SJSU Campus Reading Program Book Selection

One Amazing Thing

2011-12-19T09:59:00.000-08:00

One Amazing Thing by Chitra Divakaruni explores what happens when a diverse group of nine individuals are trapped in the basement of an Indian consulate after an earthquake. Divakaruni weaves the fascinating tale of nine survivors.
More information about the book is at amazon.com

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake: A Novel

2011-11-08T14:49:00.000-08:00

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender tells the story of nine-year old Rose Edelstein, who, after taking a bite of her mother's homemade lemon-chocolate cake, learns that she can "taste" her mother's feelings and emotions. Rose learns of deep family secrets kept by her mother, father and brother.

More information about the book at Amazon.com.
Information about Aimee Bender on her website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Just Don't Fall

2011-11-08T14:43:00.000-08:00

Just Don't Fall: How I Grew Up, Conquered Illness, and Made It Down the Mountain by Josh Sundquist is about Josh's own experience of surviving Ewing's Sarcoma; a virulent cancer strain, that claimed his left leg at the age of nine. The story follows Josh through his hospital visits, through his struggles as a young boy, into adulthood and as he takes on his first attempt at skiing.

More about the book at Amazon.com.
More about the author, Josh Sundquist, on his website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The Lock Artist: A Novel

2011-11-08T14:30:00.000-08:00

The Lock Artist: A Novel by Steve Hamilton follows Mike, the "boxman", "Miracle Boy" Smith as he documents his eighteen years of life, now that he is in prison. Mike hasn't spoken a word in ten years, since he became the "Miracle Boy" and discovered his talent of opening anything from key-less locks to eight-hundred pout safes (which is what landed him in prison).

Check out more information about this book on Amazon.com.
Information about the author, Steve Hamilton, on his Website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The Vanishing of Katharina Linden: A Novel

2011-11-08T14:19:00.000-08:00

The Vanishing of Katharina Linden: A Novel, by Helen Grant is described as a "charming horror novel" by Publishers Weekly (Amazon.com). Pia, a ten-year-old girl from a small town in Germany had a normal life until, one day, her grandmother accidentally catches fire and burned to death. Afterwards, Pia becomes an outcast; her only friend being the most unpopular boy in her town, StinkStefan. The two of them visit an elderly man who tells them ghost stories of the town in the hopes of solving old disappearances of young girls.

More information about the Author on her website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep and Never Had To

2011-11-08T14:07:00.001-08:00

The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep and Never Had To by DC Pierson tells the story of two, socially awkward, high school, best friends, Eric and Darren. Neither are good with girls and must endure the cruel high school experience until Eric reveals a truth to Darren: Eric does not sleep and never has. Once this fact reaches the rest of the school and the world, it sends Eric and Darren on a daring adventure.

More information on the book at Amazon.com.
DC Pierson's Website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Voice of America

2011-11-08T13:51:00.000-08:00

Voice of America by E.C. Osondu is a collection of 18 short stories about living in Nigeria and Africa. E.C. Osondu presents a grim picture of the hardships of living in Africa. Although the book is dark, Osondu provides moments of humor and imagination.

More information about the book is available on Amazon.com, as well as information about the author.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Guyland

2011-11-08T13:41:00.000-08:00

Michael Kimmel wrote Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men based on his research into the lives and relationships of adolescent and young adult men in America between the ages of 16-26.

See information at Amazon and on the author's website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The Weather of the Future

2011-11-08T11:49:00.000-08:00

In The Weather of the Future: Heat Waves, Extreme Storms, and Other Scenes from a Climate-Changed Planet Heidi Cullen outlines the weather scenarios we can expect over the next 40 years as the result of climate change, and she offers steps we can take now to respond to our changing climate.

See information at Amazon.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat

2011-11-08T11:37:00.000-08:00

Hal Herzog's book Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat describes the complex relationships of humans and animals.

See information at Amazon and on the author's website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Little Princes

2011-11-08T11:15:00.000-08:00

Little Princes: One Man's Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal follows author Conor Grennan as he travels to Nepal and volunteers at an orphanage. While he is volunteering he learns that the children are not orphans; their families have paid a steep price and for the promise that their children will be taken to safety away from Nepal's civil war. The book is a true story that follows Grennan's work to reunite the children with their families.

