Read This Book!

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 Friends of the University of Minnesota Libraries hosted an online panel discussion on Oct. 28, 2021, which featured Mélina Mangal, Rekhet Si-Asar, Dionne Sims, and panel moderator Kate McCready. The panel discussed the challenges faced by black authors, librarians, independent publishers, and bookstore owners in getting books by black authors on the shelves and ultimately in the hands of readers.

Jokeda (JoJo) Bell, Tia-Simone Gardner, and Catherine Squires joined moderator Cecily Marcus for a conversation about the preservation of Black art and culture in community-based archives and the University collections. Please watch this lively conversation with experts who share a passion for keeping historical archives not only accessible, but alive.

Megan Kocher and Lisa Von Drasek discussed cookbooks they liked the most for cooking and baking during the pandemic, on this installment of "Read This Book!" from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Lacie McMillin discusses Yaa Gyasi's Transcendent Kingdom, with Lisa von Drasek, on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries. Transcendent Kingdom us a novel about faith, science, religion, and love, centered on a family of Ghanaian immigrants ravaged by depression and addiction and grief. It's Gyasi's followup to her acclaimed national best seller Homegoing. 

Science Librarian Carolyn Bishoff discusses "Du Iz Tak" by Carson Ellis with host Lisa Von Drasek on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Carissa Tomlinson joins host Lisa Von Drasek to discuss Cribsheet: A Data-Driven Guide to Better, More Relaxed Parenting, from Birth to Preschool by Emily Oster, on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Rick Riordan's The Lightning Thief is discussed by Jessica Abbazio and Lisa Von Drasek on Read This Book, from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

"Slayer" and "Chosen" are the two books, by New York Times bestselling author Kiersten White, reviewed on this installment of Read This Book by Lisa Von Drasek, Curator of the  University of Minnesota Children's Literature Research Collections. 

Dean of Libraries Lisa German joins Lisa Von Drasek to review "The Color Kittens" on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries. "The Color Kittens" is a children's book by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Alice and Martin Provensen, and published, as part of the Little Golden Books series, in 1949.

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Kristen Mastel has chosen three books to highlight the environment and the world around us. They are: "Braided Sweetgrass," by Robin Wall Kimmerer, "Onigamiising: Seasons of an Ojibwe Year" by Linda LeGarde Grover, and "Climate Justice" by Mary Robinson.

Tim Johnson recommends two annotated books — Sherlock Holmes and the Sandman — in this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

With schools closed and libraries shuttered due to COVID-19, children find themselves sequestered at home — many without enough books or activities to appease their curiosity. Enter Lisa Von Drasek, the energetic curator of the University of Minnesota's Children's Literature Research Collections, who has created a social media campaign called #OperationReadAloud as a way to reach children and families.

Lisa Von Drasek discusses Making Comics by Scott McCloud, Making Comics by Lynda Barry, and Comics: Easy as ABC by Ivan Brunetti in this episode of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Jessica Abbazio, the University of Minnesota music librarian, reviews "The Lunar Chronicles" by Melissa Meyers on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries. The Lunar Chronicles is a series of young adult science fiction novels that are futuristic retellings of classic fairy tales.

Zach Miller reviews A Shark Going Inland Is My Chief on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Cody Hennesy gave a thumbs up to Artificial Unintelligence: How Computers Misunderstand the World by Meredith Broussard in the latest installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries. In the book, Broussard argues that our collective enthusiasm for applying computer technology to every aspect of life has resulted in a tremendous amount of poorly designed systems.

Megan Kocher recommended two books on holiday baking in this episode of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Kimberly Clarke reviews a fantasy novel, "Written in Red," by Anne Bishop in this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Tim Johnson recommends two books: "The Devil's Due" by Bonnie MacBird — a Sherlock Holmes Adventure — and "Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women's Anger" by Rebecca Traister.

The Secret Life of Libraries was a smash hit to a crowded room of Libraries friends on Monday, December 9 at Coffman Memorial Union Theater. It truly was an evening of radio antics with A Prairie Home Companion veterans, Sue Scott, Tim Russell, and Richard Dworsky, who wrote the radio play based on the collections and the intrigue at the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Our Music Librarian Jessica Abbazio reviews "A Wild Ride Through the Night" by Walter Moers for this installment of Read This Book from the University Libraries. "A Wild Ride through the Night" describes the exhilarating and comic adventures of his twelve-year-old protagonist Gustave, a boy who aspires one day to be a great artist. 

Librarian Kristen Mastel recommends two nature books — 'Into Nature' and 'The Hidden Life of Trees' — on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries, hosted by Lisa Von Drasek.

Librarian Alicia Kubas reviews "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor — a New York Times bestseller and Michael L. Printz honor book, which is an epic fantasy about a mythic lost city and its dark past.

Two books by Amy Krouse Rosenthal were featured in this episode of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. Danya Leebaw and Host Lisa Von Drasek discussed Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life and Little Pea — two of Leebaw's favorite books by Rosenthal.

The Libraries' Sherlock Holmes expert, Tim Johnson, recommends three Holmes books for your August reading list on this episode of Read This Book! from the University Libraries, hosted by Lisa Von Drasek. The three are: "Sherlock Holmes: A Biography" by William S. Baring-Gould, "The Whole Art of Detection: Lost Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes" by Lindsay Faye, and "Medical Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" by Carl Heifetz.

