Your source for what's new at Mizzou Libraries
Now through February.
Stop by the Journalism Library to view their curated display featuring books related to black history in journalism.
All books are available for check out.
This is an educational exhibit and is open to everyone.
Hello everyone!
Happy Black History Month! This month, we’re showcasing items in the University of Missouri’s collection about African American engineers. You can request them by clicking on their hyperlinked titles below. If you have issues requesting the titles, please reach out to Amanda May at asmay@umsystem.edu
Celebrating Black Engineers:
Bridging deep south rivers : the life and legend of Horace King / John S. Lupold and Thomas L. French, Jr
Both when he was enslaved and when he gained his freedom, Horace King built bridges, courthouses, warehouses, factories, and houses in Georgia, Alabama, and eastern Mississippi. The authors separate legend from facts as they carefully document King’s life in the Chattahoochee Valley on the Georgia-Alabama border. The story does not end with Horace, however, because he passed his skills on to his three sons, who also became prominent builders and businessmen.
The inspiring story of a groundbreaking African American female engineer who created the first computer-designed ship for the US Navy. Equal parts coming-of-age tale, civil rights history, and reflection on the power of education, Overnight Code is a tale about persistence and perseverance when the odds against you seem insurmountable.
History of the Black Engineer of the Year Honorees.
Changing the Face of Engineering argues that the continued underrepresentation of African Americans in engineering impairs the ability of the United States to compete successfully in the global marketplace. This volume will be of interest to STEM scholars and students, as well as policymakers, corporations, and higher education institutions.
This month we are appreciating all the wonderful works by Black creators showcasing Black stories.
We asked our Mizzou Librarians what stories they’d recommend and we got a lot. Below are a few of what was recommended and available at Mizzou Libraries.
You can view the full list here.
The Broken Earth Triology by N.K. Jemisin
Three terrible things happen in a single day. Essun, a woman living an ordinary life in a small town, comes home to find that her husband has brutally murdered their son and kidnapped their daughter. Meanwhile, mighty Sanze — the world-spanning empire whose innovations have been civilization’s bedrock for a thousand years — collapses as most of its citizens are murdered to serve a madman’s vengeance. And worst of all, across the heart of the vast continent known as the Stillness, a great red rift has been torn into the heart of the earth, spewing ash enough to darken the sky for years. Or centuries.
Now Essun must pursue the wreckage of her family through a deadly, dying land. Without sunlight, clean water, or arable land, and with limited stockpiles of supplies, there will be war all across the Stillness: a battle royale of nations not for power or territory, but simply for the basic resources necessary to get through the long dark night. Essun does not care if the world falls apart around her. She’ll break it herself, if she must, to save her daughter.
The visionary time-travel classic whose Black female hero is pulled through time to face the horrors of American slavery and explores the impacts of racism, sexism, and white supremacy then and now.
“I lost an arm on my last trip home. My left arm.”
Dana’s torment begins when she suddenly vanishes on her 26th birthday from California, 1976, and is dragged through time to antebellum Maryland to rescue a boy named Rufus, heir to a slaveowner’s plantation. She soon realizes the purpose of her summons to the past: protect Rufus to ensure his assault of her Black ancestor so that she may one day be born. As she endures the traumas of slavery and the soul-crushing normalization of savagery, Dana fights to keep her autonomy and return to the present.
Hidden Colors Series directed by Tariq Nasheed
This is a series of 5 documentaries that discusses some of the reasons the contributions of African and aboriginal people have been left out of the pages of history. Traveling around the country, the film features scholars, historians, and social commentators who uncovered such amazing facts about things such as: The original image of Christ; The true story about the Moors; The original people of Asia; The great west African empires; The presence of Africans in America before Columbus; The real reason slavery was ended and much more.
