Last Dinner on the Titanic:  Stories of Those Who Were There

Wednesday, April 18
Noon - 1:30 p.m.
Williman Room, Benson Memorial Center

Please join the Library and Bon Appétit for the Spring 2012 Literary Cuisine.

Come hear Elizabeth McKeigue, Associate University Librarian for Public Services, discuss the real life stories of some of those who survived and perished in the sinking of the RMS Titanic.

In particular, Elizabeth will tell the story of first-class passenger Harry Elkins Widener, a 27-year-old Harvard graduate and book collector. Widener Library at Harvard University was built shortly after the sinking and houses Widener's rare book collection. As a librarian at Widener Library before coming to Santa Clara, Elizabeth was responsible for providing historical tours and training tour guides. She will share her knowledge of this famous Titanic passenger and his family. Elizabeth will also share some of the experiences of those in the second and third class aboard the ship and compare their stories to passengers like Widener.

Bon Appétit will be serving a special theme lunch inspired by Last Dinner on the Titanic: Menus and Recipes from the Great Liner for the occasion. The cost is $10 per person. You may register online. Payment can be made by debit card, credit card, or check. We regret that it is not possible to accept online reservations with ACCESS cards at this time. Checks should be made payable to Santa Clara University and mailed to:

Terry Hingston 
University Library
Santa Clara University
500 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA 95053

If you require assistance for this event, please contact Terry Hingston (408-554-6830, thingston@scu.edu) by Monday, April 16.

Please plan to join us on April 18 for this fascinating lunchtime event and an opportunity to win a DVD of the movie Titanic, 2 tickets to the next Literary Cuisine program in Fall 2012, or a copy of Last Dinner on the Titanic: Menus and Recipes from the Great Liner by Rick Archbold & Dana McCauley.

Pressing Forward: The Book Club of California at 100

As the general public's link to the printed page becomes increasingly tenuous and as greater numbers embrace the virtual images of their e-readers, true bibliophiles still revel in an appreciation of the origins of print, the texture of fine paper, and the intriguing idiosyncrasies of typography. Pressing Forward: The Book Club of California at 100, the newest exhibit in the Third Floor Gallery of the Learning Commons celebrates the artistry of print in a tribute to the centennial of the Book Club of California (BCC), which publishes fine press editions of books on California and the West.

In 1912, in San Francisco, a group of book lovers came together to create The Book Club of California. At that time, San Francisco possessed fine press printers, a thriving literary and art community, knowledgeable booksellers, and major book collectors. Fifty-eight of these men and women including the city appraiser Adolph Sutro and Phoebe Hearst , were the charter members of The Book Club of California, created for "the study of letters and promotion of the arts pertaining to the production of books." The first years set the program that has continued to this day. Scholarly lectures on the book were sponsored, the first exhibit (on rare bookplates) was mounted, and the Club offices were established in downtown San Francisco. In 1914, the Club published its first book, Bibliography of the History of California and the Pacific West, 1510-1906, by Robert E. Cowan.

In honor of the one hundredth anniversary of The Book Club of California, the focus of the exhibit, "Pressing Forward," will be the physical creation and manifestation of the written word. Items in the exhibit are drawn from Santa Clara University's extensive collection of BCC publications. All books on display in the exhibit will be available to the public in the Martin Reading Room at a later date. For more information please visit the website of The Book Club of California.

The Butterfly Mosque

Book of the Quarter, Winter 2012
Saint Clare Room, 3rd Floor
Learning Commons, Technology Center, & Library
Thursday, March 1
4 - 5:30 p.m.

The Library is pleased to host G. Willow Wilson discussing her memoir, The Butterfly Mosque, as the Winter 2012 Book of the Quarter. This book has been chosen because it is one of the two selections for this year's Silicon Valley Reads, a program which is presented annually by the San José Public Library Foundation, the Santa Clara County Library, and the Santa Clara County Office of Education.

Wilson will discuss this memoir and answer questions from the Muslim Student Association and Professor Philip (Boo) Riley, Religious Studies Department. 

The Book of the Quarter event will be held Thursday, March 1 beginning at 4 p.m. in the Saint Clare Room on the 3rd floor of the Learning Commons. The event is free and open to the public. It is not necessary to read the book to attend the event, but copies are available for purchase in the campus bookstore. Additionally, Wilson will be available to autograph books at the end of the program.

About the Book

The Butterfly Mosque, journalist G. Willow Wilson's remarkable story of converting to Islam and falling in love with an Egyptian man in a volatile post-9/11 world, was praised as "an eye-opening look at a misunderstood and often polarizing faith" (Booklist) and "a tremendously heartfelt, healing crosscultural fusion" (Publishers Weekly).

About the Author

G. Willow Wilson is an American author and essayist who divides her time between Egypt and the US. Her articles about modern religion and the Middle East have appeared in publications including The Washington Post, The Atlantic, The New York Times Magazine, and Canada's National Post. Her memoir, The Butterfly Mosque, was named 'Best Book of the Year 2010' by The Seattle Times, and her DC/Vertigo comic book series, Air, was nominated for an Eisner Award. She has also written Cairo, an original graphic novel published by Vertigo, as well as Vixen: Return of the Lion, a DC miniseries.

To learn more about Wilson, visit her website.

Please direct ADA/504 accommodation requests to Terry Hingston (408-554-6830, TTY 1-800-735-2929) at least 48 hours prior to event.

Dear Colleagues:

The Technology Steering Committe funded the Jesuit School of Theology's proposal "Pilot Project: Integrating Technology into Ministerial Formation" to give iPads to the 1st year Master of Divinity class.  The twenty students will be using the iPads in their Bay Area immersion/pilgrimage experience.  Having iPads will allow students to easily record, reflect, and integrate their immersion trip experiences through the use of photos, movies, journals, and research, while on-site.  They can interview people they meet and minister to, and invite those people to tell their stories.  They could also use Facetime to connect with one another, across locations, during the immersion. They could even pray and conduct theological reflection together, across time and space.  Upon their return to JST, students can then share these experiences with others through the visual imagery they have produced.  With their iPads, they can then continue this work in their 2^nd year field education experiences, and for the duration of their 3-year program.