The Ivy League is so much more than a group of eight universities. Attending one of these prominent schools provides entrée into a world of exclusivity and private clubs a membership that never expires. Through photos and text, The Ivy League admits readers to the world s most revered institutions, portraying the character of each school and what sets it apart, from renowned graduates and dominant political stances to athletic rivalries, architectural styles, popular fashion, and more.
Browse our Bookshelf Favorites store for big savings on popular fiction, nonfiction, children's books, and more. |
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Daniel Cappello is a writer and editor who has worked on the editorial staffs of George, The New Yorker, and Quest magazines. He is also the founder of 47 Ventures, a creative consulting firm that handles clients in media, politics, design, philanthropy, fashion, and the arts. He received his BA degree in government from Harvard University.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images? |
Customer Reviews
Share your thoughts with other customers
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Amazon Verified Purchase
It may be true, as Daniel Cappello notes in the introduction to this attractive and useful book, that "schools outside the Ivy League, including the so-called 'Ivy Plus' universities (such as Stanford, Duke, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the University of Chicago), actually provide a more rigorous scholastic experience than their Ivy counterparts." Nevertheless, the Ivy League, he argues, retains "an unquantifiable distinction factor that eludes empirical educational value and worth. ... To some extent, the old-school idea of the Ivy League continues to define it, and is one that Ivy Leaguers still cling to. It is also one that looms large in the popular imagination." It's this "old-school idea," the "unquantifiable distinction factor," that Cappello attempts to define for the Ivy League colleges. He paints what struck me, as admitted outsider who's paid but brief visits to only three of these campuses, as fine individual portraits of eight very different schools, yet also shows what they have in common -- what sets "what might be seen as one of the most successful and singularly American brands" apart from other schools.
Cappello tackles the schools in the order of their founding, starting with the Big Three: Harvard ("the Ivy's Ivy"), Yale ("the classic Ivy"), and Princeton ("the preppy Ivy"). He then moves outward, to Brown ("the hip Ivy"), Dartmouth ("the rugged Ivy"), Columbia ("the urbane Ivy"), Penn ("the entrepreneurial Ivy"), and finally Cornell ("the Ivy for every man"). Each chapter is colorfully illustrated with an assortment of historic and contemporary images, including campus landscapes, portraits of alumni and current students, and classic athletic programs. His text not only describes each school's history, but also its current character and distinctiveness. Among the topics I found particularly interesting were his discussion of Brown as what someone else described as "the daycare center of the Democratic Party" and preferred school of Hollywood and Euro-elites; Columbia's close ties to neighboring Harlem; and the "discreet, almost philosophical nonchalance" of Yale and its students. Readers who, like me, are interested in the "Ivy League" style of dress, and have studied relevant books like Ivy Style: Radical Conformists, Take Ivy, or The Ivy Look: Classic American Clothing - An Illustrated Pocket Guide will be pleased to know that Cappello hasn't stinted in this area -- particularly in the chapters on Yale and Princeton.
Again, though, I return to the beautiful photos. This could easily be described as an Ivy League photo album, and you could certainly browse it as such. But then you'd miss the very good writing that goes along with the colorful and well-chosen images, and that would be a shame.
Cappello tackles the schools in the order of their founding, starting with the Big Three: Harvard ("the Ivy's Ivy"), Yale ("the classic Ivy"), and Princeton ("the preppy Ivy"). He then moves outward, to Brown ("the hip Ivy"), Dartmouth ("the rugged Ivy"), Columbia ("the urbane Ivy"), Penn ("the entrepreneurial Ivy"), and finally Cornell ("the Ivy for every man"). Each chapter is colorfully illustrated with an assortment of historic and contemporary images, including campus landscapes, portraits of alumni and current students, and classic athletic programs. His text not only describes each school's history, but also its current character and distinctiveness. Among the topics I found particularly interesting were his discussion of Brown as what someone else described as "the daycare center of the Democratic Party" and preferred school of Hollywood and Euro-elites; Columbia's close ties to neighboring Harlem; and the "discreet, almost philosophical nonchalance" of Yale and its students. Readers who, like me, are interested in the "Ivy League" style of dress, and have studied relevant books like Ivy Style: Radical Conformists, Take Ivy, or The Ivy Look: Classic American Clothing - An Illustrated Pocket Guide will be pleased to know that Cappello hasn't stinted in this area -- particularly in the chapters on Yale and Princeton.
Again, though, I return to the beautiful photos. This could easily be described as an Ivy League photo album, and you could certainly browse it as such. But then you'd miss the very good writing that goes along with the colorful and well-chosen images, and that would be a shame.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Amazon Verified Purchase
This was a gift for my fiancé. He seemed very happy with book. It now sits on a table in our living room for and is an interesting conversation piece.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Amazon Verified Purchase
I was pleasantly surprised with the survey of all the Ivy League schools in this amazingly attractive book.
Going to Brown and teaching at Columbia makes this book fun to read. My last sentence ( <- ) was more snobby than the book is. I recommend it to anyone interested in the Ivys, especially for parents thinking about sending their high schooler to an Ivy upon graduation.
Going to Brown and teaching at Columbia makes this book fun to read. My last sentence ( <- ) was more snobby than the book is. I recommend it to anyone interested in the Ivys, especially for parents thinking about sending their high schooler to an Ivy upon graduation.
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
