For the past few years, I’ve taught my original course, Critical Hope & Self-Preservation in Contemporary Librarianship with the Dominican University School of Information Studies. This year I expanded availability of this course by offering it through the University of South Carolina School of Information Science (iSchool)! Moreover, it was made available to both degree-seeking students and current LIS practitioners as a Summer topic (ISCI 797; the latter group earned CEU credits). The USC iSchool course offering was for 6-weeks (from June 22 – July 31, 2026).
At the outset of our time together, both cohorts discussed books they are reading – here’s a list (shared with students’ permission)!
- The Burning God (The Poppy War Series) by R.F. Kuang
- All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir
- Uncharmed by Lucy Jane Wood
- How to Read a Book by Monica Wood
- Black. Single. Mother.: Real Life Tales of Longing and Belonging by Jamilah Lemieux
- If Cats Disappeared from the World by Genki Kawamura
- We’ll Prescribe You a Cat by Syou Ishida
- The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai
- Life, and Death, and Giants by Ron Rindo
- Dungeon Crawler Carl Series by Matt Dinniman
- A Highland Christmas and Death of a Chimney Sweep by M.C. Beaton
- Berserk manga series by Kentaro Miura
- The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst
- Strangers by Belle Burden
- The Friends We Keep by Jane Green
- Reed’s Beach by Brett Lott
- All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
- The White Album by Joan Didion
- The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel Van der Kolk
- Black Girls Breathing: Heal from Trauma, Combat Stress, and Find Your Freedom by Jasmine Marie
- Adult Braces by Lindy West
Have you read any of these titles?
In the coming weeks, I’ll be sharing out more course briefs connected to the USC iteration of this course. Stay tuned!