Lisa Von Drasek recommends a number of books about the moon — in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing on July 20, 1969. It's all part of the latest episode of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries. Books included: Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11 by Brian Floca, A Big Mooncake for Little Star by Grace Lin, A Kite for Moon by Jane Yolen, Heidi E.Y. Stemple and Matt Phelan, Sun! One in a Billion and Moon! Earth's Best Friend by Stacy McAnulty, Planetarium by Raman Prinja, and The Moon by Hannah Pang.

Librarian Jan Fransen recommends Circe by Madeline Miller as her choice for 2019 Summer Reading in this episode of Read This Book! Set in the world of ancient Greek mythology, Circe is the fantastical tale of a fierce young woman — half titan, half nymph — who dares to challenge the gods.

Publishing Services Librarian Emma Molls recommends two books for summer reading: "Her Body and Other Parties" and "Paper Girls." Molls discussed the books with Host Lisa Von Drasek on this installment of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. 

Here's a New Year's Resolution for you: Read all of the books you can — and keep them as long as you want! You can find them at Ebooks Minnesota, a service from Minitex at the University of Minnesota. In this episode, Zach Miller talks about the benefits of Ebooks Minnesota — and plugs one of his favorite children's books, "What To Do With a Box."

Sherlock Holmes expert Tim Johnson recommends two books to give to Sherlock Holmes fans: About Sixty: Why Every Sherlock Holmes Story is the Best, and About Being a Sherlockian, both edited by Christopher Redmond. Johnson was a guest on Read This Book!, produced by the University of Minnesota Libraries and hosted by the U's Lisa Von Drasek.

Megan Kocher reviewed The Great Minnesota Cookie Book and Soo Fariista, a Somali American cookbook, on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Music Librarian Jessica Abbazio recommends "American Music" by Annie Leibovitz as a book to give as a gift on this installment of Read This Book from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Lisa Von Drasek interviews Julie Schumacher — author of "The Shakespeare Requirement" — in this installment of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune keep hitting beleaguered English professor Jason Fitger right between the eyes in The Shakespeare Requirement, the hilarious and eagerly awaited sequel to the cult classic of anhedonic academe, the Thurber Prize-winning Dear Committee Members.

Tim Johnson reviews Revenge of the Nerd: Or . . . The Singular Adventures of the Man Who Would Be Booger by Curtis Armstrong, in this edition of "Read This Book!" from the University of Minnesota Libraries. Armstrong, who played Booger in the 1984 film, "Revenge of the Nerds," is an avid Sherlock Holmes fan, and Johnson is Curator of the Sherlock Holmes Collections at the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Dread Nation — a New York Times bestseller — is at once provocative, terrifying, and darkly subversive. Written by Justina Ireland, Dread Nation represents a stunning vision of an America both foreign and familiar — a country on the brink, at the explosive crossroads where race, humanity, and survival meet. University of Minnesota librarian, Lisa Von Drasek, reviews Dread Nation in this installment of Read This Book!, hosted by Alicia Kubas.

Breakfast with Beatrice and Original Scandinavian Recipes were featured on this installment of Read This Book with Megan Kocher, Curator of the Doris Kirschner Cookbook Collection, and host Lisa Von Drasek. Kocher also announced that the University Libraries recently acquired Beatrice Ojakangas' cookbook collection — which includes Original Scandinavian Recipes — for the Kirschner Collection, which is available to the public at the University of Minnesota's Magrath Library on the St. Paul campus. 

Lisa Von Drasek recommends two children's books for writing on Part 3 of Summer Reading for Children on Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. The books are: Heart Maps by Georgia Heard and Happy Mail by Eunice and Sabrina Moyle.

Alicia Kubas reviewed "When Women Didn't Count: Behind the scenes on data collection and women in the USA" by Robert Lopresti, which details the startling facts of how women have been sidelined, neglected, and just plain lied about in U.S. government statistics for more than two centuries.

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.

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.

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.

Lisa Von Drasek discusses a book by Beatrice Ojakangas called: Homemade: Finnish Rye, Feed Sack Fashion, and Other Simple Ingredients from My Life in Food in this installment of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries.

Lisa Von Drasek talks about the 2017 Marion Vannett Ridgway Award winners in this episode of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. "Hannah and Sugar," written and illustrated by Kate Berube was the 2017 winner, with Honor Awards going to Bethan Woollvin for "Little Red" and Dori Kleber for "More-igami."

Five University of Minnesota librarians and archivists recently joined Read This Book host Lisa Von Drasek to make recommendations for books to give this holiday season.  Still shopping? Then pay attention!

In this special episode of Read This Book!, Librarian Alicia Kubas and host Lisa Von Drasek reviewed two books that would make great gifts this holiday season.  The books are: Lewis Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" — artwork by Yayoi Kusama, and "Poetry From Scratch" by Jennifer McCartney.

Flying Funny: My Life Without a Net by Dudley Riggs was the featured book on this episode of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries.  Performing Arts Archivist Kate Hujda joined host Lisa Von Drasek in sharing insights into the book, Riggs, and Riggs' papers, which are in the Libraries' Performing Arts Archives. 

Science Librarian Carolyn Bishoff and host Lisa Von Drasek discussed the Lev Grossman fantasy novel series, which started in 2009 with The Magicians on this episode of Read This Book! from the University of Minnesota Libraries. The series has been adapted on television and currently airs on Syfy.