Read This Book!

Read This Book!

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Read This Book! episodes

  • Summer reading tips for kids — Part 2
    Lisa Von Drasek recommends several books from independent publishers in Part 2 of Summer Reading for Children on Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. The books are: Jump Little Wood Ducks, A seed is the start, Crow not Crow, You Can’t Be Too Careful, and Do Doodlebugs Doodle.
    About Lisa Von Drasek and Read This Book!
    Von Drasek is host of Read This Book and the curator of the University of Minnesota’s Children’s Literature Research Collections. She also writes a blog on children’s books called The Blue Ox Review.
    Read This Book! is a video podcast produced by the University of Minnesota Libraries. It is available on YouTube and iTunes. Audio from Read This Book! is available on iTunes at Lisa’s The Blue Ox Review podcast. 
    6 min
  • Summer reading tips for kids — Part 1

    Lisa Von Drasek recommends informational books from National Geographic in Part 1 of our 2018 Summer Reading recommendations for children on Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. The books are: Almanac 2019, Brain Games, Extreme Records, and Explore My World: Lions.

    The post Summer reading tips for kids — Part 1 appeared first on UMN Libraries News & Events.

    5 min
  • Summer reading tips for kids — Part 1
    Lisa Von Drasek recommends informational books from National Geographic in Part 1 of our 2018 Summer Reading recommendations on Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries.
    Libraries that have these books
    The libraries below have these books in their collection, but, depending on demand, you may have to wait to check them out. 
    Almanac 2019

    * Hennepin County Library
    * Saint Paul Public Library

    Brain Games

    * Hennepin County Library
    * Saint Paul Public Library

    Extreme Records

    * Hennepin County Library

    Explore My World: Lions

    * Hennepin County Library

    About Lisa Von Drasek and Read This Book!
    Von Drasek is host of Read This Book and the curator of the University of Minnesota’s Children’s Literature Research Collections. She also writes a blog on children’s books called The Blue Ox Review.
    Read This Book! is a video podcast produced by the University of Minnesota Libraries. It is available on YouTube and iTunes. Audio from Read This Book! is available on iTunes at Lisa’s The Blue Ox Review podcast. 
    5 min
  • A cover-up at the Met
    By Rebecca Toov
    You are listening to U of M Radio on your Historic Dial!
    From 1938-1979, the Minnesota School of the Air brought educational programs into the classrooms of Minnesota and beyond over radio airwaves and through tape transcription. During the 1977-1978 season, School of the Air produced a series of radio “field trips” called Look What We Found, a program that introduced students to people and places in Minnesota. Join us this season as we revisit these radio field trips. Today’s episode takes listeners to Metropolitan Stadium to learn how to stay dry on a rainy day. 
    Season 2: Episode 6. A Cover-up at the Met.
    You are listening to U of M Radio on your Historic Dial podcast. Welcome to Season 2: Episode 5.
    Hi, this is Rebecca from University Archives. The title for the April 13, 1978 broadcast of Look What We Found is “A Cover-up at the Met.” Met is a nickname for Metropolitan Stadium, the former home to Minnesota’s professional sports teams. The stadium opened in 1956 and was demolished in 1985.  It’s where Harmon Killebrew hit home runs for the Twins, and where Fran Tarkenton threw touchdown passes for the Vikings. The Kicks, a professional soccer team, also played in the stadium from 1976-1981.
    The introduction to this program in the Teacher’s Guide states, “When a Carew homer whizzes across the diamond at Met Stadium and into the stands, not many fans are thinking about why the field looks such a brilliant green under the lights. Likewise, when some fancy footwork by the Vikings or the Kicks throws up patches of sod, who puts the field back together?  One thing fans probably have noticed is the enormous protective tarp that covers the field when it rains. Those are the groundskeepers who pull that out.” 
    On today’s historic broadcast of Look What We Found, you’ll hear from Dick Erickson, the stadium supervisor at the Met.  He described the difficulties of rearranging the field to accommodate three different professional sports.
    Metropolitan Stadium was built before Minnesota had any professional sports teams.  In the 1950s, a Metropolitan Sports Area Commission was created to oversee the construction and operation of a stadium with the potential to accommodate professional teams. A local fundraising campaign was initiated to secure the funds. Farmland was purchased in the city of Bloomington, south of Minneapolis, as the site for the stadium.
    On opening day, April 24, 1956, it was the Minneapolis Millers minor league baseball team that took to the field.  However, Minnesotans only had to wait a few more years for professional teams to come.  The Vikings played their opening game on September 17, 1961 and pulled off a victory against the Chicago Bears 37-13.  The Twins lost their home opener on April 21, 1961 5-3.
    Within a year after this program aired on KUOM, construction began on a new indoor domed stadium in downtown Minneapolis.  The Kicks, Vikings, and Twins all played final games at Metropolitan Stadium in 1981. 
    The stadium was demolished in 1985 and the site was replaced by the Mall of America, which opened in 1992.  A Metropolitan Stadium home plate marker was placed in the flooring of the mall’s amusement park to mark the spot of the original home plate.
    Now, let’s travel back to the stadium in 1978 and listen to “A Cover-Up at the Met.”
    Broadcast Transcript
    [Music]
    Various voices: I don’t believe it. Hahaha! Wow! Psyched out!
    [Group exclamation] Look what we found!
    Announcer: Come on you’ve been sitting there far too long. Join the Minnesota School of the Air as we take a field trip in sound to someplace you’ve probably never been, somewhere in and around the Twin Cities. And here to go with you are your hosts Walter, Patty, and Bill.
    Walter: Bill,
    14 min
  • A cover-up at the Met
    By Rebecca Toov

