City College Library of The City University of New York no.64 (n.s.) Spring 2002 Elsa Schiaparelli:Fashion and Surrealism The Cohen Library Atrium exhibit, telephone. Her 1936 “desk suit,” with Elsa Schiaparelli: Fashion and pockets like desk drawers sporting drawer- Surrealism explores the relationship knob buttons and first photographed in a between this twentieth-century fashion setting reminiscent of a landscape in a Dali icon and Surrealism. The exhibit painting, continued to show her highlights photographs of her dresses incorporation of unexpected, incongruous and suits taken from volumes in the elements inspired by contemporary artistic Archives’ Costume Book Collection. themes. Cocteau’s line drawings became Schiaparelli fashion accessories — three embroidered decoration on her jackets or vintage hats and three scarves — are part evening coats. Vertès painted whimsical of the exhibit, which incorporates graphic designs to advertise Schiaparelli’s research conducted at the Fashion perfume, “Shocking.” These collaborations Institute of Technology Museum and showed how it was possible for fine art to Library, the Condé Nast Library, and enhance high fashion. The Metropolitan Museum of Art The exhibit also draws comparisons Costume Institute. with her contemporary, Gabrielle “Coco” Surrealism entails the principles, Chanel, and points out her influence upon ideals, or practice of producing fantastic contemporary designers such as Yves Saint or incongruous imagery in art or literature Laurent and Jean Paul Gaultier. Elsa by means of unnatural juxtapositions and Schiaparelli, curated by Sydney Van Nort Elsa Schiaparelli in Her Showroom. combinations. This movement flourished F. Kollar/Ministère de la Culture, France and Julio Rosario, is on view through in Europe between the world wars. It painting, sculpture, photography, poetry, July. Sydney Van Nort

grew principally out of the earlier Dada prose, or clothing design. [email protected] ○○○○○○○○○○○○ movement, which before World War I Schiaparelli produced fashions ○○○○○○○○ produced works of anti-art that deliberately reflecting a change in women who felt defied reason. Surrealists intended to Diana Birchall speaks on the confident in wearing clothes expressing First Asian American Novelist express a radical change in how man, the authority with the incorporation of creator of society, thought and perceived shoulder pads in a suit jacket or with an On February 21 the City College reality. Explanations were seldom element of whimsy in a hat shaped like a Library and the Program in Asian Studies provided for works created by the shoe. She incorporated architectural sponsored a reading and talk in the movement’s practitioners, whether in concepts in her clothing, following the library’s Archives by Diana Birchall, structure of the human skeleton, not the granddaughter of Winnifred Eaton who, natural curves of the body. Schiaparelli under her pen name Onoto Watanna, is felt a “dress should never fit a body, but widely regarded as American’s first Asian NOV EB O train the body to fit the dress.” American novelist. Ms. Birchall read IS DSPICE R B A A Schiaparelli’s friends and R C excerpts from her book Onoto Watanna U collaborators, including such artists as (University of Illinois Press, 2001). S

P I I R Salvador Dalí, Jean Cocteau, and Marcel I O G A Hollywood screenwriter as well, E

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I P

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I Vertès, influenced her designs. ‘Schiap,’

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S Winnifred was a fascinating, flamboyant

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L as she was known by her friends,

U personality. Her granddaughter’s talk

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O incorporated unusual elements into her was filled with anecdotes about her family C designs — jacket buttons in the shape of M including her great-grandmother, Grace D II cicada insects, a jacket collar shaped Eaton, born in Shanghai and kidnapped CC LV CX like a bird wing, a dress in the shape of by a circus at age three. She married a parachute, or a purse shaped like a (Continued on p.7) CircumSpice Spring 2002 2

