My Summer Reading List

I made a commitment to myself to read more for leisure, which means I MUST make time out of what is usually a crazy, hectic schedule to read. Most of the time in college, I don't have time to read much else than the required readings because there's so much to read, re-read, take notes on and then study! I realize that some of the most articulate, creative inventors and thinkers were and are also readers. I know that probably goes without saying, but I realize if I want to get to where I need to be in life, then I must read...read for study, read to be informed and also, read for leisure. All to often in the black community, you may ask a child or young person what's their favorite book or what's the latest novel they've read...and if it's not school related, most cannot answer this question with ease and sometimes honestly. I do not want to just single out the black community, as today with social media and technology at the forefront I feel confident to say that most young people and people as a whole do not read anymore, if it's not a post on Yahoo or TMZ. I used to think..."While they're reading, I'm writing what they will one day read. While that may be true, I must read still to make my writing and speech all the better...all the more articulate and creative. This is also why many youth cannot write in proper grammatical form, because they are used to cellphone text writing and without the proper training and guidance, they think this [text slang] is how they should write. If you can't write well, or read well, it's hard to speak well.

We need to do better as parents and teachers, on enforcing reading and good reading habits in our children. Based on a summary by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, millions of children make it to the fourth grade without learning to read proficiently. "On the 2009 NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) reading test more than 67 percent of all US fourth graders scored "below proficient," meaning they are not reading at grade level."--Studentsfirst.org While American kids in grade schools have made some improvements in reading levels, there is still much to be desired.

So these are the five books on my summer reading list (Please feel free to suggest others) As you'll see, I'm not so much into science fiction. I'm all for the real, hard core stuff, lol. I was serious when I said I want to educate myself (#NeverStopLearning):

• A Stolen Life by Jaycee Dugard (I'm halfway done reading this book. It's really sad and hard to read, just imagining all this young lady had to go through having been abducted and detained for over 18 years!)
• The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander (talks about the prison industrial complex and the War on Drugs)
• 101 Secrets For Your Twenties by Paul Agone 
• The Divine Nine: The History of black Sororities and Fraternities 
• The Inclusion Paradox by Andres Topia 

I'd also love to know what you're reading this summer! Do so by commenting below.