Back to School

The first full day of classes is just around the corner. Here are twenty novels about all things academic that should help ease the transition back into educational endeavors. Click on titles to view and reserve books in the Library's catalog.

	Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis Originally published in 1954, this comic novel follows Jim Dixon, a history professor at a British university who hates his job, among other things, but is terrified of losing it. This book, and two others on this list, were candidates for the funniest novel ever according to the New York Times Paper Cuts blog. More about this book
	The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell & Dustin Thomason In this thriller from 2004, two Princeton students find the key to deciphering a Renaissance text but their work is interrupted when a fellow student of the work is murdered. More about this book
	Wonder Boys by Michael Chabon Pulitzer Prize winner Chabon’s poignant, comic novel about philandering English professor struggling to finish his second novel, a brilliant but disturbed student, and the host of characters surrounding them. More about this book
	Death in a Tenured Position by Amanda Cross English professor Kate Fansler solves crimes with a literary flair. In this award-winning mystery she investigates the harassment and eventual murder of the first woman professor in Harvard University’s English department. More about this book
	The Blackboard Jungle: A Novel by Evan Hunter A rookie high school teacher is forced to fight against teen-age gangsters. Originally published in 1953, Hunter’s novel dramatizes the perceived rise in juvenile delinquency. Made into a movie in 1955. More about this book
	The Cheese Monkeys: A Novel in Two Semesters by Chip Kidd Kidd, a renowned graphic designer, made his debut as a novelist with this fast-paced satire of art school in the 1950s. More about this book
	Small World: An Academic Romance by David Lodge Published in 1984, this satiric novel by the British professor Lodge details the professional and romantic competition of a group of English scholars. More about this book
	At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances by Alexander McCall Smith Professor of philology Dr. Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, who is also the hero of The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs and Portuguese Irregular Verbs jumps from one intrigue to another in his comedic quest for respect. More about this book
	The Paper Chase by John Jay Osborn, Jr When published in 1971, this novel was praised as the first book to accurately depict the rigors of life in law school. Made into an award winning film in 1973. More about this book
	Election: A Novel by Tom Perrotta Sex scandals, smear campaigns, and behind-the-scenes deals are all part of the election for student body president at Winwood High in this darkly comic novel. Made into a movie in 1999. More about this book
	Blue Angel: A Novel by Francine Prose A married writing professor's captivation with a talented student leads to his ruin in the bitingly funny novel. More about this book
	The Human Stain by Philip Roth Forced to retire because of alleged racism, classics professor Coleman Silk harbors a secret that would shock even his most ardent accuser. Roth's novel won the PEN/Faulkner Award in 2001. More about this book
	Straight Man by Richard Russo Over the course of one weekend, English professor William Henry Devereaux manages to have his nose slashed, find that his secretary writes better fiction than he does, confront his father in an abandoned amusement park, and threaten to execute a goose. He does not execute the goose. More about this book
	Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers Oxford University is the setting for Sayers’ classic academic mystery featuring Lord Peter Wimsey. Originally published in 1935. More about this book
	Prep: A Novel by Curtis Sittenfeld Lee Fiora is a scholarship student from Indiana at a prestigious New England prep school in Sittenfeld’s perceptive debut novel about adolescence, high school, and heart break. More about this book
	The Charles Dickens Murders by Edith Skom English Professor Beth Austin solves mysteries by mining classic literature for clues. In this novel, the key to solving a mystery from her mother’s past may lie in the works of Charles Dickens. More about this book
	Moo by Jane Smiley A Midwestern university nicknamed Moo U for its devotion to agriculture is the setting for Pulitzer Prize winner Smiley’s darkly comic send-up of the modern university. More about this book
	The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark Originally published in 1962, this acclaimed novel tells the story of a young, unorthodox teacher and her special relationship with six students. More about this book
	The Secret History by Donna Tartt A group of Greek scholars at a New England university share a deadly secret in Tartt’s suspenseful, disturbing debut novel. More about this book
	I am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe Wolfe drew on extensive observations at Stanford and Michigan to create this tale of a wide-eyed freshman's experience at a sex and athletics-obsessed contemporary university. More about this book