Maine author, cultural historian at Belgrade library

BELGRADE — Maine author Richard Rubin and cultural historial Elizabeth Bischof will be guest speakers in late August at the Belgrade Public Library, 124 Depot Road.

Through his books — “The Last of the Dough Boys” and “Back Over There” — Maine author Richard Rubin has introduced readers to a forgotten generation of Americans — the men and women who fought and won the First World War. He will be the guest speaker Wednesday, Aug. 23, from 6 to 8 p.m.
Interviewing the war’s last survivors face-to-face, he knew well the importance of being present if you want to get the real story. He discovered that while most Americans regard the war as dead and gone, to the people of France, who still live among its ruins and memories, it remains very much alive. For months he followed the trail of the American Expeditionary Forces on the Western Front, finding trenches, tunnels, bunkers, century-old graffiti and ubiquitous artifacts. However, he also discovered an abiding fondness for America and Americans, and a colorful corps of local after-hours historians and archeologists who tirelessly explore these sites and preserve the memories they embody while patiently waiting for Americans to return and reclaim their own history and heritage.
Professor Libby Bischof, associate professor of history and director of the center for collaboration and development at the University of Southern Maine, will be the guest speaker Wednesday, Aug. 30, at 6 p.m. Her topic will be “World War I Centennial: Monuments and Memorials in Maine.” Bischof specializes in history of photography, especially in Maine. Her other research interests include Maine history., modernism, how friendship informs cultural production and 19th-century New England women writers.
Books will be available for sale, and light refreshments will be served. For more information, call (207) 495-3508.