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Common Readings (Campus-Wide) at U.S. Colleges and Universities:
A Sample of Recent Titles (2007 or 2008)

In August 2008, this list was assembled from responses to queries posted on several listservs and from information obtained from the Internet. It does not promise complete accuracy. Apologies for any errors and omissions. —Chris M. Anson, NC State University

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School
Title
Author(s)
Comments
Adams State College (CO) Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Agnes Scott College Thank You For Smoking by Christopher Buckley
Albion College Thank You For Smoking by Christopher Buckley
American U The Devil's Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea
Appalachian State U The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
Atlantic Cape CC (NJ) The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
Augustana College (SD) Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Ball State U (IN) Field Notes from a Catastrophe by Elizabeth Kolbert
Barton College (NC) Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Baruch College, CUNY The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
Baylor University Same Kind of Different As Me Ron Hudson and Denver Moore
Baylor University *Let Your Life Speak Parker Palmer
Belleview CC The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
Belmont Abbey College, Charlotte Colors of the Mountain Da Chen Brilliant
Belmont U (TN) Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W. Loewen
Berry College Mountains Beyond Mountains by Traci Kidder
Blufton University (OH) Just Generosity by Ronald J. Sider
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Bowling Green State U The Last Town on Earth? by Thomas Mullen
Butler U (IN) Listening is an Act of Love by Dave Isay
Cabrini College (PA) Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Cal State Channel Islands Southlands by Nina Revoyr
Cal State Chico Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Cal State Northridge Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
Cal State San Marcos *They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky by Deng, et al.
California Polytechnic U Montana 1948 by Larry Watson
Carleton College (MN) The Travels of a T-Shirt in a Global Economy by Pietra Rivoli
Case Western Reserve U The Reluctant Mr. Darwin by David Quammen
Catawba College (NC) The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Central College (IA) *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Chaffey College (CA) Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Champlain College The Tortilla Curtain by T. C. Boyle
Chandler-Gilbert CC (AZ) Garbage Land by Elzabeth Royte
Chapman U Flight by Sherman Alexie
Clemson U One Foot in Eden by Ron Rash
Cleveland State U Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Coastal Carolina U *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Coker College Saints at the River? by Ron Rash
Colgate U *The Weather Makers by Tim Flannery
College of Charleston Longitude by Dava Sobel
College of New Jersey World Made by Hand by James Howard Kunstler
College of the Redwoods Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
College of Wooster *The Riverkeepers by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and John Cronin
Collin College All Souls by Michael Patrick MacDonald
Concordia College (MN) Field Notes from a Catastrophe by Elizabeth Kolbert
Converse College *Kettle Bottom by Diane Gilliam Fisher
Cornell University Lincoln at Gettysburg by Gary Wills
Creighton U *The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini or
Creighton U My Freshman Year Rebekah Nathan or
Creighton U Surely You're Joking Richard Feynman or
Creighton U Blink Malcolm Gladwell
Dartmouth College The Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki
DeSales Character is Destiny by John McCain
Duke U What is the What by Dave Eggers
East Tennessee State U The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Eastern Illinois U Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
Eastern Kentucky U A Hope in the Unseen by Ron Suskind
Eastern Michigan U Autobiography of a Face by Lucy Grealy
Elon U The Shame of the Nation by Jonathan Kozol
Emerson College The Declaration of Independence Various
Fairfield U Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Farleigh Dickinson U (NJ) *The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
Florida Southern College Colors of the Mountain ? by Da Chen
Florida State U Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Foothill College The Tortilla Curtain by T. C. Boyle
Fort Lewis College Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Franklin Pierce U *Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
George Mason U The Devil's Highway: A True Story by Luis Alberto Urrea
Georgetown U Winner of Booker Prize Various
Gonzaga University Visible Bones Jack Nisbet This book is subtitled "Journeys Across Time in the Columbia River Country" and is being integrated with Gonzaga University's institution-wide "water" theme.
Goucher College Chinese Lessons? by John Pomfret
Grace College (IN) Not for Sale by David Batstone
Guilford College *Big Fish by Daniel Wallace
Gustavus Adolphus College Chinese Lessons by John Pomfret
Gwynedd-Mercy College *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Hamline University Anthology of articles that speak to U's mission by Various Authors
Harrisburg Area CC *The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Hawaii Pacific U *The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad
Hobart & Wm Smith *The Cathedral Within by Bill Shore
Houston CC *Leaving Microsoft to Change the World by John Wood
Howard CC (MD) *Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver
Huntington College (AL) The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
Idaho State U Enrique's Journey by Sonia Nazario
Illinois Central College *Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Illinois Wesleyan U The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Indiana U of Pennsylvania Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
Indiana U South Bend On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
Indiana U Southeast Skull Wars by David Hurst
Ithaca College Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
IUPUI A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
IUPUI Deep Economy Bill McKibben McKibben spoke on campus in November as part of a community-wide event; it was great!
