The Deep Read
Welcome to The Deep Read, an annual program of The Humanities Institute at UC Santa Cruz. We invite curious minds to think deeply about books and the most pressing issues of our contemporary moment.
This Spring 2024 we will read Trust, the 2023 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Hernan Diaz. Trust pairs the music of the roaring 1920s with the staccato rhythm of the ticker tape in an exploration of how trusts, bonds, and other financial instruments of the early twentieth century penetrate the very core of human relationships and the stories we tell about them. Together we’ll consider how the technologies of finance and fiction overlap in this novel about capitalism and its social, cultural, and political power in the U.S.
📙 We have free copies of the book available to Deep Readers—1,000 for current UCSC students and 200 for Deep Readers across the United States. Please note, all the books for non-students have been claimed.
👇 Sign up below to get the Deep Read emails and info on the 2024 Deep Read events. Students should sign up here, too. We’ll send information via email on how to reserve your free copy of the book.
Join the Deep Read
Exploring Trust
This program is all about reading deeply with the help from scholars at UC Santa Cruz. Over 4 weeks starting in late-April, we’ll read Trust by Hernan Diaz together.
Here’s what you can expect:
Deep Read Scholars
We’ve enlisted a knowledgeable group of UC Santa Cruz professors who will help us analyze the book:
Lori Kletzer, Economics, Campus Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor
Madhavi Murty, Feminist Studies
Dard Neuman, Music
Zac Zimmer, Literature and Deep Read Faculty Lead
Email Explorations
There will be weekly emails that dive into a different aspect of the book, guided by our Deep Read Scholars in Literature, Economics, Feminist Studies, and Music.
Salons
Faculty Salon: On May 6, you’ll be able to join the conversation—either in person or online—at a salon-style event where our participating professors will lead a discussion of the book with UCSC students and the broader Deep Read community.
Craft Salon: On April 30, we will host an online discussion focused on the writing craft of Trust. More details coming soon.
Regional Alumni Salons: We have a number of salons planned up and down the California coast and in NYC.
- April 3: New York City | Details & Registration
- April 25: San Francisco Bay Area
- May 8: San Diego
Community Conversations
We’ll have online forums for each of the weekly explorations of the book where you can ask questions, post comments, and engage with fellow Deep Readers.
Meet Hernan Diaz
This year’s program will culminate in a live discussion of Trust with author Hernan Diaz in conversation with Deep Read Faculty Lead, Associate Professor of Literature Zac Zimmer on May 19 at UC Santa Cruz’s Quarry Amphitheater.
The Class
In Spring Quarter 2024, Lecturer and THI Program Manager Laura Martin will teach a course at Porter College for UCSC students exploring Trust and Hernan Diaz’s other writings. Many insights from the class will be shared with the broader Deep Read community throughout the program.
Events of Interest
Books and Boba
Friday, March 1 from 6-9pm at the Terry Freitas Commons: free books, boba, and snacks!
Unity in Diversity: A Celebration of Stevenson Core Course Book Themes
Wednesday, March 6 from 5pm-8 pm at the Cowell Stevenson Dining Hall.
Kresge College Night: Celebration of the Arts
Thursday, March 14, 2024 from 5pm-7pm at Porter/Kresge Dining Hall
CAMPUS PARTNERS
The Humanities Institute
Alumni Engagement
College Scholars Program
Division of Student Affairs and Success
Council of Provosts
Living Writers Series
Phi Beta Kappa
Porter College
University Library
COMMUNITY PARTNERS
Bookshop Santa Cruz
Pacific Collegiate School
Santa Cruz High School
MEDIA SPONSOR
Lookout Santa Cruz
A Humanities Institute Initiative
For over 20 years, The Humanities Institute has fostered a vibrant community at the center of UC Santa Cruz and at the cutting edge of Humanities research, education, and public engagement. This work is essential in the face of ever-changing and tumultuous times. And the Deep Read is our newest platform for intellectual engagement, classes on campus, and major events with top writers and thinkers. We aim to foster thinking deeply across all mediums, driven by conversation and timely engagement with art, culture, politics and scholars here at UC Santa Cruz who see the forest and the trees every day.