As an incoming Cal freshman or transfer student, you may be wondering what’s in store for you when classes start in the fall. We’ve got a little preview here, and a welcome to Cal, with the 2015 edition of the UC Berkeley Summer Reading List for New Students.

Is this required reading? Absolutely not. Do we hope you’ll find something on this list that appeals to you? Absolutely yes. This year’s list—“Summer Sampler: Selections from First-Year Courses”—offers a potluck of great suggestions from a few of our many faculty who teach these courses. If you don’t get to one of these readings this summer, you’ll be able to find them at one of Cal’s many libraries when you arrive.