Prof Rap

Larry Rochelle
Zumaya Publications (2002)
ISBN 1894869532
Reviewed by Patti Yackulic for Reader Views (09/06)

As I read through “Prof Rap,” I was flooded with recollections of the cacophony of emotions I experienced so many years past as I embarked on my journey into adulthood and post-secondary education. During those antiquated days, no guides dedicated to conquering the transition from high school to the real world, existed. I, along with my peers, relied on the trial and error approach; hence, I was subject to a continuum of growing pains. In hindsight, I would have appreciated a compendium of survival techniques.

The pages of “Prof Rap” are filled with a plethora of practical advice ranging from wisely investing energy in college courses and extra-curricular activities to effectively managing finances to exhibiting a mature sense of decorum to maintaining relationships to developing citizenship to celebrating life to achieving success. Indeed, as I perused the points, I continually found myself in agreement with Larry Rochelle’s tips. After all, each suggestion, obviously garnered from his experiences both as a student and as a professor, aligned with recommendations I would pass along to young adults.

However, I was frustrated with Rochelle’s presentation – bulleted brief points randomly distributed into four sections (or, in Rochelle’s terms, four slices of a pizza). My preferred format also would feature the bulleted brief points, but I would appreciate them logically categorized, by topic, in numerous appropriately titled chapters which are identified in a table of contents. In its present state, “Prof Rap” is definitely an interesting and valuable reading experience; nevertheless, the scattered layout leaves Rochelle’s audience cognizant of only a small portion of his message once the readers have reached the final page. Searching for specific points is an onerous task as different slants of the same topic appear in different sections of the book; hence, I can’t believe that many students would attempt to review pertinent information that escaped their minds during their initial read. Yet, I would suggest that young adults, preparing for college, search their library shelves for “Prof Rap” and enjoy perusing this book; however, I would advise that students rely on a well-structured manual such as the one currently being distributed, at no cost, to freshman in many Canadian universities.

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