From The Desk Of The Chief Librarian

From the Desk of...... Nexis which get content from many These include Grove’s Dictionary different publishers. of Music, 2nd ed., Mental Measurements And the GOOD News is... Things have gotten so complicated Yearbook, Ullmann’s Encyclopedia of For years now, even decades in that we had to purchase a package called Industrial Chemistry, and WorldMark some cases, we have bemoaned the fact “Serials Solutions” to manage all the Yearbook 2001. that our library materials budget buys titles, and when we sent them our list of Also, CUNY has purchased less and less because it hasn’t gotten consortium purchases, they consolidated electronic access to a core collection of bigger and inflation has eroded it. them, sending us back our total title list more than 800 book titles from Net However, during the past two years, of more than 13,000 serials! You can Library, which are available through the the library has dramatically increased its view that title list at: link above. purchasing power without additional www.ccny.cuny.edu/library/Serials/ I urge you to use these resources dollars in one major area: Serials. jnlsIndex.html. and let us know what you think of them. With no additional funding, how 13,000 is a 500% increase in access As always, comments, suggestions, and can that be? to full-text journals and periodicals— feedback regarding the Library’s services Well, we have succeeded in providing articles that can be read online, are welcome and should be addressed to forming consortia with other libraries to emailed, saved to a disk, or printed out as me by calling x7271, sending email to increase our purchasing power just like needed. [email protected], or by you do when you join something like a Taking two concrete examples dropping by NAC 5/333 (Cohen Library). warehouse club. Sometimes the [from: www.ccny.cuny.edu/library/ Pamela Gillespie consortium is four or five libraries, Menu.html] just to add clarity, let’s look at Wiley InterScience and ScienceDirect. sometimes it’s all of CUNY, and in some Architecture Library Gift cases it’s even all of SUNY. 1. Wiley InterScience—Two years Five years ago we received 2600 ago, we received twelve titles from this The Landscape Architecture serials in paper, microform, or CD ROM publisher in paper. When CUNY first Program of the CCNY School of format. Now, our purchasing patterns put together a group subscription, we Architecture, Urban Design, and have changed so that we get one-third swapped the 12 for 70 titles in digital Landscape Architecture, has donated fewer physical pieces. Instead, we get content. This year, when we renewed the $3,000 for the purchase of library books digital content from more than 20 subscription, further fine tuning of the to support the program. The library is “aggregators.” An aggregator is a agreement got us 102 digital titles. Our delighted to receive this gift during a collecting unit—sometimes that is a per title cost went from $1500 two years year of truly anemic budgets and one in journal publisher like the American ago to $147.50 with the latest renewal. which the program will undergo an April Chemical Society or Elsevier; sometimes 2. Science Direct —Elsevier publishes accreditation visit by the national it is a licensor like EBSCO or Lexis- 1100 titles in many, many subject areas, including humanities and social sciences. Landscape Architecture Accreditation Two years ago we received 41 of them in Board. LIBRARY paper. The first year SUNY put together Architecture Librarian Judy PHONE a group subscription we swapped the 41 Connorton worked with Elizabeth ✆ NUMBERS Grajales, the president of the school’s for 750 titles in digital content. This Chief Librarian 650-7271 year, when we renewed, that number American Society of Landscape Archives 650-7609 went up to 965. Just as with Wiley, our Architecture Students, to select books Circulation 650-7155 per title cost went way down, from $3531 needed by students in the program’s Reference 650-7611-12 to $150. classes. Approximately 70 titles were Architecture 650-8768 ordered including the just published Music 650-7174 Online Access to Books too! Science/Engineering 650-8246 Certain complete reference works three-volume reference work The iMedia 650-6708 are available digitally on our Web site at: Encyclopedia of Gardens: History and Slide Library/Architecture 650-8754 www.ccny.cuny.edu/library/Menu.html Design (Fitzroy Dearborn, 2001). Slide Library/Art 650-7175 CircumSpice Spring 2002 3 2

