BY LORNA LANDVIK One of my first editors was a woman named Leona Never, who while reading through slush pile submissions back in the ’50s came across a manuscript she insisted her boss not only read, but publish, pronto. It was Peyton Place. Leona was old-school and managed to rise up in the sexist women-are-secretaries-men-are-bosses … More Lorna Landvik on returning to Patty Jane’s world
Yesterday, the Minneapolis City Pages went live with a front-page feature on Tom Rademacher, a middle-grade English teacher and Minnesota Teacher of the Year who has written a book about the messy, messy, messy business of teaching. Select excerpts from his book, It Won’t Be Easy, bring to vivid life moments from his teaching career in … More "I was going to be one of *those* teachers: the natural and inspiring who wore stylish sport coats, whose classroom was a sacred space of literature, of rebellion, of learning. But nobody told me how hard it was going to be."
BY JIM WALSH On Valentine’s Day 1996, Prince married Mayte Garcia at Park Avenue Methodist Church in South Minneapolis. In honor of the funky nuptials that day, I took the opportunity to compile a list of Prince’s greatest love songs for the St. Paul Pioneer Press, reprinted in Gold Experience: Following Prince in the ‘90s … More Throwback Valentine’s Day: A bittersweet collection of Prince’s finest love songs
BY LARRY MILLETT In his four novels and 56 short stories featuring Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle always depicted the great detective in the prime of life. The Holmes in these tales is not only a perfect thinking machine but also athletic, fearless, and supremely confident. Yet what might have happened to Holmes as … More In latest Sherlock Holmes in Minnesota installment, the typically flawless Holmes is plagued by doubt and illness.
BY BRIAN MCMAHONExcerpt from The Ford Century in Minnesota Ascent of the AutoworkersThe Postwar Boom and ChallengesWhen [World War II] ended, there were about twenty-five million cars on the road, and most were more than ten years old. People wanted new cars and Ford was eager to meet the pent-up demand. Several hundred workers, including … More The Ford Century in Minnesota: The Postwar Boom and Challenges
BY JIM WALSHExcerpt from the Introduction to Bar Yarns and Manic-Depressive Mixtapes My earliest memory of scribbling in a notebook while listening to music is New Year’s Eve, 1974. I was fourteen and then as now not a big fan of mean girls and boys, so that night I intentionally stayed away from the junior … More Going Underground: Jim Walsh on his earliest memory of music writing.
BY BEATRICE OJAKANGASExcerpted from Homemade The Christmas season for us was marked by the beginning of Christmas tree season in October. Isä [Ojakangas’s father] had discovered that he could make a bunch of money by cutting and selling Christmas trees. He would pile the cut trees onto the platform of his truck and deliver the … More Christmas Trees + Beatrice Ojakangas’s Pulla People holiday recipe.
BY MARK NEUZILProfessor of communication and journalism, University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN “Everyone believes in something. I believe I will go canoeing” is a comment attributed to Henry David Thoreau, who could make a claim as America’s most famous canoeist. Regardless of whether he wrote it or not, I have understood what the … More "I have spent a life in canoes."
Looking ahead to this weekend’s Nobel prize ceremony, in which Bob Dylan, the 2016 laureate in literature, will likely not attend but will provide a speech.BY COLLEEN SHEEHYPresident and executive director, Public Art St. Paul When I looked at my phone in the early morning of Thursday, October 13, I was stunned to discover that … More A quiet life, a remarkable influence: On Bob Dylan’s English teacher, B.J. Rolfzen
Sky Blue Water: Great Stories for Young Readers is a one-of-a-kind collection of short stories that celebrate Minnesota’s vibrant storytelling tradition. A rich and often under-appreciated part of this tradition is youth storytelling. This collection celebrates young adult and intermediate fiction from some of Minnesota’s most beloved authors, emerging talents, and many more. In this … More Sky Blue Water writers’ seasonal traditions and Minnesota food experiences. (Part 2 of 2)
