Summer Reading List 2007

June 10, 2007

Listen

Are there philosophers, philosophies, or philosophical issues you want to read up on over the summer? Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason probably isn’t the obvious choice to take to the beach (though it does make great radio), but there are a lot of readable, beach-friendly classics and non-classics to add philosophical depth to your Summer Reading. Plus, new and classic fiction books with a philosophical bent. Join John and Ken and John to share some of the philosophically-minded reading on your list for this summer.

Books


Fiction and Poetry
Tom Thomson in Purgatory Troy Jollimore	Labyrinths Jorge Luis Borges	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows JK Rowling
Cat’s Cradle Kurt Vonnegut	Confessions of Max Tivoli Andrew Sean Greer	Unbearable Lightness of Being Milan Kundera
Non-Fiction
Dreams from My Father Barak Obama	Assault on Reason Al Gore	The Black Swan Nassim Nicholas Tuleh
Mistakes Were Made (but not by me) Tavris and Aronson	Wild Jay Griffiths	What is your Dangerous Idea? John Brockman
Philosophy
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Robert Pirsig	Story of Philosophy Will Durrant	Meditations Descartes
Philosophy as Cultural Politics Richard Rorty	Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar Cathcart and Klein	Prince Niccolo Machiavelli
What’s the Use of Truth? Richard Rorty	I am a Strange Loop Douglas Hofstadter


Recommendations from Listeners Fiction
Stories of Beatrix Potter	Lord of the Rings JRR Tolkien	The Autumn of the Patriarch Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Animal Family Jarrell and Sendak	Demian Herman Hesse	Galapagos Kurt Vonnegut
Way of all Flesh Samuel Butler
Non-Fiction
Golden Age Gore Vidal	Soldier Karen DeYoung	Art & Lies Jeanette Winterson
Unprejudiced Palate Angelo Pellegrini	Shackleton Gavin Mortimer	Tipping Point Malcolm Gladwell
Built to Last Collins and Porras	My Life in Germany Karl Lowith	Invasion of Party Snatchers Victor Gold
Universe in a Single Atom Dalai Lama	Embodied Mind Francisco Valera	About Love Robert Solomon