Books and Coffee offering online or in-person attendance

The Books and Coffee series, a traditional February treat at Purdue West Lafayette, has adopted a hybrid approach for 2021 to welcome a broad audience.

The four-Thursday look at current books of interest will be livestreamed from the Sagamore Room, Room 231 in Purdue Memorial Union, where a limited-size audience will be able to assemble according to Protect Purdue rules.

Each gathering will feature at least one Purdue expert speaking about a book, and this year two authors are participating when their books are on the schedule. Sessions run 4-5 p.m. ET. The first half-hour will offer one or more videos related to the selected book, plus the traditional hot beverages for those who wish to have them. At 4:30 p.m., the speakers will begin.

Books and Coffee is presented by the Department of English and the Purdue Student Union Board. This 70th anniversary series began with Angelica Duran, professor of English, and Sandra Fernandez Rhoads, author, on Rhoads' “Mortal Sight.” The remaining weeks:

* Feb. 11 — “Spinning Silver” by Naomi Novik. Speaking: Amina Gabrielov, lecturer in Russian in School of Languages and Cultures.

* Feb. 18 — “Poems 1962–2012” by Louise Glück. Speaking: Marianne Boruch, professor emerita of English; Wendy Flory, Dan Morris and Don Platt, all professors of English.

* Feb. 25 — “There There” by Tommy Orange. Speaking: Terese Mailhot, assistant professor of English, and Orange.

The Books and Coffee website has descriptions and livestream links for each week. To register for in-person attendance, go to Boilerlink, search for “Books and Coffee,” click on the desired event, log in using BoilerKey and find the “RSVP to Event” area.