Beyond ramen noodles: how to thrive on and off campus

REVIEWS BY LINDA STANKARD

Pack light. That's first-hand advice (and words to live by) from Mary Kay Shanley and Julia Johnston's Survival Secrets of College Students. Even as you cram in more flip-flops and your iPhone, be sure to leave room for these time-saving, health-preserving new books—they won't take up much space—and they could prove as indispensable as duct tape or alarm clock number two.

Chapter titles in Survival Secrets (aside from "What to Take—or Not,") include "Orientation: You're New, You're Nervous and You Need It," "Roommates; Friends, Foes, or Somewhere in Between" and "Love, Sex, Alcohol and Drugs." The advice ranges from the deadly serious—"Freshmen make up 24 percent of students enrolled in four-year institutions, but they account for 35 percent of student deaths, with almost one-third caused by alcohol or drug overdose"—to cheerful banter about getting up for early classes: "Consider only 8 a.m. classes that are less than 10 minutes from your bed." Students from colleges across the country provide their personal stories and suggestions, like this tip from a senior, offering his angle on where to get the best free food: "Girls' rooms. They're always full of snacks. The girls say, 'My parents sent all this food and I don't want to eat it by myself.' " This handy guide will help the uninitiated handle everything from homesickness to heavy course loads, with the self-assurance of, well, maybe not a senior, but at least someone with a couple of semesters under his/her belt!


86 the freshman 15

Of course, if you're beyond the scrounging stage and need more sustenance than Twinkies and Doritos to keep your mind sharp and your stomach from growling, we've got a few more books to keep you cooking when you head off to college. Daphne Oz's The Dorm Room Diet Planner, the companion volume to last fall's The Dorm Room Diet, offers practical advice not only on how to beat the freshman 15 (the dreaded pounds that unwary students pack on during their first year away from home), but how to be a "more relaxed, more effective you." Through exercise (concise directions and illustrations, as well as a 20-minute DVD show you how); the right vitamins and minerals; and happiness enhancers, such as meditation, aromatherapy and massage, Oz outlines a plan for keeping your weight down and your spirits (hence grades) up.

A Princeton University student herself, Oz says that she already had the inspiration and information she needed to become a healthier person when she left for school, but writes, "College proved to be my motivation, the catalyst that led to my lifestyle overhaul, because it marked the onset of my life as an adult." If you're thinking what I'm thinking, don't wait for a house to fall on you, get both of Oz's books and start down the yellow brick road to health and happiness!


Alive and cooking

College students may have varying degrees of cooking experience, cooking equipment and/or money to spend on ingredients, but they usually share one thing in common: They like to eat. Sisters Megan and Jill Carle, co-authors of Teens Cook and Teens Cook Dessert, have advanced to College Cooking: Feed Yourself and Your Friends. "As much as we hate the saying, 'the way to a man's heart is through his stomach,' there is some truth to it.... But, here's a tip for you guys: girls find it just as appealing to have a guy cook for them. Anyone can take you out to eat, but making a nice dinner for someone shows that you care enough to put in the extra effort. You get bonus points for that," they advise.

Keeping hectic schedules and tight budgets in mind, the Carles provide many mouthwatering, easy-to-make and sumptuously illustrated recipes such as salmon cake with potato wedges, vegetarian chili and chicken salad pita sandwiches. Whether it's a toga party for 20 people or a romantic dinner for two, this book will make you look like you were born with a spatula in your hand. College Cooking makes a great gift for a beginning cook and is a must-have for well-fed and well-lived off-campus college life.


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