At first glance, this cowboy comic seems like it belongs on a refrigerator, not preserved in a research library. This is no ordinary eight-year-old’s picture. The creator was none other than Kazuo Ishiguro, the 2016 Nobel Laureate in Literature. Known for complex novels about the ethics of technological progress and the uncertainty of cultural memory, …
Publications
International Women’s History: The Convoy of 31000, Episode 1
In this episode of Death and Numbers, part of a series on international women’s history, Amy Vidor and Caroline Barta talk about author and activist Charlotte Delbo. Read more: Be sure to read Delbo’s Convoy to Auschwitz (English translation) Caroline Moorehead wrote about Delbo’s convoy in her novel A Train in Winter
Food for Thought, Episode 3
In this special three-part series from Death and Numbers, we’re cracking open cookbooks and archival records to learn about the bond between food and text. The final episode uses the recipe collection to represent the sometimes haphazard, but often meaningful associations created around our closest relationships with food. Read more: Under current U.S. copyright law, …
International Women’s History: A Storm in June, Episode 2
In this episode of Death and Numbers, part of a series on international women’s history, Amy Vidor and Caroline Barta talk about author Irène Némirovsky. Read more: To see some of Némirovsky’s works, go to http://www.mjhnyc.org/irene/ Read Suite française by Irène Némirovsky and Le Mirador by Elisabeth Gille The Otto List, featuring the names of authors banned …
International Women’s History: A Happy Feminist, Episode 3
In this episode of Death and Numbers, part of a series for International Women’s Day, Amy Vidor and Caroline Barta talk about Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Read more: Gift a copy of We Should All Be Feminists to all your friends! The entirety of Adichie’s TEDxEuston talk “Why we should all be feminists” is available here …
Why on earth is there a statue of a black African saint in a cathedral in Germany?
This article features the research of Dr. Geraldine Heng, Associate Professor of English and Comparative Literature at the University of Texas at Austin. Imagine you’re a white, Christian pilgrim traveling in eastern Germany during the 13th century. You arrive at the Magdeburg Cathedral and kneel in supplication. As you look up, you realize there’s something different …
What on earth do Beyoncé, this sphinx, and Napoléon have in common?
They’re all featured in “Apeshit”–a music video dropped this past weekend during Beyoncé and JAY-Z Carter’s tour. The video introduced fans to Everything is Love, a collaborative album celebrating black identity and fame in 2018 America. “Apeshit” was filmed inside the Louvre museum in front of statutes like “The Great Sphinx of Tanis” and paintings like “The Consecration …
Why on earth is an English suffragette’s grave in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia?
Sylvia Pankhurst, Born Manchester 5 May 1882, Died Addis Ababa 27 September 1960 In front of the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia lies the grave of Sylvia Pankhurst, one of the most famous English suffragettes. At 74, Pankhurst moved to Ethiopia at the invitation of Emperor Haile Selassie. Why is Pankhurst’s final resting …
Food For Thought, Episode 2
In this special three-part series from Death & Numbers, we’re cracking open cookbooks and archival records to learn about the bond between food and text. Our second episode breaks down how technology influences food writing and criticism by focusing on the effect of visual-based technology. Read more! Milkshakes from the Peached Tortilla in Austin, Texas …
Food for Thought, Episode 1
In this special three-part series of Death & Numbers, we’re cracking open cookbooks and archival records to learn about the bond between food and text. In this first episode, we pair a largely forgotten 17th century French cookbook with Julia Child’s classic cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking to consider how food writing shapes cultural transmission. Find …