BOOKPACKERS AT U.S.C.

In 2016, the University of Southern California adopted BOOKPACKERS as a innovative cross-humanities concept in undergraduate education.

Andrew currently leads four BOOKPACKING classes at USC, each with a different focus and format. Two more classes are in development.

Andrew teaches two classes at U.S.C. during the Spring Semester.

• BOOKPACKING LOS ANGELES is a Saturday class. The students meet for a seminar on Saturday mornings, and then in the afternoon we head off-campus, bookpacking Los Angeles through a range of L.A. novels.

• BOOKPACKING AMERICA is a seminar class (T/Th 9.30-10.50), offering a virtual road trip from New England to the Hispanic South West, using classic and contemporary fiction to explore the varied cultures of the U.S.A..

These are GE-B classes, open to all. Sign up via open registration as part of November enrollment.

In May / June, immediately following commencement, USC offers students a series of off-campus classes set abroad and in cities across the U.S.A..  These ‘special session’ programs are called Maymesters. 

BOOKPACKING NEW ORLEANS is a month-long Maymester class which Andrew has led since 2017. The class takes students on a month-long exploration of New Orleans and the southern bayous, reading a series of key New Orleans novels over the course of the month.

Andrew will be leading the New Orleans Maymester in 2025 and 2026. A New York Maymester (see below) is scheduled to launch in 2027 - watch this space.

Applications for New Orleans 2025 have now closed and the class is fully enrolled.

Summer Session classes are held in the latter weeks of the summer vacation (mid July to mid August).

BOOKPACKING PARIS AND LONDON is a summer session class offering students the opportunity to spend a month in Paris and London, bookpacking two classic historical novels - ‘Les Misérables’ by Victor Hugo, and ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ by Charles Dickens.

Andrew will be leading the Paris / London Summer Session in 2025 and 2026. A Berlin Summer Session class (see below) is scheduled to launch in 2027.

Applications for London / Paris 2025 trip are now open via the Student Travel Abroad portal.

BOOKPACKERS at U.S.C. is the creative endeavor of Andrew Chater with executive producer Marion Dole.

BOOKPACKERS classes are offered by the U.S.C. Department of English. They are GE-B classes and open to all. Please contact the undergraduate advisors in English for more information.

BOOKPACKING LONDON AND PARIS and BOOKPACKING BERLIN are co-sponsored by the Department of History.

All off-campus classes at U.S.C. are co-administrated by the Department of Faculty Led Programs.