From award-winning fiction, poetry, memoir, and biography to new books about the environment, current events, history, public health, science, social justice, student success, and technology, the titles presented in our common reading catalog will have students not only eagerly flipping through the pages, but also excited for the chance to discuss their reading journey when they return to campus. Selected titles include program mainstays as well as new titles from emerging authors that look at contemporary topics and issues facing young people today.
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The Small and the Mighty
From America’s favorite government teacher, a “fascinating and fun” (Adam Grant) portrait of twelve ordinary Americans whose courage formed the character of our country.
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Sharks Don't Sink
The uplifting story of a young Black scientist’s challenging journey to flourish outside the traditional confines of academia, inspired by her innate connection to nature’s most misunderstood animal—the shark.
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Poverty, by America
Longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Nonfiction
The Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Evicted reimagines the debate on poverty, making a “provocative and compelling” (NPR) argument about why it persists in America: because the rest of us benefit from it.
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unCommon Authors is a monthly video series highlighting exceptional and unique authors talking about their books. The authors in this collection are included in the series. Find the authors discussing their videos on each individual book page.
We are pleased to share a new first-year and common reading guide for the The Future Is Peace by Aziz Abu Sarah and Maoz Inon In The Future Is Peace, two lifelong peace activists and guides to Israel/Palestine, both of whom have lost family in the conflict, take readers on a revealing life-changing journey across this holy, bloodstained
Read moreIn The Meaning of Your Life, social scientist and happiness expert Arthur Brooks examines why modern life can feel empty despite material progress and argues that cultural and technological shifts have made meaning harder to access. Drawing on science, philosophy, and faith traditions, Brooks outlines practical ways to cultivate purpose, deepen relationships, and orient one’s
Read moreTracy Kidder, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, has passed away at age 80. Tracy Kidder’s books covered subjects as wide-ranging as global public health, computer science, education, construction, and homelessness, but they were all united by his trademark research and dogged reporting that provided the foundations for stories of real people, passionately committed to their work. In
Read moreFor Rick Smith ’68, former editor-in-chief of Newsweek, reading has always been more than an academic exercise; it’s a bridge between people, ideas, and generations, reflecting the core of an Albion liberal arts education. As the endowment of Albion College’s Endowed Richard M. Smith Common Reading Experience (CRE) celebrates its 25th anniversary, we’re reminded of where
Read moreEl Paso is an extraordinary, can’t-look-away reported history; it uses deep research and dozens of new interviews to blow away the myth of this place, where Mexico’s Juarez and America’s El Paso intertwine. It charts the history of El Paso through five families. From the Mexican Revolution and the Mexican Repatriation, to the shifting immigration laws
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