    You are listening to U of M Radio on your Historic Dial!

    From 1938-1979, the Minnesota School of the Air brought educational programs into the classrooms of Minnesota and beyond over radio airwaves and through tape transcription. During the 1977-1978 season, School of the Air produced a series of radio “field trips” called Look What We Found, a program that introduced students to people and places in Minnesota. Join us this season as we revisit these radio field trips. Today’s episode takes listeners to Metropolitan Stadium to learn how to stay dry on a rainy day.
    Season 2: Episode 6. A Cover-up at the Met.


    Audio reel box for "Look What We Found... A Cover-up at the Met," April 13, 1978.

    You are listening to U of M Radio on your Historic Dial podcast. Welcome to Season 2: Episode 5.

    Hi, this is Rebecca from University Archives. The title for the April 13, 1978 broadcast of Look What We Found is “A Cover-up at the Met.” Met is a nickname for Metropolitan Stadium, the former home to Minnesota’s professional sports teams. The stadium opened in 1956 and was demolished in 1985.  It’s where Harmon Killebrew hit home runs for the Twins, and where Fran Tarkenton threw touchdown passes for the Vikings. The Kicks, a professional soccer team, also played in the stadium from 1976-1981.

    The introduction to this program in the Teacher’s Guide states, “When a Carew homer whizzes across the diamond at Met Stadium and into the stands, not many fans are thinking about why the field looks such a brilliant green under the lights. Likewise, when some fancy footwork by the Vikings or the Kicks throws up patches of sod, who puts the field back together?  One thing fans probably have noticed is the enormous protective tarp that covers the field when it rains. Those are the groundskeepers who pull that out.”

    Text from the "Look What We Found" teacher's manual for the April 13, 1978 episode "A Cover-up at the Met."

    On today’s historic broadcast of Look What We Found, you’ll hear from Dick Erickson, the stadium supervisor at the Met.  He described the difficulties of rearranging the field to accommodate three different professional sports.

    After the broadcast questions from the "Look What We Found" teacher's manual for the April 13, 1978 episode "A Cover-up at the Met."

    Metropolitan Stadium was built before Minnesota had any professional sports teams.  In the 1950s, a Metropolitan Sports Area Commission was created to oversee the construction and operation of a stadium with the potential to accommodate professional teams. A local fundraising campaign was initiated to secure the funds. Farmland was purchased in the city of Bloomington, south of Minneapolis, as the site for the stadium.

    On opening day, April 24, 1956, it was the Minneapolis Millers minor league baseball team that took to the field.  However, Minnesotans only had to wait a few more years for professional teams to come.  The Vikings played their opening game on September 17, 1961 and pulled off a victory against the Chicago Bears 37-13.  The Twins lost their home opener on April 21, 1961 5-3.

    Within a year after this program aired on KUOM, construction began on a new indoor domed stadium in downtown Minneapolis.  The Kicks, Vikings, and Twins all played final games at Metropolitan Stadium in 1981.

    The stadium was demolished in 1985 and the site was replaced by the Mall of Ameri...
    14 min
  • Review: ‘I’ll Be Gone in the Dark’

    Host Lisa Von Drasek and Jan Fransen discussed the true-life crime book I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer on this episode of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

    The post Review: ‘I’ll Be Gone in the Dark’ appeared first on UMN Libraries News & Events.

    6 min
  • Review: ‘I’ll Be Gone in the Dark’
    Host Lisa Von Drasek and Jan Fransen discussed the true-life crime book I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer on this episode of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries.
    The book tells the true story of the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California from 1976 to 1986, and of the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case before it recently was solved. 
    Libraries that have this book
    The libraries below have this book in their collection, but, depending on demand, you may have to wait to check it out. 

