Hugely respected by his peers and routinely showered with accolades in the form of rave reviews and literary prizes, Ron Carlson remains a largely unknown writer to the sort of folks who pluck their reading choices out of the new arrivals pig pile at the local [sic] book behemoth. There’s no particular reason to expect … Read more
When Sherman Alexie came to town last month to promote Flight, a novel in which a teenager nicknamed Zits is driven to the verge of committing mass murder, one of his intentions was to continue his fight with author and University of Minnesota English professor David Treuer. Alexie’s smile was ever-present throughout our interview in … Read more
The character of a city is largely shaped by the extent to which it can nurture grand and modest dreams in equal proportion. Everybody, of course, has their own notion regarding what constitutes a grand or modest dream. But to be truly interesting places, a city’s neighborhoods need small businesses that manage to conflate both … Read more
Citizen’s arrest is no joke, as fans of The Andy Griffith Show can attest. In a memorable 1963 episode, Barney Fife issued Gomer Pyle a ticket for making an illegal U-turn, and then, as Fife was wont to do, began philosophizing. “It’s from little misdemeanors that major felonies grow,” Fife said, adding that even citizens … Read more
Climbing aboard a stool plucked from the 7th Street Entry’s barroom, local poet Éireann Lorsung offered a self-introduction. “I don’t know if you’ll believe this, but I’ve never opened for a band before.” Peering through a red fog of stage light at a small but enthusiastic crowd, the prim and somewhat elfin-looking twenty-six-year-old added, “I’ve … Read more
I raised three daughters who spent their childhoods reading Harry Potter. So I had never encountered the Nancy Drew mysteries until Malcolm, my seven-year-old son, received a copy of one in a bookstore earlier this year. Apparently, Nancy Drew wasn’t selling, so to spark interest the store was giving away The Secret of the Old … Read more
“I made this so that my daughter Ayla and her friends from Watershed [High School] could have a place to hang out,” said Phil Vandervoort of his “Logville Café.” The café is a sort of a miniature shed/diner amalgamation, a rec-room that ascended from the basement and set up in Vandervoort’s South Minneapolis backyard. Its … Read more
The bicycle has long been a primary mode of transportation in countries around the world, but in the U.S., we’ve tended to view this vehicle as a child’s toy (one destined to gather dust in the garage once the child receives a driver’s license) or a specialized implement meant only for aerobic sport junkies. But … Read more
This year’s warm-weather looks are characterized by something that hasn’t been seen in a while: full frontal fabric. Or, at the very least, covered-up biceps, cleavage, and tummies, which had been laid bare by the tanks and slip dresses of previous seasons. But whatever the comforts and flaw-disguising advantages of these fashions, they also bear, … Read more
Lost in the loud wailing heard in our little journalistic glade over the clear-cutting of staff at the Star Tribune and Pioneer Press is any serious discussion about what’s being severed: Is it actually worth the efforts of the journalistic tree huggers? To some, the answer is a stentorian “No.” I got an email the … Read more