Mr. Sheehan's Shelf: Books That Shaped Mike Sheehan '04

The first thing you notice upon entering Annenberg Library this January is a sign that reads: "Mr. Sheehan would like you to be uncomfortable." The brief pause it prompts is a preview of the curated shelf from Religion Department Chair and alumnus Mike Sheehan '04—a selection of books that, in his words, "did work on me," shaping and challenging him over time.

The idea for 'Mr. Sheehan's Shelf' emerged through one of Mr. Sheehan's many visits to the library. "I try to spend as much time in the library as I can since it's one of my favorite places on campus, and that day, we were talking about books and displays, and the idea kind of just naturally arose," he said. 

While student and faculty groups have curated themed book displays in the past, Upper School Librarian Andrea Yu thinks this display is special because, for the first time in at least eight years, it "features a solo person, a passionate and voracious reader, and a frequent flyer of the Annenberg Library" while also aligning with EA Libraries' longstanding philosophy. "We are a community-centered and community-curated library, which means we make purchases and build our library collection based on what our community is reading or wants to read, whether it's a trending BookTok title, research for a history paper, or even a book written by a current teacher."

"At the heart of librarianship is the joy of sharing a love of reading, learning, and conversation, and the belief that 'every reader, a book and every book, a reader,'" Ms. Yu continued. "It's a privilege to serve the reading interests of a wonderfully wide and diverse group of students ages 4 to 18, faculty, staff, parents, and administrators."

As for Mr. Sheehan's collection, the choices were intentional. "These aren't just a list of my favorite books, nor did I choose them because they are the 'best' or most important books I have ever read," he said. "I chose them because they 'did work' on me." In fact, if any common thread exists, Mr. Sheehan said it's that each book "challenged my understanding of the status quo, and because of that, caused me to see the world differently."

His reading habits aren't systematic, and he hopes that encourages students to think across disciplines instead of in isolated 'classroom boxes.'

"We often think about learning as an activity that takes place in silos, in our own individual classrooms in our individual subjects, and I would hope that a list like this fights back against that narrative," Mr. Sheehan explained. Or, as he puts it more succinctly: "I like to say often that I don't read to be informed, I read to be formed."

Mr. Sheehan is excited for others to dig into his collection and read the authors and works that he feels are especially integral to who he has become. He cites Philip Pullman as his biggest influence, specifically the book Daemon Voices. He also liked Azar Nafisi's Read Dangerously as a defense of literature as resistance and Jonathan Rose's The Intellectual Life of the British Working Class as a reminder of what it means to be purely and authentically cultured.

As for a book he'd recommend to anyone? "Robert Macfarlane's Is a River Alive? because the central question of the text demands respect and holds far-reaching implications for our future as a species living on this planet," Mr. Sheehan said. 

Director of Libraries Lorie Harding sees this as the start of an exciting new tradition. "This display is a collection of books that contains wisdom, asks big questions, and celebrates the essence of what makes us human," she said. 

And for Mr. Sheehan, that is where the meaning lies: "Community-curated displays remind students that reading is not just an academic activity; it's a human one," he said.

His display marks the first in a planned rotation of community-curated shelves at Annenberg Library, with additional curators already in the queue.