CCNY Masterpiece Exhibited in Venice CCNY-owned quality. In this case, the masterpiece by museum paid to have the A Pierre Puvis de frame reinforced and the Chavannes, Children in an plain glass replaced with Orchard, is presently on laminated, non- reflective display in an exhibit at the glass. Second, exhibition Palazzo Grassi in Venice, credit brings excellent name Italy. The Palazzo Grassi recognition and distinction is one of Venice’s premier to the college.” museums specializing in Children in an the ancient, Renaissance, Orchard will be returning and modern arts. to the CCNY campus in The exhibit, Toward late June 2002, having Modern Art: from Puvis de served once again as City Chavannes to Matisse and College’s ambassador to Picasso, runs from February Children in an Orchard by Pierre Puvis de Chavannes the international art 10 to June 16, 2002. Taking community. January 2002 when the painting was re- a unique approach in examining the roots glazed and crated for the journey overseas. of modern art, the curator, Professor Rob Laurich In late January Assistant Dean Pamela Serge Lemonine of the Sorbonne and [email protected] Gillespie, CCNY’s Curator of Artistic Musee de Orsay, looks not to Properties, accompanied the painting to Impressionism and Manet but to the Venice. Upon arrival at the Marco Polo French artist Pierre de Chavannes (1824- Airport, Dean Gillespie and painting were 1898) as the founder of Modernism. Library Events transported by freight boat to the Palazzo Besides Matisse and Picasso, artists as Grassi located on the Grand Canal. The 2002 – 2004 diverse as Seurat, Gauguin, Cezanne, next day the painting was removed from Holder, Denis, Vallotton, Maillol, and its crate and displayed in the beautifully Munch have all been influenced by Purvis restored eighteenth-century mansion. Fashion and Surrealism de Chavannes. The exhibit displays over March 15 - June 5, 2002 200 paintings and sculptures from Loan Benefits Cohen Library Atrium collections across Europe and North When asked what the benefits are America. Children in an Billy Collins, Orchard (1885-1889) Poet Laureate of the United States is an oil painting that 5th Annual William Matthews Memorial depicts a woman and Reading four children gathering Monday, April 15, 2002 fruit. The painting was donated to City College in 1960 by Martin The Jazz Age in Paris 1914-1940 Birnbaum (Class of A SITES/ALA/NEH Exhibition 1897) and is normally January 18 - March 6, 2003 displayed in the Cohen Library Atrium president’s offices in the Administration Building. The last The Artistry of African Currency time the painting was Arrival of the Crate at Palazzo Grassi, Venice. A SITES Exhibition publicly exhibited was in 1994 at the Van to the college in loaning the painting, November 6 - December 19, 2004 Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the Dean Gillespie stated: “Lending any of Cohen Library Atrium Netherlands. the college’s paintings for exhibition Preparing for the Trip provides two major benefits. First, the borrower underwrites conservation work Preparation for this recent voyage which allows us to maintain the painting’s of Children in an Orchard began in 4 Spring 2002 CircumSpice

