Read This Book!

Read This Book!

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Read This Book! episodes

  • Read This Book: ‘The Grieving Brain’

    Amy Riegelman and host Lisa Von Drasek discussed “The Grieving Brain” on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries. The author, Mary-Frances O'Connor, a renowned grief expert and neuroscientist, shares groundbreaking discoveries about what happens in our brain when we grieve, providing a new paradigm for understanding love, loss, and learning.

    The post Read This Book: ‘The Grieving Brain’ appeared first on UMN Libraries News & Events.

    6 min
  • Fantasy, sci fi, and horror on Read This Book!
    University of Minnesota Librarian Molly Bostrom from Magrath Library and host Lisa Von Drasek discussed “Duplex” by Kathryn Davis and “Abarat” by Clive Barker on this installment of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries.
    About Lisa Von Drasek and Molly Bostrom
    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! Molly Bostrom is an Access & Information Services Assistant at the University of Minnesota Libraries.
    About Read This Book!
    Read This Book! is a video podcast produced by the University of Minnesota Libraries. It is available on YouTube and Apple Podcasts.



    5 min
  • ‘The Goblin Emperor’ and more audio books

    Science Librarian Carolyn Bishoff discussed "The Goblin Emperor" and other audio books on this episode of Read This Book! with host Lisa Von Drasek. "The Goblin Emperor" is a 2014 fantasy novel by Katherine Addison.

    The post ‘The Goblin Emperor’ and more audio books appeared first on UMN Libraries News & Events.

    9 min
  • Pankake Poetry Reading featuring David Mura
    David Mura was the featured poet at the 13th Annual Pankake Poetry on April 7, 2022 at the University of Minnesota's Elmer L. Andersen Library. reading featuring Mura has written four books of poetry, has won numerous awards for his writing, and has taught at several colleges and universities, including the University of Minnesota. Following the reading, poet Ed Bok Lee and Mura engaged in conversation.
    1 hr 29 min
  • Giving Voice to the Past, featuring the University Singers
    “Giving Voice to the Past: Performing the Archive” featured the University Singers performing music on March 27, 2022 that has been silent for over a century or, in some cases, never been performed. The musical scores are archived digitally by the University of Minnesota Libraries and are available on the English Heritage Music Series website.

    Along with the University Singers, the event featured emcee, Bradley Greenwald, who also performed; Matthew Mehaffey, U of M Professor of Music; Dave Fielding, a self-described music “archaeologist” and the driving force behind archiving the music; and U of M Music Librarian Jessica Abbazio.

    The event was held a the University of Minnesota's Coffman Theater.
    1 hr 19 min
  • YMCA’s WWI exhibit extended through March 25
    By Allison Campbell-Jensen

    The Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) stepped up to serve during World War I, yet they already had put on their wartime boots earlier. The YMCA arrived in America in 1855 and not long afterward began supporting troops during the American Civil War.

    Their initial group, the U.S. Christian Commission, began by handing out Christian pamphlets to soldiers passing through New York City on their way to fight — and quickly realized the men had worldly needs, too. Soon they were handing out coffee, food, and clothing, helping them write letters, and attracting people like poet Walt Whitman to help the troops.

    A copy of Whitman’s commission is just one of the artifacts displayed in the new exhibit “The YMCA and Relief for War Victims during WWI,” on view through Feb. 18, 2022, in the Elmer L. Andersen Library.

    The YMCA’s service was appreciated by the military, says Ryan Bean, Curator of the Kautz Family YMCA Archives in the University Libraries.

    “Troops that are writing letters and praying are not doing the things [such as carousing] that soldiers are known for,” he says.

    When the United States declared war on Germany April 6, 1917, John Mott, the General Secretary of the American YMCA, immediately volunteered the organization’s services. Those in the YMCA began to work with the troops in accord with the YMCA’s philosophy of equally developing Body, Mind, and Spirit.Preparing them for war — and after

    The YMCA had an extensive organization that they could leverage quickly to serve the troops and prisoners of war. In Elwood Brown, for instance, they had a physical education expert who had put on Olympic-style games in Asia. He organized the Inter-Allied Games in Paris immediately following the war to return a sense of normalcy to the former troops.

    Providing reading rooms and instruction meant that “idle time during the war didn’t have to be a barrier to self-improvement,” Bean says. Following the war, there was a significant amount of funds left for education, which the YMCA used to offer scholarships to attend the Y’s colleges, which tended to be vocationally oriented, or other institutions.

    As part of their spiritual services to the troops, along with hymnals and worship, the YMCA promoted Mother’s Day. It helped remind them, Bean says, “that the war will end and you will return to your families.”
    Art and design convey the times
    Ryan Bean

    Among the exhibit highlights for Bean are depictions from the POW camps by the prisoners themselves. The camp was in Russia and, in one scene, guards rummage through prisoners’ clothing. In another, a prisoner beams after receiving a Christmas card through the YMCA.

    “To see the harshness and the humanity and the levity of it,” he says, “that’s part of getting through it.”

