The titles and schedule for the 2026 Faculty Reading Group are listed below. The reading group was started as a means of pursuing conversation, exchange, and collaboration. Anyone is welcome! Feel free to attend as many or as few of the discussions as you would like, but please know that one is not required to have read the book in order to join the conversation. Many of the titles connect to topics of professional development and/or the mission and vision of USF. Thus, you may find the conversation pleasurable and rewarding even without having read the book.
A copy of each book is available at Mears Library. Annie notes that they will be kept on a shelf behind the front desk.
All discussions will be held at 10:00 am, with the location for each date listed below. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact either Jenny Bangsund or Greg Dyer.
May 14 (Jorden Conference Room)
The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World
by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Robin Wall Kimmerer's Website
"The Serviceberry: An Economy of Abundance" :: An earlier essay that was later expanded into the book. If you're rushed for time but would like to join the discussion, this essay will do the trick.
"Robin Wall Kimmerer Shares Her Inspiration for The Serviceberry" :: A brief video from Simon & Schuster. (YouTube; 1:30).
June 11 (McDonald Center Conference Room)
Generous Thinking: A Radical Approach to Saving the University
by Kathleen Fitzpatrick
Kathleen Fitzpatrick's Webpage
Kathleen Fitzpatrick Keynote :: A video lecture presented (YouTube; 46:47) through The Commons, a initiative for interdisciplinary inquiry at the University of Kansas. If you're rushed for time but would like to join the discussion, this video should enable you to do so.
July 9 (McDonald Center Conference Room)
Project Hail Mary
by Andy Weir
Related Resources:
Andy Weir's Webpage
Project Hail Mary Trailer :: (YouTube; 2:58)
Project Hail Andy :: This link will connect you with the first of three videos wherein the bookmaker is commissioned to make hand-crafted bindings and covers for Andy Weir's three novels. These videos are only tangentially related to our reading of Project Hail Mary, but I couldn't resist including the link.
August 6 (McDonald Center Conference Room)
More Than Words:How to Think About Writing in the Age of A.I.
by John Warner
Inside Higher Ed :: John Warner has written frequently for Inside Higher Ed. Search for his name in the publications search box to peruse his offerings.
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