Ruth’s River Dreams
A schoolteacher, principal, amateur historian, and avid lover of the Mississippi River, Ruth Ferris (1897–1993) was a singular steward of St. Louis’s maritime heritage. Her lifelong love of the Mississippi and its riverboat culture spanned over 70 years, encompassing research, photography, excavating sunken vessels, collecting artifacts, and forming friendships with other river enthusiasts. Ruth’s River Dreams tells […]
Two Brothers, Four Hands
The Artists Alberto and Diego Giacometti
The inspiring true story of the Giacometti brothers, one an artist, the other a daredevil, both devoted to their craft . . . but even more devoted to each other. A Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People A Capitol Choices Noteworthy Title Everyone who knew them agreed. Alberto was the genius of the […]
The Immortals of Tehran
As a child living in his family’s apple orchard, Ahmad Torkash-Vand treasures his great-great-great-great grandfather’s every mesmerizing word. On the day of his father’s death, Ahmad listens closely as the seemingly immortal elder tells him the tale of a centuries-old family curse . . . and the boy’s own fated role in the story. Ahmad […]
The Last Children of Mill Creek
Vivian Gibson, MA ’12, grew up in St. Louis’s Mill Creek Valley neighborhood, which was razed in 1959 to build a highway. In her moving memoir, Gibson recreates the everyday lived experiences of her tight-knit, African-American community.
What to read when you’re stuck inside
Looking for some good books to read while social distancing? Washington University alumni and faculty have you covered. Here are some book suggestions for every taste.
‘Life/Lines’ poetry project launches
To mark National Poetry Month, the Center for the Humanities in Arts & Sciences is inviting readers of all backgrounds to create short poems in response to daily prompts.
Some coronavirus lessons from Boccaccio
Giovanni Boccaccio’s masterpiece, the “Decameron,” is set on the outskirts of Florence in 1348. His protagonists have retreated to the countryside in the wake of the Black Death, which is decimating their city both mortally and socially. The book offers important lessons as we confront the global threat of Coronavirus.
Beheld
A stranger arrives in the fledgling colony of Plymouth, Mass., and is involved in a crime that shakes the divided community to its core.
Pale Colors in a Tall Field
Poems
Carl Phillips’s new poetry collection, Pale Colors in a Tall Field, is a meditation on the intimacies of thought and body as forms of resistance.
Sanchez Prado appointed Library of Congress Kluge Chair
The John W. Kluge Center at the U.S. Library of Congress has appointed Ignacio M. Sanchez Prado, the Jarvis Thurston and Mona Van Duyn Professor in the Humanities in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, as the 2020 Kluge Chair in Countries and Cultures of the South.
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