From the Torah to the psychological effects of music to the Berlin wall, upcoming public lectures also include an honorary doctorate for author Claire Messud.

From "Raw" to the "New Yorker," Pulitzer winner Art Spiegelman has changed the way people think about cartooning. The author of the Holocaust-centered "Maus" and the 9/11-related "In the Shadow of No Towers," Spiegelman delivers Skidmore's Steloff Lecture on Oct. 4.

The celerated novelist has titled his talk "Fresh News from a Small Town."

"The Novelist and the World" is the title of the talk that the acclaimed author will give in an event that is a high point of the fall semester.

Skidmore's Steloff Lecture is a high point of the academic calendar. This year award-winning author Ha Jin will present the lecture, which he has titled "Personal Story, Historical Event." The free lecture will begin at 8 p.m. Feb. 9 in Gannett Auditorium, Palamountain Hall. (Jerry Bauer photo)