nonfiction is so often the
writer’s readiness to be surprised. deo’s experience can feel like
Random House | TR | 978-0-8129-7761-5 | 304pp. this era’s version of the ellis Island migration. deo is propelled, so
$16.00/$19.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 often, by pure will, and his victories . . . summon a feeling of
restored confidence in human nature and american opportunity.
then we plunge into hell. Having only glimpses of deo’s past, we
suddenly get a full-blown portrait. kidder’s rendering of what deo
KeY FActs: endured and survived just before he boarded the plane for new
Selected for Common Reading: York is one of the most powerful passages of modern nonfiction.”
Caldwell College, Penn State Berks, Stanford University, —Ron Suskind, The New York Times Book Review
University of Delaware, and others. “tracy kidder’s new book Strength in What Remains is . . . narrative
Campus Visits: Author Available infused with a broad, universal appeal and occasional touches of
brilliance. He offers us fine prose, complex characters, and realistic
Themes: Global Citizenship, Human Rights, portrayals. deo’s resilience, his struggle to overcome adversity
Perseverance/Personal Strength, Transition strikes a chord in all of us. His story reaffirms our hope that one
person can make a difference . . . [t]his book is one not to be
Discussion Guides: Teacher’s Guide Available missed.” —Seattle Times
Alternative Formats: Audio, eBook “It is a mark of the skill and empathy of mr. kidder, a pulitzer prize-
winning author, that he makes deo’s story come alive believably—
as the experience of a real individual—and avoids . . . the usual
tropes of a triumph-of-the-human-spirit tale. [t]he book
encourages a general hope that individuals can transcend even the
greatest horrors.” —The Wall Street Journal
About the Author: tracy Kidder

tRaCY kIddeR graduated from Harvard University, studied at the University of Iowa, and served as an
army officer in Vietnam. He has won the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, the Robert F. Kennedy
Award, and many other literary prizes. He lives in Massachusetts and Maine.
First Year Seminar 101 George Read North
University of Delaware
Newark, DE 19716-1106
Phone: 302-831-3330
Fax: 302-831-4053
A Message from the First Year Seminar Director at the University of Delaware
dear colleagues,
The University of delaware chose Pulitzer Prize-winning author Tracy Kidder’s Strength in What
Remains as its First Year common Reader in 2010. Strength in What Remains is the story of deogratias
(deo), a young medical student from the central African nation of Burundi, who fled the ethnic
violence in Burundi and genocide in Rwanda and was transported to new York city. deo succeeded
against all odds, graduating from columbia University, and subsequently returned to Africa. A truly
remarkable story of survival, despair, determination, evil, and kindness, the book was chosen by an
advisory committee comprised of faculty, students, advisors, and student life staff who believed that it
would provide a unique opportunity for students to consider issues related to that part of the world and
to begin addressing questions about personal meaning, transition, and passion. The committee also felt
that the book would encourage our students to consider what it means to be a global citizen.
The choice proved extremely popular among the first year students, and the entire University of
delaware community engaged in a number of events related to the book. Author Tracy Kidder and the
book’s hero deo visited our campus to share their vision of hope and renewal with our freshman class.
Following their visit, a graduate of the University of delaware Honors Program spoke to the freshman
class via skype from the Village Health Works clinic in Burundi. discussing how she had used her
delaware experience as a bridge to help others achieve a better life in places that the rest of the world
seems to have overlooked, her talk complemented Kidder and deo’s visit.
Strength in What Remains proved not only to be a popular
choice, but to provide a unique opportunity for our students to
learn about another part of the world and to begin to understand
the complexities and interrelationships of the global landscape.
sincerely,
Avron Abraham, Ph.d.
Faculty director
First Year seminar and common Reader Program
university of delaware students line up
to have books signed by deo
www.fys.udel.edu
Also by Tracy Kidder

MOUNTAINS BEYOND MOUNTAINS: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, A Man Who Would Cure the World
By Tracy Kidder
An ALA Notable Book; A New York Times Notable Book
in medical school, Paul Farmer found his life’s calling: to cure infectious diseases and bring the
lifesaving tools of modern medicine to those who need them most. demonstrating a clear-eyed
understanding of the interaction of politics, wealth, social systems, and disease, Tracy Kidder’s
magnificent account shows how one person can make a difference in solving global health problems.
A popular Common Reading selection at over 60 colleges/universities and One City, One Book programs.
Random House | TR | 978-0-8129-7301-3 | 352pp. | $16.00/$19.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 To view the author’s talk at the 2009
author available • alternative Formats: audio • eBook First-Year Experience® meeting, go to:
themes: science & society • service • social Justice http://tinyurl.com/yaud5t6

A MIGHTY LONG WAY To view video of Carlotta Walls LaNier’s
My Journey to Justice at Little Rock presentation at the 2010
First-Year Experience® Conference
Central High School in Denver, CO, go to:
By Carlotta Walls LaNier with Lisa Frazier Page http://tinyurl.com/27l9tfw
Foreword by Bill Clinton
W hen fourteen-year-old carlotta Walls walked up the stairs of

little Rock central High school on september 25, 1957, she
and eight other black students only wanted to make it to class. But
the journey of the “little Rock nine,” as they came to be known,
would lead the nation on an even longer and much more turbulent
path, one that would challenge prevailing attitudes, break down
barriers, and forever change the landscape of America. complete
with compelling photographs, A Mighty Long Way shines a light on
this watershed moment in civil rights history and shows that
determination, fortitude, and the ability to change the world are not
exclusive to a few special people, but are inherent within us all.
“Carlotta walls Lanier’s A Mighty Long Way is a riveting account of
nine brave high school students and their families in a quest for
quality desegregated public education. what happened in Little
Rock in 1957 resulted in america’s greatest constitutional crisis
Now in
paperback since the Civil war. Carlotta’s account of events inside and outside
Little Rock Central High school should be read and studied
particularly by those who now walk through doors of opportunity
which Carlotta and her schoolmates first opened over 50 years ago.
when I started her book, I couldn’t put it down. It is a must-read.”
—James L. “Skip” Rutherford III, Dean of The University of Arkansas
Clinton School of Public Service
One World | TR | 978-0-345-51101-0 | 336pp. “Carlotta walls Lanier was the youngest of the Little Rock 9 to
$16.00/$19.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 cross the color lines, political barriers and cultural chasms that
circumscribed her life. she, her family and friends paid a heavy
price that burdened them even as it liberated all of us. Her memoir,
KeY FActs: which is really our memoir, provides a rare perspective on that
history in the making.”
Selected for Common Reading: —Hank Klibanoff, Pulitzer Prize-winning co-author of The Race Beat:
Defiance College, SUNY Potsdam, and others. The Press, The Civil Rights Struggle, and The Awakening of the Nation
Campus Visits: Author Available “In A Mighty Long Way, this revered american and special friend
boldly tells how her high school days have evolved as the central
Themes: Coming of Age, Inclusiveness, Regionalism: experience of her life. I commend Carlotta for the legacy she has
Alabama/The South left and for the lessons she and her colleagues have taught us all
Discussion Guides: Available with such nobility.”
—Nancy Rousseau, Principal, Little Rock Central High School
Alternative Formats: Audio, eBook (2002–present)
About the Author: carlotta Walls LaNier

CaRLotta waLLs LanIeR attended Michigan State University and graduated from Colorado State
College—now the University of Northern Colorado, on whose board of trustees she sits. After working
for the YWCA, she founded her own real estate brokerage firm, LaNier and Company. A sought-after
lecturer, LaNier speaks across the country and has received the Congressional Medal of Honor and two
honorary doctorate degrees. She is the mother of two children, Whitney and Brooke, and lives in
Englewood, Colorado with her husband Ira.
A Message from Carlotta Walls LaNier
Why i Wrote This Book:

i started this book in earnest in January of 2006. i had in mind the upcoming 50th
anniversary of our entry into little Rock’s central High school. This september 2007 event
might have been the impetus, but it wasn’t the reason. (Besides, i sort of missed that deadline
by a couple of years!)
As i say in the book, i didn’t talk much about my experiences until the late 1980s, after our
30th anniversary, when the nine of us were all together again in little Rock and Bill clinton
was governor of the state. in the years that followed, melba told her story in Warriors Don’t
Cry. ernie had a movie about his experience, The Ernie Green Story. mrs. Huckaby, the
assistant principal, told her story, which was made into a movie called Crisis at Little Rock.
Back in the 1960s, mrs. Bates had told her story in The Long Shadow of Little Rock.
so i started making my way into high school and college classrooms to tell my story.
invariably, students who knew some of these other works would assume that my story was
also their story, that my story had already been represented by others. Well, that just was not
the case. each of us has a story—not greater or lesser, just different.
so this is one reason: my story had not yet been told. i was the only one who could tell it.
But why the long wait? Because this journey back in time was deeply painful. To revisit
that period, to really find out what it all meant and how it shaped the life i have lived, took a
great deal of courage i wasn’t sure that i had. Though i had friends along the way who helped
me get at that story, the journey backwards—as it was over fifty years ago—was still a singular
and lonely path. Quite frankly, i did not want to go there. But as with all that weighs heavy in
our psyches, there are things we need to see in the light of day to understand. As the old
woman said, when asked about her writing: “How do i know what i think until i see what
i say?”
This book is my understanding of my story. it’s out now, and i can see the light of day.
Upon the book’s release, i began to talk about it with students on college campuses. my
favorite moments during these visits are the question and answer sessions. on a recent visit to
a campus in north carolina, it seemed that every student was bursting with questions. some
of the African American students connected their own educational path with my journey. By
doing so, they came to know their nation’s history in a more personal and real way. i also enjoy
going to lunch or dinner with students; the talk becomes more intimate. i get to know who
they are, and they can ask me questions that often cause me to think in new ways about my
story.
i would be delighted to visit your campus so your students can get to know my story,
which is ultimately their story.
Carlotta Walls LaNier

THE OTHER WES MOORE Website: www.TheOtherWesMoore.com
One Name, Two Fates
By Wes Moore
i n december 2000, The Baltimore Sun ran a short article about

Wes moore, a local student who had just received a Rhodes
scholarship. The same paper also ran a huge story about four
young men who had allegedly killed a police officer in a
spectacularly botched armed robbery. The police were still hunting
for two of the suspects who had gone on the lam, a pair of brothers.
one of the brothers was also named Wes moore.
Wes just couldn’t shake off the unsettling coincidence or his inkling
that the two shared much more than space in the same newspaper.
After following the story of the robbery, the manhunt, and the trial
to its conclusion, he wrote a letter to the other Wes, a convicted
murderer serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
His letter tentatively asked the questions that had been haunting
him: Who are you? How did this happen?
That letter led to a correspondence and relationship that lasted for
Now in several years. over dozens of letters and prison visits, Wes
paperback
discovered that the other Wes had experienced a life not unlike his
own. Both had grown up in similar neighborhoods and had
difficult childhoods. Both were fatherless. They’d hung out on
similar corners with similar crews, and both had run into trouble
with the police. At each stage of their young lives they had faced
Spiegel & Grau | TR | 978-0-385-52820-7 | 272pp.
$15.00/$17.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 similar moments of decision, yet their choices would lead them to
astonishingly different destinies.
Told in dramatic alternating narratives that take readers from
KeY FActs: heart-wrenching losses to moments of surprising redemption,
Selected for Common Reading: The Other Wes Moore tells the story of a generation of boys trying
• Colleges & Universities to find their way in a hostile world.
Bay Path College (Springfield, MA); Cabrini College
(Radnor, PA); California State University at Bakersfield “The Other Wes Moore highlights the transformative influence of
(Bakersfield, CA), Marquette University caring adults. . . . moore vividly and powerfully describes not just
the culture of the streets but how it feels to be a boy growing up in
• One City, One Book a world where violence makes you a man, school seems irrelevant,
Everybody Reads (Multnomah County Library in and drug dealing is a respected career choice.”
Portland, OR); One Book, One Bakersfield
—O, The Oprah Magazine
(Bakersfield, CA)
“wes moore has not just written a compelling story, but has
Campus Visits: Author Available created a perfect case study of how and why young men can go
Themes: Coming of Age, Identity, down the wrong path—and how they can be saved. this should be
Regionalism: Baltimore/The Northeast required reading for anyone who is trying to understand what is
happening to young men in our inner cities.”
Alternative Formats: Audio, eBook —Geoffrey Canada, President and CEO, Harlem Children’s Zone
About the Author: Wes Moore

wes mooRe is a Rhodes Scholar and a combat veteran of the war in Afghanistan. As a White House
Fellow he worked as a special assistant to Secretary Condoleezza Rice at the State Department. He was
a featured speaker at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, was named one of Ebony magazine’s
Top 30 Leaders Under 30 (2007), and most recently, was dubbed one of the top young business leaders
in America in Crain’s New York Business. He works in New York City.
A Message from Wes Moore
i am living proof that a support system of family, mentors, and educators is critical for success and,
as such, have the most tremendous respect for those of you who give tirelessly of yourselves to improve
the future of a child. i would like to humbly thank all of you for being heroes to so many of your
students, for inspiring them in ways you probably cannot even fathom yet, and for teaching them
character and personal responsibility in addition to academics. it is your example, your belief in them,
along with the preparation you give them in the classroom, that will unlock doors of opportunity.
i am a grandchild of a retired school teacher who taught in the Bronx public school system for over
twenty years, the son-in-law of a new York city public elementary school teacher of over twenty years,
and a proud advocate for schools and the kids they serve. i have grown up hearing the stories of
redemption and disappointment, of joy and pain, and of the success and failure of so many kids who
find themselves in a system that currently works for some, but doesn’t for too many others. like a
captain on the front lines in Afghanistan, you are the front-line soldiers in the most important battle our
nation faces now: the battle to educate and prepare our next generation of leaders.
Just as we need to mobilize leaders and resources around our battles overseas, the same must be
done to help our children navigate their journeys into adulthood.
We are all familiar with the disturbing statistics of low graduation and high dropout rates in our
nation’s public schools. And with more than fifty percent of marriages failing in today’s society, and
single-parent households the norm in many inner-city communities, children lack the guidance that the
family structure once provided. i am sure we are all alarmed that, in today’s world, young men of color
are more likely to be in prison than in college. For too many in our nation, particularly those who live in
our most precarious areas, a broken school system serves as a precursor to entry into the juvenile justice
system. But i believe this is a problem we can—and must—tackle.
studies show that students from low-income communities can and do achieve at high levels when
they are given the resources and attention they deserve. And there are amazing educators and civic
leaders who are already leading the charge with impressive steam. i know the fixes aren’t simple, nor are
they cheap. But there are a few things to remember: The answer isn’t simply spending more money; it is
to spend money wisely with a focus on the children we intend to serve. The costs of inaction are
unbearably high when you consider that it costs nearly $200,000 to incarcerate someone in new York,
while a recent columbia University study shows that cutting the dropout rate in half would yield 45
billion dollars annually in both new federal tax revenues and cost savings.
Promising reforms that embrace alternative teaching platforms, teacher pay systems based on
performance, and the inspired 4.35 billion dollars in “Race to the Top” funds that the obama
administration has allocated are tremendous, but a national embrace of innovation and policy change is
imperative.
We will need fortitude and ingenuity as we embark on the
education reform battle of our lifetime. The chance to raise
expectations, the opportunity for our children to do better than
their parents, and the need to translate the experience of young
students into the dreams of a nation must now drive us all. Just as
it was imperative for my fellow soldiers and i to win our fights,
the same can be said for you and the work you are doing. As
President obama recently expressed, “The future belongs to the
nation that best educates its citizens.” i could not agree more.
wes moore at the Random House second
annual author event for nYC educators
Wes Moore

ENRIQUE’S JOURNEY
Website: www.EnriquesJourney.com
The Story of a Boy’s Dangerous Odyssey
to Reunite with His Mother
By Sonia Nazario
A New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age
W hen enrique was just five years old, his mother lourdes,
seeing no other way out of their poverty in Honduras,
decided to make the hazardous trek north. enrique and his siblings
struggled without their mother, until enrique finally made his way
from the rough streets of Tegucigalpa through mexico and across
the dangerous Texan border. Journalist sonia nazario’s expert
reporting allows students to encounter each setback alongside
enrique, and the result is as suspenseful and harrowing as it is
informative.
Enrique’s Journey is a timely account of one anguished family’s
experience with an issue of international scope and urgency—
illegal immigration—but it is also the timeless, mythic story of a
dangerous journey undertaken to make a broken family whole.
“this portrait of poverty and family ties has the potential to
reshape american conversations about immigration.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“a stirring and troubling book about a magnificent journey
. . . Joseph Campbell would recognize Enrique’s Journey. It’s the
stuff of myth . . . [but] Enrique’s Journey is true. . . . a microcosm of
the massive exodus pouring over the borders of our nations . . .
Random House | TR | 978-0-8129-7178-1 | 336pp. enrique’s suffering and bravery become universal, and one cannot
$14.95/$19.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 fail to be moved by the desperation and sheer strength of spirit
that guides these lonely wanderers. . . . Enrique’s Journey is about
love. It’s about family. It’s about home. . . . the border will continue
to trouble the dreams of anyone who is paying attention. . . .
KeY FActs: Enrique’s Journey is among the best border books yet written.”
Selected for Common Reading at more than —The Washington Post Book World
40 colleges and One Book, One City programs. “gripping and harrowing . . . a story begging to be told . . . readers
College of Mount St. Joseph, Henderson State fed up with the ongoing turf wars between fact and fiction, take
University, Indiana University, University of Missouri, note: Here is fantastic stunt reporting that places this sometimes
Pennsylvania State University, Rockhurst University, hard-to-believe story squarely in the realm of nonfiction.”
and others.
—The Christian Science Monitor
Campus Visits: Author Available “a meticulously documented account of an epic journey, one
Themes: Coming of Age, Immigration, Social Justice undertaken by thousands of children every year . . . [nazario]
covers both positive and negative effects of immigration,
Discussion Guides: Teacher’s Guide Available illuminating the problem’s complexity. . . . In telling enrique’s story
Alternative Formats: eBook [she] bears witness for us all.” —San Francisco Chronicle
About the Author: sonia Nazario

sonIa nazaRIo has spent twenty years reporting and writing about social issues, most recently as a
projects reporter for the Los Angeles Times. Her stories have addressed some of this country’s most
intractable problems: hunger, drug addiction, and immigration. She has won numerous national
journalism and book awards. Nazario is a graduate of Williams College and has a master’s degree in Latin
American studies from the University of California, Berkeley.
A Message from Sonia Nazario
President obama has vowed to put immigration reform on the front burner. That means that student
interest in Enrique’s Journey, already read by freshman at twenty-seven colleges and universities, will no
doubt increase in the year to come.
in the fall of 2009, i traveled to nearly twenty colleges and universities to talk with
students about Enrique’s Journey. These visits led to incredibly interesting and moving
encounters with students who revealed unique responses to my book. many non-latino
students told me they had no real concept of the poverty that pushes migrants out of
places like Honduras. They said they found the story of what enrique and other migrant
children are willing to do to reach the U.s. not only moving, but instructive, forcing them
to reevaluate what they know about immigration. one African American student in
chicago told me how her grandmother had moved from mississippi to illinois and left
her children behind, an experience common among African American women leaving
the south. she said the book gave her a deeper bond with people south of the border.
mexican American students often tell me they have a better understanding of the tensions between
mexicans and central Americans in the U.s.
The most moving responses, however, are from latino students who say this is
the first book that allowed them to see some glimmer of their own lives and experi-
ences. They—or someone in their family—made the journey to the U.s. on top of
freight trains or were separated from parents in the process of coming to the U.s.
immigrant students—whether from china, Russia, or Poland—told me they
lived with these separations as well.
What has been most promising is the students’ clear desire to alleviate the
situation i describe in Enrique’s Journey. As one Unc—Greensboro student put it so beautifully: When
the U.s. decided to put a man on the moon, they said it would take ten years; it actually took just eight
years. some of the astronauts on that moon mission were eighteen years old when the commitment by
the U.s. was first made. “i’m 18,” the student told me. “if we can put a man on the moon in less than ten
years, surely we can make progress in helping to create jobs in latin America in the next decade.”
The woman who administers the freshman read program at northern Arizona University said
Enrique’s Journey appealed to her and worked for many reasons:
it appealed to both male and female students. The protagonist is close to the
students’ age. The book, she said, is a compelling read that broadens students’
awareness of cultures not their own. simply, it is about a hot current issue.
The administration and faculty liked that Enrique’s Journey addressed certain
themes: survival, community, education, family, diversity, racism, violence,
drugs, redemption, foreign relations, politics, and immigration. They also liked
that it touches on emotions some first-year students might be dealing with, such
as loneliness, connection to family, and the temptation to succumb to violence
and drugs.
What i have enjoyed most about my discussions at these universities is that
they have taken a highly polarizing issue—an important issue—and allowed students to see it in a
nuanced way. As we head into renewed and heated debates about immigration, this is an issue with many
shades of gray, best explored through research, reflection, and most importantly, conversation.
Sonia Nazario

Author Spotlight: John elder Robison
JoHn eLdeR RoBIson lives with his wife and son in Amherst, Massachusetts. His company,
JE Robison Service, specializes in the repair and restoration of fine European automobiles.
Websites: www.JohnRobison.com • www.JERobison.blogspot.com/

www.facebook.com/JohnElderRobison • www.twitter.com/johnrobison/john-robison
To view video of John Elder Robison’s presentation at the 2009 First-Year Experience®
Conference in Orlando, FL, go to: http://tinyurl.com/y8nrzbu
BE DIFFERENT
NEW Adventures of a Free-Range Aspergian
With Practical Advice for Aspergians, Misfits,
Families & Teachers
By John Elder Robison
With disarming honesty and wit, Robison argues that Asperger’s
syndrome is not so much about disability as it is about difference,
offering anecdotes and stories drawn from his life, and the lives of
other Aspergians, to illustrate his claim.
Robison presents practical advice to Aspergians, suggesting how
they can improve their communication skills and learn to navigate
social situations and relationships.
Aspergians will find much to support them here as they navigate
the world of “neurotypicals,” while all readers will come away with
a deeper understanding of the attributes of Asperger’s—and of a
truly unique mind.
Do not order before 3/29/2011.
Crown Archetype | HC | 978-0-307-88481-7 | 304pp. | $24.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $12.00
author available • alternative Formats: audio • eBook
themes: discovering differences • Life skills
LOOK ME IN THE EYE For an author video, go to:

http://tinyurl.com/2es7jhx
My Life with Asperger’s
By John Elder Robison
According to author John elder Robison, Look Me in the Eye is
about “growing up with Asperger’s syndrome—a high functioning
form of autism—overcoming my limitations, and ultimately
becoming a successful adult.”
“John Robison’s book is an immensely affecting account of a life
lived according to his gifts rather than his limitations. His story
provides ample evidence for my belief that individuals on the
autistic spectrum are just as capable of rich and productive lives as
anyone else.” —Daniel Tammet, author of Born on a Blue Day:
Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant
Selected for Common Reading at Defiance College and SUNY Potsdam, and used in high
schools and college courses throughout the country.
Three Rivers Press | TR | 978-0-307-39618-1 | 320pp. | $14.95/$16.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: discovering differences • Identity
A Message from John Elder Robison
Thank you for considering Look Me in the Eye and Be

