Friendly reminder that tomorrow(!!!), RBML is hosting a reception to ring in our new exhibit, "Sweetbitter: The Literary Legacies and Afterlives of Sappho," from 3-5 pm. Until then, please enjoy this timelapse video of our exhibit staff hard at work. 💪

Join us on Friday, September 19, from 3-5 pm for a reception to open our new exhibit, "Sweetbitter: The Literary Legacies and Afterlives of Sappho." This event will feature live dance and spoken word performances, as well as a look at the exhibit! All are welcome. Refreshments will be served.

Pepperoni pizza, anyone? We're not quite sure why, but this week's #MarbledMonday is making us feel a bit hungry! Whet your appetite for knowledge with Das erste Buch für Kinder, die gern bald lesen lernen wollen from @illinoisrbml.bsky.social: go.library.illinois.edu/Marbled1810

Visitors often ask: "What's the oldest item you have at RBML?" To which we answer: "A cuneiform tablet!" Pictured with our tablet are examples of old and new housing, one keeping the tablet safe for the last 100 years or so, and the other supporting its preservation for even more years to come!

Established as a national holiday in 1894, Labor Day is celebrated each year in September to honor the achievements of workers in the United States. RBML will be closed on Monday, September 1, in observance of the holiday and will resume our regular hours on Tuesday, September 2.

Happy first day of classes, Illini! Get back to basics with this 1552 Abcedarium Anglico-Latinum ; protyrunculis Richardo Huloeto exscriptore from @illinoisrbml.bsky.social

Today is International Dog Day, so we're celebrating by learning how to draw some cute canine friends. Consider trying one out (or sketching your own pet) and tag us in your drawing(s)! 🐶

English writer H.G. Wells used bicycles as a literary vehicle in many of his published works, including The Wheels of Chance (1896), which he wrote while living in the town of Woking, Surrey. Pictured here are some of Wells' drawings or "picshuas" from his time in Surrey that feature bicycles. 🚲

Haven't had the chance to check out our 2024-2025 exhibit? Time is running out! Visit RBML by the end of the week to take a look at "We are each other's harvest": Gwendolyn Brooks and the Formation of Black Literary Canon before installation begins on our next exhibit. 👀

One of the oldest printed books to incorporate maps of the Aegean Islands, Bartolommeo da li Sonetti’s "Isolario" belonged to a genre of "isolarii," or island books, which was popular in the Mediterranean during the 15th and 16th century Renaissance.

Happy International Friendship Day! Frog and Toad were created by children’s author Arnold Lobel and debuted in Frog and Toad Are Friends (1970). This pop-up book depicts three of the amphibious characters’ everyday adventures, including planting a garden, going for a swim, and flying a kite. 🐸

Have you ever seen a book made entirely of silk? One item getting a lot of reading room attention recently is this "Livre de Prières." This book was manufactured with the Jacquard process, which relied on perforated punch cards to operate a loom, and is considered a precursor to early programming.

On this day in 1955, Disneyland first opened its doors. As the California theme park celebrates its 70th anniversary, we invite you to visit our new pop-up exhibit, "Yesterday, Tomorrow and Fantasy": 70 Years of Disneyland Park! ✨🏰

Today we celebrate the birthday of French novelist Marcel Proust (1871-1922), whose correspondence contains examples of past communication technologies, like telegrams, pneumatic messages, and even a letter sent via balloon!

Tomorrow is Independence Day, a holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence (1776) in the United States. RBML will be closed on Friday, July 4, in observance of the holiday and will reopen on Monday, July 7th. 🎆

Are you feeling the heat? Cool off with this recipe for Helado de Coco! This recently digitized cookbook from @illinoisrbml.bsky.social was compiled by Maria Luisa Sanchez in the 1920s. Find this recipe and more: go.library.illinois.edu/MariaLuisaSa...

Unless you've somehow avoided being outside this week, you're well aware that summer is officially here. What better way to beat the heat than by knitting or crocheting a new sporty fit! 🎾🏖☀

Tomorrow we celebrate Juneteenth, a holiday that commemorates the ending of slavery in the United States. RBML will be closed tomorrow (Thursday, June 19) in observance of the holiday, but we will reopen on Friday, June 20. Be sure to check out our website for up-to-date hours!

Today is Bloomsday, which celebrates the life and work of Irish writer James Joyce. Joyce’s novel Ulysses (1922) follows protagonist Leopold Bloom in Dublin on June 16, 1904, using a stream-of-consciousness style to explore the characters’ thoughts and feelings on enduring themes of human existence.

Pollinator Week is right around the corner! Come learn about your local ecosystem's hard-working pollinators by checking out our newest pop-up exhibit dedicated to the birds, bees, and creatures in between that help pollinate our natural world. 🌷🐝

Happy birthday, Gwendolyn Brooks! An esteemed poet and prominent figure of the Black Arts Movement, Ms. Brooks (1917-2000) was passionate about encouraging young people to write and engage with poetry.

Happy Pride Month! As June kicks off with pride flags galore, we’re showing off some color in our collection.

What we did in BookLab today—visited @illinoisrbml.bsky.social to consider the many forms of the book, printed our commonplace book on the hand & jobbing presses, including printing our covers on the paper we made yesterday, & chatting with @transbookhistory.bsky.social about his artists books—phew!

Yesterday BookLab was so busy I didn’t post, but what we did included: a gonzo tour of experimental & artists books @illinoisrbml.bsky.social, creating our zine pages & printing them on the Risograph, & talking about the history of electronic literature

Happy birthday to British writer Ian Fleming (1908-1964)! From his beginnings as an editor for Kemsley Newspapers to the creation of his iconic James Bond character (seen here portrayed by Roger Moore), Fleming's writings have become a staple of the spy genre and a monument in popular culture.

