10th Annual Dinner in the Library to Feature Author Jay Parini Sept. 12

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The University of California, San Diego’s 10th annual Dinner in the Library will take place Sept. 12 in the university’s iconic Geisel Library building. The evening’s festivities will include dinner and cocktails, a silent auction and a keynote talk from acclaimed author, poet and critic Jay Parini. Proceeds from the event will support the UC San Diego Library’s most pressing needs, including its collections, resources and services.

“UC San Diego is home to one of the nation’s top-ranked public academic libraries,” said Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla.  “Private support from the annual Dinner in the Library is fundamental for the UC San Diego Library to meet the growing and evolving information needs of our researchers, physicians, students and community members.”

Dinner in the Library attendees will hear Parini’s perspective on “Books That Changed America.” Parini, who serves as Axinn Professor of English and Creative Writing at Middlebury College in Vermont, is the author of numerous biographies and works of nonfiction, including “Promised Land: Thirteen Books That Changed America.” His novels include “The Last Station,” which was made into an Academy Award-nominated film starring Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer. His books of poetry include “The Art of Subtraction: New and Selected Poems,” and his volumes of nonfiction include “Robert Frost: A Life” and “On Matchless Time: A Life of William Faulkner,” as well as “The Passages of H.M.,” his recent biography on Herman Melville. His books have been translated into over 30 languages.

Parini has taught at Dartmouth University, Oxford University and Middlebury College, and he writes for a variety of publications, including the Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times and The Guardian.

“We are thrilled to welcome Jay Parini for the tenth anniversary of our Dinner in the Library,” said Brian E.C. Schottlaender, UC San Diego’s Audrey Geisel University Librarian. “The Library plays an essential role in advancing the campus’s mission of high-impact research, stellar education and meaningful service to the community. For a decade, this event has helped us in supporting our mission to provide enhanced library services and resources for students, faculty and community members.”

The Geisel Citation for Library Philanthropy will also be presented at the dinner. The 2013 recipient will be John A. Berol, who has played an integral role in the growth of the UC San Diego Library. A founding member of the University Librarian’s Advisory Board, Berol has provided consistent philanthropic support to the Library, including the establishment of the June Waterous Berol Reading Lounge in the Biomedical Library building. He has also donated in-kind contributions to the Library’s Mandeville Special Collections and has consistently sponsored Dinner in the Library.

“John Berol’s thoughtful support serves as an inspiration to others,” said Schottlaender. “He is a strong advocate for academic research libraries and truly understands the important role the UC San Diego Library plays in the pursuit of knowledge and transformational discovery on campus.”

The UC San Diego Library provides access to more than seven million digital and print volumes, journals and multimedia materials to meet the intellectual needs of scholars, students and community members. Library users have 24/7 digital access to almost 600,000 e-books, 42,000 e-periodicals and about 300,000 items from the Library’s digitized local collections. Users can also browse the online catalog and other resources via the Library’s mobile app: http://libraries.ucsd.edu/m.

Sponsors of the 2013 Dinner in the Library include: The Dr. Seuss Fund at The San Diego Foundation; Don and Maryann Lyle; John A. Berol; James Forbes, Ph.D., and Julianne Larsen; UC San Diego Alumni; Karen B. Dow; Elsevier B.V.; The Evans Foundation; Jeanne Jones and Don Breitenberg; Lynn and Cole Owen; Charlie Robins; Union Bank; United Capital Management; and EBSCO Information Services.

Tickets for Dinner in the Library are available for $225 per person or $1,800 per table. Cocktails and the silent auction begin at 5:30 p.m., with dinner and Parini’s talk following at 7 p.m. For more information or to register for the dinner, please visit: libraries.ucsd.edu/about/dinner.