Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums College Please recommend books about college

Hi Everyone,
DD is headed to college in the fall and I'd really appreciate some book recommendations. Fiction, non-fiction, either is good, hopefully they will contain solid advice to help her make good choices, be successful, and get along with her roommates. Please list the title, author, fiction or non, and what makes the book great (and any drawbacks).

I'll start with one she's already got:

Daddy long legs by Jean Webster, fiction. Pros: captures the sense of not fitting in and that "everyone else knows things I don't" and goes a step further to show how Judy over comes challenges in college. Fairly realistic depiction of college (study hard or you will fail, look things up if you don't know them, people come from many different backgrounds). Cons: Written in 1911 so somewhat anachronistic.

Tam Lin, by Pamela Dean, fiction. Pros: Captures much of the spirit of going to a liberal arts college and figuring out what you want to do with your life (the protagonist is an English major who wants to go to grad school and eventually teach and/or write poetry). May cultivate an infectious love of classic literature. Cons: Includes a pregnancy and an abortion decision as a major plot point, which may not be in accord with your family values. Somewhat dated (takes place in the 70s).

Thanks ElizabethN, we'll look at that.

My daughter & I both enjoyed 'The Naked Roommate' http://www.amazon.com/The-Naked-Roommate-Issues-College/dp/140225346X.

It's humorous at times and quite frank about some issues such as drugs, alcohol use and sex. It's a sensational title but it's really a down to earth book that gives good advice of how to get along with roommates. One of the big take-homes DD got from the books is you will be a lot happier if you don't EXPECT that your roommate will be your best friend. The month before my daughter went off to college we spent time reading various chapters out loud and discussing them.

Edited to add fiction rec:
Fangirl a Novel byt Rainbow Rowell.
http://www.amazon.com/Fangirl-A-Novel-Rainbow-Rowell/dp/1250030951
A story about young woman entering college and her conflicts with her twin, her roommates and her online fandom life and how that affects her studies. I recommend it what I like is it's very modern and shows current stresses and anxieties about being a college student. I honestly don't read much in this genre so I don't know how it really compares.

Recommendations:

Roomies, Sara Zarr & Tara Altebrando - Set in that summer after the end of senior year before heading off to college, two assigned-to-be-roommates girls send emails to each other. This is excellent treatment of girls considering family ties, heading off to college, considering sex with boyfriend, wondering whether relationship will wither in college, interracial dating, honesty vs. protection of those you care about. One girl has sex, on her schedule, feels good about it afterwards; the other decides not yet. One girl's mother is having an affair with a married man.

Enchanted Ivy, Sarah Beth Durst - This is a fantasy/paranormal romance sort of thing -- light entertainment. But the author wrote it partly out of her *love* of Princeton, which comes through in the book.

To Timbuktu: Nine Countries, Two People, One True Story, Casey Scieszka (author) & Steven Weinberg (illustrator) - Illustrated memoir of their first two years out of college, travelling, teaching English, studying (Scieszka had a Fulbright grant). Charming and interesting, and a depiction of talented young people exploring the world.

Without You There Is No Us, Suki Kim - Memoir of the author's time teaching at an elite college in North Korea. Some of the atmosphere verges on real-world 1984 -- very creepy. But it's a fascinating depiction of what college is like for the elite young men she teaches, whose lives and knowledge about the outside world are so restricted. So not at all what a young person would experience at an American college, but perhaps an interesting contrast.

In Real Life, Lawrence Tabak - This is not about college, but rather about a NOT college "dream" experience leading to deciding to go to college. Very bright (accelerated) high school senior boy tries being a professional video-gamer on a Korean team, encounters lots of culture conflicts, ends up deciding at the end to go back to the US and go to college to study mathematics. Fiction illuminated by the author's knowledge of his own two sons' experiences as professional gamers.

A bit tangential to what you've requested, as they probably aren't quite enough about college:

Front and Center, Catherine Gilbert Murdock - This is the third of the excellent "Dairy Queen" trilogy, where our protagonist is now a senior, and having to decide about college. She's a basketball player, so there's material about sports recruiting, and it's very thoughtful about choosing a college.

Where She Went, Gayle Forman - This is the sequel to the super popular "If I Stay". It's told from Adam's point of view (who didn't go to college), but there is some discussion of Mia's college experience, and why she didn't stay in touch with Adam.

And I can't quite recommend, but will mention:

The Marriage Plot, Jeffrey Eugenides - This is a novel for adults, not teens, and some of it is perhaps too realistic to be fun (or appealing to teens). But as a depiction of how "marrying that exciting, bipolar guy is *not* a good idea" and "majoring in English literature because you like reading Jane Austin is a problematic career direction" it perhaps has some useful messages. Well-written and sharply observed (ouch!), but I'd have qualms recommending it to a young person.

The Magicians, Lev Grossman - Young magicians start out at a college of magic: Narnia crossed with Harry Potter crossed with lots of young adult bad decision making and angst and downer atmosphere. Not to my taste, but some people really love it.

Thanks Peony2 and blue magic!

I Am Charlotte Simmons is worth considering. From the Wikipedia entry:

Thanks Bostonian!