The Retort

Unrequired Reading for the…

February 19th, 2010 by Leah Campbell Of The Retort Staff

From expense to an endless amount of pages, textbooks are the blackholes of learning and for some, a never-ending journey. Of course, textbooks are helpful but sometimes they may have you wondering why you are reading about the various themes in Chinese poetry or why you are memorizing the periodic table. Despite what your professors may have you believe, or read, there are countless books in any given major that both inform and entertain.

Here are three recommended books for three particular majors that fall outside the realms of textbook monotony. Enjoy!

Religion/Philosophy Major

Title: Life of Pi

Author: Yann Martel

Published: 2003

Genre: allegory, fable

Winner of the Man Booker Prize

History Major

Title: World Without End

Author: Ken Follet

Published: 2007

Genre: historical (14th Century) fiction

#1 New York Times Bestseller

Physics Major

Title: A Briefer History of Time

Author: Stephen Hawking

Published: 2005

Genre: science, history

Best-seller: 9 million copies sold