Go Big Read 2009

The weather is warm, the trees are green, the streets are full of frantic undergraduates trying to move futons out of their apartments and into U-Hauls, and this past weekend, thousands of students (excuse me—graduates!) crossed stages at the Kohl Center and all over campus. It feels like summer is finally here!

Summer at the Terrace, 1976. Courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Collections.

Summer means a lot of different things in Madison: evenings at the Terrace, Babcock ice cream on a hot afternoon, Bratfest, lounging in the grass on Bascom Hill, Wednesday evening concerts at the Capitol, early Saturday mornings browsing the farmers' market, a road trip to see a favorite band play Summerfest. It also means that now is a great time to catch up on all of the things nobody has time for during the academic year. Maybe you'll take a sailing class with Hoofers. Maybe you'll see Star Trek: Into Darkness five times. Maybe you'll take up yoga. Maybe, like me, you'll finally make an effort to watch past the first season of Downton Abbey (I know, I know!). 

But you know what you definitely should do? Check out this year's Go Big Read book, A Tale for the Time Being! Even Oprah agrees: O Magazine named the book one of "Four Books You Can Devour in One Long Weekend" (and what is summer if not basically one very long weekend?). So make the most of your summer and devour our 2013-14 Go Big Read pick. You won't regret it!

This is just one of the stellar reviews awarded to A Tale for the Time Being. You can find more reviews, as well as news about the program and interviews with the author, on our website. There are copies of the book in the campus library system as well as the Madison Public library system. Enjoy!

Labels: 2013-2014, A Tale for the Time Being, Ruth Ozeki, UW-Madison community

It's a big day in the Go Big Read office! Our official announcement was made public at 9:00am, and since then we've been watching all the buzz on Twitter and Facebook. By now, you've probably heard the news: the 2013-14 Go Big Read selection is A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki!

Ozeki is a critically-acclaimed author whose previous books include the bestselling My Year of Meats and All Over Creation. She is also a Zen Buddhist priest, whose unique perspective plays an important role in the unfolding of her latest work.  

Author Ruth Ozeki

A Tale for the Time Being begins when a battered Hello Kitty lunchbox washes up on the shores of a remote island off the coast of British Columbia. The odd package is picked up by Ruth, a writer struggling to find inspiration in her rural surroundings. Opening the lunchbox, she discovers a diary inside, written by a sixteen-year-old Japanese girl named Nao, whose own surroundings—the culture and subculture of Tokyo—could not be more different than Ruth's desolate island. Ruth, and the reader, is soon swept into Nao's story...

The Seattle Times calls A Tale for the Time Being "a dazzling and humorous work of literary origami," while the Washington Post describes it as "a narrative shimmering with the conviction that art and faith lead us to truths beyond the reach of reason alone."

You can read the official press release here, and can find more information about the book—including news, reviews, and interviews with the author—on our website. If you have any questions, shoot us an email: gobigread @ library. wisc. edu.

Labels: 2013-2014, A Tale for the Time Being, Ruth Ozeki, UW-Madison community, Uw-Madison libraries

"'Science Marches On' in Chemistry Lab...", UW Digital Collections

It's been awhile, Go Big Readers! I hope everyone's spring semester has been going well, and that you all got to take advantage of the nice weather over spring break.

For the past several weeks, the Go Big Read office has been kept very busy working on finding our Go Big Read book for 2013-14. The selection process is almost done: after receiving nearly 200 diverse and fascinating suggestions from all over the campus and Madison communities (thanks for those, by the way!), we've whittled our list down to our final choice, and we're pretty excited about next year's program! I can tell you that we're doing something we've never done before. You'll get to hear more about that later in the semester!

In the meantime, what are you up to this weekend? April 5, 6 and 7, UW-Madison and the Science Alliance present the 11th Annual Science Expeditions, a weekend of learning and exploration for all ages. On-campus events are free (!) and open to the public. You can even take a free Science Expeditions Trolley from place to place, while getting a free scientastic tour from a VIP tour guide. There are over 45 Exploration Stations, so it's sure to be a busy weekend!

