2013 Bennett Fellow Reading in the Library
Molly Bashaw, Bennett Fellow
Phillips Exeter Academy’s 2013 Bennett Fellow, Molly Bashaw, will perform a reading of her work on May 7th in the Library’s Periodicals Room at 7pm.
Molly Bashaw grew up on small farms in Massachusetts and Upstate New York. She holds degrees in Music Performance from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, and the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik in Trossingen, Germany, in addition to a degree in English from the University of Rochester. For the last twelve years she has been living and working as a freelance bass-trombonist in Germany. Her poetry has appeared recently in Beloit Poetry Journal, and Crazyhorse, where it was awarded the 2011 Lynda Hull Memorial Award. Molly will be attending the Breadloaf Writer’s Conference in August on a work-study scholarship. Please join us to hear her perform her work!
Community Action Day in the Library
John Phillips would have been very pleased to see our Library yesterday.
Ten students and one faculty member, Eimer Page, worked in the library dusting the shelves as their Community Action Day project. Most of the shelves on the upper floors were dusted, and all of the shelves in the Academy Archives. The following quote, for the original Deed of Gift for the Academy, clearly outlines John Phillips’ expectations that were fulfilled during yesterday’s Community Action Day. The students did not procure material for the Library, but they sure made it a better place to be.
“They are to give special attention to the health of the scholars, and ever to urge the importance of an habit of industry. For these purposes they may encourage the scholars to perform some manual labor, such as gardening, or the like, so far as is consistent with cleanliness and the inclination of their parents; and the fruit of their labor shall be applied, at the direction of the trustees, for procuring a library, or in some other way increasing the usefulness of this Seminary.”
- Quote from the Deed of Gift
Lamont Poet Frank Bidart
On April 24th the Academy will welcome Frank Bidart to campus as this spring’s Lamont Poet. A Pulitzer Prize nominee and National Book Award finalist, Bidart has received numerous accolades and critical acclaim for his works, including the chapbook Music Like Dirt (2002) and his collection of poems Desire (1997). His most recent work Metaphysical Dog: Poems (2013) is set to be released on April 30th, shortly after his visit to Exeter.
Please join us for Frank Bidart’s reading on Wednesday April 24th at 7:30 p.m. The reading will be held in Assembly Hall, in the Academy Building on Front Street. This is a free event open to the public.
The Academy’s Library Lamont Poetry Series is supported by the Lamont Fund, estabilished in 1982 by Corliss Lamont, Class of 1920 and Jaquelyn Thomas, former Academy Librarian. In addition to a reading and class visits, each poet is photographed and asked to present the library with a manuscript poem. A selection of these framed portraits and manuscripts are now on display on the 2nd floor of Phillips Hall.
To learn more about the Academy Library’s Lamont Poetry Series and the Spring 2013 Lamont Poet Frank Bidart, check our Lamont Poets guide.
Undestroyed: One Man’s Journey to Afghanistan
On Monday April 15th, Ian Pounds will present “Undestroyed: One Man’s Journey to Afghanistan.” In his performance, Mr. Pounds will recount his experiences volunteering as a teacher at an orphanage in the war-torn city of Kabul. To read an interview with Ian Pounds and a description of his performance, see this January 2013 article published in The Republican.
Sponsored by the Friends of the Academy Library, the event is open to all members of the Phillips Exeter Academy Community and Friends of the Academy Library. The presentation will take place in the Kaplanoff Room from 7:00 – 8:30 pm. Refreshments will be served.
New Database of Newspapers Added to Our Collection
The Academy Library has just added a new database to its collections. “America’s Historical Newspapers, 1690 – 2000″ is a NewsBank, Inc. database that includes primary source articles covering topics in government, politics, social issues, culture, literature, discoveries, inventions and more from hundreds of primary sources. Includes news and eyewitness accounts of events, issues and daily life in the colonies or during the Revolutionary War, westward expansion, the Civil War, Reconstruction, industrialization, the Progressive Era, World War I, and other eras. Also included are illustrations, advertisements, classifieds, birth and marriage announcements, obituaries, stories about historic people and other articles exactly as they appeared in print. Let us know what you think!
Pup Study Break
Last night at the Academy Library, students had the opportunity to take a break from studying for exams and play with some friendly pups visiting the Periodicals Room.
As the flyers hanging throughout the building suggested, students quickly gathered to “perk up and pet a pup.” Those in attendance enjoyed the tasty treats provided for both humans and canines.
Thanks to Jane Cadwell, Nori Down, and Becky Barsi for organizing the dogs and the event. The crowd of smiling students and wagging tails proved the Pup Study Break to be a wonderful way to de-stress.
Books for Break
Are you looking for a good book to read over break? Before you head off campus, stop by the library and borrow a book from our new books collection in Rockefeller Hall. Bestsellers, award winners, fiction, and non-fiction, the collection has something to appeal to all types of readers.
Don’t see what you’re looking for? Feel free to peruse the paperbacks or childrens’ books in the Periodicals Room or wander up to the third floor to survey the multitude of options in the fiction and audiobooks sections.
To start you off with some suggestions, here’s a selection of titles that are currently the most borrowed in U.S. Libraries (Library Journal, Feb. 15, 2013).
Fiction
Non-fiction
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 See more from U.S. Libraries’ Most Borrowed on Good Reads. |
If you’re looking for something that appeals to both young and adult readers, check out this selection of Alex Award Winners available at the library.
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You might notice that a couple of PEA alums (Merullo ’71 and Alexander ’72) appear on both lists.