Different for your school reading program. i am truly honored that
so many educators have taken up my stories as teaching tools.
When i began writing, never in my wildest dreams did i imagine
that i’d be able to touch so many lives in a positive way. it’s very
important that we show young people that different does not have
to mean disabled, and that it’s possible to build a good life despite
adversity. my stories deliver those messages.
i dropped out of high school in the 1970s because i could not
fit in. But i never let that stop me. i taught myself engineering and
created special effects for Kiss. i designed games for milton Bradley, restored Rolls Royce automobiles,
got married, and raised a family. i am different, but i am far from being disabled by my Asperger’s. in
these books, i share the secrets of my success.
since its release in 2007, Look Me in the Eye has become one of the definitive accounts of life with
autism. my stories of rock and roll, video games, strange people, exotic cars, and growing up different
speak to many young people. At the same time, the insights into my inscrutable autistic mind have
proven valuable to both teachers and mental health professionals. With the 2011 release of Be Different,
those insights will extend even farther.
nothing could be more timely . . .
every year, upwards of fifty thousand children are diagnosed with autism in
the United states. We have a tremendous, and still growing, need to help
parents and teachers understand these children, and we have an even greater
need to help other children understand kids who are different. my books
address those needs directly.
my stories also offer hope and insight for the millions of children who are
“just a little bit different,” but do not have a diagnosis of a disability or an
ieP. in some ways, those misfit kids may need my stories most of all.
Look Me in the Eye and Be Different are suitable for middle school to adult readers. Both books are
supported by teaching plans, reading group guides, and a strong online community. You can download
the guides for free from the Random House Academic website and www.johnrobison.com.
The teaching guides for my books have been developed in
conjunction with two of the leading autism/Asperger schools in the
country: monarch of Houston, Texas; and ivymount of Rockville,
maryland. They will help you integrate my stories into special needs
and general english and diversity curriculums.
in addition to writing, i am also active in speaking and
teaching. i am available to speak at schools nationwide with
inspirational programs for students and families, and continuing
education for staff. i also teach courses about the Asperger mind and
the use of my books in school curricula at elms college in chicopee, massachusetts.
Finally, i have a large online community on Facebook, on Blogger, and on the Psychology Today
website. i invite you and your students to join me there and continue the dialogue.
John Elder Robison

Special Paperback Pre-Publication Give-Away*
HALF A LIFE Website: www.DarinStrauss.com
A Memoir To read an author Q&A, go to: http://tinyurl.com/27drbbn
To read or watch an author interview: http://tinyurl.com/29qdt7t
By Darin Strauss
“H alf my life ago, i killed a girl.” so begins darin strauss’s

Half a Life, the true story of how one outing in his father’s
oldsmobile resulted in the death of a classmate and the beginning
of a different, darker life for the author. We follow strauss as he
explores his startling past—collision, funeral, the queasy drama of
a high-stakes court case—and what starts as a personal tale of a
tragic event opens into the story of how to live with a very hard
fact: we can try our human best in the crucial moment, and it
might not be good enough. Half a Life is an honest, ultimately
hopeful examination of guilt, responsibility, grief, and living with
the past.
“at the center of this elegant, painful, stunningly honest memoir
thrums a question fundamental to what it means to be human:
what do we do with what we’ve been given? . . . what is truly
May 2011 exceptional here is watching a writer of fine fiction probe, directly,
carefully and with great humility, the source from which his fiction
springs.” —The New York Times Book Review
“with honesty and sensitivity, strauss looks not only at how that
fateful incident decades ago ended Celine’s young life, but also at
how it greatly affected his. out of undoubtedly complicated
circumstances, he crafts a simple yet remarkable story about pain
and guilt, maturity and responsibility, hope and understanding.”
—San Francisco Chronicle
Paperback coming May 2011. Do not order before
5/31/2011. “Half a Life is an unusually honest, thoughtful and unsettling
Random House | TR | 978-0-8129-8253-4 | 224 pp. memoir, which readers and critics are destined to call ‘brave’—for it
$13.00/$15.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 is brave. But the book is more than simply brave, it is a searingly
self-disciplined work of literature, and of self-examination. darin
strauss does not permit himself even one sentence, even one
moment, of lazy thinking, or mitigating excuses. He examines with
KeY FActs: rigorous honesty every moment of the most awful and tragic event
of his life. after all that admirable work and all that attentive
Campus Visits: Author Available
detail, when he does finally reach a place of cautious hope, the
Themes: Coming of Age, Ethics/Decision Making, impact is staggering and unforgettable.”
Identity —Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love
Alternative Formats: eBook
*to request a free copy, email rhacademic@randomhouse.com
About the Author: Darin strauss

daRIn stRauss is the international bestselling author of the New York Times Notable Books Chang
and Eng and The Real McCoy, and the national bestseller More Than It Hurts You. His work has been
translated into fourteen languages and published in seventeen countries. Awarded a 2006
Guggenheim Fellowship in fiction writing, Strauss currently teaches at New York University.
Excerpt from Half a Life
cHAPTeR 1
“By the time you’ve run your mind through it a hundred times, relentlessly worked every tic of your
terror, it’s lost its power over you . . . [soon it’s] a story on a page, or, more precisely, everybody’s story
on a page.” —John Gardner
Half my life ago, i killed a girl.
i had just turned eighteen, and when you drive in new post-adolescence, you drive with friends. We
were headed to shoot a few rounds of putt-putt. it was may 1988. The breeze did its open-window work
on the hair behind my neck and ears. We had a month before high-school graduation. i was at the
wheel. Up ahead, on the right shoulder, a pair of tiny bicyclists bent over their handlebars. The horizon
was just my town’s modest skyline done in watercolors. We all shared a four-lane road; the bicycles
traveled in the same direction as my car. Bare legs pedaling under a long sky. i think i fiddled with the
radio. Hey what song is this? so turn it up. Then one of the bike riders did something. i remember only
that—a glitch on the right. my oldsmobile stayed in the far left lane. After a wobble or two, the bicyclist
eased a wheel into the road, maybe thirty feet away. my tires lapped up the distance that separated us.
next the bicycle made a crisp turn into the left lane and my sudden car. dark blond hair appeared very
clearly in my windshield. i remember a kind of mechanical curiosity about why this was happening and
what it might mean.
This moment has been, for all my life, a kind of shadowy giant. i’m able, tick by tick, to remember each
second before it. Radio; friends; thoughts of mini-golf, another thought of maybe just going to the
beach; the distance between car and bicycle closing: anything could still happen. But i am powerless to
see what comes next; the moment raises a shoulder, lowers its head, and slumps away.
And then it’s too late. my forearm hooks to protect my eyes. The front-seat passenger shouts. i picture
my foot disappearing under the dash, kicking down for the brake, straining farther than any real leg can
go. Yet the hood of my oldsmobile met celine Zilke at forty miles an hour. Her head cracked the
windshield. i remember the yellow reflector from her spokes, a useless spark, kicking up the glass
incline and over the roof.
my car bumped onto the grassy median. And then i must have done all the normal driver things. Put
on the clonking hazards, rolled to a stop, cut the engine; i must have stepped onto the grass in my
T-shirt and shorts. i simply have no memory of how i got there.
celine Zilke, the girl on the bike, was sixteen and always will be sixteen. And i knew her: celine went to
my school. she was an eleventh-grader. i see her playing field hockey in blue gym shorts—celine had
been that lively, athletic type one always imagines in shorts. or i see her settled in beside friends on the
concrete benches just outside the cafeteria, or dashing off notes in the public-speaking class we took
together. celine sat by the window.
When i look back now, she strikes me most of all as young.
Excerpted from Half A Life by Darin Strauss, copyright © 2010 by Darin Strauss. Originally published in hardcover by McSweeney’s
in 2010 and subsequently in trade paperback by Random House Trade Paperbacks, an imprint of The Random House Publishing
Group, a division of Random House, Inc. in 2011. All rights reserved.

LIFe stoRIes—memoIR, BIogRapHY, and autoBIogRapHY
I AM NUJOOD, AGE 10 AND DIVORCED To watch a video of Nujood, go to:

By Nujood Ali with Delphine Minoui http://tinyurl.com/2ep9qj8
“i’m a simple village girl whose family had to move to the capital, and i have always obeyed
the orders of the men in my family. since forever, i have learned to say yes to everything.
Today, i have decided to say no . . . ”
nujood Ali was nine when her parents married her to a man in his thirties. At ten, she was
the first child bride in Yemen to win a divorce, breaking with traditional practice. Written
with childlike simplicity and penetrating honesty, this international bestselling memoir is at
once shocking and inspiring, disturbing and redemptive.
alternative Formats: audio edition • eBook
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • Human Rights
I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SINGS Website: www.MayaAngelou.com

By Maya Angelou
“Students [. . .] find this book plunges them into a passionate, sensitive life in the midst of
troubled and sometimes brutal realities. They found Maya Angelou’s spirit and strength a
wellspring of pride in womanhood. Students also experienced the book as writers themselves
and learned much about the memoir craft.”
NEW —Constance Berman, Director of Professional Studies, Southern Vermont College
Selected for Common Reading at Berry College, Green River Community College (Auburn, WA), Luther College, and
others.
Random House | TR | 978-0-8129-8002-8 | 304pp. | $17.00/$20.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
alternative Formats: audio edition • eBook • teacher’s guide
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • Inclusiveness
LET’S TAKE THE LONG WAY HOME: A Memoir of Friendship

By Gail Caldwell
Writers Gail caldwell and caroline Knapp shared a love of books and dogs, struggles with
alcoholism, and a commitment to living self-reliant lives. They walked the woods of new
england together constantly, growing and nurturing a deep bond of friendship. When
Knapp was diagnosed with terminal cancer, the depth and strength of that bond became
clearer than ever.
Unflinching in its expression of grief, and nuanced in its depiction of friendship between
women, this is a searing and intimate testament to the connections people forge and the
meaning they create in their own lives and the lives of others.
Random House | HC | 978-1-4000-6738-1 | 208pp. | $23.00/$25.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $11.50
Paperback coming August 2011.
themes: gender Issues • Identity • perseverance/personal strength
JOKER ONE: A Marine Platoon’s Story of To view the author’s talk at the 2009
Courage, Leadership, and Brotherhood First-Year Experience® meeting, go to:
By Donovan Campbell http://tinyurl.com/y8spg2a
After graduating from Princeton University, motivated by his unwavering patriotism and
commitment, campbell decided to join the service, realizing that becoming a marine officer
would allow him to give back to his country, engage in the world, and learn to lead. in this
inspiring memoir, campbell recounts a timeless and transcendent tale of brotherhood,
courage, and sacrifice.
“Campbell’s narrative humanized a war, and challenged me to critically examine the ideas of
leadership and social responsibility; topics I thought I had a handle on prior to reading Joker
One.” —Rachel Duff Anderson, Director of First-Year Experience, Siena Heights University
Selected for Common Reading at Siena Heights University.
author available • alternative Formats: eBook
themes: ethics/decision making • group dynamics • Leadership & motivation
A JOURNAL FOR JORDAN Website: www.AJournalForJordan.com
A Story of Love and Honor To view the author’s talk at the 2010 First-Year Experience®
By Dana Canedy meeting, go to http://tinyurl.com/2bw4hmr
in 2005, First sergeant charles monroe King began to write what would become a two
hundred-page journal for his son in case he did not make it home from the war in iraq. He
was killed on october 14, 2006. A Journal for Jordan is both a mother’s letter to her son—
fierce in its honesty—about the father he lost before he could even speak, and a father’s
advice and prayers for the son he will never know.
Selected for Common Reading at Broward College, Texas State University (2010), and University of Texas Arlington.
author available • alternative Formats: audio edition • eBook
themes: Coming of age • Identity • perseverance/personal strength
GOD GREW TIRED OF US: A Memoir Website: www.JohnDauFoundation.org

By John Bul Dau with Michael S. Sweeney
one of the uprooted youngsters known collectively as the lost Boys of sudan, John Bul dau
was twelve years old when civil war ravaged his village. As bullets split the night and mortar
shells exploded around him, John fled into the darkness—the first terrified moments of a
journey that would lead him thousands of miles into an exile that was to last many years.
John’s memoir of his childhood shows African life and values at their best, while his searing
account of hardship, famine, and war also testifies to human resilience and kindness.
Selected for Common Reading at Cazenovia College.
National Geographic | TR | 978-1-4262-0212-4 | 304pp. | $14.95/$21.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • genocide • Human Rights
FUNNY IN FARSI Website: www.FiroozehDumas.com

A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America
By Firoozeh Dumas
Winner of the 2008 Spirit of America Award (National Council for the Social Studies) and other awards
A popular college Common Reading selection
Funny in Farsi chronicles the American journey of Firoozeh dumas’s wonderfully engaging
family, who moved from iran to southern california in the 1970s, arriving with no firsthand
knowledge of the U. s.
“What’s charming beyond the humor of this memoir is that it remains affectionate even in the
weakest, most tenuous moments for the culture. It’s the brilliance of true sophistication at
work.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review
Selected for Common Reading at more than 20 colleges and One City, One Book programs.
themes: Coming of age • discovering differences • Identity
LAUGHING WITHOUT AN ACCENT Website: www.FiroozehDumas.com

Adventures of a Global Citizen
By Firoozeh Dumas
in the best-selling and classroom-adopted memoir Funny in Farsi, Firoozeh dumas
recounted her adventures growing up iranian American in southern california. now she
again mines her rich Persian heritage in Laughing Without an Accent, sharing stories both
tender and humorous on being a citizen of the world, her well-meaning family, new
motherhood, and amusing cultural conundrums, along with insights into the universality of
the human condition.
Selected for the 2010 Common Reading Program at the University of Minnesota, Duluth.
Selected for The Big Read: New Hampshire–2010.
themes: Coming of age • discovering differences • Identity

THE POSSIBILITY OF EVERYTHING Website:

A Memoir www.ThePossibilityofEverything.com
Now in By Hope Edelman

paperback Hope edelman was a woman adrift, questioning her marriage, her profession, and her place
in the world. confused and worried about how to handle their three-year-old daughter’s
curiously disruptive imaginary friend, edelman and her husband decided to take her to
maya healers in Belize, hoping that a shaman might help them banish dodo—and all he
represented—from their lives. This affecting memoir of a family’s emotional journey
explores what edelman and her husband went looking for in Belize and what they ultimately
discovered about the things that can possess and destroy—or heal—us all.
Ballantine Books | TR | 978-0-345-50651-1 | 368pp. | $15.00/$17.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: ethics/decision making • Identity • perseverance/personal strength
I AM AN EMOTIONAL CREATURE: The Secret Life of Girls Around the World

By Eve Ensler To watch a video of Eve Ensler discussing her book, go to:
Ideal for Women’s Studies Programs http://tinyurl.com/2bp6utt
This daring, provocative, and insightful book delivers fictional monologues and stories
inspired by girls around the globe, including an anorexic blogging as she eats less and less; a
Now in chinese factory worker making Barbies; and a masai girl from Kenya unwilling to endure
paperback
female genital mutilation. We come to understand the universality of girls everywhere: their
resiliency, their wildness, their pain, their fears, and their triumphs. This is a celebration of
the authentic voice inside every girl and an inspiring call to action for girls everywhere to
speak up, follow their dreams, and become the women they are meant to be.
Villard Books | TR | 978-0-8129-7016-6 | 192pp. | $13.00/$15.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • Identity
BLACK HEARTS Website:

One Platoon’s Descent into Madness in Iraq’s Triangle of Death www.JimFrederick.com
By Jim Frederick
Now in
paperback This is the story of a small group of soldiers from the 101st Airborne division’s fabled 502nd
infantry Regiment—a unit known as “the Black Heart Brigade.” deployed in late 2005 to
iraq’s so-called Triangle of death, the Black Hearts were hit by near-daily mortars, gunfire,
and roadside bomb attacks. suffering from a particularly heavy death toll and enduring a
chronic breakdown in leadership, members of one Black Heart platoon—1st Platoon, Bravo
company, 1st Battalion—were caught, over their year-long tour of duty, in a tailspin of poor
discipline, substance abuse, and brutality.
drawing on hundreds of hours of in-depth interviews with Black Heart soldiers, and first-
hand reporting from the Triangle of death, Black Hearts is a timeless story about men in
combat and the fragility of character in the savage crucible of warfare.
Selected as First Book at West Point, United States Military Academy.
Broadway | TR | 978-0-307-45076-0 | 464pp. | $16.00/$18.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: ethics/decision making • group dynamics • Leadership & motivation
THE TRANSLATOR: A Memoir Website: http://tinyurl.com/cg8m6m

By Daoud Hari
The Translator is a suspenseful, harrowing, and deeply moving story of how one person can
make a difference in the world—an on-the-ground account of one of the greatest atrocities
of our time, the genocide in darfur. Having chosen language and storytelling as his
weapons—while others around him were taking up arms—Hari gives us a true and
necessary portrait of a deeply troubled region.
Selected for Common Reading at Colorado Mountain College and Mars Hill College.
Random House | TR | 978-0-8129-7917-6 | 224pp. | $13.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
author available • alternative Formats: audio edition • eBook • teacher’s guide
themes: genocide • Human Rights • perseverance/personal strength
Website: www.MyUnquenchable.wordpress.com

AN UNQUENCHABLE THIRST
One Woman’s Extraordinary Journey of Faith, Hope, and Clarity
By Mary Johnson
At seventeen, mary Johnson felt called to join mother Theresa and the missionaries of
charity. As sister donata, she worked alongside mother Theresa for twenty years. in this
luminous memoir, she offers a glimpse into a world apart, one marked by poverty and April 2011
devotion, yet inhabited by young women who, like all young women, wrestle with identity,
faith, and meaning.
Spiegel & Grau | HC | 978-0-385-52747-7 | 592pp. | $26.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $13.00
themes: gender Issues • Identity • service
ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK: My Year in a Women’s Prison

By Piper Kerman Website: www.PiperKerman.com/Orange
shortly after Piper Kerman graduated from smith college, the mistakes of youth caught up
with her in the form of a federal indictment on a ten-year-old narcotics charge. in her
compelling memoir, Orange is the New Black, Kerman reveals what it was like to live in the Now in
facility “club Fed,” the infamous women’s federal correctional facility in danbury, paperback
connecticut, and the strange lessons she learned during her thirteen-month stay. Revealing
and enraging, it is a bold and wholly original entry in the canon of prison literature, which
offers a unique perspective on the criminal justice system.
Do not order paperback before 3/8/2011.
Spiegel & Grau | TR | 978-0-385-52339-4 | 336pp. | $15.00/$17.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: ethics/decision making, gender studies, Identity, social Justice
THE WORLD IS BIGGER NOW To watch a video of Euna Lee

An American Journalist’s Release from Captivity in North Korea . . . discussing her book, go to:
A Remarkable Story of Faith, Family, and Forgiveness http://tinyurl.com/2egosxj
By Euna Lee with Lisa Dickey
in 2009, the journalists euna lee and laura ling were apprehended by north Korean officials
while working on a report at the border of north Korea and china. They languished in
captivity for months. Here, for the first time, euna lee tells her story, recounting how they
were captured and what they experienced in captivity, her fear that she would be sent to a
hard-labor camp, the agony of being separated from her husband and daughter, and the
NEW
negotiations that led to their release.
Broadway | HC | 978-0-307-71613-2 | 320pp. | $25.00/$28.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $12.50
themes: Human Rights • Regionalism: north korea/asia
ALL SOULS: A Family Story from Southie Website: www.MichaelPatrickMacDonald.com

By Michael Patrick MacDonald
south Boston—“southie”—is a working-class irish neighborhood forever linked to the 1974
anti-busing race riots. However, southie is also home to many who (despite the neighbor-
hood’s rampant violence, drugs, and poverty) love it fiercely. in All Souls, macdonald
illuminates his troubled home through a nuanced portrait of his family, showing that a place
ravaged by gangs and violence is still a beloved home to its inhabitants, who struggle to
maintain the bonds of family and create lives of love and meaning despite incredible obstacles.
“My students were completely captivated by All Souls. It gave them their first real under-
standing of poverty, violence, and the wounds and scars of racism for white people as well as
African Americans. Yet they also understood that this is a book about love, not hate—hope, not
despair.” —Elaine Tyler May, Professor of American Studies and History, Director of Graduate Studies,
American Studies Department, University of Minnesota
Selected for Common Reading at Tufts University and others.
author available • alternative Formats: eBook • teacher’s guide
themes: Coming of age • Identity

THE ROAD OF LOST INNOCENCE Website: www.Somaly.org

The True Story of a Cambodian Heroine
By Somaly Mam
Introduction by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Foreword by Nicholas D. Kristof
As a girl she was sold into sexual slavery, but now she rescues others. This is the true story of
a cambodian heroine. somaly mam’s book is an unforgettable and inspiring story of
triumph over unthinkable adversity, giving a face and voice to a human-rights disaster of
global proportions: the sprawling sex-trade industry of southeast Asia. Written in exquisite,
spare, unflinching prose, The Road of Lost Innocence recounts mam’s early life, tells of her
awakening as an activist, and relates her harrowing and brave fight against the powerful and
corrupt forces that steal the lives of young girls.
Selected for Common Reading at West Texas A&M University.
Spiegel & Grau | TR | 978-0-385-52622-7 | 224pp. | $15.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: gender Issues • Human Rights • social Justice
THE THINGS THAT NEED DOING: A Memoir

By Sean Manning
As the only child of divorced parents, twenty-seven-year-old journalist and caterer sean
manning was forced to leave the energy and vibrancy of new York city behind and return to
Now in
paperback his childhood home in ohio to be with his mother during her long battle with cancer.
Ultimately, the experience led him to a profound sense of self-discovery and a new
appreciation of what is important in life. The Things That Need Doing tells a timeless and
universal story of love, grief, loss, and growing up.
READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN Website: www.AzarNafisi.com

A Memoir in Books
By Azar Nafisi
This is the moving story of how nafisi and her students managed to escape the harsh
constraints of their daily lives through the literature they read together every week.
“Resonant and deeply affecting . . . an eloquent brief on the transformative powers of fiction,
on the refuge from ideology that art can offer to those living under tyranny, and art’s
affirmative and subversive faith in the voice of the individual.”
—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
“A memoir about teaching Western literature in revolutionary Iran, with profound and
fascinating insights into both. A masterpiece.” —Bernard Lewis, author of The Crisis of Islam
Selected for Common Reading at Ashland University, Case Western Reserve University, Ithaca College, Mount Holyoke
College, Sweet Briar College (VA), and others.
themes: discovering differences • gender Issues • Human Rights
THINGS I’VE BEEN SILENT ABOUT Website: www.AzarNafisi.com

Memories of a Prodigal Daughter
By Azar Nafisi
Azar nafisi, author of the beloved international bestseller Reading Lolita in Tehran, now
gives us a stunning personal story of growing up in iran, marked by memories of her life
lived in thrall to a powerful and complex mother and set against the background of political
revolution.
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • Regionalism: the middle east
THE AUDACITY OF HOPE: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
By Barack Obama
“[Barack Obama] is that rare politician who can actually write—and write movingly and
genuinely about himself. . . . In these pages he often speaks to the reader as if he were an old
friend from back in the day, salting policy recommendations with colorful asides about the
absurdities of political life . . . . [He] strives in these pages to ground his policy thinking in simple
common sense . . . while articulating these ideas in level-headed, nonpartisan prose. That, in
itself, is something unusual, not only in these venomous pre-election days, but also in these
increasingly polarized and polarizing times.” —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
Selected for Common Reading at Endicott College, New York Institute of Technology, and others.
themes: ethics/decision making • group dynamics • service
DREAMS FROM MY FATHER: A Story of Race and Inheritance

By Barack Obama
in this unsentimental memoir, the son of a black African father and a white American mother
searches for a workable meaning to his life. The story begins in new York, where obama
learns that his father—whom he knows more as a myth than as a man—has been killed in a car
accident. This inspires an emotional odyssey—first to Kansas, where he retraces the migration
of his mother’s family to Hawaii; and then to Kenya, where he meets the African side of his
family, confronts the bitter truth of his father’s life, and finally reconciles his divided
inheritance.
Selected for Common Reading at Augustana College, Boston College, California State University—Eastbay, Elmhurst
College, LaGuardia Community College, Quinnipiac University, Southern Methodist University, University of Illinois at
Chicago, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Washington, Xavier University of Louisiana, and others.
themes: Coming of age • Identity • Inclusiveness
GERTRUDA’S OATH
A Child, A Promise, and A Heroic Escape During World War II
By Ram Oren Now in
paperback
Translated by Barbara Harshav
michael stolowitzky, the only son of a wealthy Jewish family in Poland, was just three years old
when war broke out and his family lost everything. His father, desperate to settle his business
affairs, travels to France, leaving michael in the care of his mother and Gertruda Bablinska, a
catholic nanny. When michael’s mother has a stroke, Gertruda promises the dying woman
that she will make her way to Palestine and raise michael as her own son. Written with the
invaluable assistance of michael, now seventy-two and living in new York city, Gertruda’s
Oath re-creates michael and Gertruda’s amazing journey.
Doubleday Religion | TR | 978-0-385-52719-4 | 320pp. | $14.99/$16.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
michael stolowitzky is available for campus visits • alternative Formats: eBook • teacher’s guide
A REASON TO BELIEVE: Lessons from an Improbable Life

