A novel by Tsering Yangzom Lama
A tale of refugees, colonialism, and spiritual heritage, but also courageous family love.
Radicals: Audacious Writings by American Women, 1830-1930
Edited by Meredith Stabel
Fiction, poetry and drama, with a foreword by Roxane Gay on the importance of literacy for all, and how illiteracy is a hallmark of oppressive societies.
Gold Mine Consign Summer Mix
High-low fashion is our fave at Gold Mine Consign. Mix it up! New summer arrivals daily. Stop in to find your GOLD.
Science, Metaphysics, and Passion
The Library has curated a very special display with titles from Arion Press, which pairs great artists with great literature to create beautiful books by hand. Arion Press publishes several limited editions every year, each conceptually unique and printed from metal types cast on site.
See the rare display outside the Idaho Room in The Community Library.
Poetry of Sappho
Poems by Sappho in their original Greek
English translation by John Daley with Page duBois; Introduction by Page duBois; 23 wood engravings by Anita Cowles Rearden with twenty prints by Julie Mehretu; signed by the artist.
On Certainty
by Wittgenstein, Ludwig
Introduction by Arthur C. Danto; Edited by G.E.M. Anscombe & G.H. Von Wright. German text translated by Denis Paul and Anscombe. Illustrated by Mel Bochner with 12 prints in black, red and blue ink.
Sea of Cortez: A Leisurely Journal of Travel and Research
Non-fiction by John Steinbeck and Edward F. Ricketts With six wood engravings by Richard Wagener; A map illustration by Martin Machado; Deluxe edition box by Jonathan Anzalone, and a note on the publishing history by Jeffrey Yang.
Book Review: Swimming in the Dark
by Tomasz Jedrowski
Review by Kelly Noble
I love this story but (spoiler alert) the ending is sad. This is a captivating love story between two young college students set in Communist Poland in the 1980s. . .a love story that mirrors life in many ways with all its pain and suffering. This novel is beautifully written and captivates the reader in such a way that I found it difficult to put down. I wanted to know the ending. I wanted to see some positive outcomes from this relationship.
To my disappointment, it ends the way many relationships end. Both characters denied what they wanted and ended up unhappy in separate places. Heartbreaking as it may be, the characters understand this suffering well. After reading the last note from Janusz, Ludwik remembers, “Because you were right when you said that people can’t always give us what we want from them; that you can’t ask them to love you the way you want.”
Being gay may be difficult enough in western countries, but it seems more dangerous in communist ones. This love story is set in Communist Poland. Two young college students meet and spiral into a relationship that they both know to be dangerous. Not only for them, but for their families as well. As the novel progresses, both see diverse ways forward in life. Janusz seeks to work within the government for changes and Ludwik seeks to join the protests and demonstrations against the government.
As the story unfolds, both men are questioning their trajectories in life, but they never question their love for each other. The discouraging part of the story is that both know they cannot live the life they want. They cannot be together as lovers in a society that condemns homosexuality.
As the communist government starts to close in on Ludwik, he plans his escape to the West. He tries hard to convince Janusz to leave Poland with him. Janusz does not want to leave but ends up living in a marriage to a friend that he knows is just a front. He uses it to get ahead in the communist government.
There is no question of who Janusz truly loves, he makes this clear in a final note to Ludwik, “I adore this book (Giovanni’s Room) more than you knew. I want to keep it…but it’s yours. Bring it back one day if you can. I’ll be here. J.” The novel ends with Ludwik living alone in New York, and Janusz living with his wife and child in Poland.
I found the story fascinating yet depressing. How many relationships end because of discrimination? I once thought that love would conquer all, but that is not the reality of the world we live in. I do highly recommend this novel. It is an excellent read. The story has a sad ending, but I believe the more we learn about the impact of discrimination, especially on the LGBT community, the more we can change the future.
Gender and the Court
with Mary Pat Gunderson
Each new Supreme Court nomination prompts discussion of how the newly appointed justice will impact the Court. Much is made off the candidate’s political persuasions, but what about the gender of a judge? Does the gender of the judge impact the opinions rendered?
Retired District Court Judge Mary Pat Gunderson will present her recently published research examining the real possibility of implicit gender bias in judicial opinion writing. In this one-hour presentation she will deconstruct recent Iowa Supreme Court ethics opinions written by an all-male Court wherein the victims were female clients and/or an intimate partner of the male attorney/abuser. Not only do the case results themselves raise questions, but the language those results are wrapped in may be even more revealing. The subject matter of this presentation will contain brief descriptions of physical and sexual abuse.
Register to save your seat. This program will be livestreamed on the Library’s Vimeo, but it will not be recorded for later viewing. Click here to join us live.
