Village Book Store

Silken Prey

admin — Fri, 24 May 2013 18:27:06 +0000

Murder, scandal, political espionage, and an extremely dangerous woman. Lucas Davenport’s going to be lucky to get out of this one alive.
Very early one morning, a Minnesota political fixer answers his doorbell. The next thing he knows, he’s waking up on the floor of a moving car, lying on a plastic sheet, his body wet with blood. When the car stops, a voice says, “Hey, I think he’s breathing,” and another voice says, “Yeah? Give me the bat.” And that’s the last thing he knows.
Davenport is investigating another case when the trail leads to the man’s disappearance, then–very troublingly–to the Minneapolis police department, then–most troublingly of all–to a woman who could give Machiavelli lessons. She has very definite ideas about the way the world should work, and the money, ruthlessness, and sheer will to make it happen.
No matter who gets in the way.

Author: John Sandford

Publisher: Putnam Publishing

US SRP: $27.95

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: May 7, 2013

Deep Betrayal

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:38:21 +0000

It’s been thirty days, two hours, and seventeen minutes since Calder left Lily standing on the shores of Lake Superior. Not that she’s counting. And when Calder does return, it’s not quite the reunion Lily hoped for. Especially after she lets her father in on a huge secret: he, like Calder, is a merman. Obsessed with his new identity, Lily’s dad monopolizes Calder’s time as the two of them spend every day in the water, leaving Lily behind.
Then dead bodies start washing ashore. Calder blames his mermaid sisters, but Lily fears her father has embraced the merman’s natural need to kill. As the body count grows, everyone is pointing fingers. Lily doesn’t know what to believe–only that whoever’s responsible is sure to strike again. . . .

Author: Anne Greenwood Brown

Publisher: Delacorte Press Books

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 12, 2013

Out of the Easy

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:34:22 +0000

It’s 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel prostitute, Josie wants more out of life than the Big Easy has to offer. She devises a plan get out, but a mysterious death in the Quarter leaves Josie tangled in an investigation that will challenge her allegiance to her mother, her conscience, and Willie Woodley, the brusque madam on Conti Street.
Josie is caught between the dream of an elite college and a clandestine underworld. New Orleans lures her in her quest for truth, dangling temptation at every turn, and escalating to the ultimate test.

With characters as captivating as those in her internationally bestselling novel “Between Shades of Gray, ” Ruta Sepetys skillfully creates a rich story of secrets, lies, and the haunting reminder that decisions can shape our destiny.

Author: Ruta Sepetys

Publisher: Philomel Books

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: February 12, 2013

Tiger

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:29:59 +0000

Wally lives alone in her Brooklyn loft. She’d be a regular teenager, except that she’s the daughter of a Russian assassin. Crime is in Wally’s blood, but she uses her legacy for good: she solves missing persons cases for the Ursula Society, an under-the-radar organization that uses oft-illegal tactics to find people the police have given up on.

The person Wally most wants to find? Tiger, her own fugitive brother. But the closer Wally gets to finding Tiger, the more dangerous her search becomes. And Klesko, Wally and Tiger’s sadistic father, is again at large. With two highly-skilled con men against them, Wally and Tiger band together to destroy a conspiracy in which they–and their hearts–are mere pawns.

Author: William Richter

Publisher: Razorbill

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 21, 2013

Dark Triumph

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:26:14 +0000

Sybella’s duty as Death’s assassin in 15th-century France forces her return home to the personal hell that she had finally escaped. Love and romance, history and magic, vengeance and salvation converge in this thrilling sequel to “Grave Mercy.” Sybella arrives at the convent’s doorstep half mad with grief and despair. Those that serve Death are only too happy to offer her refuge–but at a price. The convent views Sybella, naturally skilled in the arts of both death and seduction, as one of their most dangerous weapons. But those assassin’s skills are little comfort when the convent returns her to a life that nearly drove her mad. And while Sybella is a weapon of justice wrought by the god of Death himself, He must give her a reason to live. When she discovers an unexpected ally imprisoned in the dungeons, will a daughter of Death find something other than vengeance to live for?

Author: Robin LaFevers

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: April 2, 2013

Code – The Virals 03

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:22:36 +0000

The Virals are put to the ultimate test when they find a geocache containing an ornate puzzle box. Shelton decodes the cipher inside, only to find more tantalizing clues left by “The Gamemaster.” A second, greater geocache is within reach–if the Virals are up to the challenge.
But the hunt takes a dark turn when Tory locates the other box–a fake bomb, along with a sinister proposal from The Gamemaster. Now, the real game has begun: another bomb is out there–a real one–and the clock is ticking.

Author: Kathy Reichs

Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 12, 2013

The Summer Prince

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:17:15 +0000

A heart-stopping story of love, death, technology, and art set amid the tropics of a futuristic Brazil.
The lush city of Palmares Tres shimmers with tech and tradition, with screaming gossip casters and practiced politicians. In the midst of this vibrant metropolis, June Costa creates art that’s sure to make her legendary. But her dreams of fame become something more when she meets Enki, the bold new Summer King. The whole city falls in love with him (including June’s best friend, Gil). But June sees more to Enki than amber eyes and a lethal samba. She sees a fellow artist.
Together, June and Enki will stage explosive, dramatic projects that Palmares Tres will never forget. They will add fuel to a growing rebellion against the government’s strict limits on new tech. And June will fall deeply, unfortunately in love with Enki. Because like all Summer Kings before him, Enki is destined to die.
Pulsing with the beat of futuristic Brazil, burning with the passions of its characters, and overflowing with ideas, this fiery novel will leave you eager for more from Alaya Dawn Johnson.

