SciFri Book Club: Rising by Elizabeth Rush

Tilton Library is excited to be a Partner Library with Science Friday, an award-winning producer of high quality, fact-checked, and trustworthy science news. For 30 years Science Friday has been a radio program (aired locally at 2pm on Fridays at 89.3 and 91.7 FM radio or online streaming), and in recent years they have added podcasts, live events, and citizen science, all providing entertaining educational stories & experiences about science, technology, and other cool stuff.

Where the Tilton partnership comes in is through the Science Friday Book Club, which happens twice a year in the fall and spring for about 4-6 weeks. We can read the chosen book, listen to the radio/podcast discussions where often times the author is interviewed, and then have our own in person discussion of the book.

See more details below on this fall’s SciFri Book Club book and activities, all hosted by Science Friday.


The Science Friday Book Club is back this fall! This time, we are exploring climate change, coastal flooding, and its effects on communities around the country with Elizabeth Rush’s Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore. It is a book that speaks directly from the people who are experiencing these changes of extreme weather firsthand, and we’re excited to introduce you to both those people, and the places they live. 

Mark your calendars, because the Fall 2021 season of the SciFri Book Club kicks off on October 1, 2021. Check out and RSVP for all the upcoming events below.

NOTE: TO GET A COPY OF THE BOOK THROUGH THE TILTON LIBRARY, CALL OR EMAIL US OR PLACE A HOLD THROUGH CWMARS Here.

Our own discussion of this book will take place on Tuesday November 30 at 7pm


On Air: Book Club On Science Friday, Part 1

Book Club Captain Christie Taylor will be on Science Friday, discussing science topics with experts related to our book choice. Tune into your local radio station, listen live on our website, or download the episode wherever you get your podcasts to hear our interview!


Virtual Event: How Sea Level Rise Is Changing The World

  • When: Tuesday, October 5, 2021 at 3:00pm ET
  • Where: Science Friday’s Zoom webinar
  • Tickets: Free with RSVP

Join us for a SciFri Zoom call-in, where attendees can listen in as the Science Friday team records an interview with science experts. Attendees could be selected to ask their questions live with our guests! Listen to Science Friday each week to hear your voice on our show.

This time, for the SciFri Book Club, we’re welcoming experts to talk about the effects we are already seeing from climate change on our coasts and beyond. Come for the collaborative ways experts are working together to address sea level rise head-on; leave with ideas for activating change in your community, no matter where you live.

RSVP FOR OCTOBER 5


Book Club Chat: When Marshes Rot And Islands Disappear

  • When: Monday, October 11, 2021 from 5:00–6:30pm ET
  • Where: Science Friday’s Zoom meeting
  • Tickets: Free with RSVP

We invite all members of the SciFri Book Club community to come together every other week for a Zoom meeting, where you can meet other readers from across the world, talk about the book and the most recent discussion questions, and find out more resources for further reading—all without leaving your home.

This discussion meeting will focus on our first week of reading (‘The Password’ to ‘The Marsh at the End of the World’, or pages 1-69). You’re welcome to join us if you haven’t completed these chapters, but know there will be mention of specific topics and ideas in the reading.

RSVP FOR OCTOBER 11


On Air: Book Club On Science Friday, Part 2

Book Club Captain Christie Taylor will be on Science Friday, discussing science topics with experts related to our book choice. Tune into your local radio station, listen live on our website, or download the episode wherever you get your podcasts to hear our interview!


Virtual Event: How Do You Talk About A Problem Like Climate Change? With Elizabeth Rush

  • When: Tuesday, October 19, 2021 at 6:00pm ET
  • Where: Science Friday’s Zoom webinar
  • Tickets: Free with RSVP

Join us for a SciFri Zoom call-in, where attendees can listen in as the Science Friday team records an interview with science experts. Attendees could be selected to ask their questions live with our guests! Listen to Science Friday each week to hear your voice on our show.

This time, for the SciFri Book Club, join producer Christie Taylor in conversation with Elizabeth Rush, author of this fall’s Book Club choice and whose work explores how humans adapt to changes and forces seemingly beyond their control, from ecological transformation to political revolution. We’ll talk about how we talk about climate change, the role of storytelling in making meaningful change, and who is missing from the conversation—and we’ll take your questions.

RSVP FOR OCTOBER 19


Book Club Chat: The Cost of Rising, Rebuilding, and Relocating

  • When: Monday, October 25, 2021 from 5:00–6:30pm ET
  • Where: Science Friday’s Zoom meeting
  • Tickets: Free with RSVP

We invite all members of the SciFri Book Club community to come together every other week for a Zoom meeting, where you can meet other readers from across the world, talk about the book and the most recent discussion questions, and find out more resources for further reading—all without leaving your home.

This discussion meeting will focus on our second and third weeks of reading (‘Pulse’ to ‘Connecting the Dots’, or pages 71-205). You’re welcome to join us if you haven’t completed these chapters, but know there will be mention of specific topics and ideas in the reading.

RSVP FOR OCTOBER 25


On Air: Book Club On Science Friday, Part 3

Book Club Captain Christie Taylor will be on Science Friday, discussing science topics with experts related to our book choice. Tune into your local radio station, listen live on our website, or download the episode wherever you get your podcasts to hear our interview!


Book Club Chat: Mitigation, Adaptation, And Defining Resiliency

  • When: Monday, November 1, 2021 from 5:00–6:30pm ET
  • Where: Science Friday’s Zoom meeting
  • Tickets: Free with RSVP

We invite all members of the SciFri Book Club community to come together every other week for a Zoom meeting, where you can meet other readers from across the world, talk about the book and the most recent discussion questions, and find out more resources for further reading—all without leaving your home.

This discussion meeting will focus on our last week of reading (‘On Restoration’ to ‘Afterward’, or pages 206-264). You’re welcome to join us if you haven’t completed these chapters, but know there will be mention of specific topics and ideas in the reading.

RSVP FOR NOVEMBER 1


SciFri Trivia Night: Book Club Edition

  • When: Wednesday, November 3, 2020 at 8:30pm ET
  • Where: Science Friday’s YouTube livestream
  • Tickets: Free with RSVP

SciFri Trivia is a weekly gathering that’s part science-y facts, part dance party, and part pop culture romp, and it’s for anyone looking to bring together teams (or bravely play solo) to win ultimate bragging rights. It’s not all science trivia—but this time, we’ve diving into the topics and ideas explored in this Fall’s Book Club pick, Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore.

If you haven’t read the book, you might be at a slight disadvantage to our Book Clubbers, but  we still think you should come (and we do suggest you should pick it up from your local library or bookstore)! The trivia will cover topics including but not limited to: changing ecosystems, rising tides, community voices, flooding, climate resiliency, and lots more.

RSVP FOR NOVEMBER 3