A gorgeous collection of 145 original portraits that celebrates Black pioneers–famous and little-known–in politics, science, literature, music, and more–with biographical reflections, all created and curated by an award-winning graphic designer. Illustrated Black History is a breathtaking collection of original portraits depicting black heroes–both famous and unsung–who made their mark on activism, science, politics, business, medicine, technology, food, arts, entertainment, and more. Each entry includes a lush drawing or painting by artist George McCalman, along with an insightful essay summarizing the person’s life story.
Black Men in White Coats : 100 Rules for Success! by Dale Okorodudu, MD
What does it take to overcome adversity and achieve success against the odds? Best-selling author and award-winning physician, Dale Okorodudu MD, answers this question in his book, Black Men In White Coats: 100 Rules for Success. Dr. Dale shares experiences and lessons learned from the first 20 guests on his podcast, Black Men In White Coats. From battling depression to surviving gang infested neighborhoods, these doctors have seen it all. In this book, Dr. Dale outlines 100 concrete rules for success based on stories from these doctor’s lives. Fun fact: Dr. Dale Okorodudu is a MU Medical School alum.
Hunger: A Memoir of (my) Body by Roxane Gay
Roxane Gay addresses the experience of living in a body that she calls ‘wildly undisciplined.’ She casts an insightful and critical eye over her childhood, teens, and twenties — including the devastating act of violence that was a turning point at age 12 — and brings readers into the present and the realities, pains, and joys of her daily life. With candor, vulnerability, and authority, Roxane explores what it means to be overweight in a time when the bigger you are, the less you are seen.
In a life filled with meaning and accomplishment, Michelle Obama has emerged as one of the most iconic and compelling women of our era. As First Lady of the United States of America, she helped create the most welcoming and inclusive White House in history. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private. A deeply personal reckoning of a woman of soul and substance who has steadily defied expectations.
Please join us for a lecture on the The Missouri Sharecroppers Strike: Black Resistance in Depression Era Curators Exhibit in Ellis Library.
On February 22, from 2:30-3:30pm in 114A Ellis Library, SHSMO Art Curator Joan Stack will present on the photos photojournalist Arthur Witman documented the Missouri Sharecropper’s Strike along Highways 60 and 61 in Southeast Missouri in 1939. The exhibition of photographs includes images of the strike as well as Witman’s later photos of nearby Cropperville, a village created after the protest where many of the displaced sharecroppers came to live and work communally.
Exhibition and lecture sponsored by The University of Missouri’s Black History Month Committee, The State Historical Society of Missouri, and MU Libraries
On display in Ellis Library colonnade.
In January of 1939 St. Louis Post-Dispatch photojournalist Arthur Witman documented the Missouri Sharecropper’s Strike along Highways 60 and 61 in Southeast Missouri. The local landowners had been given federal funds by the Depression era Agriculture Adjustment Administration (A.A.A) to leave their farmland fallow, and many of these property holders chose to keep the money for themselves and evict the workers who had farmed their land. African American labor leader, Rev. Owen Whitfield, organized a strike to protest these evictions, bringing roughly 1500 of the farm workers together in roadside shantytowns that called public attention to their plight. The exhibition of photographs includes images of the strike as well as Witman’s later photos of nearby Cropperville, a village created after the protest where many of the displaced sharecroppers came to live and work communally.
SHSMO Art Curator Joan Stack will present a lecture on the exhibition Feb. 22, 2:30 to 3:30, in Ellis Library.
Exhibition and lecture sponsored by The University of Missouri’s Black History Month Committee, The State Historical Society of Missouri, and MU Libraries
Just because February is almost over doesn’t mean there isn’t still time to pick up a great read to celebrate Black History Month. This month, at Ellis Library, we are appreciating all the wonderful reads written by Black authors, showcasing Black stories. Here are just a few of our favorite picks you can find available at Mizzou libraries or request through our website.