    Exhibit designer Darren Terpstra says, “World War I was so long ago. Very few of us have any idea of what it must have been like to live through that.” He used camouflage material and a theatrical version of barbed wire to help create an “immersive experience” for visitors.

    “It is amazing to think about how much they [the YMCA] did,” says Alex Bentley, who helped curate the exhibit. The exhibit is a welcome introduction to that story.
    Plan your visit
    What: The YMCA and Relief for War Victims during WWI
    When: Through March 25, 2022
    Where: Elmer L. Andersen Library, 1st Floor Main Gallery
    Hours: Open during regular building hours at Elmer L. Andersen Library





    3 min
  • A Feast of Words: Minnesota Transform
    “Humanities on the Front Lines: Public Partnerships and Transforming the University” was the title of the Jan. 27, 2022 presentation for A Feast of Words, an annual event presented by the Friends of the University of Minnesota Libraries and the Campus Club.

    Professor Jigna Desai and Associate Professor Tracey Deutsch discussed the important work of Minnesota Transform, a higher education initiative funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation that addresses decolonial and racial justice in the University, Twin Cities, and state through public humanities projects. Both Desai and Deutsch emphasized the community-led nature of Minnesota Transform's work and philosophy.

    Mike Hoyt, who leads Pillsbury House + Theatre’s creative community development work, spoke about the artistic projects that have been fostered in collaboration with Minnesota Transform. Librarian Kat Nelsen discussed how the University Libraries and Minnesota Transform have worked in partnership to support paid student internships.
    1 hr 22 min
  • Deserving recognition
    By Allison Campbell-Jensen

    “You can’t be what you can’t see,” said Larry McKenzie, award-winning coach, speaker, and author, during the Nov. 18 Friends of the Libraries event Amplifying Black Narratives: The Creation of Black Narratives. Among the important resources for creating Black narratives are people who serve as “mirrors” that reflect possibilities yet may be scarce in the community.

    When Sheletta Brundidge published her first children’s book, “Cameron Goes to School,” her uncle Tim was especially moved by it. He revealed that 40 years ago, he had written a book for his daughter, but he put it away because he was told no one would buy it because its main character was Black. Had his work been received differently, “we could have had two or three authors in my family,” says Brundidge, who has also published “Daniel Finds His Voice” and hosts a podcasting platform.

    Black American Muslim poet, arts educator, and performance artist Sagirah Shahid is a writer-in-residence in a program for Minnesota State Colleges called Write Like Us to mentor students who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. It’s a way to overcome invisibility.

    Each of these participants has overcome the destructive idea from the past, described by moderator Dara Beevas as “our stories as Black storytellers are not as important.” During the conversation, they shared ways for creators of Black narratives to battle doubt, celebrate excellence, and share stories throughout the year.
    Fighting doubts
    Beevas, as the co-founder of Wise Ink publishing, has found that many Black and brown people do not feel worthy of being published. The doubt can be instilled early. When she asked her middle school teacher in a journal how to become a writer, her question was dismissed; the reply was to only write about things that were important.

    To fight doubt in one’s abilities, Shahid said writers must find their community, whether in family, peer group, or even one other person who will support you. McKenzie, author of “Basketball: Much More Than a Game,” went further: “You have to learn to be your biggest cheerleader.”

    Advising creators of Black narratives to “shake it off,” Brundidge added that “we have to remember what we’ve overcome. ... If you believe in yourself, there’s nothing that can stop you.”

    Beevas noted that McKenzie has said: “If our kids really knew our ancestors were kings and queens, it would lead to radical change.” There’s an absence of books that tell the story of Black ancestors in Africa, Beevas said, a gap that needs to be filled.
    Standing out
    Celebrating excellence means telling stories of Black people like baseball’s Jackie Robinson and basketball’s Bill Russell, McKenzie said, who were successful yet couldn’t stay in the same hotels as their teammates. They may not have started as excellent, but they achieved it. In his work, he strives to build young people into champions in every arena.

    While some might criticize her for bragging, Brundidge noted that she does not want to dumb down her achievements. The outstanding NASA scientist Katherine Johnson didn’t speak up and did not have her story told for 50 years, until “Hidden Figures” came out. Brundidge is not apologetic: “I come into a room with my own spotlight.”

    “We are the ancestors for the next generation,” Shahid said. Requiring Black people to be excellent in order to be appreciated for their value, humanity, and creativity, even to enjoy basic dignity, is a result of our inequitable society. Pushing back against these circumstances in a joking way, she said being our awkward ordinary selves should be celebrated, too. (Her
    1 hr 20 min
  • Tim Johnson reviews Charles Lindbergh bio

    Tim Johnson reviewed "Charles Lindbergh: A Religious Biography of America's Most Infamous Pilot" by Christopher Gehrz on this installment of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. He's joined by host Lisa Von Drasek.

    The post Tim Johnson reviews Charles Lindbergh bio appeared first on UMN Libraries News & Events.

    6 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…