Happy International Tea Day! 🍵 Tea is a beverage consumed by many around the world. Many cultures practice different customs and rituals for serving and drinking their tea, which can offer insight into their shared histories, beliefs, and social values.

Thrilled to be hosting this partially at @illinoisrbml.bsky.social on Tuesday & Wednesday.

Here's some good news for your Monday... Our 2024-2025 exhibit—"We are each other's harvest": Gwendolyn Brooks and the Formation of Black Literary Canon—is now viewable online! Check it out at the link below! 🤩

We’re thinking small! Today's collection spotlight showcases some of the tiniest books we have. Our criterion: They must fit in the palm of our hands! 🔍 According to the Library of Congress’s Miniature Books Ruler, our selection ranges from Micro-Miniature (1/4 in-1 in) to Miniature (1-3 in).

Twenty-one pieces of manuscript correspondence relating to Arctic and Antarctic exploration have recently been cataloged! Learn more about these materials in our most recent blog post: wordpress.library.illinois.edu/rbx/2025/05/...

To continue the Preservation Week fun, take a look at some images from our recent experiment with gold leaf. An axial light source positioned in different ways with different power levels changes how the gold leaf pops and draws the eye in different directions. Which image would you choose?

Join us on Thursday, May 8, from 3-5 pm for some Reading Day relaxation! Enjoy coloring, puzzling, and button making, all featuring images from RBML's collection. 🖍🧩🤩 Refreshments will be provided. All are welcome!

Calling all UIUC graduate students! Do you have a research project that would benefit from some time with RBML's collections? Apply for the Velde Graduate Fellowship! 💡 Applications are due by 5 PM CDT on Friday, May 30, 2025. More info on how to apply: go.library.illinois.edu/VeldeGraduat...

If you missed our initial call for the "Building Book Labs" Symposium @skeuomorphpress.org & @illinoisrbml.bsky.social but want to attend, we have had a number of our international participants (understandably) bow out & could accommodate a few late applicants—send me a message if interested

April is National Deaf History Month. In 1644, John Bulwer attempted to record the vocabulary contained in hand gestures through his Chirologia, or the Naturall Language of the Hand. Though the volume is aimed toward orators for use in rhetoric, Bulwer would later advocate for d/Deaf education.

Happy National Poetry Month! 📚 Our new pop-up exhibit, "Verses in Vision: Exploring Visual Poetry," is a collaboration with Ricker Library of Architecture & Art. Make sure to visit both RBML and Ricker to view items celebrating visual poetry, and join Ricker's collage workshop to make your own!

Happy International Children’s Book Day! 📖 Today we are highlighting our S-Collection of children’s and young adult literature, which features first and early editions of some of the most popular children’s books.

Find "Girls" by Gwendolyn Brooks, held by @illinoisrbml.bsky.social in the Digital Special Collections at go.library.illinois.edu/BrooksGirls

We're excited to announce that we have acquired the production archive for Martin Scorcese's classic 1973 film Goncharov, including all legendary 146 script revisions, and the infamously banned footage shot in the Kremlin itself! (art credit: Alex Korotchuk) (Also: April Fools!)

Join us on Friday, April 4, from 3-5 pm for a hands-on journey through history! Play historical board games that bring the past to life as you roll the dice, make your moves, and uncover the stories behind them. 🃏🎲 This event is free and fun for all ages! Refreshments will be served.

Join us on Thursday, April 3, from 3-5 pm for a lecture by Professor Justine S. Murison (Department of English), titled "Why Read The Scarlet Letter Today?" This event is free and all are welcome to attend! Refreshments will be provided and copies of the book will be available for purchase.

(If you want to know more about the fire and the bigger story, my recent talk @illinoisrbml.bsky.social will be of interest!): youtu.be/E0ofUoEv4cc?...

Literary connections in literary collections! ✒️ Today's Collection Spotlight highlights correspondence between the literary giants in our H.G. Wells, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Carl Sandburg collections.

What is a mathematician’s favorite dessert? Pi! Today, we are looking at "Le pastissier françois," a French cookbook from the mid-17th century written by François Pierre de La Varenne. He is credited with being the first comprehensive French work on pastry-making, including, of course, pies!

In honor of #WomensHistoryMonth, we're highlighting two contemporary women poets in our collection—also two U.S. Poets Laureate!

Begin Women's History Month with the Women Printers Digital Collection from @illinoisrbml.bsky.social! Anne Griffin, printer, and Anne Boler, bookseller, were frequent collaborators on theological works such as this 1636 Meditations and disquisitions upon the Lord's prayer.

Did you know today is Floral Design Day? We're celebrating this week's warmer weather by looking at The Florist and Pomologist, and Suburban Gardener from @illinoisrbml.bsky.social. Only 20 days until Spring! View the full volume at go.library.illinois.edu/SuburbanGard...

Calling all mushroom enthusiasts! Our new pop-up exhibit, "Fungal Fascinations: Depictions and Descriptions of Mushrooms from Antiquity to Early Modern Science," is now up and ready for visitors. Stop by sometime and take a look! 🍄

Join us on Friday, March 7 from 3-5 pm for a roundtable discussion to conclude the first annual Global Book History at Illinois workshop! 📖 Speakers will touch on their work championing the study of classical and medieval Greek letters and literatures, and reflect briefly on this new program.

“Computer” (poem) by Gwendolyn Brooks, 1983, @illinoisrbml.bsky.social.