Borland Educational

Books

The Great American Bathroom Book: Volumes 1-3
Single-sitting summaries of all-time great books. A three-volume guide to a classic liberal arts education! Read the second volume, first.

The Tao of Physics
Ancient eastern philosophy meets and marries modern Western Science in this classic book. Cutting edge in the 1970's. Still an inspiring work.

Algorithms to Live By: The Computer Science of Human Decisions
How to think like a computer in finding optimal solutions to very human problems (turns out computers may be more like people than we know).

Longitude
Engaging story of the critical importance of the precise measurement of longitude in solving vexing navigation problems during the age of exploration.

Atlas Obscura
Travel guide for those with eclectic tastes. Weird, wonderful places to visit, plus stories behind each one. Lengthen your bucket list! Web site here.

The Illustrated Man
Fascinating collection of 18 awesome sci-fi short stories by Ray Bradbury. My favorite book in high school. Still a good read.

Tao Te Ching (Jane English translation)
The best edition of this seminal volume of Taoist philosophy. Little is lost in translation. Still mysterious. Beautifully illustrated.

Return from Tomorrow
Psychiatrist George Ritchie recounts his guided tour through the universe ... while clinically dead for 9 minutes in 1943.

The Lazy Man’s Guide to Enlightenment
Never was a book's title more descriptive. Short and very sweet. Read, learn, lighten-up. Experience (or re-experience) the 1960s/1970s Human Potential Movement.

A Ship Called Hope
Lovely book about the story of the 1960s U.S. government hospital ship "Hope" bringing miracles to the poor in North Bali and around the world.

The Boys in the Boat
Gripping story of the rag-tag rowing crew that beat Hitler in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Depression-era pre-WW2 years come alive. Required for sports fans.

When the Legends Die
Hal Borland's tale of a young Ute Indian who has to choose between two worlds. Long required on high school reading lists (yes, Hal and I are related).

Stowaway
Fictional adaptation of the true story of a young stow-away aboard Captain Cook's ship during his secret 1768 voyage to the Southern Hemisphere.

Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Story of a young seagull, written at the dawn of the human potential movement, who risks it all to master high-speed flight, and finds enlightenment in the process.

Ring of Fire
Book about the Blair Brother's deep exploration of Indonesia, its many cultures and peoples. Later adapted as a four-part PBS series.

The Year of Living Dangerously
Novel set in Jakarta, Indonesia just before the brutal military take-over in September 1965. Film adaptation stars Mel Gibson in his first role.

Catch Me if You Can
Unbelievable true story of con and counterfeiter Frank Abignale, Jr. – who successfully posed as a doctor, lawyer, and airline pilot – before his 19th birthday.

The Hobbit
J.R.R. Tolkein's classic work that started it all. The original fantasy novel. Follow the famous adventures of Bilbo, Frodo, Gandalf and others through The Shire and beyond.

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance
Angela Duckworth's book positing internal motivation, drive, dedication, and the ability to persist – rather than luck or genius – as the chief factors in living a successful life.

Book Sites

goodreads
Huge and hugely popular social media site for bibliophiles. Search by genre, get reviews and ratings from 15 million members, thousands of book clubs, and more.

LibraryThing
Reading tracker. More personalized version of goodreads, focusing on community and forums. "A free, library-quality catalog to track reading progress or your whole library."

nprbooks
Excellent reviews, recommendations, and interviews with authors (audio + transcripts). You'll go far with NPR.

eBooks

Ultimate Classics Library
App that brings a enormous library of classic books (50,000+) to your Apple device, free. Includes audio books, as well.

Free Books
Annotated List of 20 great online sources of free book downloads in various formats. Why buy when you can probably find it free online?

Audio, Video, Film

Le Ballon Rouge (The Red Balloon)
Entrancing 1956 French short film produced in post-war Paris. I saw this numerous times in grade school in 16mm. Almost no dialogue. Oscar-winner for best screenplay.

Minimalism
An alternative, sustainable, improved "American Dream." Instead of insatiably craving/acquiring more stuff, minimalism promotes living with less to enjoy life more.

Story Corps
"The StoryCorp Podcast shares unscripted conservations revealing wisdom, courage and poetry in the words of [ordinary] people ..." Drink for the spirit, food for the soul.

Reviews

“Standardized tests are a necessary step in applying to colleges, and, with his support, I was able to achieve the scores I needed to be competitive. I am currently finishing a degree in physics at the University of Chicago and am immensely grateful for his help four years ago. His test taking strategies have also been very useful on the GRE while applying to graduate school physics programs. Thank you again, Chris!”