Author: Alaya Dawn Johnson

Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 1, 2013

It’s Our Prom – So Deal With It

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:13:12 +0000

When Azure’s principal gives her the chance to turn the school’s traditional (and boring) senior prom into an event that will appeal to everyone, not just the jocks and cheerleaders, she jumps at the opportunity. Soon Azure manages to convince her best friends, Luke and Radhika, to join the prom committee as well.
Facing heavy opposition and admittedly clueless about prom logistics, the three friends are nonetheless determined to succeed — if Luke’s and Azure’s secret crushes on Radhika don’t push the committee members, and their friendships, to the breaking point first.
Told in two voices and filled with comical missed connections, “It’s Our Prom (So Deal With It)” explores the ups and downs of planning an alternative prom — while dealing with an unrequited crush on your best friend — and shines with National Book Award finalist Julie Anne Peters’s unmistakable wit and insight.

Author: Julie Ann Peter

Publisher: Megan Tingley Books

US SRP: $8.99

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: April 2. 2013

Etiquette and Espionage

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:09:09 +0000

It’s one thing to learn to curtsy properly. It’s quite another to learn to curtsy and throw a knife at the same time. Welcome to Finishing School.
Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is a great trial to her poor mother. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than proper manners–and the family can only hope that company never sees her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminnick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. So she enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine’s Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.
But Sophronia soon realizes the school is not quite what her mother might have hoped. At Mademoiselle Geraldine’s, young ladies learn to finish…everything. Certainly, they learn the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but the also learn to deal out death, diversion, and espionage–in the politest possible ways, of course. Sophronia and her friends are in for a rousing first year’s education.
Set in the same world as the Parasol Protectorate, this YA series debut is filled with all the saucy adventure and droll humor Gail’s legions of fans have come to adore.

Author: Gail Carriger

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: February 5, 2013

Colossus Rises – Seven Wonders 01

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:05:06 +0000

Just one boy . . .

Jack McKinley is an ordinary kid with an extraordinary problem. In six months, Jack is going to die.

Just one mission . . .

After Jack collapses in the middle of a busy street, he’s whisked off to a strange hospital in a strange place. There are armed guards and weird kids and fantastic creatures, not to mention no parents, no phones, and no possibility of escape. The place is run by an odd professor named Bhegad, who tells Jack that what’s killing him is a genetic trait inherited from the prince of a long-lost civilization. It’s destroying Jack by making him too strong too fast. He’ll need to stay strong, though–because it’s up to him to save the world.

Just one problem . . .

That long-lost civilization sank when seven magic Loculi were stolen and hidden around the world. Now Jack and his friends must find the Loculi before they fall into the wrong hands. If they don’t, they’ll never be cured, that lost world will rise, oceans will be displaced, and life as we know it will pretty much end.

Seven wonders.

No one ever asked Jack if he wanted to be a hero. He just has to be one. One kid. One mission. One big problem. The thrills begin in The Colossus Rises, the first installment in the newest adventure from master storyteller Peter Lerangis.

Author: Peter Lerangis

Publisher: Harper Collins

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: February 5, 2013

Play Ball – Little League 01

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 16:00:56 +0000

Eleven-year-old cousins catcher Liam McCarthy and pitcher Carter Jones grew up playing baseball together. Now, their team is on the verge of winning the greatest championship of all: the Little League Baseball World Series. To reach the title match, however, they must first beat their number one rivals from Southern California. Little do they know that the game will prove to be just the first challenge they’ll face on their road to the championships.

Author: Matt Christopher

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

US SRP: $14.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 5, 2013

Art2 – D2′s Guide to Folding and Doodling

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:57:12 +0000

Stick figures to the dark side only lead! To doodle like a Jedi you must learn! With this companion to the blockbuster bestselling Origami Yoda series, beloved author Tom Angleberger–with the help of the kids from McQuarrie Middle School–presents young Padawans with dozens of activities from the Star Wars universe. Padawans can learn how to fold R2-D2 and C-3PO, draw Jabba, and even build a fully functioning ChapStick rocket! Other Force-mastering activities include: “Kellen’s Guide to Cool Letters,” “Mike’s Complete Rules and Tips for Pencil Pod-Racing,” “Rhondella’s Tips for Photographing Origami,” and much more!
With Tom Angleberger’s goofy sense of humor and accessible art style, “Art2-D2′s Guide to Folding and Doodling” is sure to satisfy and inspire the millions of Origami Yoda and “Star Wars” fans. May the doodles be with you!
Includes 16-page color insert with 10 pages of colored pull-out origami paper; instructions to make Yoda, Darth, C-3PO, Admiral Ackbar, and R2-D2; a section on photographing your origami creations, and two Star Wars backdrops to photograph them against.

Author: Tom Angleberger

Publisher: Amulet Books

US SRP: $12.95

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 26, 2013

Deadweather and Sunrise – Chronicles of Egg 01

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:53:07 +0000

A stunning middle-grade debut–full of heart, humor, and nonstop action!
It’s tough to be thirteen, especially when somebody’s trying to kill you.
Not that Egg’s life was ever easy, growing up on sweaty, pirate-infested Deadweather Island with no company except an incompetent tutor and a pair of unusually violent siblings who hate his guts.
But when Egg’s father hustles their family off on a mysterious errand to fabulously wealthy Sunrise Island, then disappears with the siblings in a freak accident, Egg finds himself a long-term guest at the mansion of the glamorous Pembroke family and their beautiful, sharp-tongued daughter Millicent. Finally, life seems perfect.
Until someone tries to throw him off a cliff.
Suddenly, Egg’s running for his life in a bewildering world of cutthroat pirates, villainous businessmen, and strange Native legends. The only people who can help him sort out the mystery of why he’s been marked for death are Millicent and a one-handed, possibly deranged cabin boy.
Come along for the ride. You’ll be glad you did.