By Governor Deval Patrick
From the south side of chicago to the nubian desert, massachusetts Governor deval Patrick
has lived a rich life marked by both obstacle and opportunity. Here, he shares the lessons he
has learned from the places he’s been and the people he’s met, illuminating the harshness of
childhood poverty, the challenge of relief work in Africa, and the long road to becoming the
first black governor of massachusetts. Governor Patrick’s story will inspire readers to shape
their own happiness, empower themselves, and encourage the happiness and empowerment of
others, ultimately building communities and a country of inspired and inspiring individuals. April 2011
themes: Coming of age • service • social Justice

A SENSE OF DUTY: Our Journey from Vietnam to America

By Quang Pham
Quang Pham immigrated to the United states in 1975 with his mother and sisters, while his
father, a south Vietnamese Air Force pilot, remained a prisoner of the communist
government in Vietnam. Pham eventually joined the marines and fought in the Persian Gulf
Now in War. in A Sense of Duty, he writes movingly and bluntly about his eventual reunion with his
paperback
father, his difficulties assimilating in America, and the racism he experienced as a soldier
during the Gulf War. His is a unique perspective on nation, identity, and immigration, as
well as an affecting portrait of a family both torn apart and reunited by war.
Presidio Press | TR | 978-0-89141-876-4 | 288pp. | $15.00/$17.50 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • Identity • Immigration
THE DEATH OF JOSSELINE

Immigration Stories from the Arizona Borderlands
By Margaret Regan
With a sweeping perspective and vivid on-the-ground reportage, margaret Regan tells of the
escalating chaos along the U.s.-mexico border. A varied cast of characters emerges as she
rides shotgun with the Border Patrol, interviews deported mexicans and angry Arizona
ranchers, visits migrant shelters in mexico, and camps out in the thorny wilderness with “no
more deaths” activists. Using Arizona as a microcosm, Regan explores a host of urgent
issues: the border militarization that threatens the rights of U.s. citizens, the environmental
Now in damage wrought by the new border wall, the desperation that compels migrants to come
paperback north, and the human tragedy of the unidentified dead in Arizona’s morgues.
“This should be required reading for everyone. . . . It gave me inspiration.”
—Sandra Cisneros, author of The House on Mango Street
Beacon Press | TR | 978-0-8070-0130-1 | $15.00/$17.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • Inclusiveness • Regionalism: the southwest
EXTRAORDINARY, ORDINARY PEOPLE: A Memoir of Family

By Condoleezza Rice
NEW
Rice’s résumé is an impressive one: professor of political science, first African American
female secretary of state, concert pianist. Her accomplishments are even more striking given
that she spent her childhood in segregated Birmingham, Alabama, where she witnessed
bombings and Ku Klux Klan attacks, and used “black-only” facilities. in overcoming these
obstacles, she became a strong, self-assured woman—traits she drew on during her time with
the Bush administration, as she advocated for the controversial wars in Afghanistan and
iraq. Rice’s memoir reveals how her early experiences sowed the seeds of her political beliefs
and helped her achieve success.
Crown Archetype | HC | 978-0-307-58787-9 | 352pp. | $27.00/$31.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $13.50
themes: Coming of age • Inclusiveness • service
HUNGER OF MEMORY: The Education of Richard Rodriguez

By Richard Rodriguez
Best Books for a Transformative New Year, NPR
“His story is extraordinarily sensitive and compassionate, yet disarmingly objective, a genuine
act of human and religious faith. Few have presented with such skill the indestructible
intimacy of family love and its resilience under the stress of change. This book provides new
understanding of the dynamism of language in establishing a person’s private and public
identity.” —Professor Walter J. Ong, St. Louis University
Selected for Common Reading at Case Western Reserve University.
Bantam | MM | 978-0-553-27293-2 | 224pp. | $7.99/$10.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
Dial Press Trade Paperback | TR | 978-0-553-38251-8 | 224pp. | $15.00/$21.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • Identity • Immigration • Inclusiveness
SONG FOR MY FATHERS
By Tom Sancton
Tulane Reading Project 2006
Former Time Paris Bureau chief and best-selling author Tom sancton returns to the new
orleans of his youth and the music that shaped and guided his life. Here is the story of a
young white boy consumed by a passion to learn the music and ways of a group of aging,
black jazzmen in the twilight years of the segregation era. Written several years before
Katrina crashed into new orleans and changed its face forever, Song for My Fathers is all the
more moving in the wake of that cataclysm.
Other Press | TR | 978-1-590-51376-7 | 368pp. | $14.95/$17.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • Inclusiveness • Regionalism: new orleans
OUTCASTS UNITED Website: www.OutcastsUnited.com

An American Town, A Refugee Team, To watch a video of Warren St. John discussing his book,
and One Woman’s Quest to Make a go to: http://tinyurl.com/yegm5jj
Difference To view the author’s talk at the 2010 First-Year Experience®
meeting, go to http://tinyurl.com/3y5gehr
By Warren St. John
Outcasts United is the story of a refugee soccer team, a remarkable woman coach, and a
small southern town turned upside down by the process of refugee resettlement.
“Not merely about soccer, St. John’s book teaches readers about the social and economic
difficulties of adapting to a new culture and the challenges facing a town with a new and
disparate population. Despite their cultural and religious differences and the difficulty of
adaptation, the Fugees came together to play soccer. This wonderful, poignant book is highly
recommended.” —Library Journal, starred review
themes: group dynamics • Human Rights • Inclusiveness
A HOPE IN THE UNSEEN Website:

An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League www.RonSuskind.com/HopeintheUnseen
By Ron Suskind
This is the story of cedric Jennings, an African American teenager who is ferociously
determined to study his way out of the inner city and capture a piece of the American
dream. Author Ron suskind follows Jennings from his early years in high school through his
first year at Brown University. This updated edition includes a new chapter on cedric
Jennings’s postgraduate professional career.
themes: Coming of age • Inclusiveness
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT Website:

A Memoir www.TheKidsareAllRightBook.com
By Diana Welch, Liz Welch, Amanda Welch, and Dan Welch
Winner, 2010 Alex Award
Told in the alternating voices of four siblings, here is their poignant, harrowing story of the
loss of their parents and their subsequent separation from one another. Along the way they Now in
retained the resilience and humor that both their mother and father endowed them with— paperback
growing up as lost souls, taking disastrous turns along the way, but eventually coming out
right-side-up.

BEATRICE AND VIRGIL Website: www.Beatrice-And-Virgil.com
A Novel
By Yann Martel
F rom the award-winning, best-selling author of the common

reading favorite Life of Pi comes an ingenious, provocative, and
mesmerizing new novel that explores the greatest questions facing
humanity—questions about who we are and what we are capable of
doing in order to survive.
Fate can take many forms. For Henry, it arrives in an envelope from
a stranger containing a story by Flaubert, a play featuring two
characters named Beatrice and Virgil, and a note signed “Henry,”
postmarked with an address in Henry’s own city. From the moment
he finds the address and steps into a taxidermist’s shop—a place
unlike anywhere he has ever been—Henry’s life is changed. in this
extraordinary feat of storytelling, Yann martel poses enduring
questions about life and art, truth and deception, and responsibility
and complicity. Just as with Life of Pi, martel’s wit, pathos, and
probing are sure to hold readers in thrall.
“dark but divine . . . this novel might just be a masterpiece about
the Holocaust . . . martel brilliantly guides the reader from the too-
sunny beginning into the terrifying darkness of the old man’s shop
and europe’s past. everything comes into focus by the end, leaving
the reader startled, astonished, and moved.” —USA Today
Now in
paperback “Brilliant . . . with this short, crisply written, many-layered book,
Do not order paperback before 2/22/2011. martel has once again demonstrated that nothing tells the truth
Spiegel & Grau | TR | 978-0-8129-8154-4 | 224pp. like fiction. . . . another philosophical winner.”
$14.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00 —The Cleveland Plain Dealer
“a sophisticated fable . . . It might be best described as an artful
KeY FActs: philosophical novella rather in the spirit of the slim volumes
produced by writers of the French enlightenment . . . Beatrice and
Virgil is so imbued with passionate moral and intellectual ardor
Themes: Discovering Differences, Ethics, Identity that even the cynical should find it engaging.”
—The Wall Street Journal
Discussion Guides: Teacher’s Guide Available
“It is awe-inspiring when a writer hits a high note; goes dancing
Alternative Formats: Audio, eBook along the edge of something; hurls himself against enormous
questions again and again. . . . writers such as martel are a kind of
human sacrifice. It cannot be easy to imagine a way into suffering,
come out, lead others into and through it.” —Los Angeles Times
“a follow-up every bit as satisfying as Life of Pi . . . martel’s readers
will be rewarded with a flashing finale . . . without giving too much
away, the ending is as shocking as lightning on a sunny day. the
goosebumps subside, but Beatrice and Virgil leaves an imprint after
its cover is closed. the protagonist Henry may have failed to write a
literary book about the Holocaust, but Yann martel succeeds in
spades.” —St. Louis Post Dispatch
About the Author: Yann Martel

Yann maRteL was born in Spain in 1963. After studying philosophy at university, he worked odd jobs
and traveled before turning to writing at the age of twenty-six. He is the author of the internationally
acclaimed 2002 Man Booker Prize–winning novel Life of Pi, which was translated into thirty-eight
languages and spent fifty-seven weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Yann Martel lives in
Saskatchewan, Canada.
Excerpt from Beatrice and Virgil
Henry’s second novel, written, like his first, under a pen name, had done well. it had won prizes and
was translated into dozens of languages. Henry was invited to book launches and literary festivals
around the world; countless schools and book clubs adopted the book; he regularly saw people reading
it on planes and trains; Hollywood was set to turn it into a movie; and so on and so forth.
Henry continued to live what was essentially a normal, anonymous life. Writers seldom become public
figures. it’s their books that rightly hog all the publicity. Readers will easily recognize the cover of a
book they’ve read, but in a café that man over there, is that . . . is that . . . well, it’s hard to tell—doesn’t
he have long hair?—oh, he’s gone.
When he was recognized, Henry didn’t mind. in his experience, the encounter with a reader was a
pleasure. After all, they’d read his book and it had an impact, otherwise why would they come up to
him? The meeting had an intimate quality; two strangers were coming together, but to discuss an
external matter, a faith object that had moved them both, so all barriers fell. This was no place for lies or
bombast. Voices were quiet; bodies leaned close together; selves were revealed. sometimes personal
confessions were made. one reader told Henry he’d read the novel in prison. Another that she’d read it
while battling cancer. A father shared that his family had read it aloud in the aftermath of the premature
birth and eventual death of their baby. And there were other such encounters. in each case, an element
of his novel—a line, a character, an incident, a symbol—had helped them pull through a crisis in their
lives. some of the readers Henry met became quite emotional. This never failed to affect him and he
tried his best to respond in a manner that soothed them.
in the more typical encounters, readers simply wanted to express their appreciation and admiration,
now and again accompanied by a material token, a present made or bought: a snapshot, a bookmark, a
book. They might have a question or two they hoped to ask, timidly, not meaning to bother. They were
grateful for whatever answer he might give. They took the book he signed and held it to their chest with
both hands. The bolder ones, usually but not always teenagers, sometimes asked if they could have their
picture taken with him. Henry would stand, an arm over their shoulders, smiling at the camera.
Readers walked away, their faces lit up because they’d met him, while his was lit up because he’d met
them. Henry had written a novel because there was a hole in him that needed filling, a question that
needed answering, a patch of canvas that needed painting—that blend of anxiety, curiosity and joy that
is at the origin of art—and he had filled the hole, answered the question, splashed colour on the canvas,
all done for himself, because he had to. Then complete strangers told him that his book had filled a hole
in them, had answered a question, had brought colour to their lives. The comfort of strangers, be it a
smile, a pat on the shoulder or a word of praise, is truly a comfort.
As for fame, fame felt like nothing. Fame was not a sensation like love or hunger or loneliness, welling
from within and invisible to the outside eye. it was rather entirely external, coming from the minds of
others. it existed in the way people looked at him or behaved towards him. in that, being famous was no
different from being gay, or Jewish, or from a visible minority: you are who you are, and then people
project onto you some notion they have. Henry was essentially unchanged by the success of his novel.
He was the same person he had been before, with the same strengths and the same weaknesses. on the
rare occasions when he was approached by a reader in a disagreeable way, he had the last weapon of the
writer working under a pseudonym: no, he wasn’t XXX, he was just a guy named Henry.
Excerpted from Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel. Copyright © 2010 by Yann Martel. Excerpted by permission of Spiegel & Grau, a
division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in
writing from the publisher.
Fiction to Talk About 25

Author Spotlight: Lisa see
LIsa see is the New York Times bestselling author of Peony in Love, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan,
Flower Net (an Edgar Award nominee), The Interior, and Dragon Bones, as well as the critically acclaimed
memoir On Gold Mountain. The Organization of Chinese American Women named her the 2001
National Woman of the Year. She lives in Los Angeles.
SHANGHAI GIRLS Website: www.LisaSee.com

A Novel
By Lisa See
Honor Book, Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) Literature
Award—Fiction
A fascinating new novel from author lisa see about two sisters, two
cultures, and the struggle to find a new life in America while
remaining inextricably bound to the old.
“a buoyant and lustrous paean to the bonds of sisterhood.”
—Booklist
“see is masterly in her powerful depictions of the prejudice and
harsh treatment the sisters encounter as they try to assimilate into
the strange new world of Los angeles. possibly the best book yet
from the author of Peony in Love; highly recommended.”
—Library Journal
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • Inclusiveness • Regionalism: asia
SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN

A Novel
By Lisa See
A New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age
lily is haunted by memories of who she once was and of the beloved
person, long gone, who defined her existence. Snow Flower and the
Secret Fan is a brilliantly realistic journey back to an era of chinese
history, deeply moving and sorrowful. With the period detail and deep
resonance of Memoirs of a Geisha, this lyrical and emotionally charged
novel delves into one of the most profound human relationships:
friendship between women. A moving exploration of the power of
memory, the ramifications of oppression, and the redemptive powers
of language.
themes: gender Issues • Inclusiveness • Regionalism: asia
Also by Lisa See:
DREAMS OF JOY: A Novel May 2011

A Message from Lisa See
i have always been intrigued by stories that have been lost, forgotten, or deliberately covered up.
With Shanghai Girls, i explored the chinese American immigration experience, Angel island, paper
sons, and a little-known period in our history centered around the so-called confession Program. At
the same time, i believe that history is not about dates, laws, and wars. Rather, it’s something that
happens to real people. do we stand by our principles or give in to racism, bigotry, and the angry mob?
can we endure what the world throws at us and still maintain our humanity and our love for our
families? do we rise to the challenges and succeed, or do we fail?
When i wrote Shanghai Girls, i thought a lot about the people in my own family who had come
here from china during the last one hundred or so years. i was particularly interested in the women
who journeyed here in arranged marriages at a time when almost no chinese women were allowed to
enter the United states. They were often married to men who came to this country as paper sons—
chinese who were able to get around the chinese exclusion Act of 1882 by falsely claiming that they
were the sons of American citizens. These were my aunties and uncles when i was growing up, and i
wanted to honor their experience and, by extension, the continuing immigration experience of today,
no matter where people come from.
We all have someone in our families who was brave enough, scared enough, or crazy enough to
leave their home countries and come to America. many of those people passed through ellis island,
where they had to answer twenty standard questions and pass a physical exam. The process was hard
and sometimes humiliating, but this was nothing compared to what happened to chinese immigrants
at the Angel island immigration station in the san Francisco Bay. Although immigrants from other
countries passed through Angel island relatively easily, chinese immigrants had to answer anywhere
from two hundred to one thousand questions. They were detained and questioned for weeks, months,
and sometimes years, at which point they would finally be allowed to the enter the country, be deported
back to china, or commit suicide.
even after the chinese landed, life was not easy. if Angel island is still unknown to most people,
then the confession Program of 1957 is an even greater secret. it was a government “amnesty” program
that specifically targeted those chinese who came here as paper sons. People were asked not only to
confess their own fake citizenship status, but also to rat out friends, business associates, and even family
members. Better yet, if you could accuse someone of being a communist, then you would be given your
legitimate American citizenship. The program ripped apart families, destroyed businesses, and pushed
people to face their moral and ethical values.
issues of immigration, legal status, assimilation, love for your home country and love for your new
country, and when and how we become “American” are all very much part of our continuing national
conversation, which is one of the reasons that Shanghai Girls has been read in so many schools and
been selected for one Book, one city programs. The novel provides a jumping off point to talk about
issues that are at the core of so many students’ lives, to pursue cross-disciplinary discussions (American
history, Western history, Asian American studies, gender studies, literature, sociology), and to open
new areas of research.
i look forward to visiting your campus to engage your community in an important and productive
discussion.
Lisa See

FICtIon to taLk aBout
FAHRENHEIT 451 Website: www.RayBradbury.com

By Ray Bradbury
Winner of The National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters
internationally acclaimed, Fahrenheit 451 is Ray Bradbury’s landmark story of a future
society where books are outlawed and only one man awakens to the evils of censorship.
“Frightening in its implications . . . Mr. Bradbury’s account of this insane world, which bears
many alarming resemblances to our own, is fascinating.” —The New York Times
Selected for Common Reading at Illinois Central College, Randolph-Macon College, Xavier University, and others.
Ballantine | TR | 978-0-345-41001-6 | 192pp. | $13.95/$21.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
Del Rey | MM | 978-0-345-34296-6 | 208pp. | $6.99/$8.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
alternative Formats: audio edition • teacher’s guide
themes: ethics • group dynamics • science & society
THE OUTWARD ROOM

By Millen Brand
Afterword by Peter Cameron
When it was first published in 1937, this novel, set against the backdrop of the Great
depression, was hailed for its unflinching portrait of a young woman struggling with mental
anguish. Harriet demuth suffers a breakdown after her brother’s death and is committed to a
mental hospital, where her psychiatrist, a follower of Freud, does little that helps her. Harriet
escapes and heads for new York city. As she ekes out an existence and falls in love, a young
woman’s recovery of her sense of self unfolds, even in a time and place marked by poverty
and despair.
NYRB Classics | TR | 978-1-590-17359-6 | 304pp. | $14.95/$16.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • perseverance/personal strength
ECOTOPIA Website: www.ErnestCallenbach.com

By Ernest Callenbach
in the tradition of Huxley, orwell, and Verne, callenbach’s controversial and thought-
provoking novel describes a future in which the West coast states have seceded to form
ecotopia, their own environmentally-sound nation.
“Callenbach gives us a vivid, comprehensive, positive vision of an ecologically sustainable
world. Essential reading for all who care about the earth’s future.”
—Fritjof Capra, author of The Tao of Physics and The Turning Point
Selected for Common Reading at Muskingum College.
Bantam | TR | 978-0-553-34847-7 | 192pp. | $15.00/$18.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: environment • ethics • science & society
THE GUARDIANS Website: www.AnaCastillo.com

A Novel
By Ana Castillo
From American Book Award-winning author Ana castillo comes a suspenseful, moving
novel about a sensuous, smart, and fiercely independent woman. Barely making a living as a
teacher’s aide in a new mexican border town, Tía Regina is also raising her teenage nephew,
Gabo, a hardworking boy who has entered the country illegally and aspires to be a priest.
When Gabo’s father disappears while crossing over from mexico, Regina fears the worst.
“Castillo writes fiction and poetry of earthy sensuality, wry social commentary, and lyrical
spiritualism that confront the cruel injustices accorded women and Mexicans in America, legal
and otherwise.” —Booklist (starred review)
themes: gender Issues • Human Rights • Inclusiveness
AWAIT YOUR REPLY Website: www.DanChaon.com
A Novel
By Dan Chaon
This unsettling novel follows three young people struggling to carve out lives against the
backdrop of broken families and desolate landscapes. miles desperately searches for his
schizophrenic twin brother across the globe. Ryan learns he is adopted and flees the only life
he has ever known. lucy, recently orphaned, leaves town with her teacher, only to end up in
a run-down mansion in nebraska, with little money and vague plans. They come together
unexpectedly and shockingly, leaving readers to grapple with questions of identity and the
possibility that there is no such thing as a true, core self.
EVERY MAN DIES ALONE Website: www.HansFallada.com

By Hans Fallada
Translated by Michael Hofmann
This never-before-translated masterpiece—by a heroic, bestselling writer who saw his life
crumble when he wouldn’t join the nazi Party—is based on a true story. it presents a richly
detailed portrait of life in Berlin under the nazis and tells the sweeping, deeply-stirring saga
of one working-class couple who decides to take a stand when their only son is killed at the
front. With nothing but their grief and each other against the awesome power of the Reich,
they launch a simple, clandestine resistance campaign that soon has an enraged Gestapo on
their trail and a world of terrified neighbors and cynical snitches ready to turn them in.
Melville House | TR | 978-1-935-55404-2 | 544pp. | $18.95/$23.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: ethics • Identity • social Justice
HOTEL ON THE CORNER OF BITTER AND SWEET Website:

A Novel www.JamieFord.com
By Jamie Ford
“Jamie Ford’s first novel explores the age-old conflicts between father and son, the beauty and
sadness of what happened to Japanese Americans in the Seattle area during World War II, and
the depths and longing of deep-heart love. An impressive, bitter, and sweet debut.”
—Lisa See, best-selling author of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
Selected for the 2010 Schenectady One County, One Book Program.
themes: Coming of age • discovering differences • Inclusiveness • Regionalism: seattle
BOMBINGHAM
By Anthony Grooms
From the war-torn rice fields of Vietnam to the riot-filled streets of Birmingham, Alabama,
Bombingham is the affecting story of a middle-class black family shattered by personal
chaos. As young, African American Walter Burke struggles to make sense of his presence in
Vietnam, he wonders if the victory of the civil rights movement meant nothing more than
earning the right to fight a battle of another kind.
Selected for Common Reading at Alabama A&M University, Florida A&M University, Marquette University, SUNY Oswego,
and others.
One World/Ballantine | TR | 978-0-345-45293-1 | 320pp. | $13.95/$21.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
author available • alternative Formats: teacher’s guide
themes: Coming of age • Inclusiveness • social Justice

INTO THE FOREST Website: www.JeanHegland.com

A Novel
By Jean Hegland
set in the near future, Into the Forest follows two young sisters struggling to make sense of
their world when both society and their family collapse. Hegland’s exploration of the sisters’
relationship reveals the full dimension of their bond and what it means to be human and
alive in this new world.
“The plot draws readers along at the same time that the details and vivid writing encourage
rereading. . . . a truly admirable addition to a genre defined by the very high standards of
George Orwell’s 1984 and Russell Hoban’s Ridley Walker.” —Publishers Weekly
Selected for Common Reading at Bowling Green State University, Santa Rosa Junior College, and others.
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • perseverance/personal strength
Now in THE BLUE NOTEBOOK

paperback A Novel
By James A. Levine
This work of fiction, by mayo clinic doctor James A. levine, takes readers into the life of
Batuk, a precocious fifteen-year-old girl from rural india who was sold into sexual slavery by
her father when she was nine. As Batuk navigates the grim realities of the common street—
a street of prostitution in mumbai where children are kept in cages as they wait for
customers to pay for sex—she manages to put pen to paper, recording her private thoughts
and stories in a diary, a place where she finds hope and beauty in the bleakest of
circumstances. All of the U. s. proceeds from this novel will be donated to the international
centre for missing & exploited children (www.icmec.org).
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • Human Rights
THE GLASS ROOM

