From a modern classic in fiction to an interesting collection of non-fiction, this year’s summer book recommendations by the philosophy faculty offer choices for everyone to ponder in the hammock. Check out the books our faculty members recommend or are planning to read this summer. We hope you find some great picks to add to your reading list!
Ben Feintzeig:
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Sara Goering:
Making Parents: The Ontological Choreography of Reproductive Technologies (Charis Thompson); MIT Press 2007.
This an older book, but I missed it when it came out. Who doesn’t want to understand ontological choreography? Thanks to Dan Tibbles for bringing it to my attention.
Transcendence for Beginners: Life Writing and Philosophy (Claire Carlisle).
I saw a review of this book, and am curious to find out more about the intersection of “life writing” and philosophy. If the
re can be transcendence, so be it.
Arthur Fine
The Things We Never Say (by Elizabeth Strout); Random House 2026.
A compelling story, beautifully (and cleverly) written, about family relationships and community and secrets. It is set off by the question of free will and the story responds to that in subtle and unexpected ways.
Jose Mendoza:
Chain of Idea's: The Origins of our Authoritarian Age (Ibram X Kendi)
I've had this book sitting on my shelf for a few months now. I haven't gotten around to it in part because I have been very busy, but also because this is far from a lighthearted and entertaining read. The book provides a history of the white nationalist conspiracy known as the "great replacement theory". the book itself is written for a public audience, so the good news is that it does not require a lot of background in either history or race theory. But nonetheless it promises to help us make sense of why a certain type of politician is finding success in our day and age, and doing so not only in the U.S., but the world over.
Colin Marshall:
Empathic Reasoning (Luke Roelofs)
Immanuel Kant Famously claimed that being ethical is a way of being rational. For Kant, rationality was essentially about thinking in generalities - with the result that many readers found Kant's ethics too formal or cold. In his new book, Luke Roelofs tries to defend the same link between ethics and rationality. But unlike Kant, Roelofs defends that link by drawing on the idea that rationality requires imagination and empathy. It's a fascinating approach, and is shaped by Roelofs earlier work on the nature of consciousness (Roelofs is an expert on panpsychism). As an added bonus, Roelofs is a vastly better stylist than Kant, using crisp prose, short sections, and little jargon.
Rose Novick
Ark and Radi Os (by Ronald Johnson)
Two companion works of poetry by Ronald Johnson. Ark is a modernist book-length poem, playful and oh so sensitive in its relationship with language. You can really feel just how much Johnson loves the textures of language. Radi Os is an erasure poem made from Milton's Paradise Lost, reducing the heavenly drama of that poem to a play of elemental forces. Initially intended as the final section of Ark, it was eventually released separately.