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DTSTART;TZID=America/Detroit:20261013T200000
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SUMMARY:Popular Science: From Cosmic Origins to Everyday Discovery | Uncovered
DESCRIPTION:Presented by PBS Books and the Association of University Presses (AUPresses)\, UNCOVERED invites readers to discover remarkable books\, engaging authors and ideas that can spark curiosity and conversation. This month\, we explore Popular Science\, beginning with one of humanity’s biggest questions: How did our universe begin? \nDownload BooklistDownload BookmarksJoin cosmologist Niayesh Afshordi and science communicator Phil Halper\, authors of Battle of the Big Bang: The New Tales of Our Cosmic Origins\, published by University of Chicago Press\, for a fascinating conversation about the mysteries surrounding the birth of our universe. The authors explore competing ideas about what may have happened before the Big Bang—from cyclic and bouncing universes to multiverses\, black holes\, string theory and holograms—and discuss how questioning established ideas can lead to new discoveries. \nBeyond the cosmos\, this episode explores the broader world of Popular Science through a companion reading list featuring books about citizen science\, wildlife and evolution\, climate and wildfire\, agriculture and food\, public health\, scientific history and the relationship between science and society. Together\, these books reveal the many ways science helps us understand our world\, challenge assumptions and make sense of the questions that matter to our communities. \nExplore the full Popular Science reading list and discover more books\, authors and ideas to continue the conversation. Visit pbsbooks.org/uncovered for the printable reading list\, featured book information and additional resources to help you keep discovering\, reading and uncovering. \nFeatured Book\nNothing Found \nBattle of the Big Bang: The New Tales of Our Cosmic Origins by Niayesh Afshordi and Phil Halpe \nA thrilling exploration of competing cosmological origin stories\, comparing new scientific ideas that upend our very notions of space\, time\, and reality. \nBy most popular accounts\, the universe started with a bang some 13.8 billion years ago. But what happened before the Big Bang? And how do we know it happened at all? Here prominent cosmologist Niayesh Afshordi and science communicator Phil Halper offer a tour of the peculiar possibilities: bouncing and cyclic universes\, time loops\, creations from nothing\, multiverses\, black hole births\, string theories\, and holograms. Along the way\, they offer both a call for new physics and a riveting story of scientific debate. \nIncorporating insights from Afshordi’s cutting-edge research and Halper’s original interviews with scientists like Stephen Hawking\, Roger Penrose\, and Alan Guth\, Battle of the Big Bang compares these models for the origin of our origins\, showing each theory’s strengths and weaknesses and explaining new attempts to test these notions. Battle of the Big Bang is a tale of rivalries and intrigue\, of clashes of ideas that have raged from Greek antiquity to the present day over whether the universe is eternal or had a beginning\, whether it is unique or one of many. But most of all\, Afshordi and Halper show that this search is filled with wonder\, discovery\, and community-all essential for remembering a forgotten cosmic past. \nAbout the AuthorNiayesh Afshordi is a pro at making science infectious\, and the high-profile reviews and praise for this book capture that spirit. It’s a fascinating topic told by someone who speaks approachably while sharing a reader’s curiosity and enthusiasm. \nPhil Halper is a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and a science popularizer. He is the creator of the popular YouTube series Before the Big Bang\, which has had several million views\, and was previously journalist in residence at the Penn State Institute for Gravitation and the Cosmos. His astronomy images have been featured in major media outlets including The Washington Post\, the BBC\, and The Guardian\, and he has published several papers in peer-reviewed journals. He lives in London. \nAbout This Episode’s Theme: Uncovered Popular ScienceScience begins with questions—about where we came from\, how the natural world works and how discoveries