As Viewed from a Book Truck: Holding History

We hosted a scaled-down version of the Holding History series in Special Collections during Anthony Grafton’s recent visit to Madison. Grafton, Henry Putnam University Professor of History at Princeton, was here to deliver the Merle Curti Lecture Series in History on the topic “Past Belief: Visions of Early Christianity in Early Modern Europe.”

Four student presenters from the Holding History series organized by Prof. Josh Calhoun of the English Department enjoyed the opportunity to describe to Prof. Grafton books they chose, most on the general theme of Shakespeare, from Special Collections. The four were Keith Gabler, Ryan Hussey, John Spoerl, and Kieran Villoth. Kieran Villoth now works as a student library employee in Special Collections, where he is learning how our holdings are shelved, retrieved, cataloged, and used. It thus seems appropriate to show him with Prof. Grafton as viewed from a book truck; Keith Gabler looks on.

This was one in a series of Holding History sessions hosted in Special Collections — see an earlier blog post and the Holding History web page for more information about this lively program that has enabled students to present to diverse audiences their finds in Special Collections.