Real College: The Essential Guide to Student Life

Rating:
Summary: informative, not patronizing
Review: Douglas Stone and Elizabeth Tippett wrote a book about students in college, that sounds like students in college. They have made up characters and go through their freshman year, examining problems like "Is my roommate nuts?" and "I can't concentrate and the final is... tomorrow?!?!" They go about this in such a way that students can learn, not tune out parental advice about "well, when *I* was in college..." This is a must-read for high school seniors. I know I feel more prepared to go out on my own next fall!

Rating:
Summary: An entertaining guide for the soon-to-be college student
Review: Stone and Tippett have produced a well-written and at times humorous guide to contemporary college life. In their book, Stone and Tippett cogently discuss a wide range of topics, including dealing with one's roommate, handling the academic and social pressures of college, and approaching relationships in a healthy manner. Their innovative use of fictional e-mails to illustrate their points both adds humor and helps connect the book's larger themes to students' actual day-to-day lives.

Although I graduated from college in 2002 and believe that I had a wonderful experience, I cannot help but conclude that my college life would have been at least somewhat richer if I had read "Real College" before leaving home. On balance, I strongly recommend this book for any soon-to-be college student and/or his/her parents.