On this day in 1945, the Japanese formally surrendered to the United States aboard USS Missouri. This officially marks the end of World War II. Shortly before this defeat General Tadamichi Kuribayashi wrote three death poems to the Japanese imperial headquarters.

Learn about the Japanese tradition of death poems and their purpose in east Asian literature tradition.

Today is September 1, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales, died in a car crash in Paris.

Listen to the reimagined lyrics for “Candle in the Wind,” which her friend, Elton John, arranged for her funeral.

Today is August 31, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 1800, rebel leader, Gabriel Prosser, is forced to postpone a planned slave rebellion in Richmond, Virginia, because of rain.

Listen to the newspaper article from when he was pardoned centuries later in 2007.

Today is August 30, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 2005, Hurricane Katrina makes its second landfall over southeast Louisiana and Mississippi.

Listen to “Requiem” by Yusef Komunyakaa, written in memory to the destruction and effects of the storm on the deep South.

Today is August 29, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 1955, a young teen named Emmett Till is brutally murdered by a mob of white supremacists in Mississippi.

Listen to selected sonnets by Marilyn Nelson reflecting on the cruelty and grief pulsing out of Emmett’s memory to this day.

Today is August 28, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 1883, west of Java in Indonesia, the volcano, Krakatoa, violently erupts.

Listen to a first-hand account of the immense destruction from a ship’s journal, which was just off the coast of the volcano.

Today is August 27, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 1920, the 19th amendment to the United States Constitution took effect. It gives women the right to vote.

Listen to the other making power that is given work. Listen about a woman talking her own power in the poem, “Phenomenal Woman” by Maya Angelou.

Today is August 26, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 1916, the National Park Service is created in the United States.

Listen to a poem commissioned for the National Park Service Centennial by the Academy of American Poets. It is called “And the Old Man Speaks of Paradise: a Ghazal” By Wang Ping

Today is August 25, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 1977, American author, John Green, is born in Indianapolis, Indiana in the United States.

Listen to an excerpt from his first published book, Looking for Alaska, which helped change the world of Young Adult publishing.

Today is August 24, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]

On this day in 1305, William Wallace is executed for high treason at Smithfield, London.  His execution is credited with spurring Scotland's subsequent uprising against England lead by Robert the Bruce.

Learn about Robert’s famous speech at the Battle of Bannockburn years later and the song Robert Burns wrote based on it.

Today is August 23, 2020.

This is the Librarian’s Almanac.

Feel free to check out more from the Librarian's Almanac on their website: http://www.librariansalmanac.com/

I'd also love to hear from you directly. Feel free to send me an email at [email protected]