Books, Books, Books

by Travis Rocha

The same thing happens every semester. I always wait until the very last minute to order my textbooks for class. In fairness, this is sometimes because I make changes to my schedule as I receive the syllabi for my courses. Though, even if my schedule was locked in when I came to Christopher Newport for a new semester, I’d still probably have zero of the books required. There’s a couple of reasons for this (besides being lazy).

My first reason is I like to hear from the professor directly that we will indeed be using the textbook. In some cases, the textbook is simply a point of reference and the exams are on lecture only. In other cases, I split the cost of the book with a friend and we share a copy if its feasible for the class we’re taking, but first I have to learn who I have in my classes with me. One thing I’m incredibly grateful for is Captains are always keen to help other Captains. In the Facebook group for the Class of 2021, students are always reselling books to one another for very low prices, or even giving them away. This is done in all of Christopher Newport’s class Facebook groups.

So, as I scramble to get all my books, often times I don’t have to wait long at all to receive them. I simply meet up with a fellow student in the David Student Union and get my book in a few minutes’ time. When I do order books from the Captains Locker or Amazon, I can always rely on my classmates to fill me in on the reading or lend me their book so I don’t fall behind in class. At Christopher Newport, no one is in it alone. Every facet of our education here benefits from the community we share with one another.