Faculty/Staff Spring Break Book Recommendations

3/13/2018

Looking for an interesting book to read over Spring Break? Ensworth faculty and staff have various interests and passions, many of which lie outside of their sphere of expertise. Check out what books they recommend or plan to read over next week’s break.

The high school math department responded in greatest numbers to the survey. Department Chair, Sharon Glenn, plans to reread a favorite from her childhood, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. Oprah Winfrey and Reese Witherspoon star in the recently-released movie version. Math teacher, Karen Boles, recommends A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry as one of her all-time favorites. Karen characterizes it as “a fiction book that highlights the struggles of the working poor in India's caste system.” Fellow math teacher, Walter Schultz, urges people to read The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption by Jim Gorant. He observes, “It is sad to think such cruelty occurs, but the story has a happy ending.”

The high school history department recommends two books. David Chanaca is rereading Stephen E. Ambrose’s Band of Brothers, which inspired the acclaimed HBO miniseries. Mr. Chanaca is leading an official Band of Brothers-themed alumni trip this summer. Fellow history teacher Danny Wright recommends 22 Feet: A Once-in-a-Lifetime Soccer Story by Jon Olin. Coach Wright says, “What better book than one that tells the story of how a highly selective liberal arts school whose men's soccer team—comprised of student-athletes all virtually ignored by major NCAA Division I programs—reached the Final Four in the same year that their very school had been pre-selected to host the event.”

Adam Lightman, high school science teacher who came to Ensworth at the beginning of this year, just finished and highly recommends All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. The novel is “a New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.” Jean Bruce, high school librarian, has added a New York Times bestseller to her Kindle to read on the beach during her break. Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate, is a heart-wrenching novel based upon a true story about a Memphis-based adoption organization that kidnapped and sold poor children to wealthy families.

Latin teacher, Jennifer Ishee, plans to read With Winning in Mind by Lanny Bassham, an Olympic medal-winning rifle shooter, who shares in this book how he has optimized his mental performance under pressure. And Ash Weber, Associate Dean of Students at the high school, recommends Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng, a book with themes that "include community acceptance, minimalism, adoption, multiculturalism, and the general human tendency to fear what we don't understand."

Chris Tuley, Technology Support Specialist at the Lower/Middle School Campus, recommends Becoming Steve Jobs by Brent Schlender and Rick Tetzeli. Tuley characterizes the book as “a fantastic inside look into the journey of Steve Jobs professional growth during his careers at Apple and Pixar. I enjoyed this more than his official biography.” Paul Downey, Assistant Director of Communications, recommends Thomas Merton's autobiography The Seven Storey Mountain, "the tale of a young man's journey from worldly academia to a Trappist monastery in Kentucky."

If you purchase any of these books through Amazon, make sure you shop on smile.amazon.com and have Ensworth designated as your charity. To learn more about how to set this up, read these instructions put together by Ensworth’s Parent Association.

Happy reading!

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