See information at Amazon and on the author's website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The House of Tomorrow

2011-11-07T17:07:00.000-08:00

The House of Tomorrow by Peter Bognanni is a story of self-discovery, family bonding and the unlikely friendship of two social outcasts and their desperation to be heard. Told from the point of view of 17-year-old Sebastian Prendergast who has lived in semi-rural Iowa with his eccentric grandmother in a geodesic dome.

L.A. Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction
Finalist for a Minnesota Book Award
One of Oprah Magazine's Great Reads to Pick Up
Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection

See information at Amazon
Author's website

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Stealing Buddha’s Dinner

2011-11-07T17:04:00.000-08:00

In Stealing Buddha’s Dinner: A Memoir by Bich Minh Nguyen, the glossy branded allure of Pringles, Kit Kats, and Toll House Cookies becomes an ingenious metaphor for Nguyen's struggle during the 1908's to become a "real" American, a distinction that brings with it the dream of the perfect school lunch, burgers and Jell- O for dinner, and a visit from the Kool-Aid man.

The 2009-2010 Great Michigan Read
Winner of the PEN/Jerard Award
A Chicago Tribune Best Book of 2007
Kiriyama Prize Notable Book
Asian American Literature Award Finalist

See information at Amazon
Author's website

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The Outside Boy

2011-11-07T17:01:00.000-08:00

The Outside Boy by Jeanine Cummins is a novel about an Irish gypsy boy's childhood in the 1950's.

Booklist Editors’ Choice: Adult Books for Young Adults, 2010
School Library Journal, Best Adult Books 4 Teens, 2010

See information at Amazon
Author's website

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Miral

2011-11-07T16:51:00.000-08:00

Miral by Italo-Palestinian journalist Rula Jabreal is an autobiographical novel of a Palestinian girl growing up amid the intifada. Made into a motion picture released in March 2011, directed by Julian Schnabel.

See information at Amazon and on the author's website.

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Girl in Translation

2011-11-07T16:47:00.000-08:00

Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok is the fictional story of Kimberly Chang and her mother who emigrate from Hong Kong to Brooklyn squalor. She begins a secret double life: exceptional schoolgirl during the day, Chinatown sweatshop worker in the evenings. Disguising the more difficult truths of her life, Kimberly learns to constantly translate not just her language but also herself back and forth between the worlds she straddles.

New York Times bestseller
American Library Association Alex Award
Chosen by the School Library Journal as one of their Best Adult Books 4 Teens
Discover Great New Writers pick for Barnes and Noble

See information at Amazon
Author's website

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The John Carlos Story

2011-11-07T16:42:00.000-08:00

The John Carlos Story: The Sports Moment That Changed the World by John Carlos and Dave Zirin is the memoir of the African American former track and field athlete, professional football player, and founding member of the Olympic Project for Human Rights. He won the bronze medal in the 200 meters race at the 1968 Olympics, where his Black Power salute on the podium with Tommie Smith caused much political controversy. John Carlos attended SJSU.

See information at Amazon
SJSU Tommie Smith John Carlos Project

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The Golden Road

2011-11-07T16:37:00.000-08:00

The Golden Road: Notes on My Gentrification by Caille Millner is a memoir of the author's childhood in a Latino neighborhood in San Jose, California, and coming of age in a more affluent yet quietly hostile Silicon Valley suburb to a succession of imagined promised lands-Harvard, London, post-apartheid South Africa, New York City.

See information at Amazon
Author website

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

She’s Not There

2011-11-07T16:33:00.000-08:00

She’s Not There: A Life in Two Genders by Jennifer Finney Boylan is an autobiography detailing the author's lifelong struggle with her burgeoning femaleness and the path she followed to become a female, both physically and mentally.

