UW Madison does a Common Book reading program every year called Go Big Read
This year’s book is Radioactive: A Tale of Love and Fallout by Lauren Redniss.
This visually compelling book depicts the discovery and implementation of radioactive power by Marie and Pierre Curie (and others). Through her writing, Redniss captures the complexity of the intersections between science, history, and biography. The images of the book were developed using a technique called cyanotype. It is being read and discussed in history, science, journalism, engineering, English and nursing curriculum this fall and next spring. If you are an instructor who would like to use it in class, it is not too late to get copies.
If you are a student who is in a class that is using the book, you can bring your coupon to the Ebling 2nd floor Service desk for a copy. If you would like to read Radioactive on your own, Ebling has a number of copies that can be checked out. The call number is: WZ 100 C975R 2011. Ask at the Service Desk if you are having trouble finding a copy.
Also, stay tuned for the opening of “Fallout: The Mixed Blessing of Radiation & the Public Health,” an exhibition in Ebling’s 3rd floor Reading Room on November 1st from 4:00-6:00. Fallout runs until April 1, 2013.
Photo of UW student Elizabeth Nelson by Amanda Lambert.