Online Government Documents...Here Today, Gone Tomorrow? Is there an online U.S. government Department of the Interior Web site, was were originally issued on those old document in your future? Chances are, shut down by court order on December floppies, can be found and copied. The the answer is “You bet!” 5. project started at Indiana and it resides on Have you just written the book Interior is being sued over its its Web site at: www.indiana.edu/~libgpd/ that’s going to get you tenure? Then you management of the American Indian mforms/floppy/floppy.html. probably want to look at the U.S. Trust Fund. Their online security was so The WayBack Machine Copyright Office forms Web page at: poor that a number of hackers were able www.loc.gov/copyright/forms. Need to get into the trust fund’s electronic Another initiative aimed at Internet more time to file this year’s federal tax financial records and manipulate them. sites in general, but which includes return? Every April 15th, I.R.S. form So a U.S. District Court judge shut down government Web sites, is the aptly named #4868, (Extension of Time to File), is the almost all of Interior’s Web sites until WayBack Machine at the Internet most sought after piece of paper in any the agency improved their online Archive. The nonprofit Internet Archive library. Get your very own copy at: security. began archiving Web sites in 1996 in www.irs.gov. Type ‘extension’ in the It usually doesn’t take a court order conjunction with a group called Alexa form finder box and download the pdf to change/move/remove a Web page. It Internet. Their intended audience is the form. happens all the time on government and academic/scholarly world, but their site A Long - Time Depository non-government Web sites alike. is free to anyone. Check them out at: Sometimes a new server is installed and www.archive.org. To my mind however, City College has been a Federal the URL changes, or perhaps the person the most promising approach to archiving Depository for Government Documents responsible for the site moves/gets online government sites is the PURL since 1884. As with our regular print promoted/retires. program. collection  with the exception of those Combating the Problem A Pearl? No, a PURL government documents that do not stand the test of time, are superseded, etc.  the But all is not gloom and doom as A URL (Uniform Record Locator) paper government document should be far as accessibility goes in the world of is a Web page’s unique electronic address, on the shelf when you need it, barring government documents. There are but as we all know, a URL can change in some physical disaster or theft. several initiatives that seek to address a blink of an eye. PURL stands for However, whether you want to track the “disappearing” electronic documents Permanent Uniform Record Locator. A satellites with NASA, or get a small problem. PURL looks pretty much like a regular business loan, or find out how your I dare say most of us have some old URL but it functions like a switching senator voted on a particular bill, chances 5 1/2" floppy disks around with stuff on service which links the end user (you) to are you’ll find the information online, as them that we can’t get to because our the Web page you want, wherever that 60 percent of all current U.S. federal new computer doesn’t have a drive that Web page happens to reside. The documents are now issued in some sort supports these large floppies. Well some technical name for such a process is a of electronic format. And a growing older government documents were issued “permanent HTTP redirect.” The number of that 60 percent are issued on those big floppies too. practical result for end users is fewer ONLY in electronic format. There’s CIC, the Committee on dead links. microfiche and CD-ROMs and even a Institutional Cooperation, is an 11- PURL providers are responsible for few DVDs, but the most popular member academic consortium which both assigning a unique PURL to a Web electronic format for government includes the University of Chicago plus site and maintaining a working link documents is the Web. the Big Ten, (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, between the PURL and a Web site’s own Disappearing Docs?? Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, URL. If a URL changes, it is the PURL Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, provider’s responsibility to correct the Web pages are notorious though Purdue, and the University of Wisconsin link. for disappearing, changing, and moving at Madison). While anyone can become a PURL to new servers. If so many current Floppy Disk Project provider, the Government Printing Office documents are “going electronic,” are (GPO) is a major user of the PURL system. these documents going to be available in The CIC universities cooperate on A number of current online government five or ten years, or even next month? lots of fronts, but their Government documents are being assigned PURLs, This past December you couldn’t Publications Task Force is of particular which means you will be able to find get any information online about any of interest to this discussion because they those documents in the future, on America’s national parks. The NPS Web have established the Floppy Disk Project. whatever server they actually reside. site, indeed practically the entire The FDP is an electronic depository where government documents, which (Continued on p.7) CircumSpice Spring 2002 5

From the Information Desk... “I’m looking for information about Literary Biography, Short Story While reviewing these resources, Elizabeth Inness-Brown.” “I want to write Criticism, Poetry Criticism, Drama the question arises, which resource is about gender identity issues in Criticism, Shakespearean Criticism, betterpaper or electronic? I admit a bias Shakespeare’s plays.” “Where can I find Contemporary Black Biography, toward the electronic version. Its links to criticism on August Wilson?” “Where is Contemporary Theatre, Film & additional resources and databases along your stapler?” These literary questions Television, and Something About the with its availability from home make for can all be answered using the vast Author. Depending on your question, a wonderful tool. The paper series, collection of the Gale Literary Series one of these titles will lead you to a however, is certainly also a vital tool. The located in the Cohen Reference wealth of materials on your topic. detail of titles like Contemporary Theatre, Biographies Section. (Alright, the last Where to go for information on Film & Television and Dictionary of question was a trick. It is, however, our Elizabeth Inness-Brown? Contemporary Literary Biography is especially attractive most frequently asked question!) Authors will supply your answer. How for extensive research. The best approach The Gale Literary Series is not one do you answer the question of gender is to try both paper and electronic versions particular title, but a large collection of identity issues in Shakespeare’s plays? to decide which best serves your research many diverse titles that supply two major The cumulative topic index in needs. types of information, biographical and Shakespearean Criticism has an entry Rob Laurich criticism of literary works. Some of the “Gender Identity and Issues.” Finally, [email protected]

