<p>My daughter’s book group really liked Eat, Pray, Love and the Alchemist.</p>
<p>Studs Terkel’s oral history WORKING. I reread that book 10 times–someone even made a not-so-great musical out of it. The waitress is one of my favorites–these are real people. </p>
<p>She could do oral histories of people she knows and transcribe them and write them the way Studs does–not word for word Q&As but as if the person were saying dialogue in a play. She could interview working people she knows–maybe a model!</p>
<p>Studs is one of my heroes. The Story Corps project (booths and all) is a product of Studs’ work, I think. I love that project. They’ve got a great website.</p>
<p>I agree with Margaret Atwood- also The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell.
( Im glad I am not the only one who couldn’t get through Sophies World)</p>
<p>She may also be interested in Riane Eisler- The Chalice and the Blade is especially noteworthy
</p>
<p>I also liked Ken Wilburs early works.
Thich Nhat Hahn ( one of many excellent Buddhist writers)</p>
<p>What a great thread!</p>
<p>[Oscar</a> Wilde:*The Philosophy of Beauty](<a href=“http://www.imagi-nation.com/moonstruck/clsc38w4.html]Oscar”>Oscar Wilde: The Philosophy of Beauty)</p>
<p>[Salon</a> | Arundhati Roy](<a href=“http://www.salon.com/sept97/00roy.html]Salon”>http://www.salon.com/sept97/00roy.html) I vote for Roy</p>
<p>No, no, no, no!</p>
<p><em>now you know why I can’t join book groups</em></p>
<p>Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance…</p>
<p>[Amazon.com:</a> Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values: Robert Pirsig: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Zen-Art-Motorcycle-Maintenance-Inquiry/dp/0553277472]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Zen-Art-Motorcycle-Maintenance-Inquiry/dp/0553277472)</p>
<p>Coming from one who was once a young blonde girl who read this book in college…</p>
<p>Why do I say this book? Because reading it gives you the same elliptical brain cramp as you might get from trying to read even one paragraph of Kant, and yet, doesn’t make you feel dumb. Actually makes you feel smart.</p>
<p>Stephen Sondheim and some of his more unusual (non-traditional) musicals would be interesting. Only just saw Chedva’s post about Sondheim; I agree.</p>
<p>For an author (photographer and mathematician), Lewis Carroll would also be pretty fascinating.</p>
<p>Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance…</p>
<p>I am afraid of that book- my mother was reading it when she had a psychotic break- seriously.
I don’t know where she even got it- it wasn’t her usual style.</p>
<p>But this thread has given me some great ideas- for that point in time when I have time to read again.
:)</p>
<p>I second Ursula K. LeGuin and Kurt Vonnegut.</p>
<p>One can pick from a plethora of subjects addressed by Robert A. Heinlein.</p>
<p>I took a Vonnegut class and all the females hated it.</p>
<p>I’d suggest: one of the books of the Bible, Shakespeare, Frost, or something like South Pacific book and musical comparison.</p>
<p>Fifty pages of high school writing, oy, the teacher deserves merit pay.</p>
<p>The papers are typically due late January/early Feb. The teacher gives them a preliminary grade, then does a more thorugh review over the summer. I think my daughter will have it a little easier because the teacher is retiring next year, so she will have to complete her review before school is out.</p>
<p>When my son took the class, most of the papers were around 75 pages. There were a couple in excess of 200 pages. I told the teacher that if it were me, I’d deduct one point for every page by which a paper exceeded 100 pages!</p>
<p>Yeats, not only the poetry, but the plays.</p>
<p>Yukio Mishima. His books are very readable, especially the earlier ones, which are all quite short also, and he definitely had a philosophy. There is also a certain level of sex and gore. I wrote a paper about him senior year of high school in a desperation move when I couldn’t find any of the sources I needed on another topic.</p>
<p>maybe your daughter does not need a book but some sort of spark to pique her interest.</p>
<p>I vividly remember the first day of a course on 20th century music. The hall was unlit as we clumsly took our seats and sat waiting for the lights to be turned on. The prof was at the doorway welcoming us inside so that was not the problem. But why no lights???</p>
