Born in Vienna, Giselle von Grunebaum came to UCLA in 1957 when her husband, Professor Gustave von Grunebaum, was invited to found the Center for Near Eastern Studies, which now bears his name. Ten years later Ms. von Grunebaum enrolled in the Graduate School of Library and Information Science (now the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies) and thus began her career with the UCLA Library. During her fifteen years as gifts librarian, she helped to build acquisitions for the UCLA Library while at the same time creating strong relationships with collectors, booksellers, and donors. An engaged thinker and a constant and discerning reader, Ms. von Grunebaum was greatly admired by friends, fellow librarians, and students. She was much loved by the members of her Saturday Book Club, who, with other friends, paid tribute to her by establishing the Giselle von Grunebaum Memorial Endowment for World Literature. Funds from the endowment support purchases of great literature from around the globe, literature that inspires new generations of readers and scholars to pursue a passion for books that Ms. von Grunebaum herself embodied.
