Abby Zwart

The best film I saw this summer was “Beasts of the Southern Wild.” Featuring one of the most precocious and ferociously adorable child actors you’ll ever see, the movie was one of the most atmospheric and transporting ones I’ve seen in a long time.  Think “Tree of Life” with more plot and more grit.  The setting, the acting, and the themes of the film (and it really deserves that word) left a mark in my mind that won’t soon be erased.

John Kloosterman

“House of Leaves” by Mark Danielewski, a novel about a family that moves into a house that is larger on the inside than the outside, with excursions just about everywhere. Recommended for other people like me that enjoy reading about texts more than actually reading them.

Joseph Matheson

Moonrise Kingdom — very quirky, very Wes Anderson-y, but I really liked the female lead and found it really fascinating the way that the kids seemed to act like adults and the adults seemed to act like kids.

Doctor Who — the first episode of season seven came out on Labor Day, so I’m not dead sure this counts as summer, but this was still one of the most-anticipated events of the summer for me. The show has matured a lot since it was rebooted in 2005 and while it’s still silly on occasion, it’s turned into a very emotional and compelling show.

The Avengers – The movie was just a great time.

Kyle Rodriguez

I have a deep love for superhero movies, so The Avengers, The Amazing Spiderman and The Dark Knight Rises were the highlights of my summer. They did a great job with The Avengers; it’s one of those movies that everybody can enjoy. I’m a sucker for Spiderman, so I enjoyed The Amazing Spiderman, but I thought Andrew Garfield was uncomfortably awkward. The Dark Knight Rises was very well done, and I loved the way they brought the whole series together with the ending, but I did think that Anne Hathaway was far too seductive.

Ryan Struyk

Little things can make a big difference. Sounds cheesy, but in The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell has the research to back it up. Using examples of epidemics and the reasons behind reduction of New York City crime rates, The Tipping Point describes the critical moment that causes change to go viral. This is a great read if you want to understand trends in society — and how to use the tipping point to your own advantage.

Maxwell Howard

At the end of this summer, the band Animal Collective released their 11th studio album, Centipede Hz. Like their previous albums, this proved to be a dividing piece of work. While some fans were frustrated with the regressive sounds, I was teary-eyed with joy. I am a fan boy and I do not care.

David Joon Ryou

I personally enjoyed the movie Ted. It personally relates to me because as a child I was teased by the neighborhood kids for being abnormally short. The closest friend I had was my stuffed hippo, whom I could related to because he was abnormally small for a hippo.