Author: Geoff Rodkey

Publisher: Puffin Books

US SRP: $7.99

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: March 5, 2013

Emily Windsnap and the Land of the Midnight Sun

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:49:16 +0000

The New York Times best-selling series continues with the half-mermaid embarking on an icy and perilous journey to the Land of the Midnight Sun.
Strange storms are blowing up from the ocean, caused by the nightmares of Neptune, King of the Sea. Convinced that his dreams herald an approaching threat, Neptune enlists half-mermaids Emily Windsnap and Aaron for a top-secret mission to find and eliminate the source of the trouble. But Emily and Aaron quickly get in over their heads in the frigid waters of the frozen north. Deep within an alpine lake where magical reflections show what could be rather than what is, the two discover a trove of stolen memories and Neptune’s darkest secret. Double-crosses and double-takes abound in Liz Kessler’s fifth magical mermaid adventure.

Author: Liz Kessler

Publisher: Candlewick Books

US SRP: $15.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: February 12, 2013

Mira’s Diary – Home Sweet Rome

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:45:38 +0000

As if traveling to a new country in search of her missing mother weren’t difficult enough, Mira has to do it dressed as a boy. In a different century.

A new postcard from her time-traveling mother points Mira to the 16th century Rome. But before she can rescue her mom, she must follow the clues left around the city to find Giordano Bruno, a famous thinker and mathematician, who discovered something so shocking that important Italian officials don’t want it revealed. All the while avoiding the Watchers–time-traveling police who want Mira back in her own time.

It’s another whirlwind adventure for Mira, and this time she is determined to bring her mother out of the past.

Author: Marissa Moss

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

US SRP: $12.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: April 2, 2013

Wilfred

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:32:32 +0000

In the tradition of Calvin & Hobbes and Dr. Seuss comes a new story of unlikely friendship.
Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a humongous and hairy giant named Wilfred. Whenever people saw him, they ran away, which made life very lonely for Wilfred. That is, until he found himself in a rather unusual town where once brave little boy saw something special in the timid giant. So begins a story of friendship and sacrifice that will remind readers just how important one voice – no matter how small – can be.
In this moving debut, Ryan Higgins shows his knack for blending humor and heart, and gives Lorax fans an unforgettable new hero.

Author: Ryan Higgins

Publisher: Dial Books

US SRP: $16.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 21, 2013

Lamb and the Butterfly

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:29:08 +0000

Eric Carle and Arnold Sundgaard’s classic tale is now available in a redesigned edition.
One day, a Lamb and a Butterfly meet in a meadow. The Lamb, cautious and dependent upon her mother, is curious about the Butterfly’s independent way of life. Meanwhile, the free-spirited Butterfly doesn’t understand the sense of security that the Lamb needs from her mother.
When an unexpected storm injures the Butterfly, the Lamb and her mother care for her, nursing her back to health. Once she’s better, the Butterfly must resume her journey, flying away from the meadow. As the Lamb and the Butterfly try to understand each other’s perspective, we learn an important lesson about recognizing and respecting differences between ourselves and others.

Author: Arnold Sundgaard

Illustrator: Eric Carle

Publisher: Orchard Books

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: February 1, 2013

Where On Earth?

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:23:54 +0000

Where are the world’s tallest buildings? Where are earthquakes most likely to occur? Where can you find animals that glow? Showcasing the most fascinating places on the planet, “Where on Earth?” is a collection of more than 75 3-D maps that show not only where everything is, but also why it’s there.

Divided into six chapters: Geography, Nature, People, History, Arts & Entertainment, and Science & Technology, “Where on Earth?” brings an instant understanding to a wealth of subjects, stimulating interest in the world around us and drawing young readers into the topic. From physical geography, habitats of big cats, the Seven Wonders of the World, Olympic cities, shipwreck sites, and more, every map contains fact panels that provide additional information and useful statistics, while focus features pull out and explain the most interesting facets for an even richer experience.

Publisher: DK Publishing

US SRP: $19.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 18, 2013

North Country Spring

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:18:49 +0000

The running of rivers, the wild geese returning, the bear cubs stepping out, and the peepers singing – this is the arrival of spring in the north country. Join all manner of north country animals as they respond in their own unique ways to the slow vanishing of the cold, dark winter. Reeve Lindbergh’s verse captures the empowering voice of spring in language both poetic and precise, while Liz Sivertson’s paintings are as spirited and free as the north itself. Together, poet and painter celebrate the wildness and beauty of a season that can never come too soon.

Author: Reeve Lindbergh

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

US SRP: $6.95

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: May 1, 2007

Let It Rain

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:09:21 +0000

The snow is melting, flowers are blooming, and a light rain is falling. Spring is finally here! Enjoy all the wondrous signs of the season with Maryann Cocca-Leffler’s exhuberant celebration of spring!
With soft-colored art, adorable children, and colorful outdoor scenes, LET IT RAIN is a continuation of Maryann’s delightful series all about the seasons.

Author: Maryann Cocca-Leffler

Publisher: Cartwheel Books

US SRP: $3.99

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: February 1, 2013

Frog and Friends – Outdoor Surprises

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 15:05:16 +0000

Welcome to Frog and his world. He enjoys nothing better than spending time floating on his pond or visiting with his friends. He appreciates the simpler things in life and would prefer that things stay just the way they are–nice and peaceful. From acclaimed children’s writer Eve Bunting comes a beginning reader series featuring the delightful Frog and his friends Rabbit, Possum, Raccoon, and Squirrel. In Outdoor Surprises Frog eagerly joins a singing group, helps Squirrel rescue a baby bird, and provides a voice of reason when his woodland friends are scared by a nighttime story.

Author: Eve Bunting

Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press

US SRP: $4.99

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: April 1, 2013

Magic Tree House – Stallion By Starlight

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 01:42:15 +0000

If kids get hooked on Magic Tree House, they’re hooked on reading!

