Boswell events - David Allen Sibley with Charles Hagner, plus David Bader, Deirdre Britt, and Priscilla Pardini on Helen Daniels Bader - plus Erin Yun's Neiderkorn Library event

Here's what's happening virtually with Boswell this week.

Tuesday, February 23, 7 pm
David Allen Sibley, author of What It's Like to Be a Bird: From Flying to Nesting, Eating to Singing - What Birds Are Doing, and Why
in conversation with Charles Hagner
Register for this virtual event here.
More about Schlitz Audubon Nature Center here.

Here is a tale about how long things can take during the pandemic. The origin of this story is in fall 2019 when the American Birding Association Field Guide to Birds of Wisconsin was released. Jason had told me that the author, Charles Hagner, was local, and sure enough, we eventually connected. An event was discussed. The pandemic hit. The event was eventually converted to virtual.

In conversation, we mentioned the explosion of birding books that happened during COVID with What It's Like to Be a Bird being a particular success. Hagner mentioned that he used to work with David Allen Sibley. What? Maybe someday we'd be able to put something together with Sibley and Hagner in conversation. It seemed like a long shot. But many months later we were working with a publicist at Knopf who was connecting stores for group events for Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun*. She mentioned that one library had to pull out because all the events were ticketed and they only do free events, but that was okay because they are hosting a David Sibley event instead. So I asked, do you think we could host Sibley? We actually know a great conversation partner.

The proposal was written and approved and here we are. Tomorrow's event for What It's Like to Be a Bird has the largest number of registrations since we started doing virtual events. We had to pay for increased registration capacity to make sure that everyone would be able to get in. One nice thing about virtual events - hitting a switch and paying extra money is much easier than changing venues! That Schlitz Audubon marketing director sure does a good job getting people to come out for events!

We're currently sold out of What It's Like to Be a Bird, but don't worry. Knopf provided us with plenty of custom bookplates for when we're back in stock in March.

David Allen Sibley recipient of the Roger Tory Peterson Award for Promoting the Cause of Birding from the American Birding Association and the Linnaean Society of New York’s Eisenmann Medal. 

Charles Hagner is State Director of Bird City Wisconsin, the board chair of the Western Great Lakes Bird and Bat Observatory, and a member of the Steering Committee of the Wisconsin Bird Conservation Initiative. He is formerly also Editor-in-Chief of BirdWatching magazine.

Thursday, February 25, 7 pm
David Bader, Deirdre Britt, and Priscilla Pardini, for An Independent Spirit: The Quiet, Generous Life of Helen Daniels Bader 

Register for this virtual event here.
More about Bader Philanthropies here.

Boswell presents an evening discussing the legacy of Helen Daniels Bader with David Bader, Vice President and Board Director of Bader Philanthropies (Helen's son), Deirdre Britt, Chair for the Helen Daniels Bader Advisory Committee and Board Secretary (and Bader's niece), and Priscilla Pardini, author this book and others, education reporter for the Milwaukee Journal, and importantly for us, former President of the Friends of the Shorewood Public Library.

An Independent Spirit: The Quiet, Generous Life of Helen Daniels Bader brings into sharp focus the story of one of Milwaukee's most beloved and magnanimous benefactors. Enhanced with 280 images - most from family collections - it details Helen Bader's remarkable touching journey - one steeped in a lifetime of humility, determination, resistance and empathy for others, that played out amid years of personal disappointment and sorrow. Rising to the challenges thrown her way, Helen set an example that persists today as a model well worth emulating.

Her legacy is significant. The $100 million Helen Bader Foundation was established in 1991, two years after her death; over the next 24 years, it awarded $250 million in grants to enhance the well-being of the impoverished and disadvantaged. That mission continues today at Bader Philanthropies, Inc. Her life - and specifically her belief in the value of social work - is further immortalized through the Helen Bader School of Social Welfare at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Please note that while there are print-on-demand copies available nationwide, we have beautiful special edition hardcovers available. I was recalling as we put this event together that I worked with the late Alfred Bader, Helen Daniels Bader's brother-in-law, for his memoir Adventures of a Chemist Collector back in 1996.

Friday, February 26, 1:30 pm
Cosponsorship - Erin Yun, author of Pippa Park Raises Her Game 

A Virtual Event
Register here for this WJ Neiderkorn Library event.

The WJ Neiderkorn Library in Port Washington presents a virtual event with debut author and former middle school basketball player Yun for a fun workshop and conversation centered around her middle grade book. Readers will cheer on Pippa in this middle grade novel about friendship, bullying, crushes, and family as she reinvents herself and discovers who she really is both on and off the basketball court. This program is geared for upper elementary and middle school students. Cosponsored by the WJ Neiderkorn Library and Fabled Films Press. Books with autographed bookplates available to purchase from Boswell Book Company.

More info at the Boswell upcoming events page.

Photo credits! David Allen Sibley photo is by the always charming Michael Lionstar.

*Our event with Kazuo Ishiguro is a joint event with Left Bank Books of St. Louis and Anderson's Bookshop of Naperville and Downer's Grove on March 16, 6 pm Central. Please note that is the only vaguely evening event of Ishiguro's virtual tour. He'll be in conversation with Ron Charles of The Washington Post. Tickets here.