As the end of the year draws near and you start planning for 2020, make some time to build a reading list. Reading provides a myriad of benefits beyond just increasing your knowledge; it can also help you develop your critical thinking skills, improve your memory, help you sleep better, and more.
Because there are so many reasons why reading is beneficial, we want to help you build a list that’ll make 2020 an entertaining and educational year for you. We reached out to our faculty in the School of Education to see what’s on their reading list for 2020. Check out their recommendations below, and follow along with us on GoodReads to keep track of your progress.
Our Top 5 Book Recommendations
We Band of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan by Elizabeth M. Norman
In 1941, during World War Two, American Army and Navy nurses stationed in the Philippines found themselves in under the fire of Japanese bombs. As they did their best to treat injuries in makeshift field hospitals in the Bataan jungles, their future was on its way to growing darker. Most of the nurses were imprisoned by the Japanese in internment camps; some of them made it home. We Band of Angels tells their story through letters, diaries, and firsthand accounts.
Notes on Nursing: What It Is, and What It Is Not by Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale was a trailblazer for modern nursing at the turn of the last century, and this little book collects her thoughts and ideas on the profession. Though nursing has changed in the last hundred years, the needs of the sick are much the same. Nightingale’s observations and insights are dually interesting and practical.
Saving Lives: Why the Media’s Portrayal of Nurses Puts Us All At Risk by Sandy Summers
What do nurses actually do? Why doesn’t the public understand nursing? Summers explores nursing’s public perception and common myths around the profession to make the case that nursing isn’t well understood due to poor media representation. She makes the case that poor understanding of nursing is one of the reasons for the nursing shortage, and offers practical steps nurses can take to address and correct common misconceptions about the role they play in healthcare.
When Nurses Hurt Nurses: Recognizing and Overcoming the Cycle of Nurse Bullying by Cheryl Dellasaga
Workplace bullying is nothing new, but it is particularly detrimental to nursing, where teamwork, camaraderie, and understanding can make the difference for patient outcomes. When Nurses Hurt Nurses tackles the topic of nurse bullying, a prevalent problem that damages nurses as well as those they serve. Dellasaga recounts a history of nurse bullying and provides theories on why it happens, as well as ideas on how to prevent or defuse bullying and promote a positive workplace culture.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Skloot traces the story of Henrietta Lacks and her cells, which were taken without her knowledge and have since been used for such medical advances as the development of the polio vaccine, the study of cancer and viruses—and are still being used today more than 60 years after her death. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks dives into complicated questions around bioethics and medical history’s racism, while bringing readers up close to a woman whose physical existence has radically changed medicine.
More Recommendations from Nursing Faculty
If you’ve already read the suggestions above or want a bigger list to take with you into the new year, below are more titles submitted by faculty for you to explore.
- Me by Elton John
- The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr
- Varina by Charles Frazier
- The Water Dancer by Ta-Nahisi Coates
- By Night the Mountain Burns by Juan Tomás Ávila Laurel
- The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life by Twyla Tharp
- The Obstacle Is the Way by Ryan Holiday
- Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield
- Edison by Edmund Morris
- Dare to Lead by Brene Brown
- Messengers by Stephen Martin & Joseph Marks
- Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg
As you get going with your list, don’t forget that you can follow along with us on GoodReads in 2020 to keep track of the books on your reading list, track your progress, and reference our recommendations all in one place.
Happy reading!
The top five recommendations and their descriptions were created by Meredith Sell, a contributing author.
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