The impact of reading is evident in writing, train of academic thought, creativity, and exposure to knowledge outside of classroom instruction. As shared in the 2010 Prairie View A&M University Quality Enhancement Plan – iREAD, “There remains even greater power in reading and in having that reading occur in learning communities.”
This winter break, I encourage my fellow students to enjoy the six-week break from studies with a good book (or two!). The college experience is jam-packed with rigorous studies, extracurriculars, and social activities. With this sometimes fast-paced lifestyle, it can be difficult to find true time to yourself – and especially finding a great book.
With the help of The Honors Program, of which I am a part, we have compiled a holiday reading list titled The Bind. It is filled with book reading suggestions from the President, Provost and several deans. The purpose of The Bind is to provide students with reading options for enjoyment, intellectual stimulation, leisure, self-improvement, and reading for the discipline.
As you peruse the list, you may find that some of PVAMU’s leadership share favorites, like Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers. This winter break, hopefully you can find a new favorite read with The Bind as well!
The Bind
Ruth J. Simmons, President
- “The Meaning of Human Existence” by Edward O. Wilson
- “Song of Solomon” by Toni Morrison
- “Keeping Faith” by Cornel West
James M. Palmer, Provost & Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
- “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison
- “The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates” by Wes Moore
- “Metaphors We Live By” by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson
Gerard D’Souza, Dean, College of Agriculture and Human Sciences
- “Leadership and Self Deception” by The Arbinger Institute
- “Nobel Lecture” by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
- “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran
- “Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman
Munir Quddus, Dean, College of Business
- “The Myth of Capitalism” by Johnathon Tepper and Denise Hearn
- “A World of Three Zeros: The New Economics of Zero Poverty, Zero Unemployment, and Zero Net Carbon Emission” by Muhammad Yunus
- “The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy” by Thomas Stanley and William Danko
Michael L. McFrazier, Dean, Whitlowe R. Green College of Education
- “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie
- “Living in the In-Between Times” by Ralph Douglas West
- “Oh, the Places You’ll Go” by Dr. Seuss
Pamela Obiomon, Dean, Roy G. Perry College of Engineering
- “Hidden Figures” by Margot Lee Shetterly
- “Everfar: A Novel” by Nisi Shawl
- “Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman: Adventures of a Curious Character” by Richard Feynman
Camille Gibson, Interim Dean, College of Juvenile Justice
- “White Fragility” by Robin DiAngelo
- “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell
- “Make Me Wanna Holler: A Young Black Man in America” by Nathan McCall
Allyssa L. Harris, Dean, College of Nursing
- “Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans from Colonial Times to Present” by Harriet A. Washington
- “Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty” by Dorothy Roberts
- “Kindred” by Octavia Butler
- Additional Favorite: “Wild Seed” by Octavia Butler
Alphonso Keaton, Interim Dean, Office of Undergraduate Studies
- “The Other Black Girl” by Zakiyah Dalila Harris
- “The Sellout” by Paul Beatty
- “The Mis-Education of the Negro” by Carter Godwin Woodson
Quincy C. Moore III, Director, The Honors Program
Shelbi McNulty
- “The Mis-Education of the Negro” by Carter Godwin Woodson
- “Outliers: The Story of Success” by Malcolm Gladwell
- “The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates” by Wes Moore
Shelbi McNulty’s Books
- “Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine” by Gail Honeyman
- “Black Voices: An Anthology of Afro-American Literature” by Abraham Chapman
- “The Five People You Meet in Heaven” by Mitch Albom
Shelbi McNulty is an Honors Program student in Cohort XI at Prairie View A&M University. She is a junior Communications major with a minor in Political Science. Shelbi looks forward to pursuing a career in law and education policy upon graduation.