Minnesota Books

I had a copy of the book 35 years ago and over the years I've found its information to be very useful. Sure, it's dated... But if I was lost in the wild, without a North Face tent, Gore-Tex jacket or a titanium sierra stove, there'as a good chance I could survive just on what I've read in this book. Need to make a shelter? Find food? Build a cabin? Paddle a canoe? It's all here. Highly recommended!

I really got this for the enjoyment of seeing his viewpoints as he lived them years ago...his present day knowledge spilled out in this volume is still handy advice for many who venture into the outdoors. I enjoy almost all of his reads!

I needed to do some research on Minneapolis/St. Paul since I am relocating there this spring. I have bought several books on the subject and this one is by far the most helpful book ever! The others had general overviews, but this book goes into detail! It has everything in there that anyone moving to the area could possibly need: finding a city to live in and descriptions of each, opening a bank account, finding a realtor in the area, and tips on just about everything you will need to move to the area. If I had bought this book first, I could have saved so much money by not buying the others. This is the only book I really needed! This is a great book!

We found this book so helpful especially in deciding where to send our children to school. Very helpful and surprisingly detailed.

This is a beautiful and informative book. The photos are gorgeous, and the phenology info is good, but my favorite part is the section at the book with sunrise, sunset and full moon dates.

This calendar/journal is simply beautiful.
It is geared to the seasons and to the subtle observations
possible during the bleak winter and the lush summer.
It is a joy to use.

This book is a delightful collection of recipes, enlivened with fascinating and often funny anecdotes about life in Minnesota's north woods. It is a pleasure to sit down and just read this book, and even more of a pleasure to take the recipes into the kitchen. All the recipes I've tried have performed flawlessly, and were fabulous. Can't recommend this book enough.

Ron Berg has been cookin' Minnesota's great lake fish as long as anybody! His time tested and easy to follow recipes are user friendly and great eating! Berg's writing style is easy going, generous with what he's learned and what tastes good! If you want to cook like seasoned Minnesotan...BUY THIS BOOK!

Several of the stories in this book had a heart touching feel to them. The tale of his death was expecially moving. A must for any whitewater enthusiast. Great pictures and stories of this wild land.

James

The author's love of wildwater boating and his love for the scenic rivers described in this book gushes out of each page. The reader can vicariously descend these rivers and enjoy the rapids and falls seen through the eyes and spirit of Minnesota's premier kayaker --- The Commodore. For those lucky to have the time and talent to paddle wild rivers this book will excite and inspire a Spring paddle down the Brule, the Baptism and the Presque Isle.

If you are looking for a book about jokes or funny sayings, this is not it. If, however, you think Hemingway was right in saying that modern American writing comes out of Mark Twain's HUCKLEBERRY FINN, but you don't know exactly what made the writing in HUCK so useful to modern writers, Schmitz can show you. The book's title indicates its focus on two crucial American stylists: Mark Twain and Gertrude Stein. Twