UC’s Edible Book Festival Grows in Number and Creativity

University Libraries hosts the annual event for book lovers to eat their words.

Date: 4/2/2008 12:00:00 AM
By: Dawn Fuller
Phone: (513) 556-1823

Photos By: Lisa Britton

The Polar Express

University librarians, UC staff, students and members of the Cincinnati community all took part in UC’s seventh-annual celebration of the International Book Festival. The tasty celebration of the written word is observed around the world on April 1 as book-lovers, book artists and food fans join together in an event to admire tasty literary creations and then eat them.

Dean and University Librarian Victoria Montavon noted that UC’s seventh celebration of the International Edible Book Festival was the largest yet, with 25 entries reflecting everything from children’s books to classic literature.

Voyage of a Bagel

One of the entries submitted by the Chemistry-Biology Library previewed next year’s 150th anniversary celebration of the publication of Charles Robert Darwin’s Book, “On the Origin of Species,” as well as the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birthday in 2009. The bagel-laden entry created by Library Associate Katrina Bowling-Bergman was titled “Voyage of a Bagel,” a twist on Darwin’s five-year, life-changing voyage aboard the ship, the Beagle – a journey that inspired his theories about evolution.

Little Women

Suzette Combs, director of the UC Pre-Professional Advising Center, noted that the book “Little Women” was her favorite book and that the story had a deep personal meaning for her. Her edible tribute to the book, created with Marie Knecht, program coordinator for Enrollment Management, was awarded the prize for “Most Beautiful.”

Wendy Linck and her Stone Soup

Wendy Linck, children’s librarian for the Madisonville Branch Library of the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, participated in the UC celebration for the second year, her Crock Pot holding an edible version of the classic tale “Stone Soup.” The entry won the prize for “No Leftovers.”

The Best-in-Show prize went to Health Sciences Library Associate Shelley Paden and graduate student Denise Britigan for “There’s an Alligator Under My Bed.” The alligator’s scales were made of artichoke leaves and its feet were made of pickles.

University Libraries Info Commons student workers Kim Burgas and Ben Hay won Best Student Entry, along with a $25 certificate to UC Bookstores, with their entry, “Don Quiche’Ote.”

Other universities across the U.S. that are participating in the International Edible Book Festival include Yale University, Duke University, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Denison University and the University of Texas at Austin. Countries represented in the 2008 International Edible Book Festival include Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Russia, Singapore and the U.S.

2008 University Libraries Edible Book Festival Entries and Prizes
(Listed by creator, title, author and prize)

Waiting for Gouda

Rose Einhaus –"Animal House" by Catherine Ledner
Prize: Class Clown
Melissa Norris – "Paradise" by Toni Morrison
Prize: Most Likely to Become a Movie
Wendy Linck – "Stone Soup"
Prize: No Leftovers
Sara Harper – "Birds and Words" by Charles Harper
Prize: Not a Bestseller
Kathy Kinsey – "Crescent" by Diana Abu-Jaber
Prize: Much Ado About Nothing
Linda Newman – "The Raw and the Cooked" by Claude Levi-Strauss
Prize: Most Literary
Linda Newman – "A Clockwork Orange" by Anthony Burgess
Prize: Most Clever
Suzette D. Combs and Marie Knecht – "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
Prize: Most Beautiful
Deborah Weinstein – "The Polar Express" by Chris van Allsburg
Prize: Most Ambitious
Peggie Welker – "The Cooking Ladies' Recipes from the Road" by Phyllis Hinz and Lamont Mackay
Prize: Best Knock-Off
Mary Anne McMillan – "The Cereal Murders" by Diane Mott Davidson
Prize: Most Deadly
Lorna Newman – "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
Prize: Most Romantic
Jessica Ebert – "The Celery Stalks at Midnight" by James Howe
Prize: Funniest
Olga Hart – "Sizzle and Burn" by Jayne Ann Krenz
Prize: Most Fattening
Shelley Paden and Denise Britigan – "There’s an Alligator Under My Bed" by Mercer Mayer
Prize: Best-in-show
Elaine Ignatius – "Three Cups of Tea" by Greg Mortenson
Prize: Most Inspired
Pamela Bach – "Three Cups of Tea" by Greg Mortenson
Prize: Most Checked-out
Chemistry-Biology Library (Katrina Bowling-Bergman) – "Voyage of a Bagel"
Prize: Folio Sized
Holly Prochaska – "A Raisin in the Sun" by Larraine Hansberry
Prize: Hot Topic
Meredith Orlowski – "Animal Farm" by George Orwell
Prize: Most Childish
Info Commons students Kim Burgas & Ben Hay – "Finnegan’s Cake"
Prize: Long Overdue
Info Commons students Kim Burgas & Ben Hay – "Don Quiche’Ote"
Prize: Best Student Entry
Info Commons students Kim Burgas & Ben Hay – "Waiting for Gouda"
Prize: Scariest
Alexandra Hart – "Playing Dirty"
Prize: Most Out of this World
Jennifer Stancati - "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Prize: Least Likely to be Seen in the Stacks