By Simon Mawer
newlyweds in 1930s czechoslovakia, Viktor and liesel landauer are progressive (he is
Jewish, she gentile), cultured, and urbane. Their house—a modernist masterpiece—reflects
not only their taste, but also the optimism and creativity of modern europe. But as World
War ii encroaches, the landauers flee their home. The glass house becomes a nazi base,
then a safe house for refugees, until the landauers return to a post-war europe utterly
scarred and changed forever. in The Glass Room, the tragedy of dashed idealism is
beautifully expressed through the saga of one family and their delicate, forward-looking
home.
Other Press | TR | 978-1-59051-396-5 | 416pp. | $14.95/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: group dynamics • Identity • perseverance/personal strength
LAY THAT TRUMPET IN OUR HANDS Website: www.SusanCarolMcCarthy.com

By Susan Carol McCarthy
inspired by real events, Lay That Trumpet in Our Hands is a novel that tackles race politics in
the south before the civil Rights movement unlike any other book in recent memory.
“Reminiscent of To Kill a Mockingbird, McCarthy’s debut novel is an engrossing story of one
girl’s coming-of-age during the early years of the Civil Rights Movement.” —Library Journal
“The best fiction always bears a strong resemblance to real life . . . McCarthy blends fact,
memory, imagination and truth with admirable grace.” —The Washington Post
Selected for Common Reading at numerous high schools, colleges, and communities.
themes: Inclusiveness • Regionalism: the american south • social Justice
THE TIME IT SNOWED IN PUERTO RICO Website: www.SarahMcCoy.com
A Novel
By Sarah McCoy
in the tradition of The House on Mango Street and Annie John comes a novel about the
struggle to break free from the people who raised us and the difficulties of leaving behind
one’s homeland for places unknown. Both joyous and heartbreaking, it is the story of a girl
discovering her power and finding the strength to decide what sort of woman she’ll become.
“In the voice of her lovably defiant adolescent narrator, Sarah McCoy tells a story of magic,
myth, and mystery amid political and cultural unrest . . . A delightful debut.”
—Sheri Reynolds, author of A Gracious Plenty
themes: Coming of age • gender Issues • Identity • Regionalism: puerto Rico
THE SPEED OF DARK: A Novel Website: www.ElizabethMoon.com

By Elizabeth Moon
Winner, 2004 Nebula Award
The Speed of Dark is an exploration into the world of lou Arrendale, an autistic man who is
offered a chance to try a brand-new experimental “cure” for his condition. now lou must
decide if he should submit to a surgery that might completely change the way he views the
world and the very essence of who he is. The Speed of Dark is a fascinating work of fiction
about choice and consequences.
Selected for Common Reading at Clemson University, Ohio State University, and SUNY Oswego.
Del Rey | MM | 978-0-345-48139-9 | 384pp. | $6.99/$10.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: discovering differences • Identity • science & society
THE LAST TOWN ON EARTH: A Novel Website: www.ThomasMullen.net

By Thomas Mullen
set against the backdrop of one of the most virulent epidemics that America ever
experienced—the 1918 influenza pandemic—Thomas mullen’s powerful first novel is a tale
of morality in a time of upheaval. A chance encounter and the shots that are fired as a result
have deafening reverberations throughout the town of commonwealth, escalating until
every human value—love, patriotism, community, family, friendship—not to mention the
town’s very survival, is imperiled.
Colleges and Universities: Bowling Green State University, Montana State University—Billings, Murray State University,
Rutgers University School of Arts and Sciences Honors Program, University of South Carolina Aiken, Western Michigan
University Honors Program, Whitman College; One City, One Book: A Tale For Three Counties (Batavia, NY), Together We
Read (Stanwood and Camano Island, WA), and others.
themes: ethics/decision making • group dynamics • science & society
BAKING CAKES IN KIGALI: A Novel

By Gaile Parkin Now in
paperback
in the wake of genocide, the residents of a Rwandan apartment building turn to Angel
Tungaraza for sympathy, comfort—and cake. Recent arrivals from Tanzania, Angel, her
husband, and their grandchildren have come to Rwanda for her husband’s new job and a
fresh start after their own tragedies. Angel’s kitchen becomes a refuge for people who,
despite the official policy of reconciliation, continue to struggle with the effects of war.
This is a moving and deft portrayal of what comes after war, when the healing has only
just begun.
Bantam | TR | 978-0-385-34344-2 | 336pp. | $15.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: genocide • group dynamics • Human Rights

ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT

By Erich Maria Remarque
This is the classic anti-war novel about young German soldiers during World War i.
Twenty-year-old Paul Baumer’s world of work, duty, culture, and progress is shattered with
the first bombardment in the trenches, and he vows to fight against the principle of hate that
pits young men of the same generation against each other. Few other books have ever
achieved such dramatic acclaim or enduring success. American journalist Henry louis
mencken described the novel as “unquestionably the best story of the World War.”
Selected for Common Reading at St. Louis Community College.
Ballantine Books | MM | 978-0-449-21394-0 | 304pp. | $6.99/$8.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • group dynamics • Regionalism: europe
THE GOD OF SMALL THINGS

A Novel
By Arundhati Roy
Winner of The Booker Prize
Winner of the prestigious man Booker Prize in 1997, The God of Small Things was
Arundhati Roy’s stunning debut. The story of Rahel and estha, twins born to a wealthy
indian family, begins in the late 1960s as communism was turning the traditional caste
system upside down. The story shifts between two eras: the present, where Rahel visits her
mute brother; and the past, one day in december that tore the family apart. As vivid as it is
powerful, Roy’s novel is reminiscent of Faulkner, Rushdie, and márquez—a sure-fire
contemporary classic that should be added to every student’s library.
themes: Coming of age • Identity • Regionalism: India
SEASON OF MIGRATION TO THE NORTH Named most important Arabic novel

By Tayeb Salih of the 20th century by the
Translated by Denys Johnson-Davies Arab Literary Academy in Damascus
Introduction by Laila Lalami
After years of study in europe, this novel’s young narrator returns to his village by the nile in
the sudan. There, he discovers mustafa, an enigmatic stranger who tells him about his own
years in london and the series of deadly relationships with european women that led him
back to his native land. Then mustafa suddenly disappears, leaving the young man—whom
mustafa has asked to look after his wife—stranded in an unsettled, violent no-man’s-land
between europe and Africa, caught between tradition and innovation, holiness and
defilement, from which no one will escape unaltered or unharmed.
NYRB Classics | TR | 978-1-590-17302-2 | 184pp. | $14.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: discovering differences • Inclusiveness • perseverance/personal strength
MAJOR PETTIGREW’S LAST STAND Website: www.HelenSimonson.com

A Novel
By Helen Simonson
major ernest Pettigrew, a retired widower, clings to
the traditional values of english life—honor, decorum, and a proper cup of tea—as the rest
of the world moves farther away from those ideals and the suburbs encroach on the english
Now in countryside. However, Pettigrew’s unexpected friendship with mrs. Ali, the Pakistani
paperback shopkeeper, forces him to confront the twenty-first century. This witty novel deftly portrays
late-life romance, the still-potent effects of cultural and racial barriers, and a memorable,
dignified man who strives to live his beliefs.
themes: discovering differences • Inclusiveness • perseverance/personal strength
THE MOUNTAIN LION
By Jean Stafford
Afterword by Kathryn Davis
eight-year-old molly and her ten-year-old brother Ralph are inseparable, presenting a united
front against authority figures and the suburban world they know. When they begin
spending summers on their uncle’s ranch in colorado, they relish their encounters with an
entirely different world, one that is wild and immediate. However, time inevitably passes,
and as molly and Ralph confront impending adulthood, this coming-of-age tale veers into
unconventional and tragic terrain.
“Hard to match for subtlety and understanding . . . written wittily, lucidly, and with great
respect for the resources of the language.” —The New Yorker
NYRB Classics | TR | 978-1-590-17352-7 | 248pp. | $14.95/$17.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Coming of age • environment • ethics
OLIVE KITTERIDGE Website: www.ElizabethStrout.com

Fiction
By Elizabeth Strout
Winner 2009–Pulitzer Prize
A Library Journal Best Book of 2008
olive Kitteridge deplores the changes occurring in her town of crosby, maine, and the
world, but she doesn’t always recognize the changes in those around her: a former student
who has lost the will to live; olive’s own adult child, who feels tyrannized by her irrational
sensitivities; and her husband, who finds his loyalty to his marriage both a blessing and
a curse.
As the townspeople grapple with their problems, olive is brought to a deeper understanding
of herself and her life. Olive Kitteridge offers profound insights into the human condition—
its tragedies, its joys, and the endurance required of us.
themes: discovering differences • group dynamics • perseverance/personal strength
SLAUGHTERHOUSE-FIVE For more books by Kurt Vonnegut, go to:

By Kurt Vonnegut http://tinyurl.com/yalov8r
Slaughterhouse-Five is one of the world’s great anti-war books. centering on the infamous
fire-bombing of dresden, Billy Pilgrim’s odyssey through time reflects the journey we
undertake as we search for meaning in what we are afraid to know.
“Poignant and hilarious, threaded with compassion and, behind everything, the cataract of a
thundering moral statement.” —The Boston Globe
Dell Books | MM | 978-0-440-18029-6 | 224pp. | $7.99/$9.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
alternative Formats: eBook • teacher’s guide
MRS. SOMEBODY SOMEBODY Website: www.WinnWriter.com

Fiction
By Tracy Winn
Winn chronicles the characters who inhabit the troubled
mill town of lowell, massachusetts, depicting their struggles and hopes over the course of
the twentieth century. Winn paints a permeating portrait of the town and its people, includ-
ing a millworker who dreams of marrying rich and becoming “mrs. somebody somebody”;
an undercover union organizer whose privileged past shapes her cause; and a Korean War
veteran who returns to the wife he never really knew. Winn’s insight into class and human
nature, combined with her nuanced prose, make Mrs. Somebody Somebody truly shine. Now in
paperback
themes: discovering differences • group dynamics • Regionalism: massachusetts/new
england

LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE IT Website: www.PeterBuffett.com
Find Your Own Path to Fulfillment
By Peter Buffett
m ost people probably think that having billionaire investor

Warren Buffett as a father makes life far from average. But, as
Peter Buffett explains, an individual’s success has more to do with
building personal character than using a family platform to get
ahead. in Life Is What You Make It, Buffett, a musician, composer,
and philanthropist, shares the important lessons learned from his
parents—part of an upbringing focused on the importance of
honorable values as individuals in a community and what we are
able to give back.
“peter Buffett has given us a wise and inspiring book that should
be required reading for every young person seeking to find his or
NEW her place in the world, and for every family hoping to give its
daughters and sons the best possible start in life.” —Bill Clinton
“knowing and admiring peter as we do, Life Is What You Make It

captures his spirit, passion, and values beautifully. as parents, it's
the kind of dialogue about our life's purpose and opportunity
we’re having with our children. we will have everyone in our family
read and discuss Life Is What You Make It.” —Bill and Melinda Gates
“Life Is What You Make It is the ultimate book of common sense—

except it isn't common. Because peter Buffett could have had a
derived identity and chose not to, he has power and credibility
Crown Archetype | HC | 978-0-307-46471-2 | 272pp. when he tells us how to find a unique self by doing what we love. I
$23.99/$27.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $12.00 can’t imagine anyone who wouldn't benefit from this spirited, wise,
and friendly book.” —Gloria Steinem
Three Rivers Press | TR | 978-0-307-46472-9 | 272pp. “with homespun, heartfelt wisdom, peter Buffett ponders how to
$14.00/$16.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 make a meaningful life while making a living. Life Is What You Make
It is thought-provoking, worthwhile reading.” —Ted Turner
“In his searching book, Life Is What You Make It, peter Buffett
KeY FActs: challenges us all to balance ambition and service, personal goals
Campus Visits: Author Available and work for the common good. It is a book of value and honesty.”
—Eve Ensler, author of The Vagina Monologues
Themes: Leadership & Motivation, Life Skills, Service
Alternative Formats: Audio, eBook “Very few have the upbringing of peter Buffett . . . not the privilege
but rather the restrained usage of that privilege. a very real family
with knots and gnarls like any other, but with an eerie commitment
to serve ideas and the human race in general, whether that be
through philanthropy, song or conversation . . . or this . . . folk
wisdom for the folks.” —Bono
About the Author: Peter Buffett

peteR BuFFett is an established composer/producer. He has released six albums on his own label,
as well as eight albums on other labels. Highlights of his film and television work include “Fire Dance”
from Dances with Wolves and the score for 500 Nations. Buffett’s theatrical production, Spirit: The
Seventh Fire, was produced on the National Mall. With his wife Jennifer, he is co-chairman of the NoVo
Foundation, an organization which seeks to promote equality, end violence, and combat exploitation
of women globally by empowering females as agents of change.
A Message from Peter Buffett
What path will you choose?

This is a very personal book about values and identity. i make no claim of special
expertise in the conduct of life, still less in the mystery of life’s meaning. But here and
there in this book, i do presume to offer advice, and i make no apology for that. There
are certain things i passionately believe to be true. Where i can make a case for those
truths, where i think i can provide some clarity and perspective, i have not been shy
about doing so.
By the luck of the draw—what my father calls “winning the ovarian lottery”—i
was born into a caring and supportive family, a family whose first and most important
gift to me was emotional security. over time, as a bonus that came as a gradual and
wonderful surprise, my family also got to be wealthy and distinguished. my dad,
Warren Buffett—by dint of hard work, solid ethics, and steady wisdom—has become
one of the richest and most respected men in the world. But those are his
accomplishments, not mine. no matter who your parents are, you’ve still got your own
life to figure out.
life moves incredibly fast, and it is filled with distractions. As clutter builds up at
the periphery—streams of data coming from every direction and the unremitting
bombardment of the media—it becomes ever more challenging to filter out the noise,
to remember where the center is.
But, ultimately, we create the lives we live. This is our greatest burden and greatest
opportunity. it is also the most basic, bedrock premise of everything i have to say in
this book.
What sort of people will we choose to be? Will we choose the path of least
resistance—or the path of potentially greatest satisfaction? in our dealings with others,
will we shy away from intimacy and honesty and tolerance—or will we open ourselves
to robust and candid relationships? in our work lives, will we settle for making a living
or aim at the higher goal of earning a life?
Answers to these questions can only come from inside each of us. The goal of this
book is simply to raise the questions, to offer a framework for thought and, i hope,
discussion.
Your life is yours to create. Be grateful for the opportunity. seize it with passion
and boldness. Whatever you decide to do, commit to it with all your strength . . . and
begin it now.
Peter Buffett
Inspiration and Guidance 35

THE FREEDOM WRITERS DIARY Website:
How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to www.FreedomWritersFoundation.org
Change Themselves and the World Around Them
By The Freedom Writers with Erin Gruwell
s traight from the front line of urban America, The Freedom

Writers Diary is the inspiring story of one fiercely determined
teacher and her remarkable students.
As an idealistic twenty-three-year-old english teacher at Wilson
High school in long Beach, california, erin Gruwell confronted a
room of “unteachable, at-risk” students. one day she intercepted a
note with an ugly racial caricature. she angrily declared that this was
precisely the sort of thing that led to the Holocaust—only to be met
by uncomprehending looks. so she and her students, using the
treasured books Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl and Zlata’s
Diary: A Child’s Life in Sarajevo as their guides, undertook a life-
changing, eye-opening, spirit-raising odyssey against intolerance
and misunderstanding. They learned to see the parallels to their
own lives, recording their thoughts and feelings in diaries and
dubbing themselves the “Freedom Writers” in homage to the civil
rights activists “The Freedom Riders.”
With funds raised by a “Read-a-thon for Tolerance,” they arranged
for miep Gies, the courageous dutch woman who sheltered the
Frank family, to visit them in california, where she declared that
erin Gruwell’s students were “the real heroes.” Their efforts have
paid off spectacularly, both in terms of recognition—appearances on
Broadway | TR | 978-0-385-49422-9 | 336pp.
$14.99/$18.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 “Prime Time live” and “All Things considered,” coverage in People
magazine, a meeting with U.s. secretary of education Richard
KeY FActs: Riley—and educationally. All one hundred fifty Freedom Writers
Selected for Common Reading: have graduated from high school and are now attending college.
Austin Peay State University, Bloomsburg University, With powerful entries from the students’ own diaries and a narrative
Indiana University Northwest, Western New England
College, and others.
text by erin Gruwell, The Freedom Writers Diary is an uplifting,
unforgettable example of how hard work, courage, and the spirit of
Campus Visits: Author Available determination changed the lives of a teacher and her students.
Themes: Leadership & Motivation, Life Skills,
Social Justice
The authors’ proceeds from this book will be donated to The
Tolerance education Foundation, an organization set up to pay for
Also Available by The Freedom Writers the Freedom Writers’ college tuition. erin Gruwell is now a visiting
and Erin Gruwell: professor at california state University, long Beach, where some of
her students are Freedom Writers.
TEACHING HOPE “there are lives lost in this book, and there are lives saved, too, if
Stories from the Freedom Writer Teachers salvation means a young man or woman begins to feel deserving of
and Erin Gruwell a place on the planet. . . . what could be more soul-satisfying? these
Foreword by Anna Quindlen are the most influential professionals most of us will ever meet. the
Broadway | TR | 978-0-7679-3172-4 | 384pp. effects of their work will last forever.”
$14.99/$18.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 —from the Foreword by Anna Quindlen
About the Author: erin Gruwell

eRIn gRuweLL, the Freedom Writers, and her nonprofit organization The Freedom Writers Foundation
have received many awards, including the prestigious Spirit of Anne Frank Award. Gruwell has appeared
on several television programs, including The Oprah Winfrey Show, Primetime, Good Morning America, and
The View. Gruwell is also a charismatic motivational speaker who spreads her dynamic message to
students, teachers, and business people around the world. She lives in southern California.
A Message from Erin Gruwell
since the publication of The Freedom Writers Diary in 1999, i have had the extraordinary
experience of speaking at hundreds of schools and more than sixty colleges and universities. At every
school and university, the message has been loud and clear: our “little book that could” inspires parents,
educators, and students alike, to find hope and to believe in change. now, ten years later and with more
than a million copies sold, that one simple message is the impetus for the
release of The Freedom Writers Diary, 10th anniversary edition, with ten unique
follow-up journal entries written by ten of the original Freedom Writers, after
they shattered stereotypes by graduating high school and pursuing college.
it wasn’t always easy for the Freedom Writers to take that second chance
and stick with it, but they did. college presents new challenges and
opportunities to learn and grow, and learning from mistakes and finding what
works takes time. i learned three lessons on my first day teaching at Wilson
High school: my students hated reading, they hated writing, and they hated me.
As i tried to find a way to reach my students, i was faced with the reality that,
for many of them, homelessness, gangs, drugs, suicide, and foster care took
precedence over Hamlet and The Odyssey. in my eyes, none of those things erin gruwell at
austin peay state university
could stop them from graduating from high school.
determined, i tailored my curriculum to include books written by kids who lived in war-torn
countries. Anne Frank, elie Wiesel, and Zlata Filipovic gave my students hope and the knowledge that
the best way to fight is by picking up a pen. Tolerance and acceptance were the cornerstones of every
lesson plan that i ever implemented, and what i discovered was that i needed to proactively
demonstrate the power of inclusion. To reach every student, i needed to engage, enlighten, and
empower them. so, with every element of my curriculum, we followed those three steps.
i always knew that my first aim as a teacher was to give a voice to the voiceless. so, after miep Gies,
(the woman who hid the Frank family), visited my students and told them not to let Anne’s death be in
vain, i encouraged my students to continue writing in their journals. once my students began to write
their story, they soon realized that they could rewrite their ending.
After the release of Paramount Pictures’ Freedom Writers, we found ourselves visiting different
colleges and schools around the country, and we discovered that our story was universal. college
students were finding hope and inspiration in the pages of The Freedom Writers Diary. i am filled with
hope every time i visit a college, such as Austin Peay state University that created a Peay Read program
in order to “create a collaborative, integrative learning
community,” choosing The Freedom Writers Diary as the
2010 common reading book. There are so many other
universities choosing The Freedom Writers Diary for their
common reading programs, and i have seen the
outstanding benefits of its use. The Freedom Writers and
i are constantly humbled and exhilarated by the number
of college students who are reading The Freedom Writers
Diary, telling us how it has impacted their lives and
inspired them to do something—to become a teacher, to
erin gruwell with a student at pursue social activism, and most of all, to be a catalyst
austin peay state university for change.
Erin Gruwell

LIFE WITHOUT LIMITS Website: www.NickVujicic.com
Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life
By Nick Vujicic
“i do believe my life has no limits! i want you to feel the same way
about your life, no matter what your challenges may be. As we
begin our journey together, please take a moment to think about
any limitations you’ve placed on your life or that you’ve allowed
others to place on it. now think about what it would be like to be
free of those limitations. What would your life be if anything were
NEW possible?” —nick Vujicic, from Life Without Limits
L ife Without Limits is an inspiring book by an extraordinary

man. Born without arms or legs, nick Vujicic overcame his
disability to live not just independently but a rich, fulfilling life,
becoming a model for anyone seeking true happiness. now an
internationally successful motivational speaker, his central message
is that the most important goal for anyone is to find their life’s
purpose despite whatever difficulties or seemingly impossible odds
stand in their way.
nick tells the story of his physical disabilities and the emotional
battle he endured trying to deal with them as a child, a teen, and a
young adult. “For the longest, loneliest time, i wondered if there
was anyone on earth like me, and whether there was any purpose to
Doubleday Religion | HC | 978-0-307-58973-6 | 256pp. my life other than pain and humiliation.” He shares how his faith in
$19.99/$22.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $10.00 God has been his central source of strength and explains that once
he found his own sense of purpose—inspiring others to make their
lives and the world better—he found the confidence to build a
rewarding and productive life without limits.
KeY FActs:
nick offers practical advice for realizing a life of fulfillment and
happiness by building trust in others, developing supportive
Themes: Leadership & Motivation, Peer Group Skills, relationships, and gaining strength for the journey. He encourages
Perseverance/Personal Strength, Service the reader by showing how he learned to accept what he could not
Alternative Formats: Audio, eBook control and focus instead on what he could.
“Life Without Limits will inspire and move you.”
—Pasadena Star News
“nick’s anecdotes about living without limbs (e.g., a story of
getting the best of a grade-school bully) make this a worthwhile
read.” —Library Journal
About the Author: Nick Vujicic

nICk VuJICIC is a motivational speaker and the director and founding president of the non-profit
organization, Life Without Limbs. A longtime resident of Australia, he now lives in southern California.
He continues to travel around the world, spreading a message of perseverance and hope.
A Message from Nick Vujicic
i have spoken in thirty-eight countries, at hundreds of

events, and to millions of people around the globe, but never
have i told the story of my physical disabilities as up-close and
personal as i do in Life Without Limits: Inspiration for a
Ridiculously Good Life. With this book, i invite readers to travel
with me on a path paved with hope and filled with both laughter
and tears.
Today, too many students enter college with little concept of
themselves and their goals. many find themselves lost because of
thick depression, heavy drinking, and a sense of purposelessness.
By sharing my own personal experiences, i let my readers see
through the eyes of a person living with a disability. i do this not
to paint my pain as more important or greater—it is not—but to
relate to the pain that already exists so profusely in each human
being. i invite my readers to know that a bright future can be found despite one’s
circumstances and emotions.
Having been born without arms and legs, i encounter many unique challenges—
challenges that once knocked me into deep depression and overwhelming feelings of
loneliness. By age ten, i was so depressed that i attempted suicide. Bullying, low self-esteem,
and despair engulfed me. during my late teens, i finally received the strength to find hope
outside my circumstances and to find purpose within them. With my newfound courage, i
became a motivational speaker, using my story to inspire others. now, as both a speaker and
author, i offer to you my book—a place where i share with my readers strategies to overcome
hardship and find happiness, despite any circumstance.
While Life Without Limits tells the story of my life, it crosses cultural boundaries to
communicate themes far greater than my life-story. it tells of human hope, resilience, and
purpose. it covers topics such as perseverance, attitude, trust, and self-worth. it equips readers
with the tools to become confident, fulfill their potential, and lead a meaningful life.
if you need a discussion piece that inspires students to reflect deeply within their own
lives, consider my book for your common reading program. i love my life just as i love yours.
Together, the possibilities for us are just ridiculous. so, what do you say? shall we give it a go,
mate?
For more information, please visit www.attitudeisaltitude.com.
Nick Vujicic

InspIRatIon and guIdanCe
TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE Website: www.MitchAlbom.com

An Old Man, A Young Man, and Life’s Greatest Lesson
By Mitch Albom
After learning of his former professor’s terminal illness, mitch Albom flew to Brandeis
University, reunited with his old friend, and returned every Tuesday thereafter to visit with
him. morrie schwartz turned these visits into one final “class”: a lesson in how to live. This
book is a magical chronicle of mitch and morrie’s time together.
Selected for Common Reading at Concordia University, SUNY New Paltz, University of Buffalo, University of North Dakota,
and others.
themes: Coming of age • ethics/decision making • Identity
WHAT SHOULD I DO WITH MY LIFE? Website:

The True Story of People Who Answered the Ultimate Question www.PoBronson.com
By Po Bronson
“What should i do with my life?” Po Bronson was asking himself that very question when he
decided to write this book—an inspiring exploration of how people successfully transform
their lives, and a template for how we can answer this question for ourselves. Filled with
humor, empathy, and insight, this edition includes nine new stories not included in the
hardcover edition.
“Brimming with stories of sacrifice, courage, commitment and, sometimes, failure, the book
will support anyone pondering a major life choice or risk without force-feeding them pat
solutions.” —Publishers Weekly
Selected for Common Reading at Rutgers College, Sam Houston State University, and others.
Ballantine | MM | 978-0-345-48592-2 | 464pp. | $7.99/$10.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: ethics/decision making • Identity • Life skills
CHARACTER IS DESTINY
Inspiring Stories Every Young Person Should Know and Every Adult Should Remember
By John McCain with Mark Salter
in Character Is Destiny, John mccain and mark salter tell the stories of celebrated historical
figures and lesser-known heroes whose values exemplify the best of the human spirit.
mccain illustrates these qualities with moving stories of triumph against all odds,
righteousness in the face of iniquity, hope in adversity, and sacrifice for causes which extend
beyond self-interest.
Selected for Common Reading at DeSales College.
themes: ethics/decision-making • Identity
MANDELA’S WAY: Fifteen Lessons on Life, Love, and Courage Website:

www.MandelasWay.com
By Richard Stengel; Preface by Nelson Mandela
nelson mandela—freedom fighter, former President of south Africa, and figure of
inspiration worldwide—offers fifteen essential life lessons, drawn from his decades of
activism. more than a biography of a great man, this is a guide to how to live a meaningful
and legacy-rich life—under any circumstances.
“This delightfully inspiring book is a philosophical guide to how we can aspire to achieve
Mandela’s grace and how we can draw upon his greatness as a model for the comportment of
our lives each day.” —Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Harvard University
Selected for Common Reading at Loyola University Chicago.
themes: Leadership & motivation • Life skills • social Justice
InspIRatIon and guIdanCe
MAKE THE IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE Website: www.Bill-Strickland.com
One Man’s Crusade to Inspire Others To watch a video of Bill Strickland speaking at the
to Dream Bigger and Achieve the Random House Luncheon during the First Year Experience®
2010 Conference, go to: http://tinyurl.com/334reoj
Extraordinary
By Bill Strickland with Vince Rause
macArthur Fellowship “genius” award winner Bill strickland has spent the past thirty years
transforming the lives of thousands of people through manchester Bidwell, the jobs training
center and community arts program he founded in Pittsburgh. Working with corporations,
community leaders, and schools, he and his staff strive to give disadvantaged kids and adults
the opportunities and tools they need to envision and build a better, brighter future.
Make the Impossible Possible ultimately teaches us how to build on our passions and
strengths, dream bigger and set the bar higher, achieve meaningful success, and inspire the
lives of others.
Selected for Common Reading at Frank Phillips College, Indiana University Pennsylvania, Juniata College, Kendall College,
Mt. Union College, North Dakota State University, Penn State-New Kensington, Purdue University, University of Southern
Indiana, Voorhees College, Winthrop University, and others.
Crown Business | TR | 978-0-385-52055-3 | 240pp. | $14.00/$17.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Leadership & motivation • service • social Justice
ZEN MIND, BEGINNER’S MIND

By Shunryu Suzuki
Afterword by David Chadwick
This succinct yet expansive introduction to Zen is presented here in a special 40th
anniversary edition. excerpts from several of Zen master shunryu suzuki’s lectures are
NEW
printed here, illuminating his perspective on topics such as the transience of the material
world and the nature of enlightenment, as well giving practical suggestions regarding the
practice of meditation, focusing on such matters as posture and breathing. Rather than
promoting a dogmatic approach to a religious tradition, the book offers the elliptical and
paradoxical musings of a master, encouraging the reader to embark on his or her own
Zen path.
Shambhala | HC | 978-1-590-30850-9 | 144pp. | $24.95/$28.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $12.50
themes: Identity • Life skills • perseverance/personal strength
THE SEARCH FOR FULFILLMENT Website: www.SearchForFulfillment.com

Revolutionary New Research That Reveals the
Secret to Long-Term Happiness
By Susan Krauss Whitbourne
“This remarkable exploration into the core dimensions of human nature takes readers of all
ages on a journey of liberation. The psychologically revolutionary ideas that flow through
every chapter free us from simplistic pop-psych notions of ‘midlife crises’ and confining age-
based passages. We come to appreciate the extraordinary fluidity of human nature as people
mature and embark on life’s dynamic pathways, ideally toward personal fulfillment on
triumphant or authentic paths. Emerging from solid, original research, The Search for
Fulfillment’s sound, practical advice can transform your life. This is a must-read-now book.”
—Philip Zimbardo, author of The Lucifer Effect and The Time Paradox
Ballantine Books | HC | 978-0-345-49999-8 | 224pp. | $25.00/$29.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $12.50
themes: Identity • Life skills • science & society

BEST PRACTICES AND
Tips from the Random House
3 LAUNCHING A PROGRAM
Relax, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Take advantage of the many resources available to learn about other reading
programs. A good starting point is a monograph published by the national Resource center for e First-Year experience®
and students in Transition, Common Reading Programs: Going Beyond the Book. in addition, there are a number of campuses
with well-established and successful reading programs, and the professionals who run these programs are usually very happy
to share advice and tips (as well as opinions on books they have used in the past.)
When starting a program, it’s important to include various stakeholders on campus. When it is time to select a book, you
will most likely want some type of campus selection committee. e committee should comprise members of a variety of
constituencies, including faculty, student services and academic affairs administrators, as well as students.
ink carefully about the scope, mission, learning outcomes, and assessment of your program. For example, will the
program be a first-year/new student reading program or a campus-wide (common) reading program? What will be the
purpose of the program (this may influence the type of books you will be considering)? How will you inform students about
the program and when will they be expected to read the book? Again, take advantage of the numerous resources available to
help answer these questions.
3 SELECTING A BOOK
ink about the following questions when considering eligible books for your program:
does the book tell a good story?
is the book accessible? Will a variety of students at different reading levels and with different interests be able to engage with
the book? To this point, consider page count. A good rule of thumb is the “300 Rule:” if possible, choose a book with 300
pages or less.
does it feature a protagonist students can relate to? ey might be the same age or be dealing with similar life situations
(change, challenge, adversity).
does the book touch on teachable themes, such as inclusiveness/diversity, global engagement, etc.?
do the themes of the book correspond to your university’s strategic mission? campus engagement and resources will be
easier to secure if you make this relationship clear.
if having the book’s author speak is part of the plan for your reading program, it is important to consider author availability
during the book selection process. speaking fees and availability can vary considerably. You don’t want to go through all the
work to select a book, only to find out that the author’s speaking fee will not work for your budget, or s/he is not available to
speak on the dates you need!
3 ENGAGING STUDENTS
Use digital and social media to your advantage. Use your university’s existing social media webpage or account (Facebook,
Twitter, etc.) or create a dedicated page for your common reading program to create a community around the book selection,
author visit and other programming activities. many authors, publishers and lecture agencies have existing material that can
be posted to your community page.
Get students prepared. consider introducing the book during the spring or summer prior to the next academic year. For
example, if first-year students receive the book during orientation, the orientation leaders and various speakers can
advertise the program and build a feeling of community around the reading of the text. Also, think about having students
turn in questions for the author as part of an assignment and have a moderator pose the questions to the author. is will
incentivize students to come up with more original questions, will save on time during the Q&A and will avoid dreaded
“dead air.” make the questions a contest, such as: “can you stump the author?”
Have students create materials in advance of the author’s visit. essay collections are a great idea. You may also consider
multimedia approaches—such as blogs, videos, or website. students tend to share more on a personal level when they are not
H ave ques t ions for the Advisor y B oar d?

PROGRAMMING IDEAS
First-Year Advisory Board
in an open forum and the medium can be anonymous. Another idea is to have students autograph and annotate the author’s
book. in addition to brief messages to the author, annotations can call attention to the passages of the book students find
most compelling or personally resonant. Authors appreciate different perspectives on and reactions to their work, and they
can take home the annotated book as a memento to commemorate the event!
Organize campus-wide discussion groups. some campuses use faculty, some use upper-class students, and some use a
combination of faculty, staff, and students to facilitate these discussions. Again, this is a good way for the first-year student to
feel that they are a part of the university community.
Link the book to as much existing campus programming as possible. can the Film studies dept. co-sponsor a viewing of a
film related to your book? Are there plays, arts exhibits or other speakers coming to campus that you could tie into? Perhaps
student Activities can help as well? Reach out to faculty who teach courses relevant to your book selection, provide them with
review copies of the book, invite them to events and ask them to embed the book in their syllabi and courses. Your book
selection committee will be a great resource in making these connections.
3 HOSTING AN AUTHOR
Is the author represented by an agency or speaker’s bureau? most authors will have an agent, and that will be the person to
make inquiries about speaking fees and availability. oen, the book’s publisher will have this information.
encourage as many faculty and students as possible read the book in advance of the author visit. in addition to having more
enthusiastic readers on campus to help you spread the good word about the book and your program, folks who have already
read the book will have more interesting questions for the author, making for a more intelligent and productive discussion.
Assign a faculty or administrator to host the author. While one of the benefits of an author visit is for students to engage
with the author, it is important to have a faculty member or administrator act as the dedicated host, someone who has the
authority to assertively manage appearances—to turn down requests or move an author to the next location, for example.
sharing is caring! encourage university departments and divisions to coordinate in advance. Perhaps events may be
co-sponsored so the author isn’t pulled in too many directions, and departments can share space, time, money and other
resources.
consider having one large campus talk that is required of all students. is makes the best use of both your programming
time and the author’s time on campus. many authors say that different departments and disciplines actually tend to have
questions that are more similar in nature than they are different. even if that is not the case, a diversity of questions is a good
thing; it offers a richer conversation when different interests come together, and students learn more.
Mix up the formats of events. e most successful visits offer the author and participants a variety of events to keep things
fresh and engaging. Have the author speak at a podium for one event, do an on-stage sit-down Q&A at another, and
participate in a group interview with faculty at a third.
When hosting an author Q&A it’s important to appoint a moderator to move the discussion along. e moderator can
address basic factual questions upfront, to allow for a more in-depth exchange during the Q&A. e moderator can also be
the person who introduces the author.
Following a large campus-wide talk, arrange for smaller, more intimate discussions with faculty and students, in which the
author and participants can delve more deeply into topics mentioned in the campus-wide talk. All participants should have
attended the larger campus talk so that they come to the breakout sessions with at least a basic knowledge of the book.
Give authors “a break” (or two)! in order to provide your participants with the best experience possible, foster an
environment that makes the author comfortable, and one that allows them to put their best foot forward. schedule breaks in
between sessions and offer some meals “off ”. Arrange to have snacks, water, coffee, and meals available as appropriate. if the
author is the key attraction at a meal, make sure they have ample time to eat.
Don’t take it personally. When negotiating your author’s visit to campus, there may be many requirements on the part of
their agency for travel, lodging, and “down time.” ese are based on the agency’s standard contractual obligations designed
to cover a wide variety of celebrity, sports, and other speakers. However, most agencies and authors understand that you have
state and university policies that may constrain what you can offer, and will work with you to meet your needs. schedule
ample time for planning and negotiation. You should also verify with the author’s agent whether events or speaking
engagements may be videotaped or recorded. ey oen have provisions for what is allowable.
Email us at r hacadem ic @r andom hous e.c om

ACTS OF FAITH For Author Interview, go to:
The Story of an American Muslim, the Struggle for the http://tiny.cc/8y9hh
Soul of a Generation
By Eboo Patel
Winner, 2010 Louisville Grawemeyer Award in Religion
“i am an American muslim from india. my adolescence was a

series of rejections, one after another, of the various
dimensions of my heritage, in the belief that America, india, and
islam could not coexist within the same being. if i wanted to be
one, i could not be the others. my struggle to understand the
traditions i belong to as mutually enriching rather than mutually
exclusive is the story of a generation of young people standing at
Now in the crossroads of inheritance and discovery, trying to look both
paperback
ways at once. There is a strong connection between finding a sense
of inner coherence and developing a commitment to pluralism.
And that has everything to do with who meets you at the
crossroads.”
so writes eboo Patel at the beginning of his remarkable account of
coming of age and coming to understand what led him toward
religious pluralism rather than hatred.
Growing up outside chicago, subject to a constant barrage of racist
bullying, and unsure of what it meant to be muslim, Patel had a
gut-wrenching feeling of being excluded from mainstream society.
in high school, he rejected everything about his indian and muslim
Beacon Press | TR | 978-0-807-00622-1 | 192pp. heritage and excelled in academics in an attempt to be like the
$14.00/$16.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 white Americans around him. in college this illusion came undone
as Patel discovered the liberating power of identity politics—and a
deep rage at the inequities and hypocrisies of America.
KeY FActs: Patel soon learned that anger is not an identity, encountering a set
Selected for Common Reading: of people and ideas that illuminated a different understanding. His
Luther College, Saint Louis University most important discovery was not about his relationship with his
Campus Visits: Author Available past, but about his responsibility to make the best part of that
past—the possibility of pluralism—a reality in the contemporary
Themes: Coming of Age, Discovering Differences,
Inclusiveness, Youth Activism world.
“eboo patel is an exciting new voice of a new america: diverse but
Discussion Guides: Teacher’s Guide Available
not divisive, hopeful but not utopian. He speaks for all of us from a
Alternative Formats: eBook rising generation of bright, brown and bold americans who have
much to offer a country embarking on a new millennium and in
need of new blood.”
—Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, Executive Director of the Zaytuna Institute
About the Author: eboo Patel

eBoo pateL is Founder and Executive Director of the Interfaith Youth Core. He was appointed by
President Obama to the Advisory Council of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood
Partnerships and serves on the Religious Advisory Committee of the Council on Foreign Relations. He
writes “The Faith Divide” blog for The Washington Post and has contributed to numerous publications. An
Ashoka Fellow, Patel was chosen by Harvard’s Kennedy School Review as one of five future policy leaders
to watch and was selected to join the Young Global Leaders Network of the World Economic Forum.
A Message from Eboo Patel
Religion can be a bubble of isolation, a barrier of division, a bomb of destruction . . . or a

bridge of cooperation. The forces building barriers and bombs are strong—their message
dominates the discourse about the role of religion in the world. i wrote Acts of Faith because i
believe religion can be a bridge of cooperation, and college students are in a powerful position
to build these bridges.
on one level, Acts of Faith is my journey of discovery, of how i became an interfaith
bridge-builder. college is a time when young people grapple with identity—who they are in a
world of people very different from them. one of the compliments i cherish most about Acts
of Faith is that the way it tells my personal story helps students understand and articulate their
own.
on another level, Acts of Faith tells the story of islam, illuminating those dimensions of its
scripture, history, and heroes that support interfaith bridgebuilding. campuses tell me that
this is extremely useful to them for two reasons. First, much of what students know about
islam comes from the evening news, and Acts of Faith offers a much-needed alternative
perspective on the faith of 1.5 billion adherents worldwide. second, my approach to islam
illustrates a new paradigm for religion in general. Whether the student is a Hindu or a
humanist, whether the campus was founded by Jews or catholics, Acts of Faith gets people
asking the question: “What is it in my tradition and other traditions that would support
interfaith bridge-building?”
Finally, Acts of Faith is about a national and global story of the role that religion plays in
the world. America is the most religiously diverse nation in human history and the most
religiously devout nation in the West at a time of great global religious conflict. We have the
chance to be a model of interfaith cooperation, and young people are in a unique position to
make us so.
But really, Acts of Faith is about the intersection of all three—a historical tradition, a
unique global moment, and a personal story. The ultimate message of the book is this: Find
those dimensions of your tradition that help you positively impact the world and work with
others who are doing the same.
There is nothing i love more than engaging with a campus community on the issues
raised by my book. since Acts of Faith was published, i have visited nearly fifty campuses,
from small liberal arts colleges to large public universities, from ivy league schools in Boston
to catholic colleges in the Bay Area. i have given keynote talks to auditoriums with thousands
of students, held workshops for faculty teaching courses in religion, and trained staff on how
to positively engage the diversity of their campus community.
my life changed as a college student, from one focused on my own personal success to one
of service and significance. Acts of Faith tells the story of those changes. my goal when i visit
campuses is to help change the lives of others.
Eboo Patel
History and Society 43

THE IMMORTAL LIFE OF Website: www.RebeccaSkloot.com
HENRIETTA LACKS To view video of author at DePauw University’s Ubben Lecture,

go to: http://tinyurl.com/24h6xux
By Rebecca Skloot
Now in
paperback Winner of 2010 Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize for Nonfiction
Winner of 2010 Wellcome Trust Book Prize
The American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Young Adult
Science Book Award
Selected as a Best Book of the Year by over 30 publications, including
The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Washington Post and USA Today
H er name was Henrietta lacks, but scientists know her as Hela.

she was a poor southern tobacco farmer who worked the
same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her
knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine.
The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, they were vital
for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer,
viruses, and the effects of the atom bomb; helped lead to important
advances in cloning, in vitro fertilization, and gene mapping; and
have been bought and sold by the billions, with devastating
consequences for her family.
now Rebecca skloot takes us on an extraordinary journey, from the
“colored” ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1950s to stark
white laboratories with freezers full of Hela cells; from Henrietta’s
small, dying hometown of clover, Virginia—a land of wooden slave
Crown | HC | 978-1-4000-5217-2 | 384pp.
$26.00/$32.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $13.00 quarters, faith healings, and voodoo—to east Baltimore today,
where Henrietta’s children, unable to afford health insurance,
Do not order paperback before 3/8/2011. wrestle with feelings of pride, fear, and betrayal.
Broadway | TR | 978-1-4000-5218-9 | 400pp.
$16.00/$18.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 “what is The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks really about? science,
african american culture and religion, intellectual property of
human tissues, southern history, medical ethics, civil rights, the
overselling of medical advances? . . . the book’s broad scope would
KeY FActs: make it ideal for an institution-wide freshman year reading
Selected for Common Reading at more than program.”
30 colleges/universities including: —David J. Kroll, Professor and Chair, Pharmaceutical Sciences,
University of Arkansas, University of California Santa North Carolina Central University
Barbara, Morehouse College, Spelman College, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks was an excellent summer
Virginia Commonwealth University, and University reading selection. over 2100 first-year students as well as faculty
of Wisconsin, and others. members, research professionals, and university staff took part in
Campus Visits: Author Available over 80 discussion groups during VCu’s welcome week. Her
message inspired students to become passionate and engaged
Themes: Ethics/Decision Making, Human Rights, with both learning and inquiry. throughout their first semester, the
Science & Society, Social Justice book continued to serve as an excellent model of research writing
for our newest students.”
Discussion Guides: Available —Daphne L. Rankin, PhD, Associate Vice Provost for Instruction,
Virginia Commonwealth University
Alternative Formats: Audio, eBook
About the Author: Rebecca skloot

ReBeCCa skLoot has taught at the University of Memphis, New York University and the University
of Pittsburgh. She has worked as a correspondent for NPR’s RadioLab and PBS’s Nova ScienceNOW, and
her writing has appeared in The New York Times Magazine; O, The Oprah Magazine; Discover; Columbia
Journalism Review; and elsewhere.
A Message from Rebecca Skloot
i first learned about Hela cells, and the woman behind them, as a teenager sitting in a freshman
biology class. i knew only fragments of Henrietta’s story, but those fragments inspired me to start asking
questions—about science and mortality, bioethics, and how i’d feel if my own cells were used in
research. i didn’t yet know that her cells had launched a multibillion dollar industry while her children
lived in poverty, or that the cells had devastating consequences for the family.
Henrietta’s story captures the imagination of students in any number of disciplines, including the
sciences, medicine, African American studies, sociology, philosophy, law, bioethics, journalism, and
creative writing. i’ve spoken about Hela at schools around the country, where students are transfixed
by the story. i tell them that if you could pile all Hela cells ever grown on a scale they would weigh
more than one hundred empire state Buildings, and that Hela has been fused with mouse cells to
create Henrietta-mouse hybrid cells. it’s the stuff of science fiction, but it’s true, and students love it.
combine that with the story of Henrietta’s family—a tale about science, religion, race, and class—and
students’ reactions are powerful.
during Q&As, the first question is usually: “Wasn’t it illegal to take her cells and use them in
research without asking?” The answer is no—not in 1951, and not in 2011. Today, most Americans have
their tissue on file somewhere through routine blood tests or biopsies. And since the late sixties, when
testing newborns for genetic diseases became required by law, each baby born in the United states has
had blood taken, and those samples are often stored and used by scientists. This means that the
majority of college students in this country have tissues of their own being used in research, and neither
they nor their parents likely realize it.
As a college professor, i always look for books that bring together the many disparate fields that
students will study throughout their careers and that allow them to explore the real-world consequences
of intellectual discoveries. other professors tell me The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks does just that,
bringing together health, community, family, ethics, religion, science, storytelling, history, business, law,
and humanity.
since spring 2010, i have talked about my book at more than one hundred schools nationwide. As a
regular guest lecturer who’s also worked as a correspondent for radio and television, i understand the
importance of being an engaging speaker, and my talks have been called “moving and engaging of both
the heart and mind.” You can visit the events page of my website at Rebeccaskloot.com to see if i’ll be
speaking at your school, and you can contact me through the site. i look forward to visiting even more
schools as part of their Freshman experience Programs.
As a college biology major, i couldn’t have imagined that Henrietta’s story would lead me to
become a writer, or that writing this book would be a ten-year journey. There’s no telling what effect
this story could have on students. i can’t wait to find out.
Rebecca Skloot
©DePauw University
©DePauw University
©Rebecca Skloot
Rebecca skloot talks with students and signs books at depauw university and university of alabama

BLIND DESCENT Website: www.JamesMTabor.com
The Quest to Discover the Deepest Place on Earth
By James M. Tabor
A t the beginning of the new millennium, the earth’s deepest

cave—the supercave—remained undiscovered. in 2004, two
great scientist-explorers attempted to find the bottom of the world.
American Bill stone was committed to the vast cheve cave, located
in southern mexico and deadly even by supercave standards. on
the other side of the globe, the Ukrainian explorer Alexander
Klimchouk targeted Krubera, a freezing nightmare of a supercave
NEW in the Republic of Georgia.
in Blind Descent, journalist James m. Tabor draws on unprece-
dented access to logs, journals, photographs, video footage, and
interviews with the participants to describe the thousand-foot
drops, deadly flooded tunnels, raging whitewater rivers, monstrous
waterfalls, and mile-long belly crawls encountered along the way.
This book ultimately stands as a compelling addition to the
literature of scientific discovery.
“a fascinating and informative introduction to the sport of cave
diving, as well as a dramatic portrayal of a significant man-vs.-
nature conflict. . . . what counts is tabor’s knack for maximizing
dramatic potential, while also managing to be informative and
attentive to the major personalities associated with the most
important cave explorations of the last two decades.”
Random House | HC | 978-1-4000-6767-1 | 304pp. —Kirkus Reviews
$26.00/$31.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $13.00
“gripping and well-written account of the treacherous world of
deep cave exploration . . . best suited to true-adventure fans or any
recreational readers seeking a pulse-raising tale of real-life drama
KeY FActs: and grim determination.” —Library Journal
Campus Visits: Author Available “ . . . [L]ike The Perfect Storm or Shadow Divers.”
Themes: Environment, Perseverance/Personal —The Washington Post
Strength, Science & Society “Heart-stopping and relentlessly gripping. tabor takes us on an
Alternative Formats: eBook odyssey into unfathomable worlds beneath us, and into the hearts
of rare explorers who will do anything to get there first.”
—Robert Kurson, author of Shadow Divers
About the Author: James M. tabor

