Program Description
Each year, Honors faculty, staff, and students work together to choose a book for new students to read over the summer. A good deal of thought and discussion goes into this decision, as we are looking for a book that is compelling, that can appeal to a wide audience, and that can provide ample topics for discussion through the summer and beyond.
At the start of the semester, we welcome the author to campus for a lecture and Q&A. The book is also frequently the primary text for the fall SAS Honors Colloquium course.
Summer Reading Committee
If you would like to be a part of the committee that chooses our book for 2026, please contact Dean Kathy Sadowsky. Book suggestions are welcome!
The 2025 Book
We are pleased to announce that the 2025 Common Read is The Great Displacement by Jake Bittle.
Previous Summer Reading Books
Summer 2024: True Biz by Sara Nović
Summer 2023: American Fever by Dur e Aziz Amna
Summer 2022: Sourdough by Robin Sloan
Summer 2021: Your House Will Pay by Steph Cha
Summer 2020: Tell Me Who You Are by Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi
Summer 2019: The Leavers by Lisa Ko
Summer 2018: The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui
Summer 2017: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Summer 2016: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
Summer 2015: Strength in What Remains by Tracy Kidder
Summer 2014: World Made by Hand by James Howard Kunstler
Summer 2013: The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon
Summer 2012: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Summer 2011: The Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff
Summer 2010: The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
Summer 2009: The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen
Summer 2008: Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace…One
School at a Time by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
Summer 2007: The Six Questions of Socrates by Christopher Phillips