This is one series that kids, teachers, librarians, and parents all agree on. A perfect blend of magic, adventure, history, science, danger, and cuteness–the topics range from kid pleasers (pirates, the “Titanic,” pandas) to curriculum perfect (rain forest, American Revolution, Abraham Lincoln) to seasonal shoe-ins (Halloween, Christmas, Thanksgiving). Magic Tree House #49 features Jack and Annie heading back to ancient Greece and an adventure with Alexander the Great when he was a child and his famous stallion: Bucephalus.

Author: Mary Pope Osborne

Publisher: Random House

US SRP: $12.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 26, 2013

Warriors – Dawn of the Clans 01 – Sun Trail

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 01:32:52 +0000

Follow the trail of the rising sun . . .

For many moons, a tribe of cats has lived peacefully near the top of a mountain. But prey is scarce and seasons are harsh–and their leader fears they will not survive. When a mysterious vision reveals a land filled with food and water, a group of brave young cats sets off in search of a better home.

But great dangers await them. In this unfamiliar world, faced with loners and fierce rogues all vying for territory and power, the traveling cats must find a new way to live side by side–or risk tearing one another apart.

Author: Erin Hunter

Publisher: Harper Collins

US SRP: $16.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 5, 2013

Clockwork Princess

admin — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 01:26:24 +0000

A net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute. Mortmain plans to use his Infernal Devices, an army of pitiless automatons, to destroy the Shadowhunters. He needs only one last item to complete his plan: he needs Tessa Gray.

Charlotte Branwell, head of the London Institute, is desperate to find Mortmain before he strikes. But when Mortmain abducts Tessa, the boys who lay equal claim to her heart, Jem and Will, will do anything to save her. For though Tessa and Jem are now engaged, Will is as much in love with her as ever.

As those who love Tessa rally to rescue her from Mortmain’s clutches, Tessa realizes that the only person who can save her is herself. But can a single girl, even one who can command the power of angels, face down an entire army?

Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment, and the tangled threads of love and loss intertwine as the Shadowhunters are pushed to the very brink of destruction in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy.

Author: Cassandra Clare

Publisher: Margaret K.McElderry Books

US SRP: $19.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 19, 2013

Light – A Gone Novel 06

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 22:27:02 +0000

It’s been over a year since all the adults disappeared. Gone.

In the time since everyperson over the age of fourteen disap-peared from the town of Perdido Beach, California, countless battles have been fought: battles against hunger and lies and plague, and epic battles of good against evil. And now, the gaiaphage has been reborn as Diana’s malicious mutant daughter, Gaia. Gaia is endlessly hungry for destruction. She yearns to conquer her Nemesis, Little Pete, and then bend the entire world to her warped will. As long-standing enemies become allies, secrets are revealed and unexpected sacrifices are made. Will their attempts to save themselves and one another matter in the end, or will the kids of Perdido Beach perish in this final power struggle?

Light, the sixth and final book in the New York Times bestselling Gone series by Michael Grant, creates a masterful, arresting conclusion to life in the FAYZ.

Author: Michael Grant

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

US SRP: $18.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: April 2, 2013

Ordinary Grace

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 22:21:01 +0000

Bestselling Minnesota author, William Kent Krueger, will be at The Village Bookstore on SATURDAY, MAY 18TH, 12:30 – 1:30!

William Kent Krueger will be signing copies of his new novel, “Ordinary Grace”, for ONE HOUR ONLY! Don’t miss your chance to meet one of MN’s favorite authors!

About “Ordinary Grace”:

“”That was it. That was all of it. A grace so ordinary there was no reason at all to remember it. Yet I have never across the forty years since it was spoken forgotten a single word.””

New Bremen, Minnesota, 1961. The Twins were playing their debut season, ice-cold root beers were selling out at the soda counter of Halderson’s Drugstore, and “Hot Stuff “comic books were a mainstay on every barbershop magazine rack. It was a time of innocence and hope for a country with a new, young president. But for thirteen-year-old Frank Drum it was a grim summer in which death visited frequently and assumed many forms. Accident. Nature. Suicide. Murder.

Frank begins the season preoccupied with the concerns of any teenage boy, but when tragedy unexpectedly strikes his family– which includes his Methodist minister father; his passionate, artistic mother; Juilliard-bound older sister; and wise-beyond-his-years kid brother– he finds himself thrust into an adult world full of secrets, lies, adultery, and betrayal, suddenly called upon to demonstrate a maturity and gumption beyond his years.

Told from Frank’s perspective forty years after that fateful summer, “Ordinary Grace “is a brilliantly moving account of a boy standing at the door of his young manhood, trying to understand a world that seems to be falling apart around him. It is an unforgettable novel about discovering the terrible price of wisdom and the enduring grace of God.

Author: William Kent Krueger

Publisher: Atria Books

US SRP: $24.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 26, 2013

Minnesota’s Bug Hunt

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 22:10:11 +0000

Insects are everywhere and easy to find–if you know where to look. “Minnesota Bug Hunt” puts you on the trail for insects big and small, fierce and friendly. Explore habitats as near your own backyard and as focused as an oak tree or as populated as a swath of forest, and use your senses to discover the bugs who share our world. See those bright flowers? If they’re goldenrod, you might find a Locust Borer Beetle feeding there. Listen carefully in a patch of prairie for the rasping of a male Broad-winged Katydid as he “sings” to find a mate.
Bruce Giebink introduces you to creatures familiar, like an earwig or firefly, and fascinating, like the Cecropia Moth or the Acorn Weevil. He shares fun facts about where they live and what they eat and how they protect themselves. Astonishingly detailed photos by Bill Johnson bring beetles and bumblebees, dragonflies and water bugs up close and personal so you can marvel at their unique body parts and vibrant colors.
Step outside with your eyes wide open and a net or magnifying glass in hand to discover these insects and many more on your own Minnesota bug hunt.
Entomologist Bruce Giebink–better known as Bruce the Bug Guy–offers activities for children of all ages through his entertainment company the Bug Zone. Award-winning photographer Bill Johnson’s work is featured in the “Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America” and in his “Horticulture Magazine” column, “Insect ID.”