James m. taBoR’s last book was the international award-winning Forever on the Mountain: The Truth
Behind One of Mountaineering’s Most Controversial and Mysterious Disasters. The writer and on-camera
host of the acclaimed national PBS series The Great Outdoors, Tabor was also co-creator and executive
producer for the 2007 History Channel special Journey to the Center of the World. Tabor is a former
contributing editor to Outside magazine and Ski Magazine; his writing has also appeared in Time,
Smithsonian, Barron’s, U.S. News & World Report, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and many
other national publications.
A Message from James M. Tabor
Agony. Ecstasy. Injury. Death. Betrayal. Brotherhood and sisterhood. Accidents. Triumphs.
Unknown realms. Exploration and discovery. Overwhelming obstacles. Ingenious victories.
These are some of the reasons why i think Blind Descent would make good reading for
first-year students. Here are two great truths: Hockey games, reduced to their essences, are
nothing more than two players racing towards the puck; everything else that happens is
connecting tissue, secondary, quotidian. The same is true of life. Reduced to its essence, life is
a series of critical moments linked by days, months, years, or decades of the stuff we do to pass
time. Work. Play. eat. sleep. drive. Party. study, etc.
There are some people who are not content to wait for life to bring them critical moments.
For a variety of reasons, they go out of their way to create such junctures, often placing
themselves in harm’s way to do so. Who are these people? George leigh mallory, the great
everest pioneer, who gave his life to the quest. navy lt. donald Walsh, who descended
approximately 36,000 feet in the waters of the Pacific in 1961—a feat never repeated. Jacques
Yves cousteau, who courted death countless times to open the undersea world for the rest of
us. lindbergh. magellan. cortes. messner. Armstrong et al.
such people exist today, doing the same things such people have always done. i think of
them as the human race’s great forerunners, going places and doing things that no one has
ever done before, proving that the rest of us—somehow, some way—could go to those same
places and do those same things.
Blind Descent is about two such men and the people they lead in their quest to discover
and explore the deepest cave on earth. Their actions are on par with those of the great polar
explorers, mountaineers, oceaneers. one can even make a credible case that their explorations
were as dangerous and isolated as those of the Apollo astronauts.
What these people did required taking ultimate risks, (sometimes dying in the process),
and undergoing physical, mental, and emotional ordeals that the rest of us can barely imagine,
let alone endure. so Blind Descent captures people in the most critical moments imaginable. it
explains how and why they got to those moments and how they dealt with them. some
reviewers compared my book to The Perfect Storm and Into Thin Air, which might seem odd
at first glance. Storm was about the ocean; Air the mountains, after all; and Descent is about
caves. But all of these books are really about people—people who, by choice rather than
chance, find themselves in extremis. come to think of it, in that regard they’re not unlike
oedipus, lear, Henry Fleming, and santiago—or, in the real world, columbus, david
crockett, John Brown and . . . well, you get the idea.
Blind Descent is written as well as i could write it. it’s about people doing ultimate things
as well as they can be done. some die. some live. none come back unchanged. This makes for
a book worth reading.
James M. Tabor

HIstoRY and soCIetY
FREEDOM: Stories Celebrating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

By Amnesty International USA Website: www.AmnestyUSA.org
in honor of its 50th anniversary, Amnesty international, the notable and noble human rights
organization, has brought together several internationally acclaimed writers, asking them to
NEW contribute stories inspired by the Universal declaration of Human Rights. empathetic and
thought-provoking, but never didactic, Paulo coehlo, nadine Gordimer, Yann martel, Joyce
carol oates, and many more present ruminations and meditations on struggles for freedom
and equality, and efforts against repression and injustice, encouraging an understanding of
the victories that have been won and how much more still needs to be done to ensure that the
basic rights of all are respected and protected.
Broadway | TR | 978-0-307-58883-8 | 432pp. | $16.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: ethics • Human Rights • social Justice
BEYOND FUNDAMENTALISM Website:

Confronting Religious Extremism in the Age of Globalization www.RezaAslan.com
By Reza Aslan
“In this provocative and engaging book, Reza Aslan shows why he is one of America’s leading
analysts of the confusing and frightening forces that confront us. It is Aslan’s great gift to see
things clearly, and to say them clearly, and in this important new work he offers us a way
forward. He is prescriptive and passionate, and his book will make you think.”
—Jon Meacham, author of the Pulitzer-Prize-winning American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House
themes: discovering differences • Identity • Inclusiveness
Also by Reza Aslan:
NO GOD BUT GOD: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam
Random House | TR | 0-8129-7189-2 | 336pp. | $14.95/$21.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
NOBODIES: Modern American Slave Labor and the Website:

Dark Side of the New Global Economy www.JohnBowe.wordpress.com
By John Bowe
in Nobodies, John Bowe travels from the agricultural quagmires of Florida to the factories and
brothels of saipan, filing a first-hand report on the working conditions that our government
and our corporations depend on, but are trying their best to ignore. Bowe delivers a sobering
look at the moral costs of cheap goods—from orange juice to cut-rate fashions—to which our
economy has grown so accustomed.
This is rich and vibrant reporting—not a polemic, but a presentation of things as they are on
the underside of American commerce.
themes: global Citizenship • Human Rights • social Justice
HOLLOWING OUT THE MIDDLE

The Rural Brain Drain and What It Means for America
By Patrick J. Carr and Maria J. Kefalas
it is happening across America, and it will have a tremendous impact on the nation’s cultural
and economic life—young people are leaving small towns in droves, often with the encour-
agement of their parents, to seek a more prosperous life elsewhere. But what does this mean
for the future of rural communities? carr and Kefalas moved to iowa to speak to some of
these young people, and here they present the stories of working-class “stayers,” ambitious and
college-bound “achievers,” “seekers” who head off to war, and the “returners” who eventually
come back. Their portrait of small-town America is detailed, illuminating—and worrisome.
author available
themes: Coming of age • group dynamics • Regionalism: Iowa/the midwest/Rural america
HIstoRY and soCIetY
FACTORY GIRLS: From Village to City in a Changing China Website:
By Leslie T. Chang www.LeslieTChang.com
A New York Times Book Review Notable Book of the Year
Former Wall Street Journal Beijing correspondent leslie chang investigates the lives of
female chinese migrant workers—an enormous and growing population upon whom much
of the world’s economic growth depends. A book of global significance that provides new
insight into china, Factory Girls demonstrates how the mass movement from rural villages
to cities is remaking individual lives and transforming chinese society, much as immigration
remade America a century ago.
“Chang’s deeply affecting book tells the story of the invisible foot soldiers who made China’s
stirring rise possible.” —The New York Times
themes: gender Issues • Regionalism: China/asia • social Justice
PARADISE BENEATH HER FEET Website: www.IsobelColeman.com

How Women Are Transforming the Middle East NEW
By Isobel Coleman
in the middle east, islam is often used to justify the oppression of women. However,
coleman shows how some muslim activists are promoting moderate and progressive
interpretations of islam to promote women’s rights. men and women in saudi Arabia, iraq,
iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan are profiled, illuminating how they are working to create
economic, political, and educational opportunities for women—using the tenets of islam to
support their endeavors. This hopeful book suggests that, by working for women’s rights
from within islam, rather than from outside and against it, the middle east and the lives of
its women can be transformed.
themes: gender Issues • Human Rights • Inclusiveness
NOTHING TO ENVY: Ordinary Lives in North Korea Website: www.NothingToEnvy.com

By Barbara Demick
American journalist Barbara demick interviewed six
north Koreans who attempted to build careers, relationships, and lives in north Korea, only
to defect when they realized the extent of the government’s deception and abuse of its own
citizens. never before has such a penetrating view of contemporary north Korea been Now in
paperback
published. Readers will be amazed by this insider’s account of the world’s most isolated state.
“Demick’s potent blend of personal narratives and piercing journalism vividly and evocatively
portrays courageous individuals and a tyrannized state within a saga of unfathomable
suffering punctuated by faint glimmers of hope.” —Booklist (starred review)
themes: discovering differences • Human Rights • Regionalism: north korea/asia
SONIC BOOM Website: www.GreggEasterbrook.com

A Guide to Surviving and Thrivingin the
New Global Economy
By Gregg Easterbrook
With humor, pitch-perfect reporting, and clear, elegant prose, Gregg easterbrook explains
why, although economic recovery is on the horizon, the next phase of global change will be
problematic. First, he contends that the world is about to become far more globally linked.
second, the next wave of global change will be primarily positive: economic prosperity,
Now in
knowledge, and freedom will increase more in the next fifty years than in all of human paperback
history to this point.
themes: global Citizenship • group dynamics • Life skills

HIstoRY and soCIetY
HOW TO UNDERSTAND ISRAEL IN 60 DAYS OR LESS

Written and Illustrated by Sarah Glidden
sarah Glidden happily signed up for a “Birthright israel” tour (an all-expenses-paid,
government-sponsored trip to israel open to young Jews), assuming that she would be
NEW confronted with government propaganda and a whitewashed image of the country. However,
visiting Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, the Golan Heights, and other sites, she finds herself reconsidering
her original assumptions about not only the trip, but israel as a whole and her own Jewish
identity. This wry and fresh graphic novel introduces a voice unafraid to tackle the contentious
politics of the middle east and the charged personal politics of being young and Jewish today.
Vertigo | HC | 978-1-401-22233-8 | 208pp. | $24.99/$28.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $12.50
author available
themes: Coming of age • Identity • Regionalism: middle east
THE INNOCENT MAN Website: www.JGrisham.com

By John Grisham
in 1982, a twenty-one-year-old waitress in oklahoma named debra sue carter was raped and
murdered. For reasons that were never clear, the police suspected former local baseball star
Ron Williamson and his friend dennis Fritz, whom they charged with capital murder. With
the prosecution’s case built on junk science and the testimony of jailhouse snitches and
convicts, Fritz was found guilty and given a life sentence, and Williamson was sent to
death row.
This book is a disturbing account of the very real flaws in the criminal justice system.
A must-read for those interested in law and justice.
Selected for Common Reading at Greensboro College.
Dell Books | MM | 978-0-440-24383-0 | 448pp. | $7.99/$11.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
Delta | TR | 978-0-385-34091-5 | 400pp. | $16.00/$20.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
alternative Formats: audio edition • eBook • teacher’s guide
themes: ethics/decision making • perseverance/personal strength • social Justice
QUIRK: Brain Science Makes Sense of Your Peculiar Personality

By Hannah Holmes
NEW neuroscience has shed light on human motivation and behavior, helping to explain how and
why humans, as a species, do what they do. now, Holmes suggests, brain science can explain
individual personality traits and even replicate those seemingly unique characteristics in mice.
These experiments are illustrating the genetic basis of personality, showing how “personality
quirks” have actually played a significant role in the evolution of the human race. Whether you
are neurotic, outgoing, or optimistic, your personality contributes to the diversity of
humankind, and that diversity, Holmes argues, is key to humankind’s evolutionary success.
themes: Identity • Inclusiveness • science & society
SAY EVERYTHING Website:

How Blogging Began, What It’s Becoming, and Why It Matters www.SayEverything.com
By Scott Rosenberg
critics complain that blogs indulge meaningless chatter and navel-gazing. Rosenberg,
however, offers a refreshing and convincing argument to the contrary. Blogs have had a major
impact on politics, business, and personal lives, breaking major news and creating virtual
communities that mean everything to their members. Here, major players in the blogosphere
are introduced, as Rosenberg traces the rise of the medium. At the same time, readers are
asked to consider the philosophical issues raised by the ubiquity of blogging: How much is too
much information online? is anonymity liberating or dangerous? What does “authenticity”
mean now—if anything?
themes: Communications • group dynamics • Identity
HIstoRY and soCIetY
NOT QUITE ADULTS: Why 20-Somethings Are Choosing a
Slower Path to Adulthood, and Why It’s Good for Everyone
By Richard Settersten, Ph.D. and Barbara E. Ray
Now in
The stereotypes about today’s twenty-somethings are familiar: They are immature; won’t paperback
commit to marriage, childrearing, and a stable job; and remain too attached to their
overbearing “helicopter” parents. However, the data presented here flies in the face of these
assumptions. The millennial generation is growing up in a world markedly different than that
of their parents; therefore, their different pathways to adulthood may be just what they need
to ensure their long-term happiness and success. Because it is so unlike much of what is
written about this generation, Not Quite Adults offers a thoughtful read for compelling
discussion.
themes: Coming of age • Identity • peer group skills
THE WOMAN WHO FELL FROM THE SKY: An American Journalist in Yemen
By Jennifer Steil Website: www.JenniferSteil.net
Yemen is a conservative muslim country. so, it came as a surprise when a major newspaper in
the capital of sana’a asked Jennifer steil—a single, American woman—to teach a journalism
class to the staff. she accepted with both curiosity and anxiety. Attempting to promote free
speech and impartial journalism, she is confronted by open plagiarism and blatant sexism
against female employees. However, she comes to appreciate the complex dignity of muslim
women and forges friendships with people whose beliefs seem worlds apart from her own.
themes: gender Issues • Inclusiveness • Regionalism: Yemen/the middle east
BLOOD DONE SIGN MY NAME: A True Story

By Timothy B. Tyson
Winner, Grawemeyer Award for Religion 2007; A 2004 National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist; A New York Public Library
Book to Remember
in the tradition of To Kill a Mockingbird, Blood Done Sign My Name is a classic work of con-
science. Tim Tyson’s riveting narrative of a fiery summer of racial conflict and one family’s
struggle to build bridges in a time of destruction is a complex rendering of a true story in
which violence and faith, courage and evil, despair and hope all mingle to powerful effect.
“Blood Done Sign My Name is a most important book and one of the most powerful meditations
on race in America that I have ever read.” —Cleveland Plain Dealer
Selected for Common Reading at Furman University, Queens University of Charlotte, University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill, University of Wisconsin at Richland, University of Wisconsin’s College of Letters and Science, Villanova University, and
others.
themes: Inclusiveness • social Justice
COVERING: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights Website: www.KenjiYoshino.com

By Kenji Yoshino
Winner, 2006 Myers Outstanding Book Award; Winner, 2006 American Educational Studies Association Critics’ Choice Award
in Covering, one of the country’s most brilliant young legal scholars fashions a new paradigm
of civil rights. drawing on his experiences as a gay Japanese American, Yale law professor
Kenji Yoshino argues that the culturally sanctioned suppression of our authentic selves is a
harm from which the law should sometimes protect us. more profoundly, he also claims that
law will be less important to the civil rights of the future than a common culture of
authenticity.
Selected for Common Reading at Pomona College, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Virginia Commonwealth
University, Yale University, and others.
author available
themes: discovering differences • Identity • Inclusiveness • social Justice

COLLEGE RULES!, 3rd Edition
How to Study, Survive, and Succeed in College
By Sherrie Nist-Olejnik, Ph.D. and Jodi Patrick Holschuh, Ph.D.
New
Edition
A n updated, expanded edition of the popular guide written by
two college professors that gives students a crash course in
college survival 101.
April 2011 in a sink-or-swim environment, this handbook is a lifeline, helping
students navigate the uncharted waters of university life. now
extensively revised, College Rules! shares essential advice and
strategies that are not taught in lectures or seminars. students learn
how to study effectively, handle stress, prepare for tests, stay
motivated, balance academics and a social life, and avoid common
rookie mistakes. offering much more than study tips, this go-to
guide provides students with the tools they need to thrive, both in
their classes and in the campus community.
This updated and expanded edition of College Rules! gives students
the tools to:
· Study smarter—not harder
· Plan their course schedule
· Master computerized learning technologies
· Figure out their professors’ expectations
· Research efficiently—at the library and online
Ten Speed Press | TR | 978-1-607-74001-8 | 336pp. · Read so they can actually remember things at test time
$14.99/$16.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
· Organize effective study groups
· Feel engaged and interested—even in “yawn” courses
KeY FActs: · Learn killer test strategies and survive exam week
Selected for Common Reading: · Avoid common mistakes the easy way—by learning from others’ sad but
Tennessee Wesleyan College true stories
Campus Visits: Authors Available · Set themselves up for stellar recommendations
Themes: Life Skills, Peer Group Skills, Transition
“the authors make perhaps their greatest contribution when they
Alternative Formats: eBook talk about the power of college to change how students look at the
world.” —The New York Times
About the Authors: sherrie Nist-Olejnik, Ph.D

and Jodi Patrick Holschuh, Ph.D.
sHeRRIe nIst-oLeJnIk, ph.d., is a professor emeritus at the University of Georgia and the
former director of the Division of Academic Enhancement. An active researcher and sought-
after lecturer, she has published numerous articles and textbooks focused on studying and
learning at the college level.
JodI patRICk HoLsCHuH, ph.d., is an associate professor in the Department of

Curriculum and Instruction at Texas State University. An award-winning educator, she teaches
undergraduate courses on building effective and efficient study habits. She also works with
college instructors on enhancing students’ capacity to learn at the university level.
A Message from Sherrie Nist-Olejnik, Ph.D., and Jodi Patrick Holschuh, Ph.D.
Transitions—life is full of them. Transitions can be exciting, feared, hopeful,

anticipated, or a combination of all of these emotions. The transition to college, in
particular, is a milestone that can be a struggle for many. There are lots of reasons why this
transition can be difficult, but the main issue may be that there are, to be blunt, unfamiliar
“rules” governing college life. Through elementary and secondary school, students have
been monitored, prodded to do well, and provided with all sorts of safety nets. in college,
this type of regulation falls by the wayside, as students are expected to manage themselves
independently.
in effect, the rules quickly change. There’s more freedom, and with that freedom
comes responsibility—for both one’s successes and one’s failures. Professors do not remind
students to stay on top of assignments posted in the syllabi, give them bonus points,
reward them for effort alone, or offer them multiple chances to succeed. The idea that
with freedom comes responsibility eludes many students in transition.
We wrote College Rules! to help students understand the “trade secrets” key to making
this transition like a pro. College Rules! provides students with a common language to talk
about their successes, as well as any problems that they are experiencing. They learn the
importance of monitoring their own grasp of the material, reading critically,
understanding the learning process, having a repertoire of research-based learning
strategies at their disposal, managing their whole lives (not just their time), and thinking
at higher levels by going beyond memorization. This rather “heavy” stuff is presented with
humor and with scenarios based on the experiences of students in our own classes.
Because the students who have the toughest time making the transition often say that
college feels like a “have to” rather than a “want to,” we also provide a means to help
students discover (or rediscover) their inner learner.
But perhaps most importantly, College Rules! fulfills one of the major roles of a college
education: it helps students become life-long learners, who have the ability to learn on
their own, regardless of the books they read or the courses they take. We have seen
struggling learners transform into efficient and effective students because they took what
they learned from College Rules! and ran with it. college became a life-changing
experience for them because they could think critically, take responsibility for their own
learning, and apply a variety of approaches when the going got tough. And isn’t that what
college is all about?
each year we are asked to speak at colleges nationwide on how to help students do
more than just “get through” college. As experienced teachers, we understand the need to
engage our audience and speak about real-life stories relating to what works and does not
work. imagine how differently students could end their first year if they were armed with
the information about transitioning to college right from the very first day. We look
forward to speaking at more schools through the First Year experience program.
Sherrie Nist-Olejnik, Ph.D., and Jodi Patrick Holschuh, Ph.D.
Life and College Guides 53

LIFe and CoLLege guIdes
THE ONE-WEEK JOB PROJECT Website: www.OneWeekJob.com

One Man, One Year, Fifty-Two Jobs
By Sean Aiken
like many others of his generation, sean Aiken graduated from college and asked himself,
“What should i do with my life?” Thus, he started the one-Week Job Project, where he
transformed his uncertainty about his future and traveled around the world, working fifty-
two jobs in fifty-two weeks. All of his wages were donated to charity. inventive and
empowering, witty and wise, The One-Week Job Project is a book that will give students the
courage to follow their passions.
Villard Books | TR | 978-0-345-50803-4 | 320pp. | $15.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Identity • Life skills • peer group skills
THE INVISIBLE GORILLA Website: www.TheInvisibleGorilla.com

And Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us
By Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons
in The Invisible Gorilla, christopher chabris and daniel simons, creators of one of
psychology’s most famous experiments, use remarkable stories and counterintuitive
scientific findings to demonstrate an important truth: Our minds don’t work the way we think
they do. We think we see ourselves and the world as they really are, but we are actually
missing a whole lot.
chabris and simons combine the work of other researchers with their own findings on
attention, perception, memory, and reasoning to reveal how faulty intuitions often get us
into trouble.
themes: Identity • Life skills • peer group skills
MADE TO STICK Website: www.MadeToStick.com

Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die
By Chip Heath and Dan Heath
Why do some ideas thrive while others die? And how do we improve the chances of worthy
ideas? chip and dan Heath tackle these vexing questions head-on. in this indispensable
guide, we discover that sticky messages of all kinds—from the infamous “kidney theft ring”
hoax, to a coach’s lessons on sportsmanship, to a vision for a new product at sony—draw
their power from the same six traits. Provocative, eye-opening, and often surprisingly funny,
Made to Stick reveals the vital components of winning ideas—and shows us how to make our
own messages stick.
authors available • alternative Formats: audio edition • eBook• teacher’s guide
themes: group dynamics • Leadership & motivation • Life skills
SWITCH Website: www.HeathBrothers.com

How to Change Things When Change Is Hard
By Chip Heath and Dan Heath
This compelling narrative about the difficulty of bringing about genuine, lasting change in
ourselves and in others—especially when one has few resources and no title or authority—is
a riveting read that will change lives. combining psychology, sociology, management, and
case studies from a host of different fields, the authors tell countless stories of people and
organizations who have successfully created significant change, by using what the authors
call Bright spots to break bigger goals down into more manageable steps—what the authors
call small steps.
Crown Business | HC | 978-0-385-52875-7 | 320pp. | $26.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $13.00
authors available • alternative Formats: audio edition • eBook
themes: group dynamics • Life skills • social Justice
LIFe and CoLLege guIdes
Also Available:
CRACKING THE HIDDEN JOB MARKET NEW
By Donald Asher
Ten Speed Press | TR | 978-1-58008-494-9 | 208pp. | $14.99/$16.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Identity • Life skills
WHAT COLOR IS YOUR PARACHUTE? 2011 Website:

A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers www.JobHuntersBible.com
By Richard N. Bolles
WHAT COLOR IS YOUR PARACHUTE? JOB-HUNTER’S WORKBOOK NEW

author available
THE CAREER COUNSELOR’S HANDBOOK

author available
themes: Life skills • service
WHAT COLOR IS YOUR PARACHUTE? FOR TEENS Website:

Discovering Yourself, Defining Your Future www.CarolChristen.com
By Carol Christen, Richard N. Bolles, and Jean M. Blomquist
author available
themes: Coming of age • Identity • Life skills
MAJOR IN SUCCESS, 5TH ED.

