February 18, 2013
This NYTimes article explores word of mouth networking for book lovers and its impact on the business of bookselling. Many of you are already familiar with Goodreads. The website’s success is attributed to readers’ ability to access honest reviews, untarnished by the ulterior motive of companies trying to sell books. As the article states, “Goodreads and […]
February 15, 2013
Just in time for Evanston Public Library’s yearlong discussion of Proust, New York’s’ Morgan Library & Museum opened a new exhibition in honor of the 100 year anniversary of Marcel Proust’s Swann’s Way – the first volume in his 7-volume novel À la Recherche du Temps Perdu (Remembrance of Things Past). The materials, being shown […]
February 14, 2013
Los Angeles financier Richard Hollander and his wife Jackie own a private collection of more than 500 Edward Steichen photographs. Their highly coveted collection includes Steichen’s landscapes and city scenes, as well as his celebrity and fashion images. Now Mr. Hollander will be making Steichen’s work accessible to the public by giving three American museums […]
February 13, 2013
This week, Pope Benedict XVI stunned the world by becoming the first Pope in almost 600 years to resign. Coincidentally, Northwestern Professor of History Emeritus Garry Wills’s latest book, Why Priests?: A Failed Tradition, has just been released. Mr. Wills explores the question of why priests are necessary. You can learn more about the book […]
February 13, 2013
This year’s Lincoln Prize, given annually by Gettysburg College and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History for the finest scholarly work on the Civil War, has been awarded to James Oakes for his book Freedom National: The Destruction of Slavery in the United States, 1861-1865. He also won the Lincoln Prize in 2008 for […]
February 13, 2013
This article from readwrite.com highlights a fascinating question: If everyone is exposed to technology, do we all (globally) react the same way? Can there be a cultural reaction to digital media? The author, Dave Copeland, points out that on a recent visit to France he witnessed much less e-reading than he’s accustomed to in the States. This, despite the […]
February 7, 2013
A few questions I’ve been thinking about regarding technology and young people: How is computer/media use affecting school performance? What about thinking skills and creativity? What are kids spending their time on the computer doing, aside from homework? Is the time being used productively? Is America’s academic “ranking” tied to computer use or not? I found a […]
February 7, 2013
Steve Chapman, Chicago Tribune editorial page commentator, offered his personal take on reading in today’s column. The joys of tackling a “fat book” far outweigh [groan] the disadvantages of toting around a large tome. Says Chapman, “One- or two-pound books spare me, for a while, the most painful part of my reading regimen: indecision. When […]
February 5, 2013
On February 2nd’s “Weekend Edition,” Luke Runyon reported on the small library in Basalt, Colorado that is experimenting with offering patrons seed packets in addition to books. Runyon described the program: “A library card gets you a packet of seeds. You then grow the fruits and vegetables, harvest the new seeds from the biggest and […]
February 4, 2013
To commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Dr. Seuss classic The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins, the New York Public Library is exhibiting some of the hats in the real Dr. Seuss’s own collection. A hat lover himself, Theodor Seuss Geisel collected hundreds of them, incorporating them into his painting, advertising, and books, even insisting […]