Author: Bruce Giebink

Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society Press

US SRP: $16.95

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: April 1, 2013

Poems to Learn By Heart

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 22:05:16 +0000

There’s a poem to celebrate every moment in life-whether it’s hitting a home run, watching a sunset, or laughing with your best friend. A poem is a gift of the heart that can inspire, reassure, or challenge us. Memorize it-share it-it’s yours forever.
In this diverse collection, a companion to her “New York Times” #1 best-seller “A Family of Poems,” Caroline Kennedy has chosen more than a hundred poems that speak to all of us: the young and young at heart, readers new to poetry and devoted fans. These poems explore deep emotions, as well as ordinary experiences. They cover the range of human experience and imagination. Divided into sections about nature, sports, monsters and fairies, friendship and family, this book is full of surprises. Each section is preceded by Caroline’s thoughtful introduction reflecting her own family’s engagement with and enjoyment of poetry.
Illustrated with striking watercolor paintings by award-winning artist Jon J Muth, this is truly a book for all ages and interests, and one that families will want to share for years to come.

Author: Caroline Kennedy

Publisher: Disney Press

US SRP: $19.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 26, 2013

Otis and the Puppy

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 22:01:22 +0000

Otis and his farm friends love to play hide-and-seek. Otis especially loves to be “It,” finding his friends as they hide. Yet when the newest addition to the farm–a bounding puppy who can’t sit still and has a habit of licking faces–tries to hide, he finds his attention wandering and is soon lost in the forest. Night falls and Otis, knowing his new friend is afraid of the dark, sets out to find him. There’s just one problem: Otis is “also” afraid of the dark. His friend is alone and in need, though, so Otis takes a deep breath, counts to ten, and sets off on a different game of hide-and-seek.

Author: Loren Long

Publisher: Philomel

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 12, 2013

One and Only Ivan

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 21:57:06 +0000

Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.

Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line.

Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home–and his own art–through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better.

Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create Ivan’s unforgettable first-person narration in a story of friendship, art, and hope.

Light – A Gone Novel 06

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 21:52:26 +0000

It’s been over a year since all the adults disappeared. Gone.

Light, the sixth and final book in the New York Times bestselling Gone series by Michael Grant, creates a masterful, arresting conclusion to life in the FAYZ.

Author: Michael Grant

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

US SRP: $18.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: April 2, 2013

Prodigy – Legend Trilogy 02

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 21:48:19 +0000

The highly anticipated second book in Marie Lu’s “New York Times” bestseller, LEGEND–perfect for fans of THE HUNGER GAMES and DIVERGENT!

June and Day arrive in Vegas just as the unthinkable happens: the Elector Primo dies, and his son Anden takes his place. With the Republic edging closer to chaos, the two join a group of Patriot rebels eager to help Day rescue his brother and offer passage to the Colonies. They have only one request–June and Day must assassinate the new Elector.

It’s their chance to change the nation, to give voice to a people silenced for too long.

But as June realizes this Elector is nothing like his father, she’s haunted by the choice ahead. What if Anden is a new beginning? What if revolution must be more than loss and vengeance, anger and blood–what if the Patriots are wrong?

Author: Marie Lu

Publisher: Putnam

US SRP: $17.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: January 29, 2013

The Dakota Prisoner of War Letters

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 02:04:51 +0000

In April 1863–after the Dakota War of 1862, after the hanging of thirty-eight Dakota men in the largest mass execution in U.S. history– some 270 Dakota men were moved from Mankato, Minnesota, to a prison at Camp McClellan in Davenport, Iowa. Separated from their wives, children, and elder relatives, with inadequate shelter, they lived there for three long, wretched years. More than 120 men died. Desperate to connect with their families, many of these prisoners of war learned to write. Their letters, mostly addressed to the missionaries Stephen R. Riggs and Thomas S. Williamson, asked for information, for assistance, and for help sending and receiving news of their loved ones.
Dakota elders Clifford Canku and Michael Simon, fluent Dakota speakers, provide both the transcription and the first published translation of fifty of these letters, culled from Riggs’s papers at the Minnesota Historical Society. They are a precious resource for Dakota people learning about the travails their ancestors faced, important primary source documents for historians, and a vital tool for Dakota language learners and linguists.
These haunting documents present a history that has long been unrecognized in this country, in the words of the Dakota people who lived it. The dedication written by the authors, both of whom are descendents of Dakota prisoners of war, declares: “Our relatives are watching over us. / We are humbled as we honor our ancestors. / Woecon kin de unyakupi do / We accept this responsibility you gave us.”

Dr. Clifford Canku is an assistant professor of Dakota Studies at North Dakota State University. Michael Simon is an instructor of Dakota language for the Moorhead (Minnesota) Public Schools. Both are retired Presbyterian ministers and enrolled members of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate.

Author: Clifford Canku and Michael Simon

Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society Press

US SRP: $27.95

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: March 1, 2013

Archaeology of Minnesota

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 01:54:08 +0000

Histories of Minnesota typically begin with seventeenth-century French fur traders exploring the western shores of Lake Superior. And yet, archaeology reveals that Native Americans lived in the region at least 13,000 years before such European incursions. “Archaeology of Minnesota “tells their story–or as much as the region’s wealth of artifacts, evidence of human activity, and animal and plant remains can convey.
From archaeological materials, Guy Gibbon reconstructs the social, economic, and political systems–the lifeways–of those who inhabited what we now call Minnesota for thousands of years before the first contact between native peoples and Europeans. From the boreal coniferous forests to the north, to the tall grass prairie to the west and southwest, to the deciduous forest to the east and southeast, the richly diverse land of the upper Mississippi River region, crossed and bordered by all manner of waterways, was a virtual melting pot of prehistoric cultures.