Make College Easier, Fire up Your Dreams, and Get a Great Job
By Patrick Combs; Foreword by Jack Canfield
author available
themes: Life skills • peer group dynamics
10 THINGS EMPLOYERS WANT YOU TO LEARN IN COLLEGE

The Know-How You Need to Succeed
By William D. Coplin
themes: Life skills • peer group skills
GETTING THE BEST OUT OF COLLEGE

A Professor, A Dean, and A Student Tell You How to Maximize Your Experience
By Peter Feaver, Sue Wasiolek, and Anne Crossman
author available
LECTURE NOTES: A Professor’s Inside Guide to College Success

By Philip Freeman, Ph.D.
Life and College Guides 55

THE RAGGED EDGE OF SILENCE: Finding Peace in a Noisy World
By John Francis
i n 1972, disgusted by humankind’s poor treatment and

destruction of the environment, John Francis started walking,
rejecting all forms of motorized transportation. still, he felt he
wasn’t doing enough to show his dissent. Therefore, on his twenty-
seventh birthday, he took a vow of silence; he didn’t utter another
word for the next seventeen years. Rather than withdraw into a
cloistered, uncommunicative existence, however, Francis earned
both undergraduate and graduate degrees, learned to play the
banjo, and began working for the U.n.
in his previous book, Planetwalker, Francis related the everyday
realities of his walking years, presenting a compelling example of
how to live one’s political ideals. in The Ragged Edge of Silence, he
turns his attention exclusively to the silence he cultivated. However,
NEW he moves beyond his own experience, using it as a jumping-off
point to ruminate on the history of human attempts at silence and
how to achieve silence in an increasingly noisy world. Anecdotes
and insights explore the scientifically-proven benefits of silence and
the relationship between silence and creativity, while practical
techniques explain how everyone can achieve a workable,
Do not order before 3/15/2011. meaningful state of quiet in their own lives.
National Geographic | HC | 978-1-426-20723-5 | 272pp. silence is not a monolithic concept; there is introspective silence
$26.00/$30.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $13.00
and interactive silence, both of which—counterintuitively—offer
KeY FActs: unique and constructive means of communication. Francis urges us
to rethink the place of silence in the world, to embrace it in order to
cultivate mindfulness and self-awareness, and to deepen our bonds
Themes: Environment, Leadership & Motivation, with others and the environment.
Life Skills
Also Available:
PLANETWALKER: 22 Years of Walking. 17 Years of Silence. For more information, visit

www.PlanetWalker.org
By John Francis, Ph.D.
2007 Gold Winner—Nautilus Book Awards in the categories of Ecology/Environment and Independent Press
After witnessing the devastating effects of the 1971 oil spill in san Francisco Bay, John Francis
began a remarkable, solitary pilgrimage that would change his life irrevocably. An amazing
human-interest story with a vital message about saving our environment, Planetwalker is also
an engaging coming-of-age odyssey, full of the positive experiences, the challenging times, the
characters encountered, and the learning gained along the way.
Selected for Common Reading at University at South Carolina Upstate.
National Geographic | TR | 978-1-4262-0405-0 | 288pp. | $16.95/$20.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: environment • Life skills • Leadership & motivation
About the Author: John Francis

JoHn FRanCIs is Founder and Director of the nonprofit environmental education organization
Planetwalk and author of Planetwalker: 22 Years of Walking, 17 Years of Silence (National Geographic
Books, 2008). John has led environmental walks in many countries and consulted on environmental
management and sustainable development. He travels the world, speaking on pilgrimage and change.
As a National Geographic Education Fellow, John is developing Planetlines, an environmental studies
curriculum for grades K-12 and universities.
Excerpts from the Ragged edge of silence
Amid the clamor of day and the quietude of night, it waits for discovery. like the wilderness
beside an asphalt road, in a vacant city lot, or park, silence is the refuge and the void to which
we are both drawn and repelled. At its edge all creation begins and ends.
FFFFFFFF
i soon discovered that charles, despite being blind from birth, must have been an individual
of strong will and determination to live beyond the boundaries of his sightlessness. He was not
satisfied with merely hearing me recount stories of my journey; he wanted to walk the rocky
trails and the narrow brushy paths up and down the hills all the way to the sea. He asked me if
i would be his eyes. With charles, my walking took on a new dimension.
FFFFFFFF
“do you hear it?” charles asked….“You don’t hear the plane, do you?”
i tilted my head and cupped my hand around my right ear as i listened for the growl of an
engine. “i don’t hear it,” i said. “is it a plane?”
He nodded his head and said that he had heard it just a moment ago, and that if we continued
to listen we would hear it again. in a few moments, we heard the low groan of a small prop
plane that passed over the spot where we were standing. charles explained that the sound of
the engine as it reached us was not uniform. “You may think that the sound reaches us
uniformly as if we were in a smooth sphere.” He waved his hand in a circle above his head. “it
doesn’t, because of the wind and maybe some other atmospheric conditions. The result is that
we can hear the sound sporadically as the plane approaches until those conditions have
minimal effect. it’s like a ragged edge,” he offered triumphantly.
Excerpted from the Introduction of The Ragged Edge of Silence: Finding Peace in a Noisy World by John Francis, Ph.D., National
Geographic Books, 2011.
Courtesy of Author Courtesy of Author
Go Green 57
go gReen
FAREWELL, MY SUBARU: An Epic Adventure in Local Living Website:

By Doug Fine www.DougFine.com
did you know it takes more water to sustain a vegetable crop in new mexico for a year than
it would to sustain a Bangladeshi village of five hundred? did you know almost all
components of a solar-powered water pump are made in Japan or denmark? did you know
it takes 16,000 gallons of jet fuel to fly an organic banana from Honduras to silver city, new
mexico? neither did doug Fine. Farewell, My Subaru is the hilarious and inspirational
account of a long island suburbanite’s attempt to go green—extreme green—in rural new
mexico.
Selected for Common Reading at The University of Texas at San Antonio.
themes: environment • ethics/decision making • global Citizenship
ECOLOGICAL INTELLIGENCE Website: www.DanielGoleman.info

The Hidden Impacts of What We Buy
By Daniel Goleman
“The theme of ecological awareness and environmental sustainability emerged as we
considered a variety of books. The selection committee felt that such a theme would offer
many options for engagement and use of the book across all colleges and disciplines. It could
connect with new university efforts in the area of heightened environmental awareness and
action and provide opportunities to facilitate community service options for students and
faculty.” —Ron Daniel, Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education, Virginia Tech
Selected for Common Reading at Virginia Tech.
Crown Business | TR | 978-0-385-52783-5 | 288pp. | $16.00/$19.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: environment • ethics/decision making • science & society
HOPE BENEATH OUR FEET: Restoring Our Place in the Natural World
Edited by Martin Keogh
Contributions by Michael Pollan, Barbara Kingsolver, Alice Walker, and Howard Zinn
martin Keogh posed the question “if our world is facing imminent environmental
catastrophe, how do i live my life right now?” to a number of prominent thinkers and
activists; their responses make up this stimulating collection. Alice Walker, Bill mcKibben,
Howard Zinn, and michael Pollan, among many others, offer constructive ways to engage,
participate, and make an impact. They offer solutions and approaches that often are at odds,
but are nevertheless unified by a sense of possibility, purpose, and passion. Readers will be
inspired to perform the suggested solutions themselves, while coming up with their own
innovations as well.
North Atlantic Books | TR | 978-1-556-43919-3 | 330pp. | $18.95/$21.50 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
author available
themes: environment • Leadership & motivation • science & society
PLENTY: Eating Locally on the 100-Mile Diet Website: www.100MileDiet.org

By Alisa Smith and J. B. MacKinnon
Plenty relates the remarkable, amusing, and inspiring adventures of a canadian couple who
make a year-long attempt to eat only foods grown and produced within a 100-mile radius of
their apartment. This food-focused experiment offers a way to think about globalization,
monoculture, the oil economy, environmental collapse, and community, as the authors
reveal a meaningful way to relate to the very essence of human survival: the food we eat.
“A funny, warm, and seductive account of how we might live better—better for this earth,
better for the community, better for our bellies!” —Bill McKibben
Selected for Common Reading at Humboldt State University.
Clarkson Potter | TR | 978-0-307-34733-6 | 272pp. | $13.95/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: environment • science & society • social Justice
go gReen
THE EARTH’S LAST WILDERNESS Go to www.2041.com/education
A Quest to Save Antarctica for information about a curriculum
By Robert Swan with Gil Reavill developed around this book.
in 1985, when Robert swan walked across Antarctica, the fragile polar environment was not
a high priority in his mind. But upon his return, the earth’s perilous state became personal:
Robert’s ice-blue eyes were singed a pale gray, a result of being exposed to the sun’s rays
passing unfiltered through the depleted ozone layer. His commitment to preserving the
environment was born, and in The Earth’s Last Wilderness, swan details his journey to
awareness, providing the information and tools readers need to reverse the harm done to Now in
the planet thus far and secure its future for generations to come. paperback
themes: environment • ethics/decision making • science & society
Also Available:
GREEN VOLUNTEERS
8th Edition
By Fabio Ausenda
Universe | TR | 978-88-89060-19-3 | 256pp. | $16.95/$18.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: environment • social Justice
ED BEGLEY, JR.’S GUIDE TO SUSTAINABLE LIVING Website:

Learning to Conserve Resources and Manage an Eco-Conscious Life www.EdBegley.com
By Ed Begley, Jr.
Clarkson Potter | TR | 978-0-307-40514-2 | 352pp. | $22.50/$27.95 Can. | Exam Copy: $11.25
themes: environment
READY, SET, GREEN Website:

Eight Weeks to Modern Eco-Living http://www.treehugger.com/readysetgreen/
By Graham Hill and Meaghan O’Neill
themes: environment • Life skills
THE WATER BOOK Now in

A Simple Approach to One of Earth’s Most Precious Resources paperback
Edited by Anna Krusinski
Hatherleigh Press | TR | 978-1-578-26345-5 | 128pp. | $11.00/$13.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: environment • science & society
SHIFT YOUR HABIT Website: www.ShiftYourHabit.com

Easy Ways to Save Money, Simplify Your Life,
and Save the Planet
By Elizabeth Rogers
themes: environment • Life skills
Go Green 59
THE ENOUGH MOMENT Website: www.EnoughProject.org
Fighting to End Africa’s Worst Human Rights Crimes
By John Prendergast with Don Cheadle
i n their follow-up to the bestselling Not On Our Watch, which

brought awareness to the genocide in sudan, human rights
activist John Prendergast and oscar-nominated actor and
philanthropist don cheadle present The Enough Moment: Fighting
to End Africa’s Worst Human Rights Crimes, an empowering look at
how people’s movements and inspired policies can stop genocide,
child soldier recruitment, and rape as a war weapon in Africa.
As Prendergast and cheadle describe, an “enough moment”
is defined as that time when outrage triggers action and bystanders
become “Upstanders,” or people who take action on behalf of
others. They illustrate with such examples:
• A high school student in Chicago started Youth United for Darfur to raise
awareness of genocide.
• A seventy-eight-year-old retired educator in Seattle founded a coalition of churches
and organizations to raise awareness and funds for humanitarian relief.
• A young Darfurian woman founded an association of women journalists that use
radios and phones to warn towns of militia groups in their area.
Prendergast and cheadle shed light on this burgeoning mass
movement against human rights crimes, showing how it is
composed of citizen activism, social networking, compassion,
Three Rivers Press | TR | 978-0-307-46482-8 | 304pp. celebrities, and globalization. They also provide action steps for the
$14.99/$16.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 interested citizen and interview well-known and influential people
on how they have been moved to action by their enough moments.
interviews in The Enough Moment include: madeleine Albright,
KeY FActs: Ann curry, Robin Wright, mia Farrow, and emile Hirsch.
Campus Visits: Author Available “an important, valuable toolkit that will inspire many.”
Themes: Human Rights, Regionalism: Africa, —Kirkus Reviews
Social Justice
About the Authors: John Prendergast and Don cheadle

JoHn pRendeRgast is a human rights activist and author. He is co-founder of the Enough Project (EnoughProject.org),
an initiative to end genocide and crimes against humanity. During the Clinton administration, he was
involved in a number of peace processes in Africa while he was Director of African Affairs at the National
Security Council and Special Advisor at the Department of State.
don CHeadLe is an actor, film producer, philanthropist, and author. Cheadle rose to prominence for
his supporting roles in the films Out of Sight, Traffic, and Ocean’s Eleven. In 2004, his lead role as Rwandan
hotel manager Paul Rusesabagina in the genocide drama film Hotel Rwanda earned him an Academy
Award nomination for Best Actor.
A Message from John Prendergast
Three of the most horrible scourges facing humanity are genocide (the destruction of people based
on their identity), rape as a war weapon (the deliberate destruction of women through targeted sexual
violence), and child slavery (children who are forcibly recruited to become killing machines or sex
slaves).
All three seem overwhelming and intractable, but the reality is that there are specific and concrete
solutions that can be implemented, if only there were the political and popular will to do so.
Help is indeed on the way. in the last five years, a growing people’s movement has been born in the
United states and other countries to stop the genocide in darfur. similarly, there are rapidly expanding
international efforts to protect and empower the women of eastern congo, who are subject to sexual
violence more extreme than anywhere else in the world, as well as the children of central Africa (the
invisible children), who have experienced the highest abduction rates in the world at the hands of the
brutal lord’s Resistance Army rebel group.
once they learn about these human rights crimes, people are eager to learn how they can make a
difference. We’ve learned a lot in the last few years, from our travels around the U.s. meeting concerned
citizens, about how to empower people to get involved, how to appeal to a wide cross-section of folks to
demonstrate how change happens, and how the individual—working in the context of community—is
at the center of change throughout history. The women’s movement, the civil rights movement, the
labor movement, the environmental movement, the anti-apartheid movement—all of these were
propelled in large part by passionate and dedicated individuals, often small in number at the beginning,
who believed in standing up for human rights and human dignity.
For the first time in history, we have a real international anti-genocide movement. We also have a
growing chorus that could become a movement focused on stopping the destruction of women in the
congo. We have a non-traditional, underground phenomenon called “invisible children” sweeping
through college campuses, dedicated to finding a solution to the child soldier phenomenon in central
Africa. Building the scale and scope of these efforts through this book and associated campaigns
provides a unique and historic opportunity to help alter the course of history.
The Enough Moment presents the transformative tales of what we call “Frontline Upstanders” from
war zones in Africa, “citizen Upstanders” from around the U.s., and “Famous Upstanders” from the
world of celebrity, including Angelina Jolie, Ben Affleck, madeleine Albright, Ryan Gosling, Tracy
mcGrady, Ann curry, and mariska Hargitay. The book also provides an expansive menu of action items
to empower each reader to become part of the movement. These stories will be channeled into what
amounts to a recruitment drive: to help build a meaningful people’s movement dedicated to ending
these human rights crimes.
Ultimately, all the greatest policy ideas in the world mean nothing if we don’t have a permanent
constituency of people behind the ideas, demanding that our elected officials do something.
The Enough Moment provides a way for readers to become part of this popular movement against mass
atrocities that, if successful, could literally help change the fate of millions of people.
John Prendergast
Social Action 61
THE YOUNG ACTIVIST’S GUIDE TO BUILDING A
GREEN MOVEMENT AND CHANGING THE WORLD
By Sharon J. Smith
A powerful and practical guide to environmental activism,

featuring proven strategies and lessons learned from the
winners of earth island institute’s Brower Youth Awards—
America’s top honor for young green leaders—The Young Activist’s
Guide is now available in paperback.
some of the world’s most inspiring and effective leaders aren’t even
old enough to vote. in The Young Activist’s Guide, the director of
earth island institute’s Brower Youth Awards distills the hard-won
lessons of its youth leaders into clear and effective strategies for
getting organized, taking action, and making environmental
NEW changes that matter. This easy-to-follow, definitive resource
explains how to plan a campaign, recruit supporters, hold a rally,
raise money, attract media attention, pass legislation, lobby
politicians, and more in order to make a significant and sustainable
impact on the health of our planet.
Contents
Foreword by Julia Butterfly Hill
Acknowledgments
Do not order paperback before 2/22/2011. Contributors
Ten Speed Press | TR | 978-1-58008-561-8 | 224pp.
$14.99/$16.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00 Introduction: If You Want to Go Far, Go Together
1. Find Your Passion
2. Create an Action Plan
KeY FActs:
3. Build a Green Movement
4. Spread Your Message
Themes: Environment, Global Citizenship,
Leadership & Motivation 5. Politics
Alternative Formats: eBook 6. Corporate Campaigns

7. Protest with Power
8. Make Media Headlines
9. Grow the Green
10. Green Your Campus
11. Change the World
Index
About the Author: sharon J. smith

sHaRon J. smItH is the director of Earth Island Institute’s Brower Youth Awards, a program that
honors the best and brightest environmental leaders in the United States under twenty-three years of
age. She has worked extensively with youth and student networks in the global justice, peace, and
environmental movements. Smith graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, with degrees in
conservation and resource studies and anthropology.
A Message from Sharon J. Smith
There are 18 million college and university

students in the United states, and billions of dollars
are spent at these educational institutions each year.
The collective environmental footprint of students is
© Drew Altizer Photography

enormous, making the academic universe a perfect
place to spark conversations about sustainability. no
wonder, then, that students are hungry for stories,
tools, and solutions that will help them make a
difference on a large scale.
sharon J. smith (pictured left) at the 2009 Brower
i wrote The Young Activist’s Guide to Building a Youth awards ceremony in san Francisco, Ca.
Green Movement and Changing the World in part to
make the invisible visible. While we hear lots about the adults who are solving environmental
problems, an enormous amount of groundbreaking work has been undertaken by students,
who simply saw a problem and then rallied their peers to change the status quo. i wanted to
shine a spotlight on amazing youth such as Jessie-Ruth corkins, whose science project saved
her school $90,000 and greened its heating system, and Billy Parish, whose small student
group became one of the most influential coalitions in America addressing climate change.
my hope is that these stories will serve as a catalyst, showing ordinary people how the
seemingly impossible is actually possible. The eco-heroes in my book made national headlines
for passing legislation, founding lasting nonprofits, protecting local wildlands from
bulldozers, and raising millions of dollars for sustainability—all before their twenty-third
birthdays. my book offers students a roadmap to sparking their own green movements locally,
using the best practices generated by their own peers.
i invite you to consider adopting my book for your common reading program, as a way to
open a dialogue about the very real environmental challenges young people are inheriting in
the twenty-first century. As we know, conversation is our richest source of solutions and
inspiration, and every local challenge is best met with a locally crafted solution.
my book is just the beginning: i am available for speaking engagements, as are many of
the individuals featured in the success stories in the book. Please feel free to contact me at
www.buildagreenmovement.org to request a visit.
i’d like to close with margaret mead’s words. As
many times as i have read them, they never lose
their power—especially in light of my own
experience watching students succeed in dizzying
ways in their own ventures: “never doubt that a
© Drew Altizer Photography
small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can

change the world. indeed, it is the only thing that
ever has.”
Sharon J. Smith
Social Action 63
soCIaL aCtIon
WORLD VOLUNTEERS: 4th Edition

The World Guide to Humanitarian and Development Volunteering
By Fabio Ausenda and Erin McCloskey
When it comes to humanitarian volunteering, how does one choose the right organization
that matches their interest, experience, age, and availability? This guide is a great tool for
people without previous volunteering experience abroad who want to get involved in
humanitarian aid projects throughout the world. The projects listed can be either short or
long-term for professionals who want to take a leave of absence or for retired professionals
who want to make their skills and experience available to help others. For young people
without volunteering experience abroad, the World Volunteers guide lists many
organizations offering work-camps to help familiarize them with development and
humanitarian work worldwide.
Universe | TR | 978-88-89060-13-1 | 256pp. | $16.95/$20.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
SHOWING UP FOR LIFE

Thoughts on the Gifts of a Lifetime
By Bill Gates, Sr. and Mary Ann Mackin
Foreword by Bill Gates
Through a wide-ranging arpeggio of stories and anecdotes, lessons and insights, inveterate
do-gooder Bill Gates, sr.—lawyer, activist, husband, father, philanthropist—conveys the
values and principles he’s learned in life, has instilled in his children, and now practices on a
world stage as the co-chair of the Bill and melinda Gates Foundation.
Broadway Business | TR | 978-0-385-52702-6 | 208pp. | $13.99/$16.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
DO IT ANYWAY Website: www.CourtneyEMartin.com

The New Generation of Activists
By Courtney E. Martin
Young people today are apathetic and not interested in political activism or social change.
That, at least, is what older generations claim—but courtney martin presents a very
different view. she depicts the lives and careers of eight young activists, including a prison
social worker; an eighth-grade teacher in the Bronx; a former soldier working to end
violence against women in the military; and Rachel corrie, the activist killed in the Gaza
strip while protesting israeli policies against Palestinians. meet this new generation of
activists and be inspired to create change in your own world and beyond.
themes: service • social Justice
CITIZEN YOU Website: www.CitizenYou.org

Doing Your Part to Change the World
By Jonathan Tisch with Karl Weber
Foreword by Cory Booker
This is a stirring call to “active citizenship,” which moves beyond charity and volunteerism,
advocating instead a holistic, systemic approach to changing the world. This call to action
will inspire readers to join this empowering and world-changing mission.
“Tisch documents a shift from volunteerism to active citizenship, less about alleviating
symptoms and more about addressing root causes in problems like poverty, hunger,
homelessness, and disease. By the time a concluding list of 51 ways to ‘join the movement’
rolls around, it’s likely Tisch will have inspired readers to take him up on one of them.”
—Publishers Weekly
Crown | HC | 978-0-307-58848-7 | 288pp. | $24.00/$28.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $12.00
pHILosopHY
ETHICS
The Essential Writings
Edited by Gordon Marino
Philosopher Gordon marino skillfully presents an accessible, provocative anthology of both
ancient and modern classics on matters moral. The philosophers represent 2,500 years of
thought—from Plato, Kant, and nietzsche to Alasdair macintyre, susan Wolf, and Peter
singer—and cover a broad range of topics, from timeless questions of justice, morality, and
faith, to the hot-button concerns of today, such as animal rights and gender issues. This
modern library edition is the perfect single-volume reference for students, teachers, and
anyone eager to engage in reflection on ethical questions, including “What is the basis for
our ethical views and judgments?”
Modern Library | TR | 978-0-8129-7778-3 | 640pp. | $18.00/$21.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: discovering differences • ethics/decision making • Identity
THE LIFE YOU CAN SAVE Website: www.TheLifeYouCanSave.com

How to Do Your Part to End World Poverty
By Peter Singer
in The Life You Can Save, philosopher Peter singer makes the irrefutable argument that
giving will make a huge difference in the lives of others without diminishing the quality of
our own. This book is an urgent call to action and a hopeful primer on the power of
compassion—when mixed with rigorous investigation and careful reasoning—to lift others
out of despair.
Used for: Wesleyan Integrative Summer Experience.
themes: ethics/decision making • Leadership & motivation • social Justice
THE BLACK SWAN: Second Edition Website: www.FooledByRandomness.com

The Impact of the Highly Improbable
By Nassim Nicholas Taleb
A black swan is a highly improbable event that is unpredictable, carries a massive impact,
and later appears more predictable than it was. Why do we not acknowledge these black
swans until after they occur? According to Taleb, humans are hardwired to learn specifics
when they should be focused on generalities. We concentrate on things we already know and
repeatedly fail to consider what we don’t know. We are, therefore, unable to truly estimate
opportunities; too vulnerable to the impulse to simplify, narrate, and categorize; and not
open enough to rewarding those brave enough to imagine the “impossible.”
Selected for Wellesley Reads 2010.
themes: ethics/decision making • group dynamics
Philosophy 65
moneY matteRs
College students today face a world of economic uncertainty. It is vital that these students be equipped with
the skills essential for navigating this new economy. With books by acclaimed personal financial experts
Suze Orman and David Bach, students learn to make smarter financial decisions, while developing an
understanding of the nature of today’s economy.
Author Spotlight: suze Orman

suze oRman is the author of nine consecutive New York Times bestsellers and has hosted six PBS
specials based on her books. She is the host of the award-winning Suze Orman Show, which airs on
CNBC and Sirius/XM radio, and a contributing editor to O: The Oprah Magazine.
For more books by Suze Orman, go to http://tinyurl.com/yemdtdq
THE MONEY CLASS

