Read This Book!

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.

Read this Book! Every wonder what to read next?  When I was a young pup librarian the process of recommending a book was called "Readers Reference." Now it is called Readers Advisory. Every once in while,...

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.