Fun Reads & Movies

Pure America: eugenics and the making of Modern Virginia

Recommended by Kristen Shuyler

Description from the publisher:

Between 1927 and 1979, more than 8,000 people were involuntarily sterilized in five hospitals across the state of Virginia. From this plain and terrible fact springs Elizabeth Catte's Pure America, a sweeping, unsparing history of eugenics in Virginia, and by extension the United States. Virginia's twentieth-century eugenics program was not the misguided initiative of well-meaning men of the day, writes Catte, with clarity and ferocity. It was a manifestation of white supremacy. It was a form of employment insurance. It was a means of controlling "troublesome" women and a philosophy that helped remove poor people from valuable land. It was cruel and it was wrong, and yet today sites where it was practiced like Western State Hospital, in Staunton, VA, are rehabilitated as luxury housing, their histories hushed up in the service of capital. What does it mean for modern America that such buildings are given the second chance that 8,000 citizens never got? And what possible interventions can be made now, repair their damage?

Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Shaping Worlds

Recommended by Kristen Shuyler

Description from publisher:

Emergence is the way complex systems and patterns arise out of a multiplicity of relatively simple interactions. In the framework of emergence, the whole is a mirror of the parts. Existence is fractal - the health of the cell is the health of the species and the planet. Change is constant. This book is about how we can shape the changes we experience to match our intentions using strategic methods that are as adaptive, resilient decentralised, and interdependent as the patterns of flocking birds or differentiating cells. A secular spirituality based equally on science and science fiction.

When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing

Recommended by Carolyn Schubert

Often feeling like I have too much to do and unsure how to best manage my time and energy, I was drawn to this book. Admittedly, there’s no magic algorithm that that calculates my best schedule. Instead, the book provided some good evidence to help me step back, reflect, and reconsider my peak windows of energy. This is definitely informing how I consider scheduling my scholarship and project time for the Spring.

How to Date Men When You Hate Men

Recommended by Kerry Scannell

As a young feminist, the dating world in 2019 is a chaotic mix of weird, weird emotions. Blythe speaks to you from this book as your most honest best friend; she'll affirm your love of Timothée Chalamet, and she'll sit down with you and try to decide if that really WAS a date or not. It's hilarious, it's poignant, and so full of heart. I wanted to hug it when I finished it.

The Joy of Search: A Google Insider's Guide to Going Beyond the Basics

Recommended by Elizabeth Price

Too many people think they are expert researchers simply because they have access to Google. Russell, the senior research scientists for search quality at Google, attempts to correct that misperception by showing readers how to utilize advanced Google operators and specialized tools like Google Image Search and Google Street View through a series of search “stories.” Each story ends with a short list of research lessons and an exercise allowing you to try those strategies yourself. Later chapters emphasize how to triangulate information and find context to understand the whybeyond the results page. Teaching students the nuances of finding and evaluating online information is a monumental task; reading this book is a first step toward improving the quality of their research skills.

What You Are Getting Wrong about Appalachia

Recommended by Kristen Shuyler

Description from the publisher:

What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia is a frank assessment of America's recent fascination with the people and problems of the region. The book analyzes trends in contemporary writing on Appalachia, presents a brief history of Appalachia with an eye toward unpacking Appalachian stereotypes, and provides examples of writing, art, and policy created by Appalachians as opposed to for Appalachians. The book offers a must-needed insider's perspective on the region. 

Dare to Lead

Recommended by Kristen Shuyler

Description from the publisher:

Leadership is not about titles, status, and wielding power. A leader is anyone who takes responsibility for recognizing the potential in people and ideas, and has the courage to develop that potential. When we dare to lead, we don't pretend to have the right answers; we stay curious and ask the right questions. We don't avoid difficult conversations and situations; we lean into vulnerability when it's necessary to do good work. But daring leadership in a culture defined by scarcity, fear, and uncertainty requires skill-building around traits that are deeply and uniquely human. What can we do better? Empathy, connection, and courage, to start.

Pure America: eugenics and the making of Modern Virginia

Recommended by Kristen Shuyler

Description from the publisher:

Between 1927 and 1979, more than 8,000 people were involuntarily sterilized in five hospitals across the state of Virginia. From this plain and terrible fact springs Elizabeth Catte's Pure America, a sweeping, unsparing history of eugenics in Virginia, and by extension the United States. Virginia's twentieth-century eugenics program was not the misguided initiative of well-meaning men of the day, writes Catte, with clarity and ferocity. It was a manifestation of white supremacy. It was a form of employment insurance. It was a means of controlling "troublesome" women and a philosophy that helped remove poor people from valuable land. It was cruel and it was wrong, and yet today sites where it was practiced like Western State Hospital, in Staunton, VA, are rehabilitated as luxury housing, their histories hushed up in the service of capital. What does it mean for modern America that such buildings are given the second chance that 8,000 citizens never got? And what possible interventions can be made now, repair their damage?

Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Shaping Worlds

Recommended by Kristen Shuyler

Description from publisher:

Emergence is the way complex systems and patterns arise out of a multiplicity of relatively simple interactions. In the framework of emergence, the whole is a mirror of the parts. Existence is fractal - the health of the cell is the health of the species and the planet. Change is constant. This book is about how we can shape the changes we experience to match our intentions using strategic methods that are as adaptive, resilient decentralised, and interdependent as the patterns of flocking birds or differentiating cells. A secular spirituality based equally on science and science fiction.