Demonstrating how native cultures adapted and evolved over time, Gibbon provides an explanation that is firmly rooted in the nature of local environments. In doing so, he shows how the study of Minnesota archaeology is relevant to a broader understanding of long-term patterns of change in human development throughout the world.”

Author: Guy Gibbon

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

US SRP: $34.95

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: November 20, 2012

Rez Life – NOW IN PAPERBACK

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 01:49:07 +0000

Celebrated novelist David Treuer has gained a reputation for writing fiction that expands the horizons of Native American literature. In “Rez Life,” his first full-length work of nonfiction, Treuer brings a novelist’s storytelling skill and an eye for detail to a complex and subtle examination of Native American reservation life, past and present.
With authoritative research and reportage, Treuer illuminates misunderstood contemporary issues like sovereignty, treaty rights, and natural-resource conservation. He traces the convoluted waves of public policy that have deracinated, disenfranchised, and exploited Native Americans, exposing the tension and conflict that has marked the historical relationship between the United States government and the Native American population. Through the eyes of students, teachers, government administrators, lawyers, and tribal court judges, he shows how casinos, tribal government, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs have transformed the landscape of Native American life.
A member of the Ojibwe of northern Minnesota, Treuer grew up on the Leech Lake Reservation, but was educated in “mainstream” America. Treuer traverses the boundaries of American and Indian identity as he explores crime and poverty, casinos and wealth, and the preservation of his native language and culture. “Rez Life” is a strikingly original work of history and reportage, a must read for anyone interested in the Native American story.

Author: David Treuer

Publisher: Grove Press

US SRP: $15.95

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: January 1, 2013

Memory of Trees

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 01:39:32 +0000

“Memory of Trees” is a multigenerational story of Gayla Marty’s family farm near Rush City, Minnesota. Cleared from woodlands by her great-grandfather Jacob in the 1880s, the farm passed to her father, Gordon, and his brother, Gaylon. Hewing to a conservative Swedish Baptist faith, the two brothers worked the farm, raising their families in side-by-side houses. As the years go by, the families grow–and slowly grow apart. Uncle Gaylon, more doctrinaire in his faith, rails against the permissiveness of Gayla’s parents. Financial tensions arise as well when the farm economy weakens and none of the children is willing or able to take over. Gayla is encouraged to leave for college, international travel, and city life, but the farm remains essential to her sense of self, even after the family decides to sell the land. When Gaylon has an accident on a tractor, Gayla becomes driven to reconnect with him and to find out why she and her uncle–once so close but now estranged–were the only two members of the family who had resisted selling the land. Guided by vivid images of the farm’s many beautiful trees, she pores over sacred and classical works as well as layers of her own memory to understand the forces that have transformed the American landscape and culture in the last half of the twentieth century. Beneath the belief in land as a giver of life and blessing, she discovers a powerful anxiety born of human uprootedness and loss. Movingly written, “Memory of Trees” will resonate for many with attachments to small towns or farms, whether they continue to work the land or, like so many, have left for a different life.

Author: Gayla Marty

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

US SRP: $18.95

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: March 15, 2013

The Fate of Mercy Alban

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 01:32:51 +0000

Grace Alban has spent more than twenty years avoiding her childhood home, the stately Alban House on the shores of Lake Superior, for reasons she would rather forget. But when her mother’s unexpected death brings Grace and her teenage daughter back, she finds more is haunting the halls and passageways of Alban House than her own personal demons.
Long-buried family secrets, a packet of old love letters, and a lost manuscript plunge Grace into a decades-old mystery about a scandalous party at Alban House, when a world-famous author took his own life and Grace’s aunt disappeared without a trace. The night has been shrouded in secrecy by the powerful Alban family for all of these years. Her mother intended to tell the truth about that night to a reporter on the very day she died–could it have been murder? Or was she a victim of the supposed Alban curse? Grace soon realizes her family secrets tangle and twist as darkly as the mansion’s secret passages.
With the help of the disarmingly kind–and attractive–Reverend Matthew Parker, Grace must uncover the truth about her home and its curse before she and her daughter become the next victims.
Wendy Webb is the author of “The Tale of Halcyon Crane,” the 2011 winner of the Minnesota Book Award for genre fiction, an Indie Next Pick from the Independent Booksellers Association, a Midwest Connections Pick from the Midwest Booksellers Association, and a Great Lakes, Great Reads Pick from the Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association. She lives in Duluth, Minnesota.

Author: Wendy Webb

Publisher: Hyperion Books

US SRP: $15.99

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: February 5, 2013

Vacationland

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 01:22:10 +0000

On a lake in northernmost Minnesota, you might find Naledi Lodge–only two cabins still standing, its pathways now trodden mostly by memories. And there you might meet Meg, or the ghost of the girl she was, growing up under her grandfather’s care in a world apart and a lifetime ago. Now an artist, Meg paints images “reflected across the mirrors of memory and water,” much as the linked stories of “Vacationland” cast shimmering spells across distance and time.

Those whose paths have crossed at Naledi inhabit “Vacationland” a man from nearby Hatchet Inlet who knew Meg back when, a Sarajevo refugee sponsored by two parishes who can’t afford “their own refugee,” aged sisters traveling to fulfill a fateful pact once made at the resort, a philandering ad man, a lonely Ojibwe stonemason, and a haiku-spouting girl rescued from a bog.

Sarah Stonich, whose work has been described as “unexpected and moving” by the “Chicago Tribune “and “a well-paced feast” by the “Los Angeles Times,” weaves these tales of love and loss, heartbreak and redemption into a rich novel of interconnected and disjointed lives. “Vacationland” is a moving portrait of a place–at once timeless and of the moment, composed of conflicting dreams and shared experience–and of the woman bound to it by legacy and sometimes longing, but not necessarily by choice.