Included in the weekend's events are free tours of Fallout, the Radioactive-inspired exhibit at Ebling Library. If you still haven't seen it, first of all, what have you been doing with your life?! But also, this is a fantastic opportunity. Go get scienced this weekend!

You can find more information about Science Expeditions, including a list of Exploration Stations, info about the Expedition Trolley, and sneak peeks at Science Spectacular shows, at this link.

Labels: exhibits, Lauren Redniss, Radioactive, science, UW-Madison community, Uw-Madison libraries

If you've gotten to see "Fallout" at Ebling Library--or even if you haven't!--here's your chance to find out how the exhibit was put together! Join Ebling Library for Wednesday Nite @ the Lab on Wednesday, February 20th from 7:00-8:15 in Room 1111, 425 Henry Mall.

Curator Micaela Sullivan-Fowler

“Fallout” is an examination of subjects such as the early use of x-rays in diagnosis & treatment, occupational hazards of working with radiation, the military use of x-rays, the history of tanning, a UW connection with Marie Curie, bomb shelters in the 1960’s, the bombing of Hiroshima & concerns with nuclear accidents like Three-Mile Island, UW’s Departments of Medical Physics & Radiology, shoe fitting fluoroscopes and the like.

Micaela Sullivan-Fowler has been the curator and history of health sciences librarian at Ebling Library for the past 14 years. She acts as the liaison to the Department of Medical History & Bioethics within the School of Medicine and Public Health. She works with graduate and undergraduate students, helping them navigate the print and electronic worlds when using primary material for their research papers. In designing exhibits, Micaela's primary goals are to highlight books in Ebling's collections, and to create thematic pathways between the subjects in the individual cases. While the current exhibit on the history of radioactivity, x-rays and radium has had glowing reviews, it was perhaps the most difficult to tell in such a limited space. The discovery of so many interesting stories is what Micaela loves to share...

Labels: book discussions, discussions, exhibits, interdisciplinary, Radioactive, science, UW-Madison community, Uw-Madison libraries

Have you seen Fallout at Ebling Library yet? If not, here's your chance!

On Thursday, February 7 from 5:00-6:00pm, Ebling is hosting a viewing of the exhibit in its Historic Reading Room. And as if that's not enough, History of Science professor Dr. Richard Staley will be holding a moderated discussion of Radioactive from 6:00-7:00pm. It's a perfect double dose of science-y goodness! For more information, see the flyer below.

Labels: exhibits, science, UW-Madison community, Uw-Madison libraries

What is she reading? (That mouse wants to know, too!)

This week is your last chance to nominate books for the 2013-2014 Go Big Read program! Final nominations are due by midnight on Friday, February 1st. So don't delay! If you've read something great lately (or even if you've read a whole bunch of "something greats"), we want to know about it. Head over here to make your submission! We're especially excited about the prospect of reading a work of fiction in 2013.

Just for inspiration, here's a sneak peek of what you might be reading next year...

Beyond the Beautiful Forevers, Katherine Boo
Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell
Flight Behavior, Barbara Kingsolver
Half the Sky, Nicholas Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn
A Hologram for the King, Dave Eggers
Little Bee, Chris Cleave
The Motorcycle Diaries, Ernesto Che Guevara
Please Look After Mom, Kyung Sook-Shin
The World Until Yesterday, Jared Diamond

...but these are only a handful of the awesome nominations we've received. If you'd like to see everything that's been nominated, check out the running list. Did your favorite book make the list? If not, it's time to take matters into your own hands and send us your suggestion!

Labels: 2013-2014, community, Go Big Read, nominations, UW-Madison community

Have you read any great books lately?

"Global connections" is the Go Big Read focus for the 2013-2014 academic year, and we're taking suggestions starting now! (Fiction suggestions are highly encouraged.) To read more about the 2013-14 theme, check out this article.

The deadline to make your suggestion is February 1st, and you can use the form here. If you want to check and see if your favorite book has been nominated, take a look at the running suggestion list.

If you have any questions, shoot us an email: gobigread @ library. wisc. edu.

We can't wait to see your suggestions!

Labels: articles, books, books suggestions, Go Big Read, UW-Madison community