<p>Then suddenly, the room was filled with the deafening sound of Stravinsky’s le Sacre du Printemps-I believe Glorification of the Chosen One movement. The lights came up and the professor merely said something to the effect, “That my friends is an excellent example of 20th century music. Write me a paragraph or two on what you experienced a moment ago. When you finish with the assignment you are dismissed and I will see you next class.”</p>
<p>It lasted only a few minutes but it ignited my life long interest in classical music and modern classical in particular.</p>
<p>Why does she like ANTM? Is it because of an interest in fashion, design, maybe photography? Artists in any of these areas certainly express a point of view which she could explore. The key is to find a vehicle to spark her curiosity.</p>
<p>She may like the Time Traveler’s Wife.</p>
<p>I can’t imagine writing 70 pages about only The Time Traveler’s Wife, but you might be able to write about a bunch of time travel books - endless ethical themes there! Orson Scott Card’s book* Pastwatch *for example is about a group that originally just observes the past, but then realizes they can change it. One woman becomes obsessed with the idea of preventing the suffering of slavery, but much of her tinkering only makes matters worse. Connie Willis also has a series that involves time travel (*Firewatch, The Doomsday Book *and a couple of others.) There are also various Star Trek episodes and movies involving “the temporal directive”. I’d have fun writing that paper!</p>
<p>Great time travel ideas but not for this project…must be a single “philosopher,” with written work product (I’m sure that if my daughter could just watch movies, she would!)</p>
<p>Y’all have given so many helpful ideas!</p>
<p>Oh, I wasn’t recommending that book for the class/paper itself. I just thought it could help turn her on to reading.</p>
<p>I recommend graphics novels, specifically the likes of Watchmen and V for Vendetta (both written by Alan Moore). They’re easy to get into and to read, and just as multi-layered and deep as the great novels out there.</p>
<p>Ah. If we are opening this to graphic novels, and looking for a philospher, I recommend either Sandman by Neil Gaiman or Maus, by the great Art Spiegelman.</p>
<p>[Maus:</a> A Survivor’s Tale - Google Book Search](<a href=“The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale - Art Spiegelman - Google Books”>The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale - Art Spiegelman - Google Books)</p>
<p>I like the suggestions of Maya Angelou and Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake.</p>
<p>Oryx and Crake raises many interesting issues – about technology, human population growth, the use of natural resources and even friendship.</p>
<p>Another angle would be memoirs of people living under repressive regimes, for example Life and Death in Shangai, by Nien Cheng. A Woman in Berlin could serve as the basis for considering totalitarianism and “just punishment” for the losing side of a war, World War II specifically.</p>
<p>How about religion? A very thought provoking book is I Sold My Soul on eBay: Viewing Faith through an Atheist’s Eyes.</p>
<p>Finally, I just read a book Intern by Sandeep Jauhar that raises issues about being a doctor (and an easy read).</p>
<p>The author that got me interested in reading as a high school student was Faulkner, especially his short story, The Bear. D loved Sophie’s World, S didn’t so would read it yourself to determine if your D would. One Thousand Years of Solitude = One Thousand minutes of Boredom. Orson Scott Card’s Enders Game is usually very popular with high school age and older. Oryx and Crake, the Sparrow - pretty much downers. The Life of Pi, Beloved, The Alchemist, The Poisenwood Bible followed by Small Wonder are other suggestions. Whatever you choose, I would be really familiar with it yourself first before you suggest it as you know your D best.</p>
<p>What else does your daughter enjoy (besides America’s Next Top Model)?</p>
<p>Does she find “flow” (total absorption, loses track of time, [Flow</a> (psychology) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_(psychology)]Flow”>Flow (psychology) - Wikipedia)) in anything?</p>