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'Billiken Bookmarks': Summer Reading Recommendations

07/20/2017

Looking for that next great read? In this mini-series, some of Saint Louis University’s published authors share their recommendations for memorable summer reading with their fellow staff, faculty and students.

In this edition, George Grossberg, M.D., of the School of Medicine, and first-time novelist, Harold "Hal" Bush, Ph.D., from the College of Arts and Sciences, weigh in with books they couldn't put down this summer.

George Grossberg, M.D.

George Grossberg

George Grossberg, M.D.

Book

 Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates (New York: Spiegel & Grau, 2015)

About the book
Between the World and Me is a wonderful, poignant book about a father's advice to his adolescent son relative to understanding his African-American roots, and learning to live in America of the present and future as a Black man.
Reasons to read
 I was drawn to Between the World and Me by the many similarities between the past and present struggles of minority communities such as Blacks and Jews living in a White, Christian America.
The SLU Connection
This book relates to my experiences over the years as a Jewish faculty member at a Jesuit, Catholic University. An illustrative example of the spirit of respect, understanding and tolerance which pervades Saint Louis University that greatly impressed me was when I sent an email to the University community inviting them to a Jewish ceremony whereby I would affix a "mezuzah" to the right door post of my office at the Medical Center. Many people came; among them were several University Jesuit priests. They thought it was wonderful that I was inviting them to this meaningful ceremony; knew more about the symbolism and biblical origins of the "mezuzah" than I did; and offered their own blessings.
 
SLU embodies and preaches a spirit of tolerance and understanding, especially vis a vis minority rights.
 
SLU has taken a leadership role in this post-Ferguson era in paving a path of equality for the future.
SLU Author Bio
In his own words, Grossberg describes his story,
"I was born in a small town in Hungary and escaped Communist Hungary during the Hungarian Revolution in 1956 with my parents and younger brother. I was motivated to pursue a career in Geriatric Psychiatry after growing up with several surrogate grandparents who my mother was taking care of in our modest apartment in University City. I have stayed in academia, at Saint Louis University, my whole career since I enjoy seeing patients and families, teaching, research - mostly Alzheimer's Disease - and writing.
 
I have edited and written 14 books, all but one for healthcare providers. My sole book for lay readers is The Essential Herb-Drug-Vitamin Interaction Guide.
 
I have four new books coming out in the next 18 months: Psychiatric Consultation in Long-Term Care, Second Edition, written with Abhilash Desai, my former fellow, coming this month; Practical Clinical Psychopharmacology for Neurologists, edited with Laurence Kinsella, M.D., of SLU's Neurology Department), coming early next year; An International Textbook on Delirium, edited with Ahmet Turan Isik, director of geriatric medicine at Izmir Medical College in Turkey, which is coming at the end of 2017; and The Textbook-Essentials of Geriatric Mental Health, edited with Drs. Marc Agronin and Ipsit Vahia, coming in 2018."

Harold "Hal" Bush, Ph.D.

Hal Bush

Harold "Hal" Bush, Ph.D.

Book

You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit by James K. A. Smith (Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2016)

About the book

I’d describe the book as consisting of profound yet highly entertaining meditations on what it means to be a human living in the postmodern condition, and how we can access and maintain our humanity despite the rapidly changing contexts we face every day. Smith is terrific at using the work of theologians, philosophers, literary giants, and other heavyweights in refreshing and fun ways as illustrations—along with frequent short bursts of pop culture analysis (The Bachelorette; American Beauty; True Detective).

His analysis of such mundane activities as going to the mall, or attending contemporary weddings, is brilliant and very revealing.  To boil it down, what we “love” is the central question of our lives as humans.  But postmodern culture is trying to capture us and colonize us with other false “loves” that we need to identify and resist.  Here’s the good news: we have a means of resistance, and the moral agency to shape our hearts, through the power of habit and the liberating force of spiritual disciplines.  We’ve also learned a great deal in recent neuroscience to corroborate some of these claims, which is fascinating.

Reasons to read

It’s difficult trying to name a single book for such a large and diverse community of readers.  This book is the distillation into a very accessible and fun-to-read form of the impressive work of one important philosopher’s life work. 

In my own teaching, and in my personal life, I have discovered the power of habits and the disciplines to be a means for great liberation and joy. That might seem counter-intuitive, since discipline has gotten such a bad rap, these days.  Smith expertly shows how crucial “discipline” is in the shaping of our hearts and minds (which, he shows, must happen simultaneously).

The SLU Connection

I’m drawn to this book because it speaks deeply to me about the meaning and purposes of “spirituality.”  When I teach spirituality and literature, the majority of students on the first day identify themselves as “spiritual.”  But when I ask them to define the term, they are generally clueless.  Smith gives us a practical and concrete way to think honestly about our own spirituality, including those things that we really do love.

One major reason I chose this book is precisely because it will go out to the SLU community, a Jesuit-inspired group that is currently in the process of sweeping curricular and strategic planning for the future. I know this book can be a valuable commodity in that pursuit. 

I also think Smith is one of the key voices today speaking the message that I try to develop in my own work in the humanities. 

Finally, the “power of habit” as a deeply humanizing activity is a major theme of my own writing, including my novel The Hemingway Files, which came out this summer.

SLU Author Bio
Harold "Hal" Bush, Ph.D., is a professor of English and has conducted intensive studies in the field of 19th and 20th Century American literature. These studies have become major "habits" in his life and during the course of this research, he has written or edited seven books. Bush's most recent book is Continuing Bonds with the Dead:  Parental Grief and Nineteenth-Century American Authors (University of Alabama Press, 2016). His other works include The Mark Twain – Joseph H. Twichell Correspondence (University of Georgia Press, 2017) and Above the American Renaissance: David Reynolds and the Spiritual Imagination in American Literary Studies (forthcoming in 2018 from the University of Massachusetts Press). Bush's first novel, The Hemingway Files, was published earlier this summer by BlankSlate Press.

Be sure to read the next edition of Newslink on Monday, July 24, for summer reading suggested by Yan Gai, Ph.D., of Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology, and the College of Arts and Sciences' Sara van den Berg, Ph.D.

Are you a passionate reader, eager to share your top summer reading pick with the SLU community? Share your recommendation with Newslink by July 21 for a chance to win a prize selected with the avid bookworm in mind. A round-up story featuring the best community recommendations will appear at the end of this month.


'Billiken Bookmarks' is a mini-feature series that will appear with new reading recommendations from Saint Louis University authors throughout July and occasionally during the academic year.