Poet Donna Stonecipher launched her book Ruins of Nostalgia, drawing crowds to the AAU library with some students standing in the lobby to peek at the discussion between the author and Czech architect Pavla Melkova.
Stonecipher introduced her work to the audience by reading excerpts from her latest collection of prose poetry, The Ruins of Nostalgia, which was included in National Public Radio’s “Books We Love” list.
“If I thought that nostalgia was only sentimentality, I would not have written this book. Nostalgia has a capacity for resistance,” Stonecipher said.
The discussion between Stonecipher and Melkova, which centered on the relationship between architecture and human experience, lasted for about two hours. Stonecipher, who lives in Berlin, said her collection was inspired by “Ostalgie,” the feeling of nostalgia for East Germany.
“I took my personal interest in this topic because I want to take urban studies as my future studies. I am really interested in this connection, and this will probably be my thesis topic, exploring collective memory and architecture,” an AAU student said.
The AAU library regularly hosts readings and discussions, with schedules posted around campus.
