The 2005 Common Book

 A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League by Ron Suskind is Winthrop University’s 2005 Common Book.  In this book, Suskind describes Cedric Jennings’ life, starting with his struggles as a teenage honor student attending Ballou Senior High in a crime-infested part of Washington, D.C. and ending with his social and academic successes at prestigious Brown University.  Cedric’s journey from inner city to Ivy League involves physical threats and verbal abuse from his peers at Ballou, for whom academics is a low priority.  In contrast, Cedric must adapt to an array of intellectual and social challenges at Brown University, where he encounters upper middle class students who take academic success for granted.  Suskind describes the complex details of Cedric’s life and the various people and circumstances that provide Cedric with “something to push against,” the title of the first chapter of the book.  Among other things, Cedric had to overcome peer pressure, poor academic preparation for college, and family problems.

Toward the end of his first year at Brown, Cedric returned to his former high school to speak at Alumni Day.  Cedric's speech included this statement, "It's hard to believe I’m saying this, considering what Ballou can be like, but in some ways, this is a shelter for you, a protection against some of the real obstacles to achievement, some of which are real complicated. Once you get out there, you have to build your own protection" (p. 266). 

As students read this book, they will understand what Cedric meant by this message and also be able to identify what they had to "push against" in order to get to college.  Reading this book should prompt students to ask themselves many questions, including the following ones.  What obstacles am I likely to encounter in my first year of college?  In what ways is college different from high school?  Why is a college degree important?  Is Cedric's story unique?  In what ways is Cedric’s experience similar to mine?  How is it different?  What motivates Cedric to do well in school?  What motivates me?

Common Book Project