Recommended Readings Before
Going to College


Recommended by Harvard Faculty

The following titles are a list of books, not necessarily related to admissions, which Harvard professors have found to be interesting, provocative, helpful or wonderful for different reasons. You may wish to read some of these books before going to college.

  1. Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy. Powerfully addresses issues of gender and socioeconomic class.  Purchase link.
  2. The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Still highly relevant. Purchase link.
  3. Binge: Campus Life in an Age of Disconnection and Excess, by Barrett Seaman, discusses life outside of the classroom and “what your college student won't tell you” . Purchase link.
  4. Bobos in Paradise: The New Upper Class and How They Got There, by David Brooks. Examines the role of education in shaping the new meritocracy. Purchase link.
  5. The Childhood Roots of Adult Happiness, by Edward Hallowell. Purchase link.
  6. The Children of the Kibbutz, by Melford Spiro. Insights into human development and adolescence. Purchase link.
  7. The Chosen: The Hidden History of Admission and Exclusion at Harvard, Yale, and Princeton, by Jerome Karabel. Purchase link.
  8. Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, by Jared Diamond. Purchase link.
  9. Colleges That Change Lives, by Loren Pope.  Purchase link.
  10. Composing a Life, by Mary Catherine Bateson. A look at how discontinuity and change can be a source of great energy and creativity in our lives. Purchase link.
  11. Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss what Matters Most, by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, Sheila Heen, Roger Fisher. Purchase link.
  12. The Economist. Required weekly reading. The Economist website.
  13. The End of Equality, by Mickey Kaus. Purchase link.
  14. Excellence: Can We Be Equal and Excellent Too?, by John Gardner. One of a handful of books I consider to be "mentoring texts" during my career. He reminds us that selecting for talent is one of the most difficult and critical tasks performed in this society. (Fred Hargadon). Purchase link.
  15. The Game of Life: College Sports and Educational Values, written by former Princeton University president William Bowen and co-author James Shulman. This study covers not only the big time Division I schools but also delves into the growing impact of athletics in small liberal arts colleges. (William Fitzsimmons). Purchase link.
  16. Learning to Fall: The Blessings of An Imperfect Life, by Philip Simpson. A series of essays that consider how to distinguish the essential from the circumstantial. Purchse Link.
  17. Letting Go: A Parents' Guide to Understanding the College Years, by Karen Coburn and Madge Lawrence Tregger. Purchase link.
  18. The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding Globalization, by Tom Friedman. The role of education in globalization. Purchase link.
  19. Making Good: How Young People Cope with Moral Dilemmas at Work, by Howard Gardner and others. Purchase link.
  20. Making the Most of College, by Richard Light. Students tell us how learning can be enhanced. We gain insight into how to help make the "fit" between applicants and colleges work. Purchase link.
  21. Millenials Go To College, by Neil Howe and William Strauss. This is a quick read and follow-up to Millenials Rising. It gives interesting insight into what the traditional 18–22 year-old is thinking when choosing a college. Purchase link.
  22. On Paradise Drive: How We Live Now (And Always Have) in the Future Tense, by David Brooks. More on the new America and American character. Purchase link.
  23. One Mind at a Time, by Mel Levine. Purchase link.
  24. On Writing Well, by William Zinsser, N.Y. Harper & Row, 1980. An informal guide to writing nonfiction. Purchase link.
  25. The Paradox of Choice, by Barry Schwartz.  Download link
  26. Prep: A Novel, by Curtis Sittenfeld. Purchase link.
  27. The Price of Admission, by Daniel Golden. Purchase Link.
  28. Race Matters, by Cornell West. This is a well-reasoned, easily read treatise; he handles well tough issues e.g. African Americans and sexuality. Purchase link
  29. Richistan: A Journey Through the American Wealth Boom and the Lives of the New Rich, by Robert Frank. Purchase link.
  30. Season of Life: A Football Star, a Boy, a Journey to Manhood , by Jeffrey Marx. Purchase link.
  31. The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell. An entertaining and especially useful perspective on how things become “hot” or “popular”. Purchase link.
  32. View With a Grain of Sand, by Wislawa Szymborska. These wise, often funny poems restore one’s sense of humor and humanity. Szymborska is very readable; her poems can provide very effective tone moments for workshops, meetings with students, speeches, etc. Purchase link.
  33. The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century, by Thomas L. Friedman.  Purchase link.
  34. Writing About Your Life: A Journey into the Past, by William Knowlton Zinsser. Purchase link.
  35. The Year of Magical Thinking, by Joan Didion. Purchase link.
  36. Zoom, by Istvan Banyai. Technically, this is probably a children’s book, and it has no words. A powerful examination of the influence of perspective on how we interpret our worlds. Purchase link.