titles owned at City College include: ○○○○○○○○○○○○○○ the information on August Wilson, ○○○○○○ Contemporary Authors, Dictionary of although presented in many Gale Literary titles, is best represented in Drama Criticism. Assistive Technologies Workshop For those electronically The library held a two-hour inclined, the Gale Literary workshop on February 22 to familiarize Series is also available CCNY librarians with the resources of its online through the City Assistive Technology Lab (ATL) located Support the CCNY Libraries College Library home page on the Cohen Library’s third floor, room every time you shop at Amazon.com! at www.ccny.cuny.edu/ 3/302. The lab is available to students, library/Menu.html. A search faculty, and staff with disabilities. Whenever you have the urge for some of August Wilson under Chief of Public Services Rick Uttich e-commerce, click on the Amazon.com ‘author search’ in this provided the group with general button located on the lower left hand corner database will access full- information on the legality of ADA of the Libraries’ web site: text biographies, literary compliance on the part of the library. He www.ccny.cuny.edu/library/ criticism, articles and work emphasized, however, that the library is Amazon.com will donate 5% of your overviews, bibliographies, driven by the desire to provide the best purchase to the CCNY Libraries every time additional Web resources, library services possible to library patrons you use this link. literary-historical timelines, with disabilities and not merely by the and the MLA International requirement of legal compliance. Bibliography. The results of Mounir Khalil is the library’s a search on Elizabeth Coordinator of Services for the Disabled Inness-Brown include not and is responsible for teaching only information in print, bibliographic skills to students with but also an update on the disabilities. He introduced Jean Davis, The CCNY Libraries recommend two titles in particular: author that told of the 2002 CCNY’s Affirmative Action & ADA publication of her latest Compliance Officer, and Laura Farres ♦ From the Free Academy to CUNY by Sandra Shoick Roff, work, Burning Marguerite. from the college’s Office of Student Anthony Cucchiara and Barbara Dunlap A search of ‘Shakespeare and Disability Services (SDS). Faculty and ♦ Appointment Denied: The Inquisition of Bertrand Russell gender’ under ‘keyword staff with disabilities deal directly with by Thom Weidlich search’ will supply Ms. Davis’ office. information to the user not Ms.Davis, an attorney, gave the Both titles deal with the fascinating history of City College only in Shakespearean historical perspective on disability and are highly recommended. Criticism, but also in legislation and noted that the college has Amazon.com will donate 15% of purchases made of these additional Web resources to think “out of the box” to best meet the titles when you use our links. and the MLA International needs of those in the college community Bibliography. (Continued on p. 6) 6 Spring 2002 CircumSpice

