Looking for your next summer read? Faculty and staff from Dartmouth’s School of Arts and Sciences have you covered—with recommendations ranging from gripping novels to thoughtful life advice. While you’re adding to your list, check out our Faculty Bookshelf, with recent titles including The Given-Up Girl, the debut novel by writing lecturer Ellen Rockmore, and a powerful new volume edited by anthropology professor Sergei Kan, showcasing photographs by Elbridge Merrill, who spent 30 years capturing life in Sitka, Alaska.
Recommended by Colleen Boggs, associate dean for the arts and humanities and Parents Distinguished Research Professor in the Humanities:
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver and James by Percival Everett
“I like reading ‘big’ books in the summer, the kind that one can return to day after day and spend the longer daylight hours absorbing,” says Boggs. “Often, that means I dive into 19th-century novels, but this year, I would recommend two books that rethink those works: Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver, which reinvents Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield for the contemporary United States; and James by Percival Everett, which grapples with Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Both take old texts and reveal new meanings while also crafting characters and storylines that stand on their own.”
Recommended by Joe Catrino, executive director of the Center for Career Design:
Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived Joyful Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans and Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know by Malcolm Gladwell
“Designing Your Life offers practical tools and exercises to help readers create a fulfilling and purposeful life by applying design thinking principles,” Catrino says. “The book is an inspiring guide that empowers individuals to navigate uncertainty and make intentional choices for their personal and professional growth.”
“Talking to Strangers reveals the common misunderstandings and biases that occur when we interact with people we don’t know,” Catrino explains. “The book encourages critical thinking about communication, trust, and judgment in everyday encounters, making it essential for better navigating a diverse world.”
Recommended by Alexander Chee, professor of English and creative writing:
The Payback by Kashana Cauley
“Cauley is a Daily Show alum, who has written what I might call a speculative fiction Ocean’s 11 heist set in the near future, but it’s a smaller crew: three work friends at a store much like Spencer’s Gifts at the mall, determined to pull off a long shot heist big enough to pay back their student loans,” says Chee. “This novel is laugh-out-loud funny—the kind of book other people ask about because of how you behave while you read it. Addictive, smart fun.”
Recommended by Jay Davis '90, director of the First-Generation Office:
The Privileged Poor: How Elite Colleges Are Failing Disadvantaged Students by Anthony Jack
“Based on years of doctoral interviews that Jack conducted with low-income students at an Ivy college, the book gives rare insight into the challenges, and particular rewards, that first-generation and low-income students experience," says Davis.
Recommended by Matthew Delmont, Frank J. Guarini Associate Dean of International and Interdisciplinary Studies and Sherman Fairchild Distinguished Professor of History:
King of the North: Martin Luther King Jr.’s Life of Struggle Outside the South by Jeanne Theoharis
“This is a surprising and powerful book on one of the most iconic figures in American history,” Delmont says. “It illuminates the civil rights struggles of the 1950s and 1960s, as well as the political battles that are still taking place today.”
Recommended by Anne Hudak, interim dean of undergraduate student affairs:
The Women by Kristin Hannah
“The Women offers a narrative told from a distinctive perspective, immersing you in the multifaceted experiences of its main character home and abroad,” says Hudak. “The novel explores the complexities and the profound realities of war.”
Recommended by Katharine Maguire, interim associate dean of Student Life:
Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson and The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer
“A delightful story full of pirates, magic, and adventure, Tress of the Emerald Sea is perfect for reading at the beach or on audio for a long car trip,” Maguire says.
In The Serviceberry, Kimmerer “offers a vision of a world ‘where wealth comes from the quality of your relationships, not from the illusion of self-sufficiency,’” says Maguire. “It is a short read with staying power. It’s come up in conversations with friends, on walks in the woods, and when identifying serviceberries in the wild!”
Recommended by Nina Pavcnik, interim dean of Arts and Sciences and Niehaus Family Professor in International Studies:
Factory Man: How One Furniture Maker Battled Offshoring, Stayed Local—and Helped Save an American Town by Beth Macy and I Saw Her That Night by Drago Jančar
Factory Man chronicles a family furniture business and its impact on a North Carolina factory town. “It clearly explains how technology, globalization, and politics shape industry dynamics and local economies, while also vividly portraying the human costs of deindustrialization,” Pavcnik says.
A novel set in Pavcnik’s native Slovenia during World War II, I Saw Her That Night “centers on the life of a woman who defies the norms of her time, told through the perspectives of five people whose lives she has influenced,” says Pavcnik. “This is a timely read that explores the ambiguity of the war.”
Recommended by Roopika Risam, chair of the Department of Film and Media Studies and associate professor of comparative literature:
The Lies You Wrote by Brianna Labuskes
“The first of a trilogy, The Lies You Wrote follows FBI forensic linguist Raisa Susanto, PhD, as she hunts a serial killer with tools straight out of digital humanities: spreadsheets, language patterns, and statistical analysis,” Risam says. “Every time I thought I had it all figured out, another twist was waiting.”
Recommended by Peter Tse '84, chair of the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences:
Blueprint: The Evolutionary Origins of a Good Society by Nicholas Christakis
Christakis, who lives in Norwich, Vermont, is a sociologist and physician at Yale. “His book Blueprint makes the argument that we are genetically predisposed to be prosocial, kind, and generally good, circumstances allowing,” Tse says.