can change the way we understand our lives and our communities. This month\, UNCOVERED explores Popular Science\, bringing together books that invite readers to look more closely at the world around us and the questions that continue to shape our understanding of it. \nOur featured conversation takes us to the very beginning: the origins of the universe. In Battle of the Big Bang: The New Tales of Our Cosmic Origins\, cosmologist Niayesh Afshordi and science communicator Phil Halper explore competing theories about what happened before the Big Bang and how scientists continue to test\, challenge and rethink our understanding of the cosmos. \nBut the search for discovery doesn’t stop at the edge of the universe. Our Popular Science reading list spans ecology and citizen science\, evolution and animal behavior\, climate and wildfire\, agriculture and food\, public health\, the history of science and the ways society shapes scientific knowledge. Together\, these books show how science helps us investigate the extraordinary—from the origins of the universe to the natural world right outside our doors.\nPresented by PBS Books and the Association of University Presses (AUPresses)\, UNCOVERED brings these diverse scientific perspectives to readers and communities as opportunities to learn\, question and start conversations. Explore this month’s reading list and discover where your curiosity takes you. \nEpisode Theme Reading ListDownload Booklist\nNothing Found \nShop through our Bookshop.org or Libro.fm affiliate links and a portion of your purchase helps PBS Books continue to create original content you love. \nFeatured PublisherPublished by the University of Chicago Press \nSince its founding in 1890 as one of the three main divisions of the University of Chicago\, the Press has sought to publish works that meet the highest standards of scholarship\, foster public understanding\, and enrich cultural life. Our publications are written by authors who are the foremost experts in their fields and shape debates both timely and timeless. Through our books and journals\, we aim not only to advance scholarly conversation within and across traditional disciplines but\, in keeping with the University of Chicago’s experimental tradition\, to define new areas of knowledge. \nWe publish for communities of scholars as well as for general readers: trade books by writers\, artists\, and practitioners; reference works that complement our scholarly programs; translations of important foreign-language texts\, both historical and contemporary; books about Chicago and its region; and journals partnered with learned societies and institutions. \nIn our books and journals programs as well as in our distribution business\, we pioneer new ways to bring our authors’ work to readers\, both in print and digitally. Our aim is always to extend the accessibility of knowledge and the intellectual exchange that thrives on it. \nThroughout the Press’s history\, we have supported authors whose work challenges settled ways of thinking and makes a positive difference in the world. The result\, we hope\, is a vigorous pluralism of ideas and methods across our publishing program. \nIn order to fulfill our mission to publish scholarship of the highest standard\, we also strive to cultivate a workplace culture where diverse perspectives\, experiences\, and ideas thrive. \nLearn More at press.uchicago.edu. \nAbout the HostHeather-Marie Montilla\, a dynamic integrative leader\, is an educator and nonprofit manager. She has worked in the nonprofit sector and libraries for over two decades\, making a positive impact in arts\, cultural\, educational\, and community-building arenas. \nHaving joined the PBS Books team as their Library Bureau Chief in Fall 2018\, Montilla is now the National Director of PBS Books and has interviewed more than 150 writers. In addition\, she is a faculty member at Michigan State University and Eastern Michigan University for their Arts and Cultural/Entertainment Management Programs. Having been an Executive Director for 8 years\, Heather has a wide range of experience in management\, finance\, strategic planning\, marketing\, and fundraising. Heather holds a MPA From Columbia University\, a MLIS from Wayne State University\, and a bachelor’s from Duke University. She lives in Chicagoland\, and is married with four children\, a dog\, and a bird.
