The Carleton alumni mailing list has come up with lists of suggested summer reading each of the last few years. Most of the recommendations include little if any commentary, so I was never tempted to include them in Reading. But, online is a different matter. So here's a list of suggestions for summer reading from some of the august alumni of Carleton College. (And here's a link to last year's list.) (And here's a link to the 2004 list.) Diné, A History of the Navajos by Peter Iverson, '67 from Ken Wedding A well-written exposition about the ways the Navajo past is unique and the ways their confrontation with Europeans (mostly Anglo Americans) is so much like the experience of other Native groups. The American Way of Beef online at the Atlantic Monthly website from Brian Sala Summer barbecue weather reading [it was 100 deg F in the Sacramento area yesterday, so it's summer BBQ time, dammit] Currently on the Atlantic Monthly's website is a "Flashback" column, "The American Way of Beef," which collects links to a half dozen very interesting articles having to do with beef production and the Back to Grass "movement", and with organic farming. The pieces range from Corby Kummer singing the culinary, ethical and environmental advantages of grass-fed, free-range beef, to a sky-is-falling (prescient?) piece on the possibilities of a Mad Cow Disease epidemic in the US; to a great 1979 piece about the Rodale organization, organic farming and the problems of agribusiness in the 1970s. The link again is http://www.theatlantic.com/unbound/flashbks/beef.htm The Sinister Pig by Tony Hillerman from Ken Wedding Tony Hillerman's newest mystery is right up there with his earlier books. The big difference is that he hauls his characters away from the Navajo Nation to the border with Mexico. Serious Pig by John Thorme from Andrew Fenton This is a collection of essays on American cuisine and culture. It's divided in thirds, treating the food culture of Maine (where the author lives), Cajun and Creole, and general American food traditions (barbecue, Toll House cookies, etc.)... The book is a meditation on how landscape and history conspire to create cuisines, and how food defines who we are. If, like me, you're interested in food, and regional traditions, it's definitely worth checking out. Kitchen Confidential and A Cook's Tour by Anthony Bourdain from Anya Naschak Bourdain has some great one-liners -- and for that matter some really incredible stories. In A Cook's Tour, there was a 5 page stretch pp. 46-51 where I was laughing so hard I was crying! Kitchen Confidential was also a short series on the Food Network a couple of years ago; it made me think twice about my long-held desire to open a restaurant some day. Flashback by Nevada Barr from Ken Wedding You can tell I'm in summer reading mode when I begin plowing through mysteries. I had to plow through the latest from Nevada Barr. It's really two short novels, one historic and one contemporary set in the same place. The geography is really the only connection. For me that made it difficult to enjoy reading either. White Teeth by Zadie Smith A Walk In The Woods by Bill Bryson This book inspired me to take a long walk, unfortunately leaving me with a blister the size of Kennedy half-dollar on my left heel. King Rat by James Clavell (seconded by Digby Willard: "Yeah, I was surprised by how good it was, too. At least as good as Shogun, much better than Tai-Pan, and most of his other novels don't even rate mention here. Once I found out that Clavell spent a good chunk of WWII in a Japanese prison camp, it wasn't so surprising anymore. Also explains why his screenplay for The Great Escape was so good.") from Erik Hanberg Urban Dreams, Rural Realities by Daniel Butler and Bel Crewe from Susan Schnur This is a light hearted bit of non-fiction that I really enjoyed. The authors moved to rural Wales to live off the land. I got several good chuckles out of it, and, it made me want to pack my bags and move to Wales. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith Thanks to my question to the list back in December about what my 18 year old daughter should start reading, I can now personally highly recommend this book. The picture of life at the turn of the (previous) century in Brooklyn is _so vivid_ that I kept swearing that it couldn't be fiction. There was too much exquisite detail. This book got under my skin. Agatha Christie mysteries, especially the early ones. I love the atmosphere and read them for simple entertainment when stressed. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters Story of a family of thieves (fingersmiths, get it?) in Victorian England. A con job is planned. I really don't dare say anything else for fear of revealing anything. I was on the edge of my seat. I think I lost sleep on this one - had to read a bit more before turning out the light. This is not for readers with small children. The house will burn down around you and you will not notice - you will be too engrossed!!!! National Geographic (to which I subscribe) has an article on the Boundary Waters in the June 2003 issue. Never been there myself but the pictures are beautiful, as usual with NG articles. from Karen Mardahl For Better or Worse by Lynn Johnston This is a wonderful comic strip about middle class family life (albeit in Canada). If you can get hold of a collection (they are out there) I recommend it. Bimbos of the Death Sun and Zombies of the Gene Pool by Sharyn McCrumb For light reading. They are an interesting, amusing and fairly accurate look at sci-fi/fantasy fandom. from Robert Morphis Add the summer reading recommendations from your favorite publication by sending me the URL at Ken@SideTrack.org. A summer reading guide from the New York Times. A summer reading guide from the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

For more reading recommendations, check out ReadingOnTheWeb.