The Kurdish Bike by Alesa Lightbourne

March 1, 2019 by Christina

Fiction – print. Self-published, 2016. 324 pgs. Library copy. When oil prices were high and ISIS had yet to sweep across Iraq and Syria, American teacher Theresa Turner was recruited to teach at an international academy in an autonomous region of Kurdish Iraq. Financially underwater from divorcing her unnamed husband, Turner had previously worked as an English teacher in Saudi Arabia and is eager to accept a job in a portion of the world where she might experience a bit […]

Categories: 2019 Reads, Book Club, Education, Fiction, Middle East • Tags: Alesa Lightbourne

Educated by Tara Westover

January 31, 2019 by Christina

Nonfiction — print. Random House, 2018. 334 pgs. Purchased. Westover’s memoir generated considerable buzz after its publication last year. Former US President Barack Obama included it in his list of favorite books for 2018, and it seemed like every single book club I considered joining in my new town had read or planned to read this book. I bought a copy figuring I’d end up reading it for a book club eventually, but bumped up to the top of my […]

Categories: 2019 Reads, Education, Mountain West, Nonfiction, North America, Religion, United States • Tags: Tara Westover

The Newcomers by Helen Thorpe

December 31, 2018 by Christina

Nonfiction — print. Scribner, 2017. 416 pgs. Purchased. Subtitled “Finding Refuge, Friendship, and Hope in an American Classroom”, Thorpe spent a year and a half in an English Language Acquisition (ELA) class at Denver’s South High School. The twenty-two students she shadowed arrived in America as refugees with little English comprehension from around the world, including Iraq via Syria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burma, and El Salvador. Over this period of time, these students struggled to adjust to […]

Categories: 2018 Reads, Africa, Asia, Book Club, Education, Middle East, Mountain West, Nonfiction, North America, South America, Thailand, United States • Tags: Helen Thorpe

And Still We Rise by Miles Corwin

July 18, 2011 by Christina

Nonfiction — print. Perennial, 2001. Originally published 2000. 420 pgs. Borrowed. Subtitled “The Trials and Triumphs of Twelve Gifted Inner-City Students”, Corwin’s book was meant to be a response to California voting to end affirmative action in college admissions. The students are all minorities from LA’s notorious South-Central neighborhood and members Crenshaw High School’s class of 1997 or 1998. Each student faces a myriad of problems — poverty, abandonment, abuse, illegal drugs, teen pregnancy, and gang violence — as they drag […]

Categories: 2011 Reads, Education, Nonfiction, North America, United States • Tags: Miles Corwin

Professor’s Guide to Getting Good Grades in College by Lynn F. Jacobs and Jeremy S. Hyman

August 6, 2009 by Christina

Jacobs and Hyman actually sent a copy of this book to my mother for her to review on her blog, but since I’m the one actually headed to college I picked up the book a read the whole thing in our drive across Wyoming. The first few chapters are pretty chatty, and there were times when I felt like the professors were repetitive and talking in circles. However, once the book moves onto what to do the first week of […]

Categories: 2009 Reads, Education, Nonfiction, North America, United States • Tags: Jeremy S. Hyman, Lynn F. Jacobs

Been There, Should’ve Done That by Suzette Tyler

May 9, 2009 by Christina

Been There, Should’ve Done That is a small flip book filled with quotes from college students from across the country at small colleges and large universities about the secrets they’ve learned to stay afloat — and succeed — in college. Some of it is common sense such as go to class, suck up to your professors, and study, study, study. But some of these insights are things I never would have considered, and the majority are phrased in a way […]

Categories: 2009 Reads, Education, Nonfiction, North America, United States • Tags: Suzette Tyler

Major In Success by Patrick Combs

January 28, 2009 by Christina

How do I figure out what carer I’d truly love? How do I pick the best major for me? How do I get and stay motivated? What are some shortcuts to success? How do I get past the fears that hold me back? What  will give me a competitive edge? To be honest, the information Combs provides in his book was all common sense to me. The book instructs you to (a) go to college, (b) figure out what you […]

Categories: 2009 Reads, Education, Nonfiction • Tags: Patrick Combs

The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perrotta

January 10, 2009 by Christina

Stonewood Heights in the perfect place to raise kids. It’s got the proverbial good schools, solid values, and a healthy real estate market. It’s the kind of all-American suburb where parents are involved in their children’s lives, where no opportunity for enrichment goes unexplored. Ruth Ramsey is the human sexuality teacher at the local high school. She believes that “pleasure is good, shame is bad, and knowledge in power.” Ruth’s daughter’s soccer coach is Tim Mason, a former stoner and […]

Categories: 2009 Reads, Education, Fiction, North America, United States • Tags: Tom Perrotta

The College Hook by Pam Proctor

December 13, 2008 by Christina

Subtitled “Packaging Yourself to Win the College Admissions Game”, Proctor’s book is very informative, and I’d recommend students — and parents — read it before students start high school. The book emphasize how to separate yourself from others, an idea that’s ultimately difficult to do when faced with the question of “how are you a good fit for _____________?” But, I’m hesitant to suggest that every college student read The College Hook because without my own internship, the book would […]

Categories: 2008 Reads, Education, Nonfiction • Tags: Pam Proctor

The Hidden Ivies by Howard Greene and Matthew Greene

December 1, 2008 by Christina

This book focuses on liberal arts colleges and universities that are of comparable quality to the Ivies. Based on surveys and interviews with students as well as college presidents, deans of faulty, and other administrators, The Hidden Ivies presents an inside perspective of thirty leading institutions of exceptional merit. These colleges and universities provide an outstanding educational experience for the gifted college-bound student and provide the foundation for life after graduation. My brother and I each ended up applying to […]

Categories: Education, Nonfiction, North America, United States • Tags: Howard Greene, Matthew Greene

Cool Colleges by Donald Asher

December 1, 2008 by Christina

Are you hyper-intelligent? Self-directed? A late-bloomer? Or just different? Asher’s book attempts to find the perfect colleges out there for those who enjoy learning or socially-awkward or different from anyone else in their high school. The book promises to explain the Ivy League it and what it really wants and tell you about universities that either don’t give grades or don’t want your SAT scores. For those outdoorsy types, Asher includes a college where you can hike and camp your […]

Categories: Education, Nonfiction, North America, United States • Tags: Donald Asher

Competitive Colleges by Fern A. Oram

December 1, 2008 by Christina

Nonfiction — print. Peterson’s, 2007. 548 pgs. Borrowed from my mom. A basic guide to colleges. I tagged several colleges mentioned in the book while reading it, but I never did follow up with them. Not a very persuasive or memorable book. The information was elementary, and less than you would get if you went to a session about the specific college in the guide or spent ten minutes on their website. Although, I’d suggest the later because the more […]

Categories: Chunkster, Education, Nonfiction, North America, United States • Tags: Fern A. Oram