A 2003 Lambda Literary Award Winner

See information at Amazon
Author website

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Scoreboard, Baby

2011-11-07T16:28:00.000-08:00

Scoreboard, Baby: A Story of College Football, Crime, and Complicity by Ken Armstrong and Nick Perry is a tale of the University of Washington’s 2000 football squad, which included at least 24 players arrested or charged with crimes during their years at the university, crimes for which they did little or no time. Complicit were university officials, team coaches, local police and prosecutors, members of the media, even victims, all in the name of sustaining a winning program.

Winner of the 2011 Edgar Award, Best Crime Fact category
2009 Michael Kelly Award (Atlantic Monthly)

See information at Amazon
Author website

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The Reluctant Fundamentalist

2011-11-07T16:21:00.000-08:00

The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid is a 9/11 novel, written from the perspective of Changez, a young Pakistani whose sympathies, despite his fervid immigrant embrace of America, lie with the attackers. The book unfolds as a monologue that Changez delivers to a mysterious American operative over dinner at a Lahore, Pakistan, cafe.

A 2008 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award Winner
A 2008 Ambassador Book Award Winner
A 2008 South Bank Show Award Winner
A 2008 Asian American Literary Award Winner

See information at Amazon

Interview with the author
Author website

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Zeitoun

2011-11-07T16:16:00.000-08:00

Zeitoun by Dave Eggers is the true story of one family, caught between America’s two biggest policy disasters: the war on terror and the response to Hurricane Katrina.

A New York Times Notable Book
An O, The Oprah Magazine Terrific Read of the Year
A Huffington Post Best Book of the Year
A New Yorker Favorite Book of the Year
A Chicago Tribune Favorite Nonfiction Book of the Year
A Kansas City Star Best Book of the Year
A San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year
An Entertainment Weekly Best Book of the Decade
A 2010 American Book Award Winner
A 2010 Northern California Book Award Winner
The 2010 Los Angeles Times Book Prize Current Interest Award Winner
The 2010 Nonfiction Winner of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize

See information about the book at Amazon and about the author here.
Zeitoun Foundation

Please post a comment about the book and whether it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

2010-10-15T01:34:00.000-07:00

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot is a recent work of non-fiction about a family's discovery that the mother's tissue was used without her knowledge to help save lives. Meanwhile, the family was living in poverty.

See information at Amazon

Please post a comment about the book and if it would be suitable for the SJSU Campus Reading Program. Thanks.

Mindset

2010-06-10T11:16:00.000-07:00

Mindset by Dr. Carol S. Dweck is subtitled "How we can learn to fulfill our potential."

More information:

Author website
Information from Amazon
Information from the publisher

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

The Girl Who Fell From the Sky

2010-06-10T11:07:00.001-07:00

The Girl Who Fell From the Sky by Heidi W. Durrow is a story of a biracial young girl and how society views her. The book wont the 2008 Bellwether Prize for best fiction addressing issues of social justice.

More information:

Author's website
Information from Amazon
Book review from the Washington Post

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks

Stitches: A Memoir - Book Reviews

2010-05-07T10:00:00.000-07:00

Stitches: A Memoir by David Small is on the selection list for the fall 2011 book because it was a 2010 Alex Award winner.

Information:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

The Kids Are All Right: A Memoir - Book Reviews

2010-05-07T09:57:00.000-07:00

The Kids Are All Right: A Memoir by Diana Welch and Liz Welch with Amanda Welch and Dan Welch is on the selection list for fall 2011 because it is a 2010 Alex Award winner.

Information:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

Everything Matters! Book Reviews

2010-05-07T09:53:00.001-07:00

Everything Matters! by Ron Currie, Jr. is on the selection list for fall 2011 because it was a 2010 Alex Award winner.

Information:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind - Book Reviews

2010-05-07T09:48:00.000-07:00

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer is on the list because it was a 2010 Alex Award winner.

Information from:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

Art of Racing in the Rain - Book Reviews

2010-05-01T10:28:00.000-07:00

The Art of Racing in the Rain is a story told from the perspective of a dying dog.

