Non-Required Reading: Short takes

Facing a long plane ride later this summer, or need something to keep you occupied before summer classes start? Some of us here thought we'd share recommendations for some recent reads and perennial favorites. Today, two librarians share short takes on some books read in the last few months.

Joanne Hélouvry
Head of Research & Instruction Services

With gas prices going up and organic foods abounding, I would recommend Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. Just be careful not to be sucked into the guilt that I felt when eating asparagus in November. Request it from Hood, and have it delivered right to LNDL!

Philip Fryer
Digital Media Librarian

I recently helped Dr. Pat Dwyer perfect slides for a presentation on assessment of education, and that brings to mind Jonathan Kozol's The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America. The book is really a sequel to his earlier work, Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools and is as dismaying as it is well-written and researched. Check out our copy of The Shame of the Nation (LC212.62 K69 2005) or Savage Inequalities (LC4091 .K69 1991).

Of course, you can also check these out from the Enoch Pratt Free Library or your public library at home, wherever that may be.