UCSB Reads 2027
UCSB Library has announced the shortlist of titles under consideration for UCSB Reads 2027, the 21st edition of its award-winning campus- and community-wide common book program. The five nonfiction titles and one fiction title explore diverse cultural, social, and scientific subjects that can ignite discourse and thoughtful discussion inside and outside of the classroom.
About UCSB Reads
UCSB Reads is an award-winning program that fosters a shared sense of belonging by bringing the UCSB campus and Santa Barbara communities together to read a common book that explores compelling issues of our time.
Each year, an advisory committee of UCSB faculty, staff, students, and community partners selects a thought-provoking, interdisciplinary book by a living author that encourages a wide range of readers to engage with a contemporary social, political, cultural, or scientific issue and can be incorporated into the UCSB curriculum. Previous selections have explored topics such as climate change, human memory, racial justice, women in science, globalization, and wildfires. UCSB Reads authors have included prominent figures like His Holiness the Dalai Lama (2009), Piper Kerman (2015), Bryan Stevenson (2016), Ted Chiang (2022), and Michelle Zauner (2026).
Public programming spans learning, experiential, and social events, starting with a free book giveaway for UCSB students in the Library at the beginning of winter quarter. Throughout the winter and spring quarters (January–June), the Library sponsors talks, book clubs, workshops, and other events to explore the book’s themes. UCSB Reads culminates in a live appearance by the author(s) at UCSB Campbell Hall, presented in partnership with UCSB Arts & Lectures. Events are generally free and open to the public.
UCSB Reads is sponsored by UCSB Library and the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost and was started in 2007 by the Library and then-Executive Vice Chancellor Gene Lucas. The program has received many awards and accolades over the years, most notably the John Cotton Dana Library Public Relations Award from the American Library Association in 2008 and 2026.
Video: What's UCSB Reads and why should students get involved?
Video description: UCSB students and Music Librarian Erin Smith discuss the UCSB Reads program and why students should participate in it. Speakers are seated in various public areas of UCSB Library.
UCSB Reads Book Selection Criteria
A book that:
- is by a living author who is also a strong public presenter and who has not recently been an Arts & Lecture speaker
- is intellectually stimulating
- is interdisciplinary
- can be incorporated into the UCSB curriculum
- appeals to a wide range of UCSB students and Santa Barbara community readers
- was recently published (but is, ideally, available in paperback)
- was critically well-received
- is not too long (under 400 pages is recommended)
- adds to the UCSB Reads corpus of diverse topics and authors
- enables strategic partnerships between the Library and campus or community entities
More Information
- Previous UCSB Reads Books
- Sponsorship and Partnership Opportunities
- “How One Book Brings a Campus and Community Together Every Year,” news article (2026)
- Sign up for UCSB Library newsletters and emails to get information about UCSB Reads delivered directly to your inbox
- Questions? Contact us at UCSBReads@library.ucsb.edu