For the Non-fiction Lovers:
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
Told in verse, Brown Girl Dreaming tells the story of author Jacquelin Woodson’s childhood and her experience as a young African American girl growing up in the 1960s. From her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement to her self-discovered love of writing and reading, Woodson crafts beautiful poems that share an emotional and connective journey of self-discovery and adolescence. Brown Girl Dreaming is the perfect read for poetry and auto-biography lovers looking for an embracive and powerful read about a young girl’s coming-of-age.
http://merlin.lib.umsystem.edu:80/record=b10675107~S8
Redefining Realness by Janet Mock
This powerful memoir documents the honest journey of writer and activist Janet Mock’s childhood, as we follow her story growing up as a lower-class, multiracial, trans woman in America. Mock captivates the reader with her unapologetic writing as she recounts tales from her experience transitioning as a teenager up into her college years and falling in love for the first time. This memoir is a fascinating read for readers who enjoy powerful and personal stories that leave you feeling inspired and changed for the better.
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
In this moving and gripping memoir, comedian Trevor Noah reflects on his life, as a young boy growing up in apartheid South Africa, to his present-day reality as one of the biggest comedians of his time. Noah begins his story with the event of an unexpected crime: his own birth. Born a Crime is a captivating read about the struggles of finding your identity and place in a world in which you were never supposed to exist. This read is perfect for those looking for an insightful yet humorously told coming-of-age story that leaves you feeling everything from heartbroken to unnerved to fully inspired by Noah’s ability to compose an unforgettable memoir.
For the Fiction Lovers:
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
This dark and quick-paced read follows our main character, Korede, who has always felt second to her younger sister, Ayoola. Ayoola is seemingly the perfect daughter, except for one problem—she cannot stop killing her boyfriends, leaving Korede to clean up her mess. My Sister, the Serial Killer, takes the reader on a frightening journey, making you question how far one can go to protect those they love. This novel is perfect for readers looking for a short and fun yet truly haunting read.
The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Ta-Nehisi Coates’s best-selling novel is the best pick for readers looking for a challenging yet profound read that will leave you feeling impacted and heartbroken by Coates’s beautiful storytelling. This novel follows Hiram Walker, who was born into slavery; when his mother is sold away, he believes he has truly lost all memories and remains of what he knew of her. Years later, when Hiram experiences a brush with death, in which he only survives because of a strange and magical power he possesses, he wonders if he contains more of his mother than he realizes. This discovery leads him on a dangerous and unexpected journey to find the answers he has always sought and attempt to find and rescue the mother he has not seen since he was young.
If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
In this heartbreaking and beautifully honest novel, by legendary writer James Baldwin, we follow a young artist named Fonny who is unjustly arrested and sent to New York’s notorious “Tombs”. His girlfriend, Tish, who is pregnant with his child, refuses to let him stay locked away and is determined to free him. If Beale Street Could Talk is a powerful novel that addresses necessary and prevalent topics like punishment and crime in America and is perfect for readers looking for an unforgettable classic read.
Test your knowledge, make new friends, and win real prizes at Black History & Culture Trivia Night Online this Saturday, February 27 at 6:45 PM. There’s still time, so…
Trivia Night 2021 will be held online, this year, but it will still be a fun & exciting evening, emceed by the great Cyndi Frisby, and full of fun surprises that may or may not include a “name that dance” video clue category and some dance breaks.
Sponsored by:
Ellis Library Colonnade
February 5 – March 31
War, Peace, and Black Progress is a collaborative exhibit between The State Historical Society of Missouri and the University Libraries Special Collections. Visitors will see illustrated books dealing with the African American experience in World War I and II and contemplate images of black soldiers fighting during the Civil War. Also on display are editorial cartoons related to Martin Luther King, Jr.’s opposition to the Vietnam War and cartoons from the 1980s and 1990s responding to the quest for liberty and regime change in South Africa.
Celebrate Black History Month in Ellis Library with our display of University Libraries materials “These New Giants.” The display celebrates Black activism in the 20th century, from the First World War through the Civil Rights Movement. These new giants, as Lorraine Hansberry named them, began to reshape America by fighting for justice in war, in protest, and in art. As she concludes in her photo essay “The Movement,” “It is for us, now, to create an America that deserves them.” On display through February in the Ellis Library Colonnade.
