Event Details

The Eternal Passion: A Conversation with Nicholas A. Basbanes

The Eternal Passion: A Conversation with Nicholas A. Basbanes

Nicholas A. Basbanes and Kevin O'Sullivan

When it was first published in 1995, Nicholas A. Basbanes’s A Gentle Madness was described by critics as an “exceptionally entertaining and comprehensive history of bibliomania,” “a wonderful gallery of eccentrics, isolatos, charmers and visionaries,” and “compulsory for anyone seriously interested in books or curious about the manic nature of collecting.” Texas A&M University Libraries is proud to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of this landmark work with a large exhibition, which draws from the author’s extensive archives and professional library (on display through 30 November 2020).  In conjunction, we are delighted to host this special program, which will feature Nicholas A. Basbanes and curator Kevin M. O’Sullivan discussing highlights from the exhibition. Please join us as we explore the stories behind the writing and publication of A Gentle Madness. This event is free and open to the public.

This is a virtual talk. Please register, and a Zoom link will be sent to you prior to the start of the event (registration closes 24 hours before the event). This presentation will be recorded.
 
Inquiries: Dr. Marini, fmarini@library.tamu.edu

 

About the Speakers

Nicholas A. Basbanes is the author of ten critically acclaimed works of cultural history, with a particular emphasis on various aspects of books and book culture. A Gentle Madness: Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books, his first book, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for nonfiction in 1995, and was a New York Times Notable Book. In 2016, he was awarded a Public Scholar research fellowship by the National Endowment for the Humanities, his second NEH grant, for work on Cross of Snow: A Life of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, which was published in June 2020 by Knopf. 

Kevin M. O’Sullivan is Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts for the Cushing Memorial Library & Archives at Texas A&M University, where he also serves as the Director of the Book History Workshop.

Image credit: Nicholas A. Basbanes; photo by Edd Cote.


 

Date:
Thursday, October 22, 2020
Time:
1:00pm - 2:00pm
Time Zone:
Central Time - US & Canada (change)
Presenter:
Nicholas A. Basbanes and Kevin O'Sullivan
Campus:
Cushing Library
Categories:
  Cushing     Event  
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