Author: Sarah Stonich

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

US SRP: $16.95

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: March 25, 2013

The Lure of the North Woods

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 01:15:48 +0000

Stripped of much of its timber and ore by the early 1900s, the North Woods experienced deindustrialization earlier than the Rust Belt cities that consumed its resources. In “The Lure of the North Woods,” Aaron Shapiro describes how residents and visitors reshaped the region from a landscape of exploitation to a vacationland. The rejuvenating North Woods profited in new ways by drawing on emerging connections between the urban and the rural, including improved transportation, promotion, recreational land use, and conservation initiatives. Shapiro demonstrates how this transformation helps explain the interwar origins of modern American environmentalism, when both the consumption of nature for pleasure and the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps in the North Woods and elsewhere led many Americans to cultivate a fresh perspective on the outdoors. At a time when travel and recreation are considered major economic forces, “The Lure of the North Woods” reveals how leisure–and tourism in particular–has shaped modern America.

Author: Aaron Shapiro

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

US SRP: $24.95

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: March 20, 2013

Ordinary Grace

admin — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 21:45:00 +0000

Bestselling Minnesota author, William Kent Krueger, will be at The Village Bookstore on SATURDAY, MAY 18TH, 12:30 – 1:30!

William Kent Krueger will be signing copies of his new novel, “Ordinary Grace”, for ONE HOUR ONLY! Don’t miss your chance to meet one of MN’s favorite authors!

About “Ordinary Grace”:

“”That was it. That was all of it. A grace so ordinary there was no reason at all to remember it. Yet I have never across the forty years since it was spoken forgotten a single word.”"

Author: William Kent Krueger

Publisher: Atria Books

US SRP: $24.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 26, 2013

William Kent Krueger – Saturday, May 18th, 2013

admin — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 21:40:48 +0000

Bestselling Minnesota author, William Kent Krueger, will be at The Village Bookstore on SATURDAY, MAY 18TH, 12:30 – 1:30!

William Kent Krueger will be signing copies of his new novel, “Ordinary Grace”, for ONE HOUR ONLY! Don’t miss your chance to meet one of MN’s favorite authors!

About “Ordinary Grace”:

“”That was it. That was all of it. A grace so ordinary there was no reason at all to remember it. Yet I have never across the forty years since it was spoken forgotten a single word.”"

Author: William Kent Krueger

Publisher: Atria Books

US SRP: $24.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: March 26, 2013

Singularity

admin — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 16:24:48 +0000

Grand Rapids author Joe Hart is back with another gripping Minnesota thriller!

BCA Special Agent Sullivan Shale has seen his share of violence and death. He’s become weathered and haunted by the harsh reality of his career yet continues on despite a crippling personal loss. But when one of the largest penitentiaries in Minnesota calls requesting an investigation into an inmate’s brutal death, even his expertise is pushed to the limit.

Singleton Penitentiary, located in the middle of an inhospitable swamp, has become an island amidst a torrential flood. The prisoners are silent, the staff is belligerent, and the murder committed in one of the solitary confinement cells is unimaginable.

Cut off from the outside world and faced with insurmountable odds, Shale must uncover a secret stretching back half a century and race against time to save himself and perhaps all of humanity from an insidious threat, that may not be human.

Author: Joe Hart

Publisher: Black Spine Books

Binding: Paperback

US SRP: $12.95

Pub Date: January 29, 2013

Pengoloo

admin — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 00:38:20 +0000

Go on an Eggspedition with Pengoloo, an enchanting memory game for children. Detailed wooden playing pieces transport you to the South Pole where our quirky little penguins are ready to play with you!
Roll the dice and look for the matching colored eggs underneath the penguins. A good memory and a little luck will help you be the first to collect six penguins on you iceberg to win! This eco-friendly memory game is made of 100% sustainable wood.

Ages 4 to Adults, 2 – 4 players

Publisher: Blue Orange Games

US SRP: $24.99

Binding: Wooden Game

Pub Date: September 1, 2012

The Last Man

admin — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 15:23:44 +0000

Joe Rickman, head of CIA clandestine operations in Afghanistan, has been kidnapped and his four bodyguards executed in cold blood. But Mitch Rapp’s experience and nose for the truth make him wonder if something even more sinister isn’t afoot. Irene Kennedy, director of the CIA, has dispatched him to Afghanistan to find Rickman at all costs.

Rapp, however, isn’t the only one looking for Rickman. The FBI is too, and it quickly becomes apparent that they’re less concerned with finding Rickman than placing the blame on Rapp.

With CIA operations in crisis, Rapp must be as ruthless and deceitful as his enemies if he has any hope of finding Rickman and completing his mission. But with elements within his own government working against both him and American interests, will Rapp be stopped dead before he can succeed?

Author: Vince Flynn

Publisher: Atria Books

US SRP: $27.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: November 13, 2012

The Last Man

admin — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 15:07:04 +0000

Rapp, however, isn’t the only one looking for Rickman. The FBI is too, and it quickly becomes apparent that they’re less concerned with finding Rickman than placing the blame on Rapp.

Author: Vince Flynn

Publisher: Atria Books

US SRP: $27.99

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: November 13, 2012

Thirty Rooms to Hide In

admin — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 19:40:50 +0000

“Thirty Rooms to Hide”"In” tells the story of Sullivan’s father and his descent from being one of the world’s top orthopedic surgeons at the Mayo Clinic to a man who is increasingly abusive, alcoholic, and insane, ultimately dying alone on the floor of a Georgia motel. For his wife and six sons, the years prior to his death were years of turmoil, anger, and family dysfunction; but somehow, they were also a time of real happiness for Sullivan and his five brothers, full of dark humor and much laughter.