More information:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

What We Are - Book Reviews

2010-05-01T10:15:00.000-07:00

What We Are, is an acclaimed new novel by Peter Nathaniel Malae, a San Jose native and former SJSU student. This is the story of a young half-Samoan man (based on Malae himself) struggling to find his identity in Silicon Valley. The book won the Joseph Henry Jackson Award from the SF Intersection for the Arts and received a favorable review in the New York Times.

Information from:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

The Bride’s Farewell - Book Reviews

2010-04-16T23:51:00.000-07:00

The Bride's Farewell is on the list of possible books to select for 2011 because it was a 2010 Alex Award winner. Some information:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

The Help - Book Reviews

2010-04-16T08:07:00.000-07:00

The Help is on the list of possible book selections for 2011 because of a strong recommendation by a faculty member who has been teaching frosh for many years and its placement on some best seller lists. Some additional information:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

The Good Soldiers - Book Reviews

2010-04-16T08:01:00.000-07:00

The Good Soldiers is on the list of possible books to select for 2011 because it was a 2010 Alex Award winner. Some information:

Please post a comment to leave your review of this book and whether you think it would be a good selection for the SJSU Campus Reading program and why. Thanks.

Possible Books for Fall 2011

2010-04-07T18:32:00.000-07:00

While we have not yet experienced Fall 2010 and the campus reading of Sherman Alexie's Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, the Reading Program Committee is already working on the selection process for the book for 2011.

The titles we have under consideration so far:

a. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope
b. The Bride’s Farewell
c. Everything Matters!
d. The Good Soldiers
e. The Kids Are All Right: A Memoir
f. Stitches: A Memoir
g. The Help
h. What We Are by Peter Nathaniel Malae
i. Art of Racing in the Rain
j. The Girl Who Fell From the Sky by Heidi Durrow
k. Mindset by Carol S. Dweck

Most of these are from the 2010 Alex Award winner list. We are open to other books as well. Our criteria:

less than 350 pages
available in paperback
not made into a movie
something likely to be of interest to the entire campus
a variety of discussion topics
of some notoriety, such as a Bay Area author or an award winner or takes place in the Bay Area

If you have suggestions, please leave a comment with the title, author and why you think it would be a good selection for SJSU. Thanks.

The Road - March 18, 2010 SJSU Event

2010-02-23T07:20:00.000-08:00

On March 18, 2010 from 2 - 3 pm in ENG 285, there will be a panel presentation on the Pulitzer Price winning, Oprah Book Club selection The Road. Professors Nick Taylor and Katherine Cushing and MFA student Erik Olson will explore the literary and green aspects of this book.

For more information - see http://www.sjsu.edu/reading.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

2009-05-11T11:42:00.000-07:00

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie was recommended by a few members of the Reading Committee. For more info:

Amazon

Book Lover's Diary

The Devil's Highway

2009-04-06T14:49:00.001-07:00

The Devil's Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea is a true story about 26 men who attempt to cross the border from Mexico into the US. Only 12 survive.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment about it and whether you think it would be of interest to a wide audience of 30,000 university readers.

Over and Under

2009-04-06T14:44:00.000-07:00

Over and Under by Todd Tucker is a story of two 14-year old boys having a nice summer whle their fathers are involved in differing sides of a labor struggle.

It is a 2009 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment about it and whether you think it would be of interest to a wide audience of 30,000 university readers.

Three Girls and Their Brother

2009-02-28T14:24:00.002-08:00

“Three Girls and Their Brother,” by Theresa Rebeck, 352 pages, a satire, one Amazon reviewer gave it only 2 stars, but recommended it as a book hard to put down. Entertainment Weekly: “a fizzy satire of celeb-obsessed NYC about flame-haired teenage sisters who get photographed for The New Yorker and soon become megastars." A 2009 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment about it and whether you think it would be of interest to a wide audience of 30,000 university readers.

Mudbound

2009-02-28T14:24:00.001-08:00

“Mudbound,” by Hillary Jordan, 352 pages; per Amazon “Jordan won the 2006 Bellwether Prize for Mudbound, her first novel. The prize was founded by Barbara Kingsolver to reward books of conscience, social responsibility, and literary merit. In addition to meeting all of the above qualifications, Jordan has written a story filled with characters as real and compelling as anyone we know.” A 2009 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment about it and whether you think it would be of interest to a wide audience of 30,000 university readers.