Learn to Create Your New American Dream
By Suze Orman
in 2010, the American dream may very well have been dashed.
Paying the everyday bills, let alone saving for college or buying a
house, is a challenge. suze orman offers a bold, inspiring call to
redefine the American dream, showing how economic security,
and even prosperity, is still attainable. she explains how to escape
credit-card debt and invest wisely, even if you are just starting your
career. orman knows how to thrive in this new economic
March 2011
landscape—and she shares this knowledge in this necessary, timely
book.
Spiegel & Grau | HC | 978-1-4000-6973-6 | 304pp. | $26.00/$30.00 Can. | Exam Copy: $13.00
Also by Suze Orman:
SUZE ORMAN’S ACTION PLAN

New Rules for New Times
suze orman’s bestselling financial action plan provides up-to-date
information on new legislation that could affect how individuals will
achieve their financial goals. includes: an explanation of new Fico
practices and a new strategy for dealing with credit card debt; guidance on
how to live within one’s means; and strategies to keep individuals on the
path to achieving his or her goals in this new age of financial honesty. Plus
an all-new chapter on kids and money—how to give children a solid
financial education, no matter their age.
moneY matteRs
Author Spotlight: David Bach
daVId BaCH is the author of several bestselling books including The Automatic Millionaire and Fight
for Your Money. Bach has appeared several times on The Oprah Winfrey Show to share his strategies for
living and finishing rich, and in several episodes of the CNBC special The Millionaire Inside. His
FinishRich® seminars are the leading financial seminars in North America, having been taught by
financial advisors to more than half a million people in more than 2,000 cities. Website: FinishRich.com.
For more books by David Bach, go to http://tinyurl.com/ya5g6c4
DEBT FREE FOR LIFE

The Finish Rich Plan for Financial Freedom
NEW
By David Bach
david Bach helps readers close the door on debt and open the door
to true financial freedom. He offers a new philosophy made for
today—a practical, inspirational, and paradigm-shifting approach
to finance that teaches students how to pay down debt and adopt a
whole new way of living.
With step-by-step advice and online tools available exclusively to
readers, Bach shows how to revolutionize one’s finances and
become debt-and-worry-free. in these lean times, it’s still possible
to live financial dreams. david Bach shows his readers how.
Crown Business | HC | 978-0-7679-2986-8 | 256pp. | $19.99/NCR | Exam Copy: $10.00
Also by David Bach
FIGHT FOR YOUR MONEY

How To Stop Getting Ripped Off and Save a Fortune
in Fight For Your Money, financial guru and consumer advocate
david Bach has written the ultimate guide to making smarter
financial decisions and protecting yourself from companies that
want to separate you from your hard-earned income. starting with
an A to Z list of items for which you are paying too much—your
cell phone, cable bill, cars, credit cards, insurance, airfare, hotels
and many more—Bach shows how you are being taken. Then the
“Fight for Your money Toolkit” shows you how to fight back, with
sample letters, call scripts, and real-life stories of ordinary people
who have fought back and won.
Broadway | HC | 978-0-7679-2984-4 | 448pp. | $26.00/NCR | Exam Copy: $13.00
GO GREEN, LIVE RICH

50 Simple Ways to Save the Earth and Get Rich Trying
By David Bach and Hillary Rosner
Broadway | TR | 978-0-7679-2973-8 | 192pp. | $14.95/NCR | Exam Copy: $3.00
Money Matters 67
CHRIstIan InteRest
Select Titles for Christian Colleges

WATERBROOK MULTNOMAH PUBLISHING GROUP
WaterBrook Press is committed to publishing books that both intensify and satisfy the elemental thirst for a
deeper relationship with God—books for Christian living and spiritual growth, inspiring works of fiction,
and illuminating Bible study resources.
Many of these books are appropriate for First-Year and Freshman Reading programs at Christian colleges.
The books collected here will help encourage reflection and discussion among your incoming first-year
students, who will begin their academic life with a shared experience—ready to discuss the views and stories
of others and, thus, ready to share their own as well.
LIFE, IN SPITE OF ME Website: www.ReachingYouMinistries.com

Extraordinary Hope After a Fatal Choice
By Kristen Jane Anderson with Tricia Goyer
distraught by the deaths of four friends and her grandmother, reeling from being raped by a
friend, Anderson sank deep into depression and decided that the only way to cope was to
die. she laid down on railroad tracks as a train approached, expecting it all to be over soon—
only to realize, after the train had passed over her, that she was still alive, but both of her legs
had been severed. This is a heartfelt memoir of one young person’s approach to dealing with
massive emotional and physical trauma, finding a path of meaning out of darkness.
Multnomah Books | HC | 978-1-60142-252-1 | 224pp. | $19.99/$23.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $10.00
DO HARD THINGS Website: www.TheRebelution.com

A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations
By Alex Harris and Brett Harris
Foreword by Chuck Norris
in August 2005, Alex and Brett Harris started what is now the most popular christian teen
blog on the internet. They describe the “Rebelution” as “a teenage rebellion against the low
expectations of an ungodly culture.” Written by teens for teens, this is the handbook for
adolescents who are rebelling against pervasive low expectations and reaching for their God-
given potential. Filled with examples from the Bible, the authors’ personal experiences, and
contemporary youth culture, this book will positively empower your teen.
Multnomah Books | HC | 978-1-60142-112-8 | 256pp. | $17.99/$22.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $9.00
themes: Coming of age • Leadership & motivation • peer group skills
START HERE
Doing Hard Things Right Where You Are
By Alex Harris and Brett Harris with Elisa Stanford
With their first book, Do Hard Things, eighteen-year-old twins Alex and Brett Harris urged
teens to reach beyond low expectations and maximize their potential to create change. With
Start Here, they address the practicalities of the mission, answering questions such as, “How
do i get started? What do i do when i get burned out? What’s the best way to inspire others?”
engaging stories of real, young people who have taken up the call illustrate how the brothers’
ideas are already being put into practice and demonstrate how anyone can harness his or her
passion in the pursuit of world-changing goals.
Multnomah Books | TR | 978-1-60142-270-5 | 176pp. | $12.99/$15.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $3.00
themes: Leadership & motivation • peer group skills • service
CHRIstIan InteRest
RADICAL Website: www.RadicalTheBook.com
Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream
By David Platt
Although it is a point often glossed over by mainstream churches, Jesus made difficult
demands of his followers, insisting that they leave behind their families, their homes, and all
the conveniences of their daily lives. American christians, Platt argues, are not living truly
christian lives, but instead are enjoying the creature comforts afforded by the American
dream, while convincing themselves that such an existence is compatible with Jesus’s
teachings. Platt invites the reader to confront the reality of what Jesus asks of us. Jesus
demands radical obedience, and Platt imbues his plea with a sense of radical urgency.
themes: ethics/decision making • Identity
THE NEXT CHRISTIANS Website: www.NextChristians.com

The Good News About the End of Christian America
By Gabe Lyons
Although more than 76 percent of Americans self-identify as christian, churches today face
NEW
declining attendance, waning influence, and an abysmal public perception. despite this state
of affairs, Gabe lyons sees reason to hope. in the wake of the stunning research presented in
his best-selling book, unChristian, which revealed the growing disenchantment among young
generations for traditional christianity, lyons has witnessed the beginnings of a new iteration
of the faith. in The Next Christians, he introduces us to believers across the christian
spectrum who are reclaiming the mantle of christianity, offering a fresh interpretation that is
engaged, authentic, and beautiful.
Doubleday Religion | HC | 978-0-385-52984-6 | 240pp. | $19.99/$22.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $10.00
themes: ethics/decision making • Identity
SUN STAND STILL: What Happens Website: www.SunStandStill.org

When You Dare to Ask God for the Impossible
By Steven Furtick
From an innovative, fresh, young evangelical voice comes this call to “audacious faith”—
that is, faith that doesn’t shrink from asking for the impossible, from bold action, or Now in
paperback
from believing it can change the world.
steven Furtick felt a calling, at age sixteen, to found a church. Today, at age thirty, he is lead
pastor of elevation church in charlotte, north carolina—one of the fastest-growing churches
in the nation. Furtick’s own life is an example of an audacious approach to faith and of com-
mitting oneself to the fulfillment of one’s most deeply-held and cherished beliefs and hopes.
themes: Coming of age • Leadership & motivation • service
THE WALK Website:

Clear Direction and Spiritual Power for Your Life www.ShaunAlexander.com/2010/09/The-Walk-2
By Shaun Alexander
if you are ready to start walking with God—that is, truly walking with God, rather than
lagging behind or running ahead of Him—this is the book for you. shaun Alexander, your
companion as you undertake this journey, explains that there are five stages of spiritual
maturity, starting at the stage of Unbeliever, and moving through Believer, example of christ,
Teacher, and imparter. evolving through each stage, you will find your life transformed as you
learn to grow in wisdom and grace. The changes you will undergo will have positive benefits NEW
for both you and those around you.
WaterBrook Press | HC | 978-0-307-45951-0 | 240pp. | $17.99/$19.99 Can. | Exam Copy: $9.00
For more titles, visit www.WaterBrookMultnomah.com
WaterBrook/Multnomah 69
autHoR/tItLe Index
10 THINGS EMPLOYERS WANT YOU TO Christen, Carol, Richard N. Bolles, and GERTRUDA’S OATH ..............................................21
LEARN IN COLLEGE ........................................55 Jean M. Blomquist ........................................55 GETTING THE BEST OUT OF COLLEGE ..................55
ACTS OF FAITH ....................................................42 CITIZEN YOU ......................................................64 GLASS ROOM, THE ..............................................30
Aiken, Sean ........................................................54 Coleman, Isobel ................................................49 Glidden, Sarah ..................................................50
Albom, Mitch ....................................................40 COLLEGE RULES!, 3rd Edition ..............................52 GO GREEN, LIVE RICH..........................................67
Alexander, Shaun ..............................................69 Combs, Patrick....................................................55 GOD GREW TIRED OF US......................................17
Ali, Nujood ........................................................16 Coplin, William D. ..............................................55 GOD OF SMALL THINGS, THE ..............................32
ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT ..................32 COVERING ..........................................................51 Goleman, Daniel ................................................58
ALL SOULS..........................................................19 CRACKING THE HIDDEN JOB MARKET ..................55 GREEN VOLUNTEERS, 8th Ed. ..............................59
Amnesty International USA................................48 Dau, John Bul ....................................................17 Grisham, John ....................................................50
Anderson, Kristen Jane ......................................68 DEATH OF JOSSELINE, THE ..................................22 Grooms, Anthony ..............................................29
Angelou, Maya ..................................................16 DEBT FREE FOR LIFE............................................67 GUARDIANS, THE ................................................28
Asher, Donald ....................................................55 Demick, Barbara ................................................49 HALF A LIFE ........................................................14
Aslan, Reza ........................................................48 DO HARD THINGS................................................68 Hari, Daoud........................................................18
Aslan, Reza ........................................................48 DO IT ANYWAY ..................................................64 Harris, Alex and Brett Harris ..............................68
AUDACITY OF HOPE, THE ....................................21 DREAMS FROM MY FATHER ................................21 Heath, Chip and Dan Heath ................................54
Ausenda, Fabio ..................................................59 DREAMS OF JOY..................................................26 Hegland, Jean ....................................................30
Ausenda, Fabio ..................................................64 Dumas, Firoozeh ................................................17 Hill, Graham ......................................................59
AWAIT YOUR REPLY ............................................29 EARTH’S LAST WILDERNESS, THE ........................59 HOLLOWING OUT THE MIDDLE ............................48
Bach, David ........................................................67 Easterbrook, Gregg ............................................49 Holmes, Hannah ................................................50
BAKING CAKES IN KIGALI ....................................31 ECOLOGICAL INTELLIGENCE ................................58 HOPE BENEATH OUR FEET ..................................58
BE DIFFERENT ....................................................12 ECOTOPIA ..........................................................28 HOPE IN THE UNSEEN, A......................................23
BEATRICE AND VIRGIL ........................................24 ED BEGLEY, JR.’S GUIDE TO SUSTAINABLE HOTEL ON THE CORNER OF BITTER
Begley, Ed, Jr. ....................................................59 LIVING ..........................................................59 AND SWEET ..................................................29
BEYOND FUNDAMENTALISM ..............................48 Edelman, Hope ..................................................18 HOW TO UNDERSTAND ISRAEL IN 60 DAYS
BLACK HEARTS....................................................18 ENOUGH MOMENT, THE ......................................60 OR LESS ........................................................50
BLACK SWAN: Second Edition ............................65 ENRIQUE’S JOURNEY ..........................................10 HUNGER OF MEMORY ........................................22
BLIND DESCENT ..................................................46 Ensler, Eve ..........................................................18 I AM AN EMOTIONAL CREATURE..........................18
BLOOD DONE SIGN MY NAME..............................51 ETHICS................................................................65 I AM NUJOOD, AGE 10 AND DIVORCED ................16
BLUE NOTEBOOK, THE ........................................30 EVERY MAN DIES ALONE ....................................29 I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SINGS..................16
Bolles, Richard N. ..............................................55 EXTRAORDINARY, ORDINARY PEOPLE..................22 IMMORTAL LIFE OF HENRIETTA LACKS ................44
BOMBINGHAM ..................................................29 FACTORY GIRLS ..................................................49 INNOCENT MAN, THE ..........................................50
Bowe, John ........................................................48 FAHRENHEIT 451 ................................................28 INTO THE FOREST................................................30
Bradbury, Ray ....................................................28 Fallada, Hans......................................................29 INVISIBLE GORILLA, THE ....................................54
Brand, Millen ....................................................28 FAREWELL, MY SUBARU ....................................58 Johnson, Mary ..................................................19
Bronson, Po........................................................40 Feaver, Peter ......................................................55 JOKER ONE..........................................................16
Buffett, Peter......................................................34 FIGHT FOR YOUR MONEY ....................................67 JOURNAL FOR JORDAN, A....................................17
Caldwell, Gail ....................................................16 Fine, Doug..........................................................58 Keogh, Martin, ed. ............................................58
Callenbach, Ernest..............................................28 FIST STICK KNIFE GUN ..........................................2 Kerman, Piper ....................................................19
Campbell, Donovan............................................16 Ford, Jamie ........................................................29 Kidder, Tracy ....................................................4, 5
Canada, Geoffrey..................................................2 Francis, John, Ph.D. ..........................................56 KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT, THE....................................23
Canedy, Dana ....................................................17 Frederick, Jim ....................................................18 LaNier, Carlotta Walls ..........................................6
CAREER COUNSELOR’S HANDBOOK, THE..............55 FREEDOM WRITERS DIARY ..................................36 LAST TOWN ON EARTH, THE ................................31
Carr, Patrick J. ....................................................48 Freedom Writers, The and Erin Gruwell ..............36 LAUGHING WITHOUT AN ACCENT........................17
Castillo, Ana ......................................................28 FREEDOM ..........................................................48 LAY THAT TRUMPET IN OUR HANDS ....................30
Chabris, Christopher and Daniel Simons ............54 Freeman, Ph.D., Philip Mitchell ..........................55 LECTURE NOTES..................................................55
Chang, Leslie T. ..................................................49 FUNNY IN FARSI..................................................17 Lee, Euna............................................................19
Chaon, Dan ........................................................29 Furtick, Steven ..................................................69 LET’S TAKE THE LONG WAY HOME........................16
CHARACTER IS DESTINY ......................................40 Gates, Bill, Sr. ....................................................64 Levine, James A. ................................................30
autHoR/tItLe Index
LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE IT ................................34 Parkin, Gaile ......................................................31 Stengel, Richard ................................................40
LIFE WITHOUT LIMITS ........................................38 Patel, Eboo ........................................................42 Strauss, Darin ....................................................14
LIFE YOU CAN SAVE, THE ....................................65 Patrick, Deval ....................................................21 STRENGTH IN WHAT REMAINS ..............................4
LIFE, IN SPITE OF ME ..........................................68 Pham, Quang ....................................................22 Strickland, Bill....................................................41
LOOK ME IN THE EYE ..........................................12 PLANETWALKER ................................................56 Strout, Elizabeth ................................................33
Lyons, Gabe........................................................69 Platt, David ........................................................69 SUN STAND STILL................................................69
MacDonald, Michael ..........................................19 PLENTY ..............................................................58 Suskind, Ron ......................................................23
MADE TO STICK ..................................................54 POSSIBILITY OF EVERYTHING, THE ......................18 SUZE ORMAN’S ACTION PLAN ............................66
MAJOR IN SUCCESS, 5th Ed. ..............................55 Prendergast, John ..............................................60 Suzuki, Shunryu ................................................41
MAJOR PETTIGREW’S LAST STAND......................32 QUIRK ................................................................50 Swan, Robert ....................................................59
MAKE THE IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE ......................41 RADICAL ............................................................69 SWITCH ..............................................................54
Mam, Somaly ....................................................20 RAGGED EDGE OF SILENCE ..................................56 Tabor, James M...................................................46
MANDELA’S WAY ................................................40 READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN ..............................20 Taleb, Nassim Nicholas ......................................65
Manning, Sean ..................................................20 READY, SET, GREEN ............................................59 TEACHING HOPE ................................................36
Marino, Gordon, ed ............................................65 REASON TO BELIEVE, A........................................21 THINGS I’VE BEEN SILENT ABOUT........................20
Martel, Yann ......................................................24 Regan, Margaret ................................................22 THINGS THAT NEED DOING, THE ..........................20
Martin, Courtney E. ..........................................64 Remarque, Erich Maria ......................................32 TIME IT SNOWED IN PUERTO RICO, THE ..............31
Mawer, Simon....................................................30 Rice, Condoleezza ..............................................22 Tisch, Jonathan ..................................................64
McCain, John......................................................40 ROAD OF LOST INNOCENCE, THE..........................20 TRANSLATOR, THE ..............................................18
McCarthy, Susan Carol........................................30 Robison, John Elder............................................12 TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE ....................................40
McCoy, Sarah......................................................31 Rodriguez, Richard ............................................22 Tyson, Timothy B. ..............................................51
MIGHTY LONG WAY, A ..........................................6 Rogers, Elizabeth ..............................................59 UNQUENCHABLE THIRST, AN ..............................19
MONEY CLASS, THE ............................................66 Rosenberg, Scott ................................................50 Vonnegut, Kurt ..................................................33
Moon, Elizabeth ................................................31 Roy, Arundhati ..................................................32 Vujicic, Nick........................................................38
Moore, Wes ..........................................................8 Salih, Tayeb ........................................................32 WALK, THE..........................................................69
MOUNTAIN LION, THE ........................................33 Sancton, Tom ....................................................23 WATER BOOK, THE ..............................................59
MOUNTAINS BEYOND MOUNTAINS ......................5 SAY EVERYTHING................................................50 Welch, Diana and Liz Welch................................23
MRS. SOMEBODY SOMEBODY ............................33 SEARCH FOR FULFILLMENT, THE..........................41 WHAT COLOR IS YOUR PARACHUTE? 2011 ..........55
Mullen, Thomas ................................................31 SEASON OF MIGRATION TO THE NORTH ..............32 WHAT COLOR IS YOUR PARACHUTE?
Nafisi, Azar ........................................................20 See, Lisa ............................................................26 FOR TEENS, 2nd Ed. ......................................55
Nazario, Sonia ....................................................10 SENSE OF DUTY, A ..............................................22 WHAT COLOR IS YOUR PARACHUTE?
JOB-HUNTER’S WORKBOOK ..........................55
NEXT CHRISTIANS, THE ......................................69 Settersten, Ph.D., Richard ..................................51
WHAT SHOULD I DO WITH MY LIFE? ..................40
Nist-Olejnik, Ph.D., Sherrie and SHANGHAI GIRLS................................................26
Jodi Patrick Holschuh, Ph.D. ..........................52 Whitbourne, Susan Krauss ................................41
SHIFT YOUR HABIT..............................................59
NO GOD BUT GOD ..............................................48 Winn, Tracy ........................................................33
SHOWING UP FOR LIFE........................................64
NOBODIES ..........................................................48 WOMAN WHO FELL FROM THE SKY, THE..............51
Simonson, Helen................................................32
NOT QUITE ADULTS ............................................51 WORLD IS BIGGER NOW, THE ..............................19
Singer, Peter ......................................................65
NOTHING TO ENVY ..............................................49 WORLD VOLUNTEERS, 4th Edition ......................64
Skloot, Rebecca..................................................44
Obama, Barack ..................................................21 Yoshino, Kenji ....................................................51
SLAUGHTERHOUSE-FIVE ....................................33
OLIVE KITTERIDGE ..............................................33 YOUNG ACTIVIST’S GUIDE TO BUILDING
Smith, Alisa and J.B. MacKinnon ........................58 A GREEN MOVEMENT AND CHANGING
ONE-WEEK JOB PROJECT, THE ............................54 Smith, Sharon J. ................................................62 THE WORLD, THE ..........................................62
ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK................................19 SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN ................26 ZEN MIND, BEGINNER’S MIND ............................41
Oren, Ram..........................................................21 SONG FOR MY FATHERS ......................................23
Orman, Suze ......................................................66 SONIC BOOM ......................................................49
OTHER WES MOORE, THE ......................................8 SPEED OF DARK, THE ..........................................31
OUTCASTS UNITED..............................................23 St. John, Warren ................................................23
OUTWARD ROOM, THE........................................28 Stafford, Jean ....................................................33
Pacheco, Elizabeth..............................................59 START HERE........................................................68
PARADISE BENEATH HER FEET ............................49 Steil, Jennifer ....................................................51
Author/Title Index 71
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his book was selected for their Reading in common Program.
n Yann Martel, bestselling author of Beatrice and Virgil (pg. 24) and the common
reading favorite, e Life of Pi, will be speaking at the University of texas at tyler,
tyler, tX and also the Drue Heinz Arts & Lectures in Pittsburgh, PA.
n Wes Moore, Youth Advocate and author of e Other Wes Moore (pg. 8), spoke at
several events including: cabrini college FYe—Radnor, PA, Virginia Western
community college—Roanoke, VA, University of Miami United Black students—
Miami, FL, Raritan Valley community college One Book—near somerville, NJ,
Ohio state University Diversity Lecture, among other colleges.
n John Prendergast (pg. 60), Human Rights Activist and cofounder of the Anti-
Genocide Group, e enough Project, has been a visiting professor at stanford, Pitt,
eckerd, st. Johns, and the University of san Diego where he regularly works with
student groups, and meets with students about human rights issues. In the Fall 2010,
John delivered a lecture at Vanderbilt University on how to confront genocide.
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BLACK HEARTS Website:

THE TRANSLATOR: A Memoir Website: http://tinyurl.com/cg8m6m

LIFe stoRIes—memoIR, BIogRapHY, and autoBIogRapHY

ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK: My Year in a Women’s Prison

THE WORLD IS BIGGER NOW To watch a video of Euna Lee

ALL SOULS: A Family Story from Southie Website: www.MichaelPatrickMacDonald.com

Life Stories—Memoir, Biography, and Autobiography 19

THE ROAD OF LOST INNOCENCE Website: www.Somaly.org

THE THINGS THAT NEED DOING: A Memoir

READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN Website: www.AzarNafisi.com

THINGS I’VE BEEN SILENT ABOUT Website: www.AzarNafisi.com

DREAMS FROM MY FATHER: A Story of Race and Inheritance

A REASON TO BELIEVE: Lessons from an Improbable Life

Life Stories—Memoir, Biography, and Autobiography 21

A SENSE OF DUTY: Our Journey from Vietnam to America

THE DEATH OF JOSSELINE

EXTRAORDINARY, ORDINARY PEOPLE: A Memoir of Family

HUNGER OF MEMORY: The Education of Richard Rodriguez

OUTCASTS UNITED Website: www.OutcastsUnited.com

A HOPE IN THE UNSEEN Website:

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT Website:

Life Stories—Memoir, Biography, and Autobiography 23

F rom the award-winning, best-selling author of the common

About the Author: Yann Martel

Fiction to Talk About 25