Co-facilitator:  Carl Hays

A tense historical thriller follows FBI agent's race to stop a Nazi plot to abduct Albert Einstein, who Hitler believes can unlock the atomic bomb. Nazi sympathizers across 1930's America hold rallies in Madison Square Garden and covert operations on Long Island. The FBI protects Einstein from Germany operatives' effort to capture him in order to derail Einstein's warning to FDR.

Book:  The Einstein Conspiracy by Steve Israel (not required)

The works of Aurora artist Dr. Charles Smith will be exhibited from 8/17- 9/18 in Waubonsee’s Arrowhead Gallery. Join Dr. Smith in an Artist Talk on 8/27 at 2pm to learn how he spent more than fifteen years building an art environment on his property in Aurora, Illinois that was unlike anything else in America. Working in concrete and found materials, he created over 600 sculptures that resulted in a sprawling, self-made monument to African American history, from its most celebrated figures to its most forgotten ones.

Join LLI members attending the talk at a self-paid lunch at Burnt Barrel restaurant prior to the talk at noon on 8/27.

Speaker:  Dr. Charles Smith

Six Nations: Presented in roughly chronological order of their entering the war: Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy, Soviet Union,  United States. Each examined in terms of history, government, resources, demographics, recent experience of war, war aims, and how those came together to produce success or catastrophe.

Discover a fascinating world beyond what the eye can see. Participants will explore microscopes, crystals, cells, and magnified everyday objects while learning how microscopic discoveries transformed medicine, science, and technology. Through guided discussion and hands-on investigation, participants will uncover the beauty and importance of the tiny world around us. Activity Level: Easy Going.

The Registration DEADLINE is 9/7/2026. (No Exceptions)

An installation of the work of Artist Mike Rea will be exhibited from 8/10-10/2 in the Dickson Center Window Art Project Space. Join Mike in an Artist Talk on 9/9 at 11 AM to learn how their work reflects a culture of humor, violence, vulgarity, and sensitivity as he replicates and reinvents moments of cinematic horror, science fiction, comedy and drama. These moments intermingle with the artist's memory to form the bizarre personal narratives present in his bombastic sculpture.

Join LLI members attending the talk at a self-paid lunch at Burnt Barrel restaurant after the talk at noon on 9/9.

Speaker:  Mike Rea

One class per month, on a Thursday.  Follow dates before each book title.

Read a book per month and join in lively discussion with your peers. (The second Thursday of each month).  All books are required.

Sept. 10 - Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts

Oct. 8 - A Brilliant Night of Stars and Ice by Rebecca Connolly

Nov. 12 - Maria by Michelle Moran

Dec. 10 - The Heart of It's a Wonderful Life by Jimmy Hawkins

Has the degradation of the Earth been worth it? We will look at six different raw materials that have altered civilization throughout history from the stories of how they were first discovered to the environmental impact their production has had on the Earth.

Book:  Material World, The Six Raw Materials That Shape Modern Civilization by Ed Conway (Required)

Most of us know the American side of the Revolutionary War i.e. "taxation without representation", but what historical events shaped the English, the Colonies and the rest of Europe that led to the breach and war? How did the evolution of the English Monarchy affect the government of the colonies? How did the colonies reach a point where they thought they could take on the most powerful country in the world? Why did other European countries (most notably France and Spain) support the revolution? That support eventually would come back to haunt them. Why did the British suddenly start to tax the colonies and why did the colonist object to it so strongly?