When we called up Kevin Kling to talk about desert islands, we weren’t too surprised when the conversation turned to ice fishing. After all, this mysterious, frigid pastime has come up often in the work of the Twin Cities’ consummate storyteller. While Kling is Minnesotan to the core (he also squeezed in a Sven and … Read more
It was a midmorning in August when the rooster went native in South Minneapolis. The city department of Animal Care and Control hastened an officer to the scene. The rooster, while inflicting no physical damage, had brazenly disregarded the matrix of propriety that binds people together and, more important, keeps them apart. An anonymous caller … Read more
A Saturday night in late summer and downtown Rochester was completely dark except for an exceedingly lively block of First Avenue Northwest. At one end, a tall Somali man leaned into the window of a black Chevy Cavalier and spoke with a woman wearing a red silk hijab, or headscarf. Behind the Cavalier, three Somali … Read more
Back in the 1920s, William T. Middlebrook, then a vice president at the University of Minnesota, had a bright idea. In order to attract and retain the most talented professors, the U would build them a truly unique neighborhood. Thus was born University Grove: eight blocks on which more than one hundred homes, each custom … Read more
When it began to rain and the wind scattered the leaves from the two little trees out front, the solitary customer in the bar drained his beer and said, “It’s getting colder and colder every day now. Perhaps this year there will be a bit of snow to cover up the dog shit.” The bartender … Read more
Whether your preference is for scoop-, turtle-, or V-necks, brace yourself for challenges to traditions. We’ve been seeing lots of exaggerated and sculpted forms swaddling the neckline—flirtatious cowls, modern takes on the halter, décolletage-framing fichus—which are often possible thanks to soft, pliable fabrics. For gentlemen, sadly, the look is more subdued, but tastemakers can always … Read more
www.rakemag.com/today “An anonymous interlocutor took me to task last week for crying about the FEMA and Army types who wouldn’t let reporters ride along to document the search for the dead in New Orleans. Well, the reporters have their own rides now, but it seems the Army didn’t get the message about letting reporters do … Read more
I recently was given the September issue of The Rake by a Twin Cities relative. She passed it on to me as I am from Litchfield and there is an article written by Christy DeSmith titled “Power in Our Union” [September]. I enjoyed the article as I have a deep interest in the Grand Army … Read more
I enjoyed reading the article about the stone arches and wall that stood amidst the weeds alongside Highway 52 in Inver Grove Heights for decades [“The Ruin,” September]. Growing up in the fifties and sixties, my family made a monthly pilgrimage to visit my grandmother on the shores of Lake Pepin. Sitting in the back … Read more
Hello, this is Bryan Alvarez, Dr. Marla Spivak’s son. I am writing to say thank you for publishing such a wonderful article about her and her work. It’s a pleasure to finally see a story about honeybees that doesn’t read like a Dario Argento script. Bees don’t kill people. People kill people. Or something like … Read more