The Life of Books

September 6, at 3:00 pm in the Alice Louise Auditorium.

Tom Mole, Professor of English Literature and Director of the Centre for the History of the Book, University of Edinburgh, will present a lecture titled, The Life of Books.

How do we live with books? In the lecture, Tom Mole considers how books as objects become meaningful throughout our lives. For many of us, the source of our attachment to physical books lie in early childhood. At school, we learn to invest emotionally in books as objects in ways that go well beyond the texts they contain. Books are often given on significant occasions, or presented in educational settings. They play an important role in structuring and mediating relationships. And, at the end of our lives, books can be some of the most enduring legacies we leave behind us. Tracking our engagement with books across the life course, this lecture shows how tightly the lives of books and people are entwined.

This event is co-sponsored by the English Department and the BYU Library.

Admission is free.