The Good Thief

2009-02-28T14:22:00.002-08:00

“The Good Thief,” by Hannah Tinti, 336 pages, sounds like Oliver Twist in colonial New England. A 2009 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment about it and whether you think it would be of interest to a wide audience of 30,000 university readers.

Finding Nouf

2009-02-28T14:22:00.001-08:00

“Finding Nouf,” by Zoë Ferraris, 305 pages; mystery set in Saudi Arabia. A 2009 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment about it and whether you think it would be of interest to a wide audience of 30,000 university readers.

The Dragons of Babel

2009-02-28T14:20:00.000-08:00

“The Dragons of Babel,” by Michael Swanwick, 320 pages; a “modern fantasy”. A 2009 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment about it and whether you think it would be of interest to a wide audience of 30,000 university readers.

City of Thieves

2009-02-28T14:19:00.000-08:00

“City of Thieves,” by David Benioff, 272 pages, based on stories of author’s grandfather in Russia in WWII. A 2009 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment about it and whether you think it would be of interest to a wide audience of 30,000 university readers.

Books we are considering for fall 2010

2009-02-28T13:41:00.000-08:00

It takes a while to read several possible books and have committee discussions on their pros and cons for the campus-wide reading program. All of the books previously selected for the SJSU Campus Reading Program were Alex Award winners. So we now start with the list of 10 Alex Award winners, which the Amercian Library Association announces in late January. Here is the 2009 list:

“City of Thieves,” by David Benioff, 272 pages, based on stories of author’s grandfather in Russia in WWII
“The Dragons of Babel,” by Michael Swanwick, 320 pages; a “modern fantasy”
“Finding Nouf,” by Zoë Ferraris, 305 pages; mystery set in Saudi Arabia
“The Good Thief,” by Hannah Tinti, 336 pages, sounds like Oliver Twist in colonial New England
“Just After Sunset: Stories,” by Stephen King, 384 pages of short stories
“Mudbound,” by Hillary Jordan, 352 pages; per Amazon “Jordan won the 2006 Bellwether Prize for Mudbound, her first novel. The prize was founded by Barbara Kingsolver to reward books of conscience, social responsibility, and literary merit. In addition to meeting all of the above qualifications, Jordan has written a story filled with characters as real and compelling as anyone we know.”
“Over and Under,” by Todd Tucker, 288 pages, story of two 14-year old boys having a nice summer while their fathers – one a manager and one a union leader are involved in a labor strife
“The Oxford Project,” by Stephen G. Bloom, photographed by Peter Feldstein, 246 pages, photos and stories of the 600 people living in Oxford, Iowa
“Sharp Teeth,” by Toby Barlow, published by Harper, 336 pages, a "sexy" werewolf story told in free verse
“Three Girls and Their Brother,” by Theresa Rebeck, 352 pages, a satire, one Amazon reviewer gave it only 2 stars, but recommended it as a book hard to put down. Entertainment Weekly: “a fizzy satire of celeb-obsessed NYC about flame-haired teenage sisters who get photographed for The New Yorker and soon become megastars”

There are 4 on the Alex Award list that dont' fit our criteria:

Just After Sunset: Stories - short stories
Over and Under - not in paperback
The Oxford Project - seems to be mostly a photo-essay
Sharp Teeth - free verse

You'll find blog entries for the 6 books from the Alex Award list that we'll consider for fall 2010. Please feel free to add your comments to any you have read.

Fall 2009 Book Selected!

2009-01-08T21:37:00.000-08:00

The Campus Reading Program Committee selected John Hamamura's Color of the Sea for the Fall 2009 campus reading book. For more information on the book, please click here.

We appreciate any comments you left on the blog as it all helped in making the selection. We'll start up a new blog, probably in March 2009 as we start working on selecting a book for fall 2010.

Jesusland

2008-11-03T19:09:00.000-08:00

Jesusland: A Memoir by Julia Sheeres is a 2006 Alex Award winner.

