Bloomsday: Celebrating Ulysses by James Joyce

June 16^th is Bloomsday! What is Bloomsday? 

It is a celebration of the novel Ulysses by James Joyce which all takes place on Thursday, June 16^th 1904 in Dublin, Ireland and is named for the central character, Leopold Bloom.

The first celebration of Bloomsday in Ireland was 1954 for the 50^th anniversary, and continues to this day with special visits to the places mentioned in the novel. But people around the world celebrate Bloomsday too, with people dressing up as characters from the book, hosting readings, re-enactments, and performances, as well as creating food and drink from the book.

Celebrators (1999), image from Wikipedia

Importance of Ulysses

The book itself was published February 2, 1922 by Sylvia Beach through her bookstore Shakespeare and Company in Paris. In the 100 years since its publication, Ulysses has been celebrated and censored, banned and cherished. Banned on obscenity charges while still in draft chapters and again in a 1928 US Customs trial, the book afterwards was seized at US customs and burned because it “might cause American readers to harbor "impure and lustful thoughts".” This ban was challenged in court and lifted in 1934; the free speech arguments in defense of Ulysses in that landmark case have shaped the subsequent debates about literature’s rights to freedom of expression to this day.

The Archer Library is lucky to have a copy from this first seized 1922 run of Ulysses in our Special Collections seen here

1922 copy of Ulysses - Archer Library Special Collections

And while we can’t read from it for Bloomsday, we are excited to enjoy the celebration of the James Joyce’s work 100 years later. Let us know how you plan to celebrate Bloomsday, or your thoughts on this epic noel by James Joyce!

To learn more about Bloomsday here are some of the official websites: 

https://jamesjoyce.ie/bloomsday/ (James Joyce Center)

http://www.bloomsdayfestival.ie/ (Festival page)

https://www.ireland.com/en-us/things-to-do/events/bloomsday-festival/ (Ireland’s tourism page)
 

Want to read the book yourself?

Read the book here: https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/4300

Listen to the audio book here: https://archive.org/details/Ulysses-Audiobook

First page of Ulysses (1922 edition)

Intrigued by our Halloween posters? Learn more about Arthur Rackham within the AU Library collections

 

 

     You may have noticed the posters that the Library put up for its Trick or Treat display. We thought that they were the perfect tone for the night! You might not know however that those illustrations were drawn by Arthur Rackham, and that the AU Library has over 40 books that he illustrated in our Special Books Collection!

Arthur Rackham was one of the most prominent, and most popular, artists during the “Golden Age of Illustration” which is roughly 1890 to WWI. His unique style and the distinct look of his ink and watercolor illustrations stand out, and took advantage of the new printing technologies that allowed publishers to include color illustrations. 

    Rackham illustrated over 47 books including classics like Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens, Wind in the Willows, Alice in Wonderland, and Rip Van Winkle. His illustrations were often included in deluxe editions that were published on vellum and signed (these were usually even as Christmas gifts), as well as on smaller trade printings of the books.

After his death in 1939, his works remained very popular. His images has been widely used by the greeting card industry and many of his books are still in print. In fact, Director Guillermo del Toro cites Rackham as an influence in “The Faun” in Pan’s Labryrinth.

        So what do you think of Rackham’s illustrations? Have you seen them before in one of your childhood favorites? Does his artistic style still match with the fantasy and fables he illustrated almost 100 years ago? Which one is your favorite?

Presidential Pens - A New Display in the Library

    You can't deny that it is Election season! Ohio Early Voting began on October 6th this year, and across the country more than 7 million people have already cast their vote. So for this display I focused on U.S. Presidents and their relationship with the written word. 

    There is a written record of every U.S. President from their speeches, letters, Executive Orders, and often, their own memoirs. If you are interested in learning more, the display offers some brief information about works that Presidents have written (and those written by their wives, the First Ladies). 

   If you want to read more about the many complicated men who have held the Executive Office, there are many books within the AU Library's General Collection (both as books and as ebooks), as well as some unique copies in the Special Books Collection (ranging from an 1885 copy of Ulysses S. Grant's memoir to a signed copy of Jimmy Carter's to Harding's Memorial Address). There is a lot to discover within the AU Library collection. In fact, did you know that there is even a whole collection within the General Collection that is focused on John F. Kennedy?

To create your own Presidential Reading List: Wikipedia has a complied comprehensive list of all US Presidential Memoirs here and for the First Ladies here.

If you need any help locating a book or more Presidential information, please reach out to a Reference Librarian. You can contact us via chat, email, phone, or select times in person this semester.

And, don't forget to vote this year -

 either early or in person on November 3rd!

Reference

Costanzo, Michael B. Author in chief: the Presidents as writers from Washington to Trump. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2019. 

Levy, A. "More than 7 million general election ballots cast so far." CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/11/politics/election-ballots-cast/index.html

Author: Curator and Reference Librarian, Jessica Byers

 

Welcome

 Welcome back to our AU community! In case you haven't seen it yet, with the new semester we have new displays added to our interior cases. Using withdrawn books and book folding Jessica Byers created a display that we hope welcomes you back to AU. 

Take a closer look the next time you come into the library! These cases are located on the Main Floor surrounding the elevators.  We would love to hear your thoughts. 

If you have ideas about future displays or want to learn more about this display, please feel free to contact Jessica Byers, AU Library Curator and Reference Librarian, at jbyers7@ashland.edu.

New Library Display in a New Place

You probably already know about the display cases that are in front of the Library building, but the Library recently added to a Display Case over in Upper Convo to its display possibilities. We are going to use the case to continue interesting displays and the first one is focusing on our favorite interesting thing: the Library!

The first display put in Upper Convo is “Library Snapshot” which is designed to give a glimpse into the history and impact of the Library through ‘snapshots’ of information. 

    

The display includes some little-known facts about the Library accompanied by some historic photographs pulled from the AU Archives. For history buffs or anyone who loves books as much as me, you can also see the old library card stamp cards in some of the displayed books with one even showing its accompanied card from the card catalog as well as some of the yearbooks from the late 1970s. Since opening in 1972, the Library here at Ashland University has undergone many changes, but always remains central to the community and student life. 

I am currently working on future displays to be installed in Upper Convo and the Library cases that will showcase the Special Collections held by Ashland University Library.  If you have ideas about future displays or want to learn more about this display, please feel free to contact me, Jessica Byers, AU Library Curator and Reference Librarian, at jbyers7@ashland.edu.