Summer reading list by subject
I realized summer is the perfect time to read books that aren’t on a syllabus, and I’ve been thinking about what I’d recommend to students across different disciplines. These are books that have genuinely shaped how I think about my field and others.
ENGLISH/LITERATURE:
Obviously I’m biased here, but “The Doll’s House” by Henrik Ibsen remains one of the most provocative examinations of individual agency within social constraints. If you want something more contemporary, “Piranesi” by Susanna Clarke is absolutely mesmerizing – it rewards careful reading.
HISTORY:
“The Sum of Small Things” by Elizabeth Currid-Halkett offers a fascinating look at consumption and identity in modern society. It’s dense but genuinely illuminating about how we signal status through cultural choices.
PSYCHOLOGY:
“Thinking, Fast and Slow” by Daniel Kahneman is probably the most accessible introduction to behavioral economics and cognitive biases. Life-changing in terms of understanding how your own mind works.
STEM FIELDS:
For math students, “Gödel, Escher, Bach” by Douglas Hofstadter is unconventional but brilliant for understanding pattern recognition. Computer science students might enjoy “The Master Switch” by Tim Wu about the history of information networks.
BUSINESS/ECONOMICS:
“The Innovators” by Walter Isaacson is a wonderfully written history of computing and how innovation actually happens – it’s not as linear as textbooks suggest.
PHILOSOPHY:
“The Stranger” by Camus is short but demands you confront your assumptions about meaning and morality. Genuinely unsettling in the best way.
I’m curious what books have impacted how you think. Drop recommendations in the comments – I’m looking for my fall reading list and always love discovering what students in other fields find meaningful.
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the piranesi rec is perfect for summer reading. light enough that its not like studying but complex enough that you're actually thinking about it. also the book is just beautiful to hold and read which sounds trivial but matters when youre reading casually
perfetto questo thread!! per chi studia scienze politiche consiglio anche 'il capitale' di marx (ok è lungo e pesante) ma almeno il primo capitolo sulle merci è fondamentale. e per biologia 'l'antenato di tutti noi' di richard dawkins è fantastico, spiega l'evoluzione in modo che ha senso
thank you sarah, you just solved my summer reading problem. i was gonna waste my time on garbage. honestly the fact that someone put this much thought into curating recs by subject is so helpful. if anyone reads these please come back and tell us what you thought
Sarah questo è bellissimo! Io aggiungo per gli studenti di diritto: 'La Società Aperta e i Suoi Nemici' di Popper. È complesso ma fondamentale per capire come il diritto si interseca con la democrazia. E 'Il Nome della Rosa' di Eco è bellissimo (e lungo lol) ma ti insegna come leggere criticamente
adding all of these to my list asap. for engineers who are interested in the philosophy side of things, i'd also rec 'the structure of scientific revolutions' by kuhn. its short, mind-bending, and explains why paradigm shifts happen the way they do. also makes you question if engineering and science are really that different from social sciences
Oh, excellent recommendation. Kuhn is dense but absolutely worth it - I think everyone should read it to understand that scientific progress isn't quite as objective as we're taught. Thank you for adding that.