The Literature Committee at UW-Stout has six events planned for the 2018-2019 academic year, including programs marking the 200th anniversary of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein.”
Kicking off the schedule is a new initiative: The university is hosting for the first time a Chippewa Valley Book Festival event. On Monday, Oct. 22, novelist Nickolas Butler will preview his novel “Little Faith,” which is scheduled to be published in March by HarperCollins.
The event, free and open to the public, is from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the ballrooms of the Memorial Student Center. During the day, Butler also will visit two English classes that are reading previous novels he’s written.
The 19th Chippewa Valley Book Festival will feature 20 authors from Monday, Oct. 15, to Thursday, Oct. 25. One of the authors is Thomas Pearson, an associate professor of social science at UW-Stout. He will discuss his book “When the Hills are Gone: Frac Sand Mining and the Struggle for Community,” from 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24, at the Fall Creek Public Library.
A festival reading typically has been held in Menomonie at the public library but not previously at UW-Stout.
Professor Lopa Basu, who teaches English, and University Communications Assistant Director Jerry Poling serve on the festival’s Authors and Events Committee. They led the effort to have UW-Stout become part of the festival. Basu has coordinated the Butler appearance and reading.
Basu is co-chair of the Literature Committee, with Assistant Professor Rickie-Ann Legleitner. The committee’s programs help support the liberal arts education students receive at UW-Stout, Basu said.
“UW-Stout not only trains graduates to be marketable but also provides them with a meaningful general education curriculum that enables them to be informed global citizens, thinkers and participants in cultural networks — and lifelong learners,” Basu said. “Engaging in literary works produces identification and empathy, which is the first step in solving real-life problems.”
Along with the Butler reading, Literature Committee events scheduled are:
- Thursday, Nov. 15, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., Faculty and staff reading at the Raw Deal, 544 S. Broadway St.
- Thursday, Jan. 17, 2 p.m., Dialogue on teaching “Frankenstein,” the Reading Across Campus book selection, led by Associate Professor Joan Navarre
- Wednesday, Feb. 6, 6-9 p.m., “Frankenstein” 1931 film screening and discussion, at Harvey Hall Theatre
- Wednesday, Feb. 27, 6 p.m., UW-Eau Claire Professor Joel Pace discussing race and “Frankenstein,” in the ballrooms of the Memorial Student Center
- Wednesday, March 13, 6 p.m., (tentative) Poet Joyce Ash (Ashuntangtang), University of Hartford, a native of Cameroon, reading and discussion to celebrate black history and women’s history
The Literature Committee receives support from the offices of the chancellor and provost along with the College of Arts, Communication, Humanities and Social Sciences.
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Professor Lopa Basu, co-chair of the Literature Committee, works with students.
