Sarah Uthoff: In the Kitchen with Laura

Indianola Activity Center, 2204 W 2nd Ave, Indianola, IA 50125, USA

In the Kitchen with LauraIn the Kitchen With Laura mixes stories and information about Laura Ingalls Wilder’s life with food history and hands-on cooking. It’s the 1930s and we find ourselves in Laura’s kitchen as she’s dealing with all the food coming in from a bountiful summer garden. Catch up with the story of her […]

David Thoreson: Sailing around the Americas

Pella Public Library, 603 Main St, Pella, IA 50219, USA

Sailing Around the Americas, a 28,000-Mile Small Boat JourneyIn 2009-10, David was selected to be the documentary photographer and filmmaker on a 13-month, 28,000-mile sailing circumnavigation of the North and South American continents. The educational and scientific voyage was designed to raise awareness in the public and highlight many important ocean and sea issues. David […]

Monica Schmidt: Will the REAL Sherlock Holmes please stand up?

Indianola Public Library, 207 N B St, Indianola, IA 50125, USA

Will the REAL Sherlock Holmes please stand up?A 60-minute presentation delineating the differences between the literary Holmes and the Holmes of pop culture. Filled with movie clips exploring the evolution of the character. Perfect for civic groups — can be shortened to 30 minutes or lengthened to 60 minutes.

Beth Hoffman: Bet the Farm

Burlington Public Library, 210 Court St, Burlington, IA 52601, USA

Beth Hoffman was living the good life: she had a career as a journalist and professor, and a comfortable home in San Francisco. Yet in her late 40s, she and her husband decided to leave the big city and move to his family farm in Iowa—all for the dream of becoming a farmer, to put […]

Darcy Maulsby: Iowa’s Lost History from the Titanic

Corning Opera House, 800 Davis Ave, Corning, IA 50841, USA

Iowa’s Lost History from the Titanic What do an orphan train rider, a kidnapper, a missionary, a wealthy businessman, a wedding guest, a betrayed wife, a farmer and an immigrant recruiter have in common? All had ties to Iowa, and all were passengers aboard the ill-fated Titanic on the fateful night of April 15, 1912, […]

Darcy Maulsby: Savor Iowa’s Culinary History

First Presbyterian Church, 201 3rd St, Odebolt, IA 51458, USA

Savor Iowa’s Culinary HistorySavor Iowa’s amazing food heritage! Iowa’s delectable cuisine is quintessentially Midwestern, grounded in its rich farming heritage and spiced with diverse ethnic influences. From the chili-and-cinnamon-rolls phenomenon to Maid-Rites to the moveable feast known as RAGBRAI, discover the remarkable stories behind Iowa classics and savor a smorgasbord of other unique Iowa food […]

Danuta Hutchins: The Butterfly Effect

German American Heritage Center & Museum, 712 W 2nd St, Davenport, IA 52802, USA

The Butterfly Effect: ­ Why Do We Feel Empathy with the Victims of War, Hunger, Terror and Natural Disasters?Referring to her book, “Torn Out Memories,” Dr. Hutchins tells the experiences of a child living under the Nazi occupation of Poland and during the Warsaw Uprising. She relates her personal trauma to the terrors suffered by […]

Danuta Hutchins: Flowers of the Prairie

Keokuk Public Library, 210 N 5th St, Keokuk, IA 52632, USA

Flowers of the PrairieWith a copy of the “Prairie and Woodland Flowers Coloring Book” as reference, this presentation identifies prairie wildflowers, their common English names and Linnaeus-based classification in Latin. It informs when they blossom, where they grow and what medicinal and food uses have they served during the times of early pioneers and Native […]

Jeff Stein: Iowans You Should Know

Swisher Community Library, 72 2nd St SE, Swisher, IA 52338, USA

Iowans You Should Know: Stories from the Iowa Almanac (new in 2021)Did you know that the Eskimo Pie® was invented in Iowa? So was the electric razor, the clip-on bow tie, and the self-filling fountain pen. Iowa was also the childhood home of four Academy Award®-winning performers, and three different Iowa-born musical acts had national #1 […]

David Connon: Iowans Who Fought Against the Union

Adel Public Library 303 S 10th St, Adel, IA, United States

Iowans who fought against the UnionMost Iowans think that the state was solidly pro-Union during the Civil War. After all, some 76,500 residents fought for the North. In reality, Iowa Democrats formed a spectrum of dissent. The majority of Democrats opposed abolishing slavery (and yet favored the Union war effort); the minority sympathized with the […]