Assisted Tech... (Continued from p. 5) iMEDIA Column : A Beautiful Room with disabilities. Ms. Farres described I’m dreaming of a beautiful room. other networked sources can be accessed some of the services offered to the 150 I walk into the room. It is a classroom. directly from the projector with a wireless students registered with SDS. She added My laptop light, wireless, glows bright. controller. If these projectors have a that there may be another 100 or so I am connected. I start up. I am projected. wireless card installed, I could walk into students who choose not to register but Then I awake. I am dejected. But you the classroom with my battery-operated still need services on campus. While have to have a vision, before you can laptop also equipped with a wireless card, City’s program for students with television. and be connected to the Internet and disabilities is relatively small compared People now refer to a technology- projector instantly. to those at Queens or at Hunter, which equipped classroom as a’“smart” room. has the largest program, Mr. Uttich noted I set my standards higher. I think “a (3) The ceiling mic/speakers will that the library’s ATL is one of the best normal classroom” will be so equipped. support sound amplification and sound equipped in CUNY, with technology In the center of the ceiling is (1) a wireless reinforcement. What’s the difference? comparable to that in other major U.S. access point and (2) an IP video/data Amplification is used with pre-recorded academic libraries. projector. The ceiling also has (3) small sources and can be loud. Reinforcement Mr. Uttich reviewed specific user flush mounted mics/speakers every six is used with live sources, such as a lecturer policies for the ATL that are described feet and (4) small IP robotic cameras or a videoconference speaker, and must on that lab’s home page at: mounted on the walls. be lower in volume to prevent audio www.ccny.cuny.edu/library/ feedback from occurring. The multiple assistive.html. Students asking to use (1) The wireless access point ceiling speakers keep the sound close to the lab must bring to the Cohen Library provides Internet connectivity to all with all the listeners, so the volume can be Reserve Desk a letter from the SDS wireless equipped laptops. This lower and more intelligible. The ceiling indicating that they have been trained on capability supports a changing academic mic/speaker combination allows any the SDS’s computer software and standard; to be competitive with other student to speak and be recorded or hardware and are capable of using the universities, one must offer visible transmitted to remote sites for distance library’s lab without supervision. Those technology to attract students. Ubiquitous learning. not so trained must be accompanied by wireless access is visible, relatively trained library staff if available or must inexpensive, and allows for a change in (4) The small robotic cameras allow make an appointment when they are classroom pedagogy to allow students to any room to be a “television studio,” available. access and share information during the either to record classes/events that are Concluding the program, the class. This approach supports the Socratic held there or to videoconference or stream library’s ATL staff assistants Joe Ciccone method of teaching in a way that Socrates the video to remote sites. The cameras and Tony Mirabella demonstrated several never imagined. Ubiquitous wireless are IP addressable. That means that the programs available on the lab’s access also moves information out of the cameras send their video over the data computers: Dragon NaturallySpeaking, library so that electronic research can be network to be seen or recorded at remote a speech recognition program which done anywhere on campus, inside or sites, and are also controllable by remote enables the user’s spoken words to be outside buildings. It also moves non- sites through a Web interface. The camera input into a Word document; ZoomText, a academic computing functions into more operator can be controlling all cameras text enlargement program capable of appropriate venues, freeing up previously from their local laptop computer. working with all programs in the dedicated “academic computing” space. Conversely, any remote site can control Windows environment as well as with them. the Web; JAWS, a screen reader program (2) The IP video/data projector This is not just a dream. iMEDIA for Web text and Word documents; and provides a high-resolution, bright, large- has two IP projectors now and will be Kurzweil 1000 a scanning, reading, and screen projected image from your adding more. Our videoconference writing software program for blind or videotape, DVD, or computer monitor. room uses a multiple ceiling mic/speaker visually impaired users. The IP designation signifies that this system to improve intelligibility in projector has an “Internet Protocol” videoconferencing. We are currently address assigned to it, making it another testing wireless access points and Library Book Sale resource on our intranet, like a networked robotic cameras. Thursday, April 11, 2002 printer would be. The projector is also a Watch this space for future “computer,” running Microsoft Windows developments. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. CE, that supports the Microsoft Internet Explorer Web browser. Web pages can NAC Rotunda be displayed without a computer Jeffrey Clapp [email protected] connected to the projector, and most CircumSpice Fall 2001 7

The Library is Looking For ...

Items Documenting the History of CCNY for the Archives

♦ Murad Tobacco Silks with C.C.N.Y. pennant, CCNY athlete, etc., ca.1910-1930 ♦ 1940s, 1950s and 1960s Lewisohn Stadium Concert Programs ♦ Color and Black & White postcards with views of CCNY ♦ Programs from CCNY sporting events, all decades ♦ Course syllabi, lecture notes, & bluebooks for CCNY courses in all disciplines, any year ♦ Photographs of events on campus, sports, and other college views

Financial Support for Library Exhibits

♦ Hosting of the Smithsonian Jazz Age in Paris exhibit, January 18-March 26, 2003. $2,825. ♦ Hosting of the Smithsonian Artistry of African Currency exhibit, November 6-December 19, 2004. $1,800.

