What are you doing at 7 a.m. this Saturday? If you’re awake and live in Nebraska, be sure to check tune into 91.1 FM to hear John Christgau talk to Only a Game host Bill Littlefield about his new book, Kokomo Joe. Kokomo Joe, by the way, is about Yoshio Kobuki, the first Japanese-American Jockey. Kobuki rose to fame in the world of horse racing just as World War II was beginning – an era filled with racism, discrimination and far worse for Japanese Americans. Through Kobuki’s story, Christgau tells a larger story about what it meant to be Japanese-American during … Continue reading Another day, another UNP author on NPR

I begin today’s blog post with Google news: You may have heard about Google Book Search, which basically provides scans of books online for free, and the full text of certain books and collections for a fee. Some authors feel this violates copyright laws, and filed a class action suit against Google in 2005. And today, the Justice Department granted those authors opposed to Google Book Search a four-month extension to decide whether to opt out of Google Books Search, which some say means the Justice Department is taking the authors’ concerns seriously. New York Times story is here, and … Continue reading A whole lotta NYT; also a whole lotta quilts

It’s been a while since I incorporated any historical milestones into this blog, and I felt it was high time. Hence today’s post. According to the History Channel Web site, on this day in history in 1967, Muhammad Ali was stripped of his heavyweight title after he refused to be inducted into the U.S. Army. Ali cited his Muslim beliefs as reason for his refusal. The University of Nebraska Press is the publisher of Ali’s biography, Sting Like a Bee: The Muhammad Ali Story, by Jose Torres. Torres himself was a famous boxer; he won an Olympic Silver Medal in … Continue reading This Day in History

Today marks Holocaust Remembrance Day, a day set aside to remember those who suffered more than 60 years ago. Hédi Fried, a Holocaust survivor, is the author of the autobiography, The Road to Auschwitz: Fragments of a Life, edited and translated by Michael Meyer and published by the University of Nebraska Press. Fried commented, "It took me forty years to realize that I am a witness and that it is my task to tell what I experienced." Read more about Hédi on her blog entry at the Huffington Post. Hédi is featured in the documentary, The Last Survivor, presented by Righteous Pictures. The … Continue reading Holocaust Remembrance Day, honoring Holocaust Survivor Hédi Fried, UNP author and subject of new documentary