James Madison U Federalist 10 by James Madison
John Brown U (AR) The Chosen by Chaim Potok
Juniata College (PA) Complications: A Surgeon's Notes ? by Atul Gawande
Kalamazoo College The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz
Keene State College (NH) *The Devil's Highway: A True Story by Luis Alberto Urrea
Kent State U The Kiterunner by Khaled Homeini
Lafayette College (PA) The Omnivore's Dilemma by Micheal Pollan
LaGuardia CC (CUNY) *An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore
Lasell College (MA) *Essays by Twentysomething Writers ed. Kellogg & Quint
Lees-McRae College (NC) The Death of Innocents by Helen Prejean
Lehigh U Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
Lenoir-Rhyne College (NC) *Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
Louisiana State U The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Loyola (Baltimore) Acts of Faith by Eboo Patel
Loyola Marymount U The Year of Living Biblically by A. J. Jacobs
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Luther College *Warriors Don't Cry by Melba Patillo Beals
Lynchburg College *Ecology of a Cracker Childhood by Janisse Ray
Manhattan College *The Ethics of What We Eat by Peter Singer and Jim Mason
Marion U (WI) Planetwalker by John Francis
Marquette U Run by Ann Patchett
Mars Hill College (NC) Honky by Dalton Conley
Marymount College (CA) *The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Massasoit CC *Mayflower by Nathaniel Philbrick
Massbay CC Coyotes by Ted Conover
Messiah College *The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Methodist U (NC) They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky by Deng, et al.
Miami U (OH) Beyond UFOs by Jeffrey Bennett
Michigan State U They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky by Deng, et al.
Michigan Tech Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Middle Tennessee State U Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Midlands Technical C (SC) Duty by Bob Greene
Mills College (CA) A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf
Montana State U The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
Moravian College The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman
Morningside College A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Mount Holyoke Caucasia by Danzy Senna
Murray State U Clay's Quilt by Silas House
Muskingum College (OH) Ectopia by Ernest Callenbach
Nazareth College (NY) Autobiography of a Face by Lucy Grealy
New College of Florida Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
New Mexico State U The Devil's Highway by Luis Urrea
New York Institute of Tech *The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama
Niagara U The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
Nichols College (MA) *The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
North Carolina State U Sounds of the River by Da Chen
North Carolina State U: 2009 selection Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Northern Arizona U *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Northern Kentucky Y Love My Rifle More Than You by Kayla Williams
Northwestern U The Reluctant Mr. Darwin by David Quammen
Northwood U *Where Have All The Leaders Gone? by Lee Iacocca
Oakland U Geography of Nowhere by James Kuntsler
Occidental College (CA) The Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
Ohio State U The Language of Baklava by Diana Abu-Jaber and
Ohio State U Mountains Beyond Mountains Tracy Kidder
Ohio U Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
Ohio Wesleyan U *Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned ? by Walter Moseley
Oklahoma City U Colors of the Mountain by Da Chen
Oklahoma City University Colors of the Mountain Da Chen Wonderful Speaker who also palys beautiful bamboo flute
Oklahoma City University Sounds of the River, A Young Man's University Days in Beijing DA CHEN We loved him so much in 08 with his first memoir that we are using his second memoir for 2009
Oklahoma City University Sounds of the River, A Young Man's University Days in Beijing DA CHEN We loved him so much in 08 with his first memoir that we are using his second memoir for 2009
Otterbein College (OH) *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Owensboro CC (KY) Dismal Rock by Davis McCombs
Pace U Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
Parkland College (IL) *The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Penn State U The Alchemist by Paul Coelho
Philadelphia University The Possible City Nathaniel Popkin This book explores the past, present, and possible future of Philadelphia and of urban environments in general.
Queens U of Charlotte * Blood Done?Sign My Name by Timothy Tyson
Ramapo College of NJ The Canon by Natile Angier
Ringling C of Art & Design Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser
Roanoke College The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Rose-Hulman Inst of Tech * The Life of Pi by Yann Martel
Rutgers School of Arts Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Salisbury U (MD) Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Sam Houston State U (TX) Affluenza, by John de Graaf, Dave Wann, and Thomas Naylor
Samford U Field Notes from a Catastrophe by Elizabeth Kolbert
San Diego State U Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
San Jose State U Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Sarah Lawrence College The Book of Sarahs by Catherine E. McKinley
Seton Hall U *Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
Skidmore College *Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen
Smith College Native Guard by Natasha Trethewey
Southern Mississippi U Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and
Southern Mississippi U To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee
Southwest MN State U * Soul of a Citizen by Paul Loeb
Spokane Falls CC * The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
Spring Hill College, Mobile Colors of the MOuntain Da Chen Great!
St. Ambrose U (IA) Light And Darkness Anthology Various
St. Bonaventure U (NY) Left to Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza
St. Francis U (PA) Cage of Stars by Jacquelyn Mitchard
St. Louis CC * All Quiet on the Western Front ? by Erich Maria Remarque
St. Louis U Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
St. Mary's College of CA The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan
St. Mary's College of MD Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
St. Michael's College (VT) *Babette's Feast by Isak Dinesen
Stanford U The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz and
Stanford U One Hundred Demons Lynda Barry and
Stanford U Drinking Coffee Elsewhere ZZ Packer
Stonehill College (MA) * Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Stony Brook University, NY Colors of the Mountain DA CHEN Opens our eyes to the East!
