Posted by Anne M on Thursday, Oct 9, 2014
Looking forward to the Homecoming Parade? Or perhaps, you need to plan an escape route out of downtown. Either way, there are a few informational sites to help you get the best seat or find an alternate way around Washington and Gilbert Streets. The parade starts Friday, October 10th at 5:45 pm.
The Press-Citizen has an overview of what to expect from a description of the parade route to street closures. You can find it here: http://www.press-citizen.com/story/news/local/2014/10/08/iowa-city-announces-closures-changes-ui-homecoming/16948975/
For detailed street closures, no-parking areas, changes to bus routes, and parade parking, check out the City of Iowa City's announcement from last week: http://www.icgov.org/?artID=10008&navID=1515&type=M
For a map of the parade route, visit the Homecoming Iowa website: http://homecoming.uiowa.edu/parade/
Expect the parade to end around 8 pm.
If you do go, make sure to cheer for the Iowa City Public Library 's Book Cart Drill Team, as well as our parade mascot, Book Man.
This book is devastating and hopeful at the same time. It is a story that starts out harrowing, but after hard work and ingenuity by a few individuals, things change for the better. The Facemaker, a history of World War I facial reconstruction, sets the scene: how World War I was fought in new and horrific ways. It was industrial. There were a lot of advancements in weapons of war. (And of course, for what?) Lindsey Fitzharris describes this moment in time very well. Then there are the people put in the trenches and at sea and in the air, not to mention the civilians, facing this new weaponry. Fitzharris makes these stories personal and individual, the pain experienced both inside and out. She picks a number of individuals that came home with significant facial injuries and how they viewed their lives as over. Enter Harold Gillies, an ears, nose, and throat doctor, who is about to become the leading expert in facial reconstruction. If you love compelling histories of war or medicine, I recommend this book. As an aside, the audio version was excellently narrated. -Anne M