Ben F. (Student: 2013)

"[Chris’s] methods are extremely effective and he is one of the kindest, most supportive men I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.

"Working with him has been one of my best academic experiences and I congratulate Chris on his hard work and dedication to the success of his pupils."

Harrison M. (Student: 2017)

“His competence, compassion and ethics as a tutor are exemplary.

"Chris is a wonderfully friendly, sincere and caring human being. His personality is delightful, making the sessions enjoyable.”

Judy S. (Client: 2006)

"The students benefited from [Chris's] assistance, and we found him very personable, helpful and eager to learn new teaching techniques and philosophies.

I feel he would be an excellent addition to any tutoring staff."

Linda N. (Employer: 1980)

"I enjoyed working with Chris because he could explain things I did not understand and make them clear to me. Chris was very patient when it took me a while to understand things."

Martha S. (Student: 1993)

“Chris is a phenomenal math, PSAT, and SAT tutor. I studied with him for over three years and am so grateful for all of his invaluable knowledge and the confidence that he instilled in me as a math student.

"Now, years later, the same standardized test-taking skills that he taught me for the PSAT and SAT are helping me immensely in my LSAT prep.

"Chris is patient and efficient in his teaching. I would highly recommend him to everyone!”

Gary C. (Client: 2016)

"Chris Borland tutored my son and did an excellent job. He obviously is a very well qualified teacher and I recommend him without reservation."

David C. (Client: 1980)

Chris is also incredibly supportive, and recognizes when confidence is lagging. He holds his students accountable by giving them specific work and challenges and also rewards their gains, and is able to pivot his teaching style if a certain way of explaining things isn't working.

"I highly recommend Chris to any student who is studying for a standardized test ..."

A.S.M. (Client: 2021)

Most importantly, you taught Joey to understand that hard work does reap its own rewards. Joey did well enough in school and on the SATs to gain acceptance to a number of UC Schools, of which he chose UC Davis to attend. Thanks Chris for you effort and diligent tutoring of Joey the last three years, we really appreciate all that you did for him.

Larry L. (Client: 2005)

"Chris tutored my son for the SSAT test and … it was worth every penny. My son responded very well to him and developed learning strategies that [he's] using to this day."

Michal V. (Client: 2014)

"[Chris] has a keen sense of the orderly nature of learning, and did a particularly good job of helping students with the organizational work needed to excel at math ... one of the best young teachers I've seen."

Bruce S. (Administrator: 1985)

"[Chris] is patient, understanding, enthusiastic and always guides Andrew in the learning process with a very positive attitude. If Andrew gets distracted, Chris is able to guide him back to the subject at hand by being assertive, yet respectful. His focus on Andrew's progress has resulted in a very noticeable improvement in Andrew's skill level in Algebra, his attention to detail, his neatness, and his self-esteem..."

Karen C. (Client: 1999)

"Chris Borland has provided test prep tutoring for two of our three children, one for the SSAT and then the ACT, and the other for the SSAT. They both dramatically improved their scores as a result of his tutoring and were accepted to their first-choice schools.

Jennifer C. (Client: 2020)

"Fantastic tutor. We set a goal for my SAT score, and with Chris's help I got there. Has years of experience and knows the test inside and out. Cannot recommend more highly."

Jack R. (Client: 2014)

Chris is patient, knowledgeable and was helpful in identifying my weaknesses and addressing them. My work with Chris on test prep also helped me in the classroom resulting in improved grades both my junior and senior years. He is easy to work with and never made me feel stupid. I highly recommend Chris Borland for test prep and math tutoring.”

T J (student: 2018)

"Chris Borland tutored my l4 year old twins for several weeks before they took the SSAT test for entrance into private schools. He has a very good rapport with kids and makes the sessions fun and interesting.

Chris's strategies about standardized test taking proved to be excellent. Both boys improved their scores significantly and openly attributed their success to their work with Chris..."

Anne C. (Client: 2003)

“Worth every penny!

"As the high school application process in SF is already stressful and time consuming, I was looking for an efficient strategy for my B/G twins to prepare for the SSAT. Chris has deep experience with test prep and presented a very clear, efficient, and effective strategy for the twins to follow. His approach resulted in a huge increase in test results.

"We would highly recommend him to anyone for standardized test prep!”

Irene L. (client: 2018)

Knowledge is Power