    * University of Minnesota Libraries
    * Hennepin County Library
    * Saint Paul Public Library

    About Lisa Von Drasek, Jan Fransen, and Read This Book!
    Lisa Von Drasek is the Curator of the Children’s Literature Research Collections at the University of Minnesota Libraries and host of Read This Book! Jan Fransen is a librarian and the Service Lead for Research Information Management at the University of Minnesota Libraries. 
    Read This Book! is a video podcast produced by the University of Minnesota Libraries. It is available on YouTube and iTunes. Audio from Read This Book! is available on iTunes at Lisa’s The Blue Ox Review podcast. 
    6 min
  • Joseph Haj: A Conversation
    Joseph Haj, the Guthrie's eighth artistic director and his Associate Artistic Director, Jeffrey Meanza, discussed the value of the western canon, its continuing relevance, and its agency for social change May 2 at the University of Minnesota Friends of the Libraries' annual celebration.  

    Haj also talked about the history of the Guthrie and its longstanding importance to Minnesotans.

    "The original Guthrie was built with 8,000 discreet gifts gathered from all over the state," Haj said at one point, noting one gift of $6.37 from a Sunday school in Mankato. "This theater was built by the citizens of Minnesota as a gift to themselves. And this is what we try to honor over a half-century later in guiding the Guthrie."

    To watch and listen to the entire conversation — including Q&A at the end, click on the video above. 
    About the Guthrie Archives
    The Libraries' Performing Arts Archives holds the records for the Guthrie Theater. The theatre has regularly deposited records in the Performing Arts Archives since 1965. And every play performed on the Guthrie mainstage since its first season in 1963 is represented by prompt books, production notes, costume bibles, photographs, audio tapes containing background music or sound effects, and set designs. For some productions, there are also video tapes of portions of the productions themselves. 



    1 hr 5 min
  • Joseph Haj: A Conversation
    Joseph Haj, the Guthrie’s eighth artistic director and his Associate Artistic Director, Jeffrey Meanza, discussed the value of the western canon, its continuing relevance, and its agency for social change May 2 at the University of Minnesota Friends of the Libraries’ annual celebration.  
    Haj also talked about the history of the Guthrie and its longstanding importance to Minnesotans.
    “The original Guthrie was built with 8,000 discreet gifts gathered from all over the state,” Haj said at one point, noting one gift of $6.37 from a Sunday school in Mankato. “This theater was built by the citizens of Minnesota as a gift to themselves. And this is what we try to honor over a half-century later in guiding the Guthrie.”
    To watch and listen to the entire conversation — including Q&A at the end, click on the video above. 
    About the Guthrie Archives
    The Libraries’ Performing Arts Archives holds the records for the Guthrie Theater. The theatre has regularly deposited records in the Performing Arts Archives since 1965. And every play performed on the Guthrie mainstage since its first season in 1963 is represented by prompt books, production notes, costume bibles, photographs, audio tapes containing background music or sound effects, and set designs. For some productions, there are also video tapes of portions of the productions themselves. 
    1 hr 5 min
  • Undergraduate research featured at Northrop
    The 2018 Undergraduate Research Symposium @UMN
    By Kate Peterson
    Undergraduate Services Librarian

    The Undergraduate Research Symposium — an annual research fair at the University of Minnesota — gives all UMN undergraduate researchers a chance to share their research, and scholarly and creative projects with the University community.

    We were so pleased to be able to talk with students about their great research at the April 20, 2018 Undergraduate Research Symposium. The U Libraries support students in many aspects of their research — along with many units around campus including the Office of Undergraduate Research and in all the Colleges.
    How we support students

    Students access our article databases like Web of Science or PubMed to find scholarly and academic articles which form the foundation for their own research.
    We have a workshop called “Think Like a Researcher” for first- and second year students to get introduced with how to get started with faculty sponsored research and creative projects.
    We help students connect with the Experts@MN tool — which students can use to connect with potential faculty mentors and research projects.
    We meet one-on-one with students while they work on research or UROP proposals to find articles written by faculty members and seminal articles on their research topics
    We help students connect with data they can use in their projects. For example, Alicia, our government documents librarians helps find data created by government agencies. Ryan, our map librarian, helps students create maps and add data layers based on their unique projects.
    We can help students with research tools — from learning about tools like Zotero or Mendeley which organize PDFs and automatically create bibliographies to creating logical file naming structures for long term access to data.
    Our Archives and Special Collections have been the inspiration for research projects including analysis of documents or historical records in our collections.  
    We teach workshops for students on designing scientific posters and have created an online tutorial on Communicating Your Research with Posters. Our Map Library also helps with student poster printing.
    We select posters to display in our coffee shops and around the Libraries to help share the great work by students.
    The completed posters are also archived in the University Digital Conservancy. Browse or search over 1000 posters. These posters are used by students to get a sense of what research can look like and for ideas for their own projects.

    Photos from the Symposium


    4 min

About Read This Book!

From the publisher's feed

Host Lisa Von Drasek and guests review books from various genres: including children’s literature, cookbooks, science, mysteries, and popular literature. This audio podcast also includes episodes from…