URL:https://www.pbsbooks.org/event/popular-science-from-cosmic-origins-to-everyday-discovery-uncovered/
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Detroit:20261022T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/Detroit:20261022T210000
DTSTAMP:20261020T151509Z
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SUMMARY:Kentucky | American Stories: A Reading Road Trip
DESCRIPTION:.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe\, .embed-container object\, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }Buckle up and join PBS Books and the Library of Congress as we visit Kentucky on our next stop in American Stories: A Reading Road Trip. Join us on October 22nd at 8 p.m. ET for the episode premiere on the PBS Books YouTube channel\, or watch on the PBS Books Facebook page\, the PBS app\, or pbs.org. Visit pbsbooks.org/readingroadtrip to learn more. \nDownload the BooklistGet the Engagement ToolkitKentucky’s literary story is one that often surprises people\, revealing a rich tradition of writers\, thinkers\, and storytellers whose influence extends far beyond the Bluegrass State. Robert Penn Warren (All the King’s Men) transformed questions of power and ambition into a sweeping portrait of American life. With Ain’t I a Woman?\, bell hooks amplified voices and experiences that had too often been ignored\, reshaping the way generations of readers and thinkers understood race\, gender\, and identity. At the Abbey of Gethsemani\, Thomas Merton (The Seven Storey Mountain) found solitude among the hills\, turning his search for meaning into writing that would reach readers around the world. And across Kentucky\, a circle of writers known as the Fab Five found inspiration close to home. Gurney Norman (Kinfolks)\, James Baker Hall (Tobacco Harvest)\, Ed McClanahan (The Natural Man)\, Wendell Berry (Jayber Crow)\, and Bobbie Ann Mason (In Country) drew from the people\, places\, and rhythms they knew\, transforming Kentucky life into stories that carried well beyond its borders. Together\, their work helped solidify the Commonwealth as a place of literary imagination. \nThat spirit of looking beyond expectations continues in the voices shaping Kentucky’s literary landscape today. Frank X Walker (Affrilachia) gave new visibility to Black voices in Appalachia\, creating a space for their stories\, history\, and experiences in a region often portrayed through a much narrower lens. In The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek\, Kim Michele Richardson brings the hills of Eastern Kentucky to life through the story of the Pack Horse Library Project\, where women traveled winding mountain roads carrying books\, stories\, and new possibilities to remote communities. For generations of young readers\, Debbie Dadey and Marcia Thornton Jones (The Bailey School Kids series) have turned childhood imagination into adventures that keep kids turning the page while inspiring a lifelong love of reading. Silas House (The Tulip Poplars) writes with a deep connection to Appalachia\, offering a more intimate portrait of a region too often reduced to stereotype. And Gwenda Bond (The Frame Up) brings a sense of adventure and possibility to stories that move across genres\, blending fantasy\, mystery\, romance\, and suspense in unexpected ways. \nKentucky’s literary life can be found in some unexpected places\, from winding roads and underground caverns to the libraries\, bookstores\, and gathering places that keep readers connected. At Mammoth Cave\, the world’s longest known cave system offers a landscape steeped in mystery\, while Kentucky’s state parks preserve the natural beauty that has long shaped the stories of the region. At the Abbey of Gethsemani\, visitors can experience the grounds where Thomas Merton found solitude and inspiration. Across the state\, libraries such as the Lexington Public Library and the Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning provide welcoming spaces for readers\, writers\, and ideas to come together\, while independent bookstores keep that connection going from one community to the next. \nBooklist for Reading Road Trip: Kentucky\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAbout American Stories: A Reading Road Trip\nPack your curiosity —PBS Books is hitting the road! In partnership with the Library of Congress Centers for the Book\, American Stories: A Reading Road Trip shines a spotlight on individual U.S. states and select territories to uncover their one-of-a-kind literary treasures. \nFrom iconic authors and unforgettable books to hidden-gem bookstores\, amazing libraries\, and the real-life locations that inspired great works\, this cross-country adventure celebrates the stories that have shaped our shared identity. Along the way\, we’ll meet bestselling authors\, passionate booksellers\, and local storytellers —plus share highlights from local programs and events hosted by each state’s Center for the Book —revealing how their corner of America has left its mark on the nation’s imagination. Aligned with America’s 250th birthday\, each episode invites viewers to explore the heart\, history\, and creative spirit of the United States —all through the lens of books and storytelling. \nNew episodes will stream on select Thursdays at 8pm EST on the PBS Books Facebook page\, on the PBS Books YouTube channel\, pbsbooks.org\, and the PBS app. \nAbout the Library of Congress\nThe Library of Congress is the world’s largest library\, offering access to the creative record of the United States –and extensive materials from around the world –both on-site and online. It is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office. Explore collections\, reference services and other programs and plan a visit at loc.gov; access the official site for U.S. federal legislative information at congress.gov; and register creative works of authorship at copyright.gov. \nAbout PBS Books\nPBS Books is a multi-platform initiative celebrating the love of reading. PBS Books is dedicated to connecting books with audiences by engaging them in unique experiences to spark their curiosity and encourage a life-long love of reading and learning. Through social and digital engagement and live coverage of important literary events across the country\, PBS Books celebrates books and writers and works to foster a passion for reading among public media viewers and listeners.Visit pbsbooks.org\, subscribe to the PBS Books YouTube channel\, and follow PBS Books on social media to learn more.
