From Shelley:
Who'd think you could write a history of the U.S. centered on three centuries of the trade in furs? Dolin has done so in this spirited tale, although you won't find presidents, treaties, and wars. Instead, the main characters are the Indians, Dutch, French, British, Russians, and Americans who sought wealth and a living in the pelts of fur-bearing animals--beavers especially, but also sea otters, fur seals, and buffalo. Beneath this absorbing story lies the relentless drive (a "lethal wave" in Dolin's words) across the continent. In Dolin's telling, westward expansion wasn't fueled by "manifest destiny" or the thirst for empire but by the chase after animals. People as varied as Peter Stuyvesant, John Jacob Astor, Kit Carson, and the roughhewn "mountain men" play their parts over lands as dispersed as New England and Oregon. By the time animals are driven to near-extinction in the late 19th century, the U.S. is filled in. Neither would have happened without the other. Dolin, author of the acclaimed Leviathan: The History of Whaling in America, offers another good history well told. 16 pages of color and 16 pages of b&w illus.; map.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Suggestions from the faculty
Dear families,
Summer should be about reading for all of us. It should be about escaping into a new novel and reading a piece of non-fiction that opens our eyes to something new. It should be about reading poetry and composing stanzas in one’s head, if not putting pen to paper.
I have been decidedly stuck in the non-fiction category this summer, which is about to change these last 5 weeks before school begins on September 7th. For several weeks now, I have been searching for the right book for all of us to read--- another Three Cups of Tea that could inspire us all. In my struggle to find the perfect book to share this summer, I realized that there just is not one book for all of us. What is right for me at this moment is probably not what each of you needs to curl up on the couch with right now and lose yourself within.
To this end, I asked some of the faculty what they are reading and might consider recommending to you. This is an eclectic list, as it is meant to be. Use it as a starting point. If one of them piques your interest, check it out at the library. Don’t feel trapped by this list, but see it as opening possibilities. I want you to read this summer, both the frivolous and the deeply challenging. There is nothing better to sharpen your mind and spark your creativity.
When you return in the fall, each of you should prepare to give a short book-talk that captures both the plot and the significance of what you read. Enjoy!
· Louis: Ominvore’s Dillema by Michael Pollan. The sections on Joel’s Polyface farm, which explores what is possible, and on industrial organic, which opened my eyes, are particularly compelling.
· Peg: Nine Lives: In Search of the Sacred in Modern India by William Dalrymple, especially for those studying World Religions in the fall. Also, Nomad: From Islam to America: A Personal Journey Through the Clash of Civilizations by Ayaan Hirsi Ali.
· Blake: The Collector: David Douglas and the Natural History of the Northwest by Jack Nisbet
· Chuck: The Reluctant Mr. Darwin: An Intimate Portrait of Charles Darwin and the Making of His Theory of Evolution (Great Discoveries) by David Quammen
· Ted: iBrain: Surviving the Technological Alteration of the Modern Mind
The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr
· Colin: After Tamerlane: The Rise and Fall of Global Empires, 1400-2000 by John Darwin
The Question Concerning Technology, and Other Essays by Martin Heidegger
· Peg/Ted: In Spite of the Gods: The Rise of Modern India by Edward Luce, especially for those looking to travel to Asia third quarter.
· Grisha: Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain, by Oliver Sacks
· Heather: His Illegal Self, by Peter Carey, is a novel about the son of radical student activists at Harvard in the sixties, a boy who doesn't know his outlaw parents. He himself becomes an outlaw by virtue of his unintentional kidnapping at age eight.
Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston, is a classic American novel of the Harlem Renaissance that tells the story of Janie Crawford, a heroine who refuses to acquiesce to the norms outlined for women and the descendants of slaves during the 1930s.
Enjoy the halcyon days of summer,
| show details Aug 2 (1 day ago) |
very funny -- i am also in the middle of omnivore's dilemma.
this is a very heavy list. might i recommend "The Cardturner" by Louis Sachar ("Holes," "Wayside School") a young adult book with guffaw-humor, and a quick course in the art of the game of Bridge.
| show details Aug 2 (1 day ago) |
Don't know if it will help anyone, but re "Their Eyes Were Watching God," I had taught that for a couple of years, and may have some extra copies of it. Also, I have a CD (set) of Ruby Dee reading the entire novel, if someone needs to listen to it as an aid to reading.
- art
| show details Aug 2 (1 day ago) |
Hi Louis –
When I got your message today I was just about to send you an e-mail about a great non-fiction book, on the off-chance that you were looking for another all-school read. The books the faculty are recommending are all wonderful picks. If you’re looking for yet another great read (and what is, one could argue, a “must read”), I strongly urge you to consider Zeitoun by Dave Eggers. It is an important work on not only life New Orleans immediately after Katrina, but also a thought-provoking treatise on the fragility of our basic civil rights. It is highly readable and appropriate for all high schoolers.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)