The Edge of Civilization: Survival Stories in Early Children’s Literature A pop-up exhibit at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library 25 April – 09 May 2018 Curated by Kathryn Funderburg Dystopian novels like The Hunger Games and Divergent might seem like a modern trend, but survival narratives have been a standard subgenre of children’s literature […]
Author: Berman Claire
On This Day: Charlotte Brontë Dies, 1855
March 31, 2018
On this Day: Charlotte Brontë dies, 1855 Perhaps no family has left the same kind of mark on English literature as the Brontë sisters. Charlotte (1816-1855), Emily (1818-1848), and Anne (1820-1849) were all accomplished poets and authors, best known for Charlotte’s Jane Eyre (1847), Emily’s Wuthering Heights (1847), and Anne’s The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848). The […]
Almanacchi Italiani
March 28, 2018
Almanacchi Italiani A pop-up exhibit at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library Spring 2018 Curated by Gabriella Stuardi & Chloe Ottenhoff Just in time for the spring planting season, this exhibition presents some of the most curious and unique Italian almanacs held in the Cavagna Sangiuliani Collection, acquired by the University of Illinois in 1921. […]
Color Onstage
March 26, 2018
The colors that costumers and set designers use can really influence the way that an audience perceives something they see on stage. Color can make a certain character the center of attention, suggest a particular mood for the scene, or signify change of some kind or another. The swatches above show the color schemes Motley […]
Let’s Talk About Sex: A Valentine’s Day Pop-Up Exhibit at the RBML
February 14, 2018
12 February – 23 February 2018 Curated by Claire Berman & Siobhan McKissic Birds do it, bees do it, but how do we do it? Sitting down to talk about sex has long been a trope in television and books. These depictions show the discomforts parents, teachers, and friends face while trying to explain a […]
Information for Novice Street Fighters
January 25, 2018
In May of 1969, a battle broke out between residents and police officers over a plot of land owned by the University of California at Berkeley. After the plot had sat vacant and abandoned for a year, local residents and students named the land People’s Park and had begun planting trees, shrubs, and flowers in […]
Who was Mother Goose?
January 23, 2018
Who was Mother Goose? Was she real, or just a fictional character? The truth behind the identity of the friendly woman whose nursery rhymes have charmed children for generations may never truly be known. Some believe that Mother Goose may date back to the 10th century French court. According to legend, the wife of French King […]
No Blue Memories: The Life of Gwendolyn Brooks
January 22, 2018
In mid-November, No Blue Memories premiered at the Harold Washington Library in Chicago. The paper puppet show, performed by Manual Cinema, focused on the life of Gwendolyn Brooks, the first Black recipient of the Pulitzer Prize in 1950. The show was written by Dr. Eve. L. Ewing and Nate Marshall, featured live music by Ayanna and Jamila […]