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Happy Thanksgiving!

This morning I was a guest on Iowa Public Radio’s Talk of Iowa program, where we discussed Thanksgiving recipes, cookbooks, and traditions. You can listen to an archived version of the program here. Below are links to some of the items from Special Collections that were discussed on the show. Szathmary Culinary Manuscripts: http://digital.lib.uiowa.edu/cookbooks DIYContinue reading “Happy Thanksgiving!”

The Glenn Voting Machine

by Shawn R. Conley –  student worker in Special Collections With the election year in full swing and Election Day looming, most of us will be making our way to that legendary voting booth with the fancy curtains to cast our vote and take part in yet another one of our civic duties. Most ofContinue reading “The Glenn Voting Machine”

Conflicting views of Lackington’s – Publisher of Frankenstein – 3 pf 3 from Peter Balestrieri

Third in our series on Frankenstein related holdings from Peter Balestrieri. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was published in 1818 by the firm of Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones. The deal worked by Percy Shelley called for printing five hundred copies, a short run even by the standards of the day. What kind of firm wasContinue reading “Conflicting views of Lackington’s – Publisher of Frankenstein – 3 pf 3 from Peter Balestrieri”

Grand Army of the Republic in Iowa

Today’s post comes from Jacque Roethler on Grand Army of the Republic finds in her recent processing work. Special Collections recently acquired the papers of a law firm in Cedar Rapids, the Bealer/Grimm/Shuttleworth papers. In it were the expected files on cases, insurance, and property, but in a ledger containing E. J. C. Bealer’s 1927Continue reading “Grand Army of the Republic in Iowa”

Mary and Percy Shelley Letter Mentions Frankenstein Rejections – 2 of 3 from Peter Balestrieri

Second in our series of three blog posts from Peter Balestrieri examining our holdings relating to Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus. On August 16, 1817, Mary began writing a letter to Marianne Hunt, Leigh Hunt’s wife. The Hunt’s and the Shelley’s were close friends, their correspondence is extensive, and many of thoseContinue reading “Mary and Percy Shelley Letter Mentions Frankenstein Rejections – 2 of 3 from Peter Balestrieri”

Advertising for “The Collegians,” by Carl Laemmle, Jr.

by Denise Anderson.  Fall classes are now in session and the football Homecoming Centennial is upon us, so what better time to examine a felt pennant which advertises “The Collegians,” by Carl Laemmle, Jr. “The Collegians” was a series of 44 two-reel films, in which the same players reprised their characters through four years of a college life fullContinue reading “Advertising for “The Collegians,” by Carl Laemmle, Jr.”

Frankenstein’s Cousin, The Vampyre – 1 of 3 from Peter Balestrieri

First of a series of three blog posts by Peter Balestrieri highlighting our collections relating to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.  “It was a dark and stormy night” in June, 1816 that brought together some of Romantic literature’s shining lights to read ghost stories in the Villa Diodati near Geneva, Switzerland.  Diodati had once hosted Milton and wasContinue reading “Frankenstein’s Cousin, The Vampyre – 1 of 3 from Peter Balestrieri”

Paperbacks in the Stacks

Students from Professor Loren Glass’ English/UI Center for the Book course Literature and the Book: The Paperback Revolution are using materials from Special Collections this semester to uncover the impact of paperback books on twentieth century American literature and culture.  As they do, we are uncovering some hidden treasures of the paperback revolution in theContinue reading “Paperbacks in the Stacks”