Books Posts

Riley Grace Brett at Gabriel’s Book Store

I met a new local author in the wild over the weekend at Gabriel’s Book Store in Lakeside. Riley Grace Brett volunteers there; she has also released a new novel.

Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards 2024 Call for Nominations

Lake Superior Writers is seeking nominations for the 2024 Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards. NEMBA celebrates books that substantially represent the history, culture, heritage or lifestyle of northeastern Minnesota.

The six categories are: nonfiction, fiction, children’s literature, middle grade / young adult, poetry and memoir.

Seeking migration stories to teach, publish

This semester, I will be teaching a class focusing on migration stories. If you have a favorite such story (about human migration, bird migration, software migration), especially one with a Duluth connection, please send it my way: dbeard @ d.umn.edu, or comment below.

Jeno Paulucci featured in new book

In his new book, The Rebellious CEO, Ralph Nader picks Duluth icon Jeno Paulucci as one of “12 leaders who did it right,” noting his respect for workers.

River City Records & Books open in Lincoln Park

Chris Huppert shops for phonograph albums Saturday at the newly opened River City Records & Books in Duluth. Huppert had list of 10 hard-to-find albums he was searching for.

Traffic was brisk at River City Records & Books on Saturday. The new store at 1814 W. Superior St. in Duluth’s Lincoln Park Craft District opened on Friday at 3 p.m.

New Collections, Projects and Ideas for Publishing Mentorships

As a teacher of writing at the University of Minnesota Duluth, I’m both concerned with how students learn to express themselves and how they position themselves for lives and careers after graduation. Of late, I’ve been trying to develop coursework and experiences for students that prepare them for careers in publishing. This includes learning about BookTok, developing materials to explain the difference between an editor and an agent, and more.

Duluthians at the Twin Cities Book Festival

The Twin Cities Book Festival was held on Saturday, Oct. 14. The event “offers bibliophiles all the joys of in-person browsing, meeting writers and publishers, and activities for readers age 1 to 101,” according to its website.

Northeastern Minnesota Book Award Winners for 2023

An old fire tower in the north woods, a busy Duluth harbor on the day tall ships arrive, and an 1894 murder on Minnesota Point are just some of the settings for books honored in this year’s Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards.

Sherlockiana at the Book Sale: Barry Day and Val Andrews

There was an entire bookcase of books about Sherlock Holmes at Friends of the Library Book Sale at the Superior Public Library. I took home two full shelves.

New book by Duluthians about Agatha Christie

This book, by some undercelebrated authors from Duluth, looks really promising. They have cranked out six books together, I think.

Retired Duluth librarian writes second book

Duluth Stories: People and Events from the Zenith City’s Past was published by the author with the help of X-Presso Books in January.

Did you know that German prisoners of war worked in local lumber camps during World War Two? That the Zenith City produced four opera divas and eight classical-music composers? That no fewer than six Duluthians worked on the Manhattan Project, developing the world’s first atomic bombs? Inside these pages, retired Duluth Public Library reference librarian David Ouse tells the tales of not only accomplished Duluthians — including local women who broke down barriers by becoming the first female practitioners of traditionally male professions — but also of visits from the famous, the exploits of a couple of “human flies,” two early (and lost) motion pictures set in the Zenith City, and much more.

Chester Park has a new kind of tree: A poetree

“This book is offered in the form of a poetry chrysalis to encourage us to think about how we are a part of nature and how our actions cause change,” Wildwood wrote on the note. (Photo by Rob Wildwood via Facebook)

Picking a new summer book just got easier. Duluth writer Robert Wildwood has taken the free library idea to new heights, offering up copies of his latest book of poetry to the public in a novel way. This month, chrysalides of poetry appeared in Chester Park trees, and they are a gift for you.

Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards 2023 Nominees

Lake Superior Writers has announced the titles of the 24 books nominated for 2023 Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards. For the past three decades, the awards have recognized books that substantially represent the history, culture, heritage and lifestyle of northeastern Minnesota.

Duluth Book Releases in 2023

Complicated Warding
Michelle Matthees
Jan. 1
Press This!
Available at michellematthees.com

I Think I Know You
Julie Gard
Jan. 2
FutureCycle Press
Available at barnesandnoble.com

White Pine: The Natural and Human History of a Foundational American Tree
John Pastor
Jan. 5
Island Press
Available at islandpress.org

Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards 2023 Call for Nominations

Lake Superior Writers is seeking nominations for the 2023 Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards.

The categories have changed and are as follows: Nonfiction; Fiction; Children’s Literature; Middle Grade/Young Adult; Poetry; and Memoir. Art/Photography is now part of the Nonfiction category. A $40 entry fee is required for each nominated title.

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