News and Events

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2013 FREE TALKS

Poetry reading by Judith Beveridge and Les Murray
Tuesday 18 June 2013

Judith Beveridge and Les Murray return to Fisher Library for readings from their collections of poetry.

Judith, poet, editor and teacher of poetry writing at the University of Sydney will read from her forthcoming book, Devadatta's Poems. This book is based on the historical figure of Devadatta who was a cousin to the Buddha. He joined the Buddhist Order but became jealous and ambitious and tried to murder the Buddha three times. The book follows Devadatta's time as a monk when he plotted to kill the Buddha and take over the Buddhist Order.

Les, appointed as a visiting Professor to the University of Sydney in 2008, will read from his book The Best 100 Poems of Les Murray published in 2012 by Black Inc. From his life’s work so far, spanning more than four decades, Les Murray has selected these 100 poems, his personal best, including classics such as 'The Broad Bean Sermon', 'An Absolutely Ordinary Rainbow' and 'The Dream of Wearing Shorts Forever'. He will top this up with some recent poems.

All are invited to attend this free event and afternoon tea will be provided. This is a popular event and seats are limited so book early to avoid disappointment.

Time: 3-4.30pm
Where: Seminar Room, Level 2, Fisher Library
RSVP: by Thursday 13 June
Email: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au or phone 9114 0866.

2012 FREE LECTURE SERIES

Hands on Manuscripts: An Introduction to the Spanish Liturgical Music Manuscript Collection
Wednesday 31 October

Since the Friends of the Library have played an integral part in the building of this collection you are invited to an informal session in which these manuscripts will be introduced. The manuscripts date from the thirteenth to the late eighteenth centuries, with the bulk of them dated from the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries.

You will get an opportunity to take a private guided tour through the collection, to learn a little about them, to touch them and to ask questions about them. You do not need a knowledge of music to appreciate these treasures from a bygone era, but you might be surprised at how much we can learn from them.

These manuscripts are currently being studied by an international group of scholars led by Dr Jane Morlet Hardie at the Medieval and Early Modern Centre.

Numbers are limited, as this session will take place in the Rare Book Room, so please book early.

Speaker: Dr Jane Hardie, The Medieval and Early Modern Centre
Time: 5.30 to 6.30pm followed by light refreshments
Where: Rare Book Library, Level 1, Fisher Library
RSVP: by Friday 26 October
Email: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au or phone 9114 0866.

Ern Malley as Vampire
Tuesday 2 October

For a poet who never existed, Ern Malley is not only still very much alive, but seems to gather strength as the years go by. What are the sources of his power?

Associate Professor David G Brooks will speak on the tangled web of literary hoaxes and some fascinating discoveries he has made about the poet Ern Malley.

The poetry of Ern Malley is the most famous literary hoax perpetrated in Australia. It was dreamed up by two brilliant young men with strong associations to the University of Sydney. Their hoax devastated the career of another brilliant man, also a poet, and brought on obscenity charges which hit world news. The story continues to fascinate and resonate in unexpected ways. Was it totally serendipitous that links to other poets and events are still surfacing?

David Brooks is a successful poet and author. He teaches Australian Literature in the English Department at the University of Sydney and co-edits the journal Southerly. Over his career he has come across connections that continue to surface around the Ern Malley hoax, a wide group of people, the poetry itself and even more unexpected links to France. The result was an acclaimed book, The Sons of Clovis, and large audiences at this year's Sydney Writers' Festival.

Time: 6pm–7pm
Light refreshments from 5.30pm
Where: Seminar Room, Level 2, Fisher Library
Cost: Free event but registration required
RSVP: by Friday, 28 September
Email: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au or phone 9114 0866.

The Hanging Garden and beyond: Exploring Patrick White's manuscripts
The recent publication of Patrick White's novel The Hanging Garden was made possible by the work of University of Sydney researchers who transcribed the work from manuscript in the National Library of Australia. Professors Margaret Harris and Elizabeth Webby, together with research assistant Jennifer Moore, will talk about their Australian Research Council project on the Patrick White manuscripts acquired by the NLA in 2006, demonstrating ways in which this material freshly illuminates White's career.

Event details
When: Wednesday, 6 June
Time: 6pm–7.30pm
Where: Foyer (level 2), Eastern Avenue, Sydney Law School, Camperdown Campus
Cost: Free event but registration required (see below)
RSVP: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au or phone 9114 0866.

Annual General Meeting
When: Wednesday 29 August, 5.30 to 6.00pm
Where: Meeting Room, former Rare Books Library
Level 2 Fisher Library
Followed by talks at 6pm
Speakers: Anne Bell, University Librarian and Dr Neil Radford, University Librarian 1980-96
Where: New Function Room, Level 2, Fisher Library
RSVP: by Friday 24 August
Email: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au or phone 9114 0866

2011 FREE LECTURE SERIES

The Friends of the University Library talk about the books they especially cherish.

A talk by Paul Giles
Before coming to the University of Sydney's Challis Chair of English in 2010, Paul Giles was Professor of American Literature at the University of Oxford and, before that, University Lecturer in American Literature at the University of Cambridge. Born in London in 1957, he also lived for seven years in Portland, Oregon, where he taught at Portland State University and at Reed College, and he later served (between 2005 and 2007) as President of the International American Studies Association.  He is the author of seven books: Hart Crane (1986); American Catholic Arts and Fictions (1992); Transatlantic Insurrections (2001); Virtual Americas (2002); Atlantic Republic (2006), and Transnationalism in Practice (2010). The most recent, The Global Remapping of American Literature, has just been published by Princeton University Press.

His My Books talk will touch on a range of topics, including the scholarship of A. J. A. Waldock, one of his predecessors in the Chair of English at Sydney, and his book James, Joyce and others (London: Williams & Norgate, 1937).  This was published at a time when Joyce’s Ulysses was banned in Australia, and until now Waldock’s pioneering work has never been held in the Fisher Library.
When: Thursday 22 September
5.30pm for 6.00pm
Where: Victoria Park Room, Lvl 5 Fisher Library
Eastern Ave, Camperdown Campus
RSVP: by Monday 19 September
Email: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au

The fossil record of seven decades of undisciplined reading
Speaker: Yvonne Cossart, Emeritus Professor of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, University of Sydney
When: Wednesday 15 June
5.30pm for 6.00pm
Where: Victoria Park Room, Lvl 5 Fisher Library
Eastern Ave, Camperdown Campus
RSVP: by Friday 10 June
Email: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au

Campus Novels: Fiction or Reality?
Speaker: Kate Sexton, former Associate Librarian, University of Sydney
When: Thursday 14 April
5.30pm for 6.00pm
Where: Victoria Park Room, Lvl 5 Fisher Library
Eastern Ave, Camperdown Campus
RSVP: by Monday 11 April
Email: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au

50th Annual General Meeting
When: Thursday 21 July, 5.30 to 6.00pm
The Boardroom, Administration Office
Level 5 Fisher Library
followed by a talk at 6pm
Speaker: John Shipp, University Librarian
Where: Victoria Park Room, Level 5 Fisher Library
Cost: Free but registration required as space is limited.
RSVP: by Monday 18 July
Email: library.rsvp@sydney.edu.au

Past Functions and Talks

• 2008-10
• 2000-07
• 1985-99
• 1962-84

Other University of Sydney Events

University of Sydney News and Events calendar
Details of events on campus for staff, students and members of the community.

Faculty of Arts News and Events
Includes information about University of Sydney Alumni Association (SUAA) events.

Alumni, Community and Schools
Information for University of Sydney alumni and community members.