UTM’s Newest Publications Recognized at 2023 Celebration of Books
The ninth annual Celebration of Books took place on campus this October, with UTM’s latest authors and editors gathering to speak about their work. For the first time in recent years the event was held in person, hosted in the light-filled Collaborative Digital Research Space located in the Maanjiwe nendamowinan building.
Co-hosted by the UTM Library and the Office of the Vice-Principal, Research, the yearly celebration invites community members to discover the diverse scholarship happening at the University of Toronto Mississauga. This year’s event featured 11 talks, 21 books from 13 departments, and included the work of 24 faculty members. More than 50 guests were in attendance, an audience comprised of students, staff, faculty, and librarians.
“Libraries have evolved to acquire, steward and preserve all kinds of different research outputs and special collections, but our commitment to providing quality and timely access to the scholarly monographs our students and faculty need for their teaching and research has never been stronger. Through its collections, the UTM Library is proud to feature the diversity, breadth, and depth of our faculty members’ research endeavours.” — Paula Hannaford, Interim Chief Librarian
The afternoon’s festivities began with a land acknowledgement and opening remarks by Elspeth Brown, Associate Vice-Principal, Research and Interim Chief Librarian Paula Hannaford.
“Libraries have evolved to acquire, steward and preserve all kinds of different research outputs and special collections, but our commitment to providing quality and timely access to the scholarly monographs our students and faculty need for their teaching and research has never been stronger,” said Hannaford.
“Through its collections, the UTM Library is proud to feature the diversity, breadth, and depth of our faculty members’ research endeavours. And we are so very grateful to be able to celebrate some of these achievements today.”
The first author to present was Terry F. Robinson, Associate Professor and Associate Chair in the Department of English & Drama, who spoke about The Visual Life of Romantic Theater, 1780-1830, a new collection she co-edited with Diane Piccitto, Associate Professor English at Mount Saint Vincent University.
“I find myself thinking more and more about the role of the theatre as an agent of social change,” Robinson shared during a recent interview with the Research Office, “and about the potential for theorizing and recovering the lived sensory experience of theatregoing in an age prior to recording technologies.”
The highly visual book features thirteen chapters on the impact of stage spectacle during an era of momentous social upheaval and aesthetic change, and Robinson highlighted the collection’s beautiful illustrations, passing it around the room.
And with Halloween approaching, the event featured timely work from Mairi Cowan, Associate Professor in the Department of Historical Studies. Her recent book, The Possession of Barbe Hallay: Diabolical Arts and Daily Life in Early Canada, is described as a “microhistory of bewitchment in New France.” Cowan delivered a dynamic talk in which she shared how she first became fascinated by the story of Hallay on a family vacation, leading to the years-long writing project. She even prompted audience members to ask a question of the book, promising that it would hold the answers they sought. (It did.)
“Writing a book takes a lot of time and a lot of energy by a lot of people,” Cowan said when asked about the event in an interview with the Communications team. “It can be a fairly isolating, drawn-out process, so it’s really great to be able to celebrate people’s bookish accomplishments in such an enthusiastic crowd.”
Part of that enthusiasm was in response to the day’s speakers, who delivered their remarks with warmth and humour, and were quick to applaud their fellow researchers and acknowledge the connections between their work.
“The Celebration of Books is particularly significant for the UTM Library,” reflects Interim Deputy Chief Librarian Dany Savard, who MC’d the event. “It represents a terrific opportunity to collaborate with the OVPR on an event that recognizes the importance and continued impact of the book within the academy.”
Following the talks attendees enjoyed a reception, where they enjoyed refreshments, chatted with students and colleagues, and browsed the book display.
“It was wonderful to see such a variety of UTM faculty researchers and colleagues join us,” says Savard, whose team is already taking book submissions for next year.
More from this year's speakers:
- Doug VanderLaan, Associate Professor from the Department of Psychology introduced Gender and Sexuality Development: Contemporary Theory and Research. He co-edited the interdisciplinary collection with Dr. Wang Ivy Wong, Associate Professor of Gender Studies and Psychology at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
- Shay Fuchs, Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematical and Computational Sciences, spoke about his new textbook, Introduction to Proofs and Proof Strategies, sharing the story of its evolution and explaining how it emphasizes the creative nature of mathematics.
- Professors Derek Denis and Ai Taniguchi from the Department of Language Studies were part of a team of authors who worked on a revised and expanded edition of Essentials of Linguistics. The co-authors spoke about important new features available in the second edition — including “diverse language examples, enhanced accessibility features, and an orientation towards equity and social justice.” The award-winning book is also open access, making it freely available to students.
- Dave Mazierski, Associate Professor of Biomedical Communications and Biology pulled out pen and paper to explain his chapter on understanding the 3D ultrastructure of the cell in The Importance of Context in Image-Making, the twelfth volume in Springer’s Biomedical Visualisation series.
- Co-authors Jeremy Packer, Paula Nuñez de Villavicencio, and Kate Maddalena from ICCIT presented The Prison House of the Circuit: Politics of Control from Analog to Digital, which presents a history of digital media as well as a model for thinking about governance and media.
- Minlei Ye, Associate Chair and Associate Professor of Accounting in the Department of Management introduced her new book: The Theory of Auditing Economics: Evidence and Suggestions for Future Research. The first of its kind, her monograph provides a comprehensive review of analytical auditing research.
→ Explore all of the books on the library website.
Publishing a book in 2023 or early 2024? We want to hear from you! Please contact the OVPR or UTM Library so we can include you in next year’s lineup. We look forward to celebrating UTM’s authors and editors at this annual event!
