Baroque artist Bernini
Sculptor, architect, painter, playwright and scenographer Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) is the subject of a new biography by Boston College Associate Professor of Italian Franco Mormando. According to the publisher, Bernini: His Life and His Rome — the first English-language biography of Bernini — takes a look at the life of “the last of the universal geniuses of early modern Italy, placed in the same exalted company as Leonardo, Raphael, and Michelangelo. His artistic vision remains present today through the countless statues, fountains, buildings and other works of his design that transformed Rome into the Baroque theater that continues to enthrall tourists.” Mormando will give a talk about Bernini at the Dean’s Colloquium on Nov. 21 from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in Gasson Hall, room 112. The event is sponsored by the Arts & Sciences Dean’s Office.
Jesuit Book Award
Congratulations to English Professor Alan Richardson who has received a National Jesuit Book Award from the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities and the national Jesuit honor society Alpha Sigma Nu for his book, The Neural Sublime: Cognitive Theories and Romantic Texts. This year’s awards honored books in the humanities and Richardson won in the literature/fine arts category. The Neural Sublime uses cognitive neuroscience as an analytical tool to examine issues in British Romantic studies. Read the Boston College Chronicle interview with Richardson where he discusses the award and the emerging field of cognitive literary studies.
Listen to the music man
The New Yorker music critic Alex Ross will talk about his latest book, Listen to This, on Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. in Gasson Hall, room 100. Ross’ first book, The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century, is an international bestseller and has been translated into 16 languages. It won a National Book Critics Circle Award and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Sponsor: Lowell Humanities Lecture Series
Posted in Guest Authors, Lowell Humanities Series
Tagged music, Pulitzer Prize finalist
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The Myth of Choice
BC Bookmarks first introduced you to The Myth of Choice: Personal Responsibility in a World of Limits, a new book by Boston College Law Professor Kent Greenfield, back in September shortly before its publication. Since then it has been showcased by several media outlets, including the Boston Globe, Wisconsin Public Radio and MSNBC, among others. Read more about Greenfield in the Boston College Chronicle.
Looking at presidential elections
On this Election Day BC Bookmarks highlights the new edition of a text co-authored by Boston College Assistant Professor of Political Science David Hopkins, Presidential Elections: Strategies and Structures of American Politics. Hopkins’ areas of study and teaching include American political parties and elections, the U.S. Congress, voting behavior and public opinion. Here is what the publisher has to say about Presidential Elections: Brimming with data and examples from the historic 2008 election, and laced with previews of 2012, the thirteenth edition of this classic text offers a complete overview of the presidential election process from the earliest straw polls and fundraisers to final voter turnout and exit interviews. The newest edition’s comprehensive coverage includes campaign strategy with overviews of the changes in campaign finance and the growing role of the Internet. Also, the thirteenth edition explores the effect of the forward-creeping presidential nomination process and the sequence of electoral events.
Posted in Boston College Authors
Tagged election, Political Science department, politics
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Irish sporting life
With two new books to join his previous title, Mike Cronin, academic director of Boston College – Ireland, now has “three entries in the top ten of Best Irish Sports Books Ever,” according to a reviewer for the Irish Independent. One of his new books is The GAA: County By County, co-written with Mark Duncan and Paul Rouse. The second major publication from the team behind the Gaelic Athletic Association Oral History Project, it tells the story of how the GAA has left a unique imprint on every Irish county and Irish communities overseas. Cronin’s other new book is Places We Play: Ireland’s Sporting Heritage, co-written with Róisín Higgins. In this look at the history of Ireland’s sporting sites, the authors have created a “masterpiece …chock full of revelation,” according to the Irish Independent.
Place your bets
In her memoir, Lay the Favorite, Beth Raymer tells the story of her years in the high-stakes, high-anxiety world of sports betting. She will speak on Nov. 2 at 7 p.m. in Devlin Hall, room 101. The movie adaptation of the book, starring Bruce Willis, is slated to be released in 2012. Sponsor: Lowell Humanities Lecture Series
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