SUNY Brockport The Bone Woman? by Clea Koff
SUNY Buffalo The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
SUNY Oswego Field Notes from a Catastrophe by Elzabeth Kolbert
Susquehanna U *When the Rivers Run Dry by Fred Pearce
Sweet Briar College (VA) Reading Lolita in Teheran by Azar Nafisi
Syracuse U A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Temple U *Black Ice by Lorene Cary
Texas Tech U The Devil's Highway: A True Story by Luis Alberto Urrea
Texas Wesleyan U Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Thomas College (ME) Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Trine U March by Geraldine Brooks
U Mass Amherst Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Froer
U of Alabama Birmingham Field Notes From a Catastrophe by Elizabeth Kolbert
U of Alaska Anchorage and Alaska Pacific U *The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood and
U of Alaska Anchorage and Alaska Pacific U The Swallows of Kabul Yasmina Khadra
U of Arizona (Tucson) Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit by Daniel Quinn
U of Arkansas The Devil's Highway by Luis Urrea
U of California Berkeley A Briefer History of Time by Stephen Hawking
U of California Davis Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
U of California Northridge Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
U of Dayton Nonviolence by Mark Kurlansky
U of Florida *When the Rivers Run Dry by Fred Pearce
U of Idaho 1 Dead in Attic: After Katrina by Chris Rose
U of Louisiana at Monroe The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
U of Louisville Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
U of Maine *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
U of Maryland Baltimore C The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
U of Maryland College Park War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning by Chris Hedges
U of Missouri Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
U of Montana Taliban by Ahmed Rashid
U of NC at Chapel Hill Covering: The Hidden Assault on our Rights Kenji Yoshino
U of NC at Charlotte Enrique's Journey by Sonia Nazario
U of NC at Greensboro A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
U of NC at Wilmington Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
U of North Texas The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver
U of Richmond *Taking on the Big Boys by Ellen Bravo
U of San Francisco Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
U of Sciences in Phila. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
U of South Carolina *When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka
U of South Carolina Aiken Not For Sale by David Batstone
U of Southern CA Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
U of St. Thomas *The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
U of Tennessee Knoxville *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
U of Texas Arlington The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
U of Texas San Antonio A Hope in the Unseen by Ron Suskind
U of VA Sch. of Engineering America, 1908 by Jim Rasenberger
U of Vermont *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
U of Washington The Devil's Highway by Luis Urrea
U of West Georgia The Good Life by Erin McGraw; by
U of West Georgia After the Lost War Andrew Hudgins
U of Wisconsin Oshkosh *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
U of Wisconsin Parkside The Pact by Sampson Davis, et al.
U of Wyoming *Beyond Oil by Kenneth S. Deffeyes
Union College (NE) *Black Ice by Lorene Cary
University of Akron *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius Dave Eggers In this memoir, Eggers describes, in part, the circumstances under which he failed out of UIUC. He subsequently receives an honorary degree from UIUC and his book becomes the first common reading choice.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Nickel and Dimed Barbara Ehrenreich
University of Memphis Fast Food Nation (2008) Eric Schlosser
University of Memphis Persepolis (2009) Marjane Satrapi
University of Rhode Island Interpreter of Maladies Jhumpa Lahiri Lahiri is from Rhode Island. This was the first common reading book, in 2009.
University of Texas at Arlington The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini
University of Texas at Arlington Maus Art Spiegelman
Utah State U *A Long Way Gone: Memories of a Boy Soldier by Ismael Beah
Virginia Commonwealth U Covering The Hidden Assualt on Our Rights by Kenji Yoshino
Virginia Tech Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
Waldoff College, Forest City, Iowa Colors of The Mountain Da Chen Excellent
Wartburg College The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman
Washburn U (KS) Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Washington State U * Flu by Gina Kolata
Wayne State U Y no se lo trag? la tierra /And the Earth Did Not Devour Him by Tom?s Rivera
West Kentucky CC The Girl with the Tangerine Scarf by Mohja Kahf and
West Kentucky CC The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini and
West Kentucky CC The Faith Club Ranya Idlli and
West Kentucky CC To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee
West Texas A&M What is the What by Dave Eggers
Western Carolina U Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Western CT State U The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri?
Western KY CC Rocket boys by Homer Hickam and
Western KY CC One Flew Over the Cuckoo?s Nest Ken Kesey and
Western KY CC Icy Sparks Gwyn Rubio and
Western KY CC Life is So Good George Dawson
Western New England C Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin
Western Washington U The Battle Over the Meaning of Everything by Gordy Slack
Wheaton (MA) *The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan
Whitman College Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Widener U (Various?book club) by Various
Winona State U (MN) The Blue Death by Dr. Robert Morris
Winthrop U * The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp
Woodbury U *I am Alive in Los Angeles by Mike Sonsken
Wright State U Freakonomics by Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt
York College (PA) The Road? by Cormac McCarthy
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