URL:https://www.pbsbooks.org/event/kentucky-american-stories-a-reading-road-trip/
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Detroit:20261023T080000
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SUMMARY:Fearless by Design | Penny Stamps Speaker Series: Shane Ward
DESCRIPTION:Raised on Detroit’s west side as one of seven children\, Shane Ward’s path to global design leadership was anything but conventional. A full academic scholarship to the University of Michigan opened doors that introduced him to the transformative power of imagination\, creativity\, and design. What began as a passion for drawing\, storytelling\, and community evolved into a career spanning more than three decades in the footwear industry\, ultimately leading to design leadership roles with some of the world’s most influential brands. \nAfter graduating from the University of Michigan\, Ward began his career with Adidas in Portland\, Oregon\, where he also developed a lifelong appreciation for the outdoors. Over the years\, he has designed footwear for brands including Puma\, Converse\, Keen/Fila\, Rockport\, and G.H. Bass. \nTogether with his identical twin brother\, Ward co-founded DETNY by Shane & Shawn\, serving as creative director for the men’s and women’s footwear line. The collection was carried by Nordstrom and Macy’s and featured in its own boutique in New York City’s Nolita neighborhood. Beyond footwear\, Ward has expanded his creative practice through large-scale paintings that reflect his love of sneaker culture and the natural world. His ongoing Metamorphosis series explores the intersection of fashion\, identity\, and impermanence through iconic sneaker silhouettes layered with cherry blossoms and butterflies. The paintings contrast the fleeting nature of sneaker trends with the enduring cultural legacy of classic designs\, using these instantly recognizable forms to examine themes of time\, memory\, social status\, and our shared perceptions of style and performance. Like the blossoms and butterflies that drift beyond our control\, the works suggest that while fashion and life are transient\, a rare few ideas and objects leave an indelible mark across generations. \nToday\, Ward serves as design director of footwear at Adidas\, where he leads the design team for Originals Running. His journey continues to shape his belief that design is fundamentally about optimism\, possibility\, and expanding what individuals believe is achievable for themselves and their communities. \nWith support from Design Core Detroit and Detroit Unesco City of Design. \nSeries presenting partners: Detroit PBS\, ALL ARTS\, and PBS Books. Media partner: Michigan Public.
URL:https://www.pbsbooks.org/event/fearless-by-design-penny-stamps-speaker-series-shane-ward/
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Detroit:20261029T200000
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SUMMARY:Marble Hall Murders by Anthony Horowitz | PBS Books Readers Club
DESCRIPTION:PBS Books Readers Club welcomes bestselling mystery author Anthony Horowitz to discuss his latest novel and the PBS Masterpiece series Marble Hall Murders. The episode premieres October 29 at 8 PM ET as a PBS Books Facebook Live event and will also be available on the PBS Books YouTube channel\, pbsbooks.org\, and the PBS app. \nGet the Book\nNothing Found \nShop through our Bookshop.org or Libro.fm affiliate links and a portion of your purchase helps PBS Books continue to create original content you love. \nMarble Hall Murders is the third and final novel in Anthony Horowitz’s Magpie Murders series\, which follows book editor Susan Ryeland and detective Atticus Pünd in a mind-bending mystery that links the past and present. \nIn Marble Hall Murders\, Susan Ryeland is back in London\, working as a freelance editor when she is assigned the last job she wants: another Atticus Pünd novel. Even worse\, the continuation is written by Elliot Crace\, a troubled young author who also happens to be the grandson of legendary children’s author Miriam Crace. \nAs Susan reads the manuscript\, Pünd’s Last Case\, she begins to uncover startling connections between Lady Margaret Chalfont and her extended family and the Crace family. When both women appear to have been poisoned\, Susan realizes the manuscript may hold the clues to a real-life murder. As she follows the trail Elliot has concealed within his story\, Susan once again finds herself in grave danger. And when another murder occurs\, she becomes the number-one suspect. \nIf Susan can’t crack the case\, she could end up behind bars — or become the next victim. \nPart of what