Fourth Friday Book Club meeting in March
Fri, Mar 28, 2025, 2pm
Coming up for the March 28 meeting via Zoom of UMRA’s Fourth Friday Book Club is The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Chicago World’s Fair by Erik Larson.
Published in 2003 and a finalist for the National Book Award, the non-fiction book presents a complex combination of scenarios. The Chicago World's Fair contained a huge collection of neoclassical buildings that came to be known as the White City. The devil is H. H. Holmes, a conman and murderer said to be responsible for at least 200 victims. Part of the horror is that much of what he did occurred in plain view. It is a compelling read.
World’s Fair trivia: The leadership of the 1893 fair also wanted a landmark to outdo the grandeur of the Eiffel Tower. The solution: the massive and original Ferris Wheel, with 36 cars that could hold more than 2,160 people at one time, designed and constructed by George Washington Gale Ferris Jr.
Join the meeting of the Fourth Friday Book Club at 2 p.m. CT on March 28.
Email Dorothy Marden at [email protected] or Maggie Catambay at [email protected] if you’re not already a member. Newcomers are welcome.
Upcoming Events
UMRA’s Living Well Workshop on May 12 will feature Megan Walsh from the University of Minnesota Law School for a presentation on efforts to prevent gun violence through lawsuits designed to address unlawful practices in selling, manufacturing, or advertising firearms.
Craig Moody’s Swedish ancestors were among the 60,000 Swedes who chose to emigrate to the U.S. between 1868 and 1871, because of the poor economic conditions in their homeland. He has spent the last nine years investigating their history.
Back problems as we age and how we can treat them will be the discussion topic for the UMRA Breakfast meeting on Thursday, May 14. Paul Schanfield, MD, will be our expert resource person. He is a retired neurologist, a member of UMRA, and has personal experience with back surgery.
UMRA’s Book Club I will discuss The Alchemy of Us: How Humans and Matter Transformed One Another by Ainissa Ramirez when it meets via Zoom at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 15.
Peter Moe, retired University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Director and UMRA member, will lead this hike.
Executive Vice President and Provost Gretchen Ritter will discuss her role and offer reflections on her first year at the University of Minnesota as the featured speaker for the UMRA Luncheon Forum on May 19 at Midland Hills Country Club in Roseville. The forum will be preceded by UMRA’s 2026 Annual Meeting.
"Third Wednesdays in the West Wing" is a pilot program for spring 2026.
A 1987 classic, cited as the gold standard of modern legal thrillers.
Bev leads at Hyland Lake Park Reserve.
Connect, explore new ideas for what it means to live and age well, and celebrate a community of continuous learning at the fifth annual Age-Friendly University Day to be held on the U of M Twin Cities campus in Minneapolis on Monday, June 8.
Abandoned and discarded is the theme for the UMRA Photo Club meeting in June. Newcomers are welcome.
Michael leads this hike at Afton State Park.
We will gather in the Waterfall Room for an in-person, summer social and luncheon for UMRA members and guests on June 24th. Our event will include social time; a plated, seated lunch; and the always popular Summer Social Trivia Game with quizmasters Dave Dorman and Mark Jenson.
Kayaking at Lake Bde Maka Ska.
Bev leads the Nokomis walk to Minnehaha Falls.