Education of Things named a SHARP Book Prize finalist

Elizabeth Hoiem
Elizabeth Hoiem, Associate Professor

A book by Associate Professor Elizabeth Hoiem, The Education of Things: Mechanical Literacy in British Children's Literature, 1762-1860, has been named a finalist for the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing (SHARP) Book History Book Prize. The prize, which recognizes the best book published "on any aspect of the history or present conditions of authorship, reading, or publishing," includes a cash award of $1,250. The winner of the Book Prize will be announced at the SHARP Annual General Meeting on July 10 in Rochester, New York.

In her book, Hoiem examines the rising popularity during Britain's industrial revolution of children's moveable books and toys, which parents and teachers used to integrate observation and tinkering into lessons on reading and writing. These "mechanical" skillsets became essential literacies in an industrial economy. Hoeim also investigates the complex class politics behind the playful literature, toys, and learning aids created to teach reading alongside science, technology, and economics. 

Earlier this year, Education of Things was awarded the 2025 Justin G. Schiller Prize from The Bibliographical Society of America. The book, published by the University of Massachusetts Press, was funded in part by a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities and a Friends of the Princeton University Library Research Grant.

Hoiem's teaching and research explores the history of children's literature and material culture in the context of learning and play, from early books and toys to contemporary digital pedagogy. She is currently visiting as an honorary fellow at the School of Philosophy, Religion and History of Science at the University of Leeds. Hoiem holds a PhD in English from Illinois and MA in literary and cultural studies from Carnegie Mellon University.

Updated on
Backto the news archive

Related News

Aubin Le Quéré to join the faculty

The iSchool is pleased to announce that Marianne Aubin Le Quéré will join the faculty as an assistant professor in August 2026, pending approval by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees. Aubin Le Quéré is a PhD candidate in the Department of Information Science at Cornell University. For the 2025-2026 academic year, she will be a postdoctoral fellow at Princeton University's Center for Information Technology Policy.

Marianne Aubin Le Quere

Midwest Big Data Innovation Hub wins Synergy Award

The Midwest Big Data Innovation Hub (MBDH) has won the Synergy Award from the Chicago Council on Science and Technology (C2ST). The MBDH is a partnership of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Indiana University, Iowa State University, the University of Michigan, the University of Minnesota, and the University of North Dakota. It is part of the National Science Foundation’s regional Big Data Innovation Hubs program that comprises offices in the Midwest, West, South, and the Northeast. 

Kelly Desino, scientific director of AbbVie's Community of Science, presenting the Synergy Award from the Chicago Council on Science and Technology (C2ST) to Professor Cathy Blake.

New project improves accessibility of health information through AI

Assistant Professor Yue Guo has received a $30,000 Arnold O. Beckman Research Award from the U of I Campus Research Board for her project, "Optimizing Personalization in Plain Language Summaries: Comparing Predictive and Interactive Approaches for Tailored Health Information." 

Yue Guo

Jang awarded the Jeffrey S. Tanaka Grant for Asian American Studies

PhD student Inyoung Jang has been awarded the Jeffrey S. Tanaka Grant for Asian American Studies for her project, "Semi-Basement Housing as Cold War Infrastructure: State Violence and the Legacies of American and Asian Imperialism and Colonialism in South Korea." The grant provides up to $1,000 for direct research expenses, including travel and material purchases.

Inyoung Jang