For the 17^th consecutive year, first-year students enrolled in the Master of Public Service degree program at the Clinton School of Public Service have compiled a list of books they recommend others to read.

Several of the book selections reflect the public service interests of Clinton Schools students – books that explore issues of race, social justice, economics, and the evolution of large political institutions. Other topics include feminism, stress and burnout, and American history, while other selections tap into themes of self-discovery and spiritual journey through novels and autobiographies.

Below is the complete list from the Class of 2024.

Emotional Labor: Putting the Service in Public Service
by Mary E. Guy, Meredith A. Newman, and Sharon H. Mastracci
Augustine Amankwaa

Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead
by Brene Brown
Caleb Cox

A Thousand Splendid Suns
by Khaled Hosseini
Montana Cramer

Lead from the Outside: How to Build Your Future and Make Real Change
by Stacey Abrams
Leroy Edwards, Jr.

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle
by Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski
Katie George

The Last Lecture
by Jeffrey Zaslow and Randy Pausch
Claire Hollenbeck

The Skin I'm In
by Sharon G. Flake
Aiyana Houston-Hay

Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High
by Melba Pattillo Beals
Macie Johnson 

Milkweed
by Jerry Spinelli
Alyssa Jones 

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
by Yuval Noah Harari
Ibrahim Kirindiro 

Development as Freedom
by Amartya Sen
Summer Lollie

The Prophet
by Kahlil Gibran
Arjo Mitra 

Caste: The Origins of our Discontents
by Isabel Wilkerson
Rachel Monnahan 

Roots: The Saga of an American Family
by Alex Haley
Babatunde Oladele

Small Is Beautiful: A Study of Economics As If People Mattered
by E. F. Schumacher
Oladotun Olagbaju

The Best Lawyer in a One-Lawyer Town
by Dale Bumpers
Caleb Parker

Man’s Search for Meaning
by Viktor Frankl
Solomon Quarm

101 Essays That Will Change the Way You Think
by Brianna Wiest
Katlee Taylor-Freasier

10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America
by Steven M. Gillon
Stefanie Vestal

The Fire Next Time
by James Baldwin
Gabriela Wells

Feminism: A Brief Introduction to the Ideas, Debates, and Politics of the Movement
by Deborah Cameron
Cameron Witt

The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America
by George Packer
Seth Wyatt