keeps Horowitz’s mysteries so unpredictable is his approach to the characters themselves. Rather than relying on familiar archetypes\, he creates characters with unexpected quirks\, contradictions\, and personalities that feel true to life — keeping readers guessing about who they can trust and what they might do next. \nAs Horowitz explains: “Even Agatha Christie\, whom I worship\, tended to stick to the same sort of cast of characters. I try to avoid that as much as I can to make the characters a little bit different\, a little bit more quirky. That’s the most important thing for me— to make them believable\, to make them true.” \nMarble Hall Murders is a brilliantly constructed dual-plot murder mystery that might just be Horowitz’s most extensive and intricately plotted book in the series. With characters readers have grown to love and new characters who leave us with trust issues\, it’s quite possibly Horowitz’s best book in the series. \nThis episode is brought to you in part by Libro.fm. Libro.fm shares profits from your audiobook purchases with your chosen bookstore\, partnering with more than 4\,000 stores around the world. \nPBS Watch-Alike: Marble Hall Murders on Masterpiece MysteriesAnthony Horowitz’s mystery series returns to the screen this September with Marble Hall Murders\, starring Lesley Manville as Susan Ryeland and Tim McMullan as Atticus Pünd. Adapted from the third and final book in Horowitz’s bestselling Susan Ryeland series\, the new MASTERPIECE mystery follows the acclaimed fan-favorites Magpie Murders and Moonflower Murders. Marble Hall Murders premieres Sunday\, Sept. 6\, 2026\, at 9/8c\, only on PBS MASTERPIECE. Stream previous seasons now on pbs.org and the PBS App. \nAvailable to stream now on pbs.org and the PBS App.
URL:https://www.pbsbooks.org/event/marble-hall-murders-by-anthony-horowitz-pbs-books-readers-club/
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Detroit:20261105T200000
DTEND;TZID=America/Detroit:20261105T200000
DTSTAMP:20260916T152519Z
CREATED:20260916T143222Z
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SUMMARY:Barbara Kingsolver LIVE: A Virtual Book Club Event
DESCRIPTION:PBS Books welcomes Pulitzer Prize-winning author Barbara Kingsolver for an exclusive live discussion about her brand-new novel Partita— a book she says she has been waiting her whole life to write. \nThis interactive virtual book club event will take place on November 5\, 2026\,at 8PM ET. Registration is available with a qualifying donation of $150 or more. Along with access to the virtual event\, donors will receive a copy of the book\, Partita\, and the PBS Books mug. \nGet Your Ticket + Book + Mug\nNothing Found \nPartita\, on sale October 6th\, is a deeply moving novel about art\, music\, class\, memory\, and the life-altering power of love. \nLivia Cable has made her peace with her marriage and modest livelihood in the farm country where she grew up\, until a shocking phone call from an old lover shakes her to the core. Decades earlier\, this man knew her as Livia Bohusz\, a music conservatory student estranged from her home and family\, uncertain of anything except her passion for music and her promise as an extraordinary pianist. His request\, now\, to see her again stirs up ghosts she has kept at bay for a lifetime. \nWith razor-sharp acuity\, Kingsolver’s new novel Partita reflects on class barriers\, the risks of ambition\, and the timeless\, life-changing powers of art. Told in movements that mirror a Bach partita\, the novel unfolds with the precision and emotional power of music itself: each section building on the last\, each theme returning transformed. \nKingsolver reflects\, “This novel started small. It would be about a young musician\, I thought; a little love story. But it kept expanding as I wrote\, opening and closing around itself like a set of nested boxes. Partita is a story of a brief\, passionate\, life-changing affair\, contained inside a bigger love story\, all wrapped up in what might be the greatest romance of all: our eternal human longing for art and beauty.” \nDuring this live virtual event moderated by PBS Books hosts Lauren Smith and Fred Nahhat\, we’ll explore the origins of Kingsolver’s new novel\, reflect on her remarkable career as an author\, and revisit highlights from some of her bestselling works. Audience members will also have the opportunity to interact in a lively book club chat and submit their own questions for Barbara Kingsolver. \nRegister Here
URL:https://www.pbsbooks.org/event/barbara-kingsolver-live-a-virtual-book-club-event/
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