Jacobs Library received a Back to Books Grant in April for $3,000 from the Illinois State Library made possible by a combination of funds from the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services and state of Illinois library funds.

The grant funds were awarded for the purchase of books in the subject area of Cultural Studies, a subject area that focuses on all of the areas of culture that fall outside of traditional fields of study, including film and television studies, media theory, postmodern theory, semiotics, critical race and gender studies and pop culture.

The grant has enabled Jacobs Library to purchase over 120 new books on these topics to support courses taught in Sociology, Philosophy, English, and Film Studies. The list of new books includes such titles as “Creating Country Music: Fabricating Authenticity,” by Richard A. Peterson, about the cultural development of country and western music, and “Blog Theory” by Jodi Dean, which is a critical look at blogs and social media.

Right now, many of these new books are on display directly across from the bookstore entrance and are available to students and faculty.