... and for the Purchase of Reference Works

♦ American Men and Women of Science. Bowker, 2002. $850. ♦ The collected works of Johann Christian Bach: Thematic catalogue and music supplement. Compiled by Ernest Warburton. Garland, 1999. $295. ♦ World Architecture. Series editor, Kenneth Frampton. Springer-Verlag, 2001-2005. Ten volumes. $950.

To donate items or money (any amount appreciated), please contact:

Pamela Gillespie, Chief Librarian (212) 650-7271 [email protected]

Online Goverment... (Continued from p. 4) Diana Birchall... (Continued from p. 1) believed there were strains of genius Easier Access to Online Docs Englishman Edward Eaton, and they soon somewhere hidden in me. I had always moved to Montreal where Winnifred was Those of you who use the Web lived in a little dream world of my own, born in 1875, one of 14 children. version of the CUNY PLUS catalog in wherein, beautiful and courted I moved Despite being half Chinese, Onoto your offices or at home may have begun among the elect of the earth.” This bold wrote most of her novels, including one to notice that some of the newer writer’s life was lived along these lines. of her most famous, The Japanese government document records now Winnifred went on to have a Nightingale, about Japanese characters. include a live link to the electronic version Hollywood screenwriting career before This literary device along with her of the document. In the last several years she retired as a wealthy society women Japanese pen name produced the it has been possible to add a field to a to Calgary, Alberta where she settled deliberate impression that she was half cataloging record (for the technically with her rancher husband with whom Japanese. Winnifred’s elder sister Edith minded, it’s the 856 field), which contains she reconciled in her middle years. became a famous writer in her own right, the document’s URL/ PURL. Not all adopting the pen name Sui Sin Far. Unlike U.S. government documents have (Editor’s note: Professor Cline noted Winnifred, however, Edith wrote stories electronic versions, but it is a growing that this brief write-up could not do of Chinese immigrants. She is considered trend. justice to what he described as a “magical the mother of Asian American fiction, a Research is supported by access to talk.” Keep your eyes open for equally title arising in great part from the resources and not just current ones. The magical talks and readings sponsored by publication of her collection of short above initiatives can only add electronic the library.) stories, Mrs. Spring Fragrance. arrows to your scholarly quiver. Birchall’s book portrays an amazing Grace-Ellen McCrann Herman Cline [email protected] woman who “had always secretly [email protected] CircumSpice Fall 2001 8 The Friends of the City College Library and The CCNY English Department cordially invite you to the 5th Annual William Matthews Memorial Reading

featuring Billy Collins Poet Laureate of the United States

Monday, April 15, 5 p.m. Billy Collins, Guggenheim Fellow, NPR contributor, New York Public Library ‘Literary Lion,’ and incomparably popular performer of his own good works, has published six collections of poetry, including Sailing Alone Around the Room, Questions About Angels, The Art of Drowning, and Picnic, Lightning. His children’s book, Daddy’s Little Boy, has just been published. He teaches at Lehman College. Reception and book signing to follow. Cohen Library Atrium North Academic Center The City College, Convent Avenue at 138th Street, New York, NY 10031 This event is free and open to the public. Reservations a must! For reservations, please contact the Chief Librarian’s Office at 212-650-7271.

is published by The City College Library, The City College of New York/CUNY 138th Street and Convent Avenue This event is made possible with the support of the Simon H. NY, NY 10031 Rifkind Center for the Humanities and the Arts at CCNY. Editor: Professor Judy Connorton [email protected] Production: Nilda Sanchez & Rodolfo Leyton ISSN 0069-4215