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

2008-09-25T12:49:00.000-07:00

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for fiction and the National Book Critics Circle Award for best novel for 2007.

The author is a professor at MIT - click here.

The Ghost Map

2008-09-09T23:11:00.000-07:00

The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic--and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World by Steven Johnson was added to the list by 2 committee members who thought it looked engaging. Unlike most other books on the list, as well as the books previously selected by the committee, it is not an Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

Three Cups of Tea

2008-09-09T23:06:00.000-07:00

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson was suggested by a few students and faculty members. It has also been used by a few other universities. Unlike most other books on the list, as well as the books previously selected by the committee, it is not an Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

The Whistling Season

2008-09-09T22:59:00.001-07:00

The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig is a 2007 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

The Thirteenth Tale

2008-09-09T22:57:00.001-07:00

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield is a 2007 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

The Spellman Files

2008-09-09T22:56:00.001-07:00

The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz is a 2008 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

The Night Birds

2008-09-09T22:53:00.001-07:00

The Night Birds by Thomas Maltman is a 2008 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

The God of Animals

2008-09-09T22:52:00.001-07:00

The God of Animals by Aryn Kyle is a 2008 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

The Floor of the Sky

2008-09-09T22:48:00.000-07:00

The Floor of the Sky by Pamela Carter Joern is a 2007 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

The Book of Lost Things

2008-09-09T22:47:00.001-07:00

The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly is a 2007 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game

2008-09-09T22:45:00.000-07:00

The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game by Michael Lewis is a 2007 Alex Award Winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

Run

2008-09-09T22:44:00.001-07:00

Run by Ann Patchett was added to the list of books to consider because of the author and several members of the reading committee enjoyed it. Unlike most other books on the list, as well as the books previously selected by the committee, it is not an Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

Mister Pip

2008-09-09T22:42:00.001-07:00

Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones is a 2008 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

Eagle Blue ...

2008-09-09T22:39:00.000-07:00

Eagle Blue: A Team, A Tribe, and A High School Basketball Season in Arctic Alaska, by Michael D'Orso is a 2007 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

Color of the Sea

2008-09-09T22:38:00.000-07:00

Color of the Sea by John Hamamura is a 2007 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

Bad Monkeys

2008-09-09T22:37:00.000-07:00

Bad Monkeys by Matt Ruff is a 2008 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

American Shaolin: Flying Kicks ...

2008-09-09T22:33:00.000-07:00

American Shaolin: Flying Kicks, Buddhist Monks, and the Legend of Iron Crotch: An Odyssey in the New China, by Matthew Polly is a 2008 Alex Award winner.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

2008-09-09T22:19:00.001-07:00

This book by Ishmael Beah was a 2008 Alex Award winner. This book had also been on display at Starbucks a while back.

If you've read this book, please leave a comment with your review of it and whether you think other readers are likely to find it engaging (do you think they’d be eager to finish it and perhaps start reading another book when they are done). If you recommend the book, please also state any themes or topics that would be good for discussion. Thanks.

Selection criteria

2008-09-08T22:27:00.000-07:00

Here is the criteria the SJSU Campus Reading Program committee uses to determine whether a book should be considered for selection as the book we'll ask the campus to read in summer and discuss in fall.

1. under 400 pages
2. not made into a movie
3. less than 5 years old
4. available in paperback
5. something likely to be of wide interest
6. some critical acclaim (well known author, award winners, etc.)

Past selections:
2005 - Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenriech
2006 - The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
2007 - Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by ZZ Packer
2008 - Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Why this blog?

2008-09-08T22:01:00.000-07:00

This blog of the SJSU Campus Reading Program Committee is an experiment in gathering and sharing reviews of books that we are considering for the following fall. It is also a place where SJSU students and employees and alums can suggest books for us to consider. There will be an entry for each book we are considering so people can easily leave reviews. There is also an entry with the selection criteria.

If you leave a book comment, please consider also stating your affiliation with SJSU.

Thank you.

Campus Reading Program website: http://www.sjsu.edu/reading/