Through the 1950s and 1960s, the six brothers had a wildly fun and thoroughly dysfunctional childhood living in a forbidding thirty-room mansion, known as the Millstone, on the outskirts of Rochester, Minnesota. The many rooms of the immense home, as well as their mother’s loving protection, allowed the Sullivan brothers to grow up as normal, mischievous boys. Against a backdrop of the times–the Cold War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, fallout shelters, JFK’s assassination, and the Beatles–the cracks in their home life and their father’s psyche continue to widen. When their mother decides to leave the Millstone and move the family across town, the Sullivan boys are able to find solace in each other and in rock ‘n’ roll.

As “Thirty Rooms to Hide”"In” follows the story of the Sullivan family–at times grim, at others poignant–there is a wonderful, dark humor that lifts the narrative. Tragic, funny, and powerfully evocative of the 1950s and 1960s, “Thirty Rooms to Hide In” is a tale of public success and private dysfunction, personal and familial resilience, and the strange power of humor to give refuge when it is needed most, even if it can’t always provide the answers.

Author: Luke Longstreet Sullivan

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

US SRP: $24.95

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: August 31, 2012

Canoeing With the Cree – Collector’s Edition

admin — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 16:46:49 +0000

In 1930 two novice paddlers–Eric Sevareid and Walter C. Port–launched a secondhand eighteen-foot canvas canoe into the Minnesota River at Fort Snelling for an ambitious summer-long journey from Minneapolis to Hudson Bay. First published in 1935, “Canoeing with the Cree” is Sevareid’s classic account of this youthful odyssey to a vast and remote land, that has inspired generations of canoeists, wilderness enthusiasts and armchair adventurers.
In our era of GPS, cell phones, power bars, and bug spray, the young men’s account is all the more remarkable and nostalgic. Relive their quintessential adventure with this limited-edition book and map set. It includes a newly designed book, a handsome multipurpose collector’s tin, and a colorful art quality map annotated by Ann Raiho, who with Natalie Warren were the first women to replicate Sevareid and Port’s route.
Just in time for the holidays, this limited-edition classic is the perfect gift for nature lovers and outdoor adventurers.

Author: Eric Sevareid

Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society Press

US SRP: $24.95

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: October 1, 2012

Lineage

admin — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 16:31:50 +0000

A debut novel by Grand Rapids author Joe Hart!

A LIFE FILLED WITH ANGUISH.
Pain, horror, fear- These are the things that bestselling novelist Lance Metzger’s life have been comprised of. His childhood remains a riddled wasteland of abuse by a sadistic father and the abandonment of an apathetic mother. In turn, his only refuge became his writing.

A SANCTUARY, BROKEN.
When Lance loses his ability to write and becomes haunted by a nightmare that he’d thought was buried, he is drawn inexplicably to a house on the shores of Lake Superior where he finds his muse once again, but something is waiting for him when he arrives.

AN EVIL WITHOUT BOUNDARIES.
Now he must unlock the devastating secrets that the house holds and uncover the mystery of his own broken past before he loses his sanity, and perhaps his soul.

Author: Joe Hart

Publisher: Black Spine Books

US SRP: $13.95

Binding: Paperback

Pub Date: September 24, 2012

Minnesota Railroads – A Photographic History

admin — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 16:19:22 +0000

“The Great Northern Railway, in the eventful year of 1941, met every requirement made of it as the Nation hurriedly prepared for war.” So Great Northern’s president spoke of the Minnesota railroad that transported the tanks and airplanes, materiel and troops, that were critical to America’s military success. This illustrated volume offers an enlightening–and irresistibly entertaining–look at Minnesota railroads from that shining moment, near the end of the romantic era of steam locomotives and luxury passenger lines, to the reemergence of railroads as one of the few profitable transportation industries in our day.

Remarkable photographs, many never before published, take us inside the cab of a monumental steam locomotive, which hauled iron ore from the Mesabi Range, and into the lounge car of the luxurious “North Coast Limited” streamliner. We visit the huge shops that worked on massive locomotives and go trackside to witness the morning rush hour at the St. Paul Union Depot. From the modest St. Charles depot welcoming the “Rochester 400″ in 1962 to brand-new locomotives speeding container trains west at Hawley in 2009, “Minnesota Railroads “combines thrilling close-ups and an edifying long view, fine details and a full history.

Traveling from Winton to Worthington, Noyes to Winona, tracking the transition from steam to diesel and the mergers that created today’s mega railroads, “Minnesota Railroads” gives readers a richly textured picture of railroading’s past and future and its impact on life in Minnesota.”

Author: Steve Glischinski

Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

US SRP: $39.95

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: September 25, 2012

The Minnesota Book of Skills

admin — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 16:14:18 +0000

Minnesotans are a highly skilled bunch, whether pursuing traditional activities like wild ricing and pickling, or tastefully displaying taxidermy, or selecting the right fishing bait. Skills particularly appropriate to Minnesota– such as creating seed art or baking a Bundt cake–may be fully on display at the state fair, a prime opportunity to join with neighbors in celebrating our many talents.
Best of all, Minnesotans are eager to share their skills with newcomers or the newly inspired, and for “The Minnesota Book of Skills” many freely offered their expertise in conversations with author Chris Niskanen. Get the inside scoop from Joe Hautman, who has won four federal duck stamp contests. Learn to sing like a voyageur from Francois Fouquerel, dean of the French Voyageur program at the Concordia Language Village. Grow and harvest your own wheat with Dave and Florence Minar.
“The Minnesota Book of Skills” brings to life the basic know-how that makes us uniquely Minnesotan. Seasonal tips like how to gracefully exit a ski lift mingle with skills your grandparents knew well, such as what to forage for while on a hike. How soon is too soon to bring a child to the Boundary Waters or set her up on hockey skates? The answers are here. Maybe you’ll never carve an ice sculpture or build your own coffin–but isn’t it comforting to know that one handy book offers just the guidance you’ll need?

Author: Chris Niskanen

Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society Press

US SRP: $19.95

Binding: Hardcover

Pub Date: October 1, 2012