The UA Campus was buzzing as usual on Nov. 8, save for a two-peaked tent where classicistscradled the spine of Homer’s “Odyssey.” In 10-minute increments, they completed a non-stop 11-hour reading of this ancient poem —translated by Emily Wilson — at a volume so intimate you had to tuck under the tent to hear it.The…
Seventy. That’s the percentage of fourth graders in Arizona who don’t read proficiently. If that isn’t alarming enough, a whopping 56 percent of third-graders failed the reading portion of the AzMERIT test in 2017, meaning they scored neither proficient nor highly proficient. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, 65 percent of fourth-graders nationwide…
Eight-year-old John Tittle selects a book from a shelf at the Nanini Library in Tucson. Excited over his serendipitous find, he skips over to 7-year-old Bree crouched at a table nearby, proudly showing her the colorful illustrations of a miner and his donkey. “Can I read to you?” he asks her. Bree wags her tail…
The books are back in town. The Tucson Festival of Books returns to the University of Arizona campus Saturday and Sunday for the ninth year. Hannah Isaac, an AmeriCorps volunteer with the Festival of Books, says they are expecting 135,000 people to attend this year. The festival will have over 350 authors involved of all…
“X, O, C, H, I, Q, U, E, T, Z, A, L … Xochiquetzal,” said Nicola, the uncertain contestant. “I truly can’t believe it, but you’re right!” announced librarian Lupita Chavez. The room full of appalled bar patrons started to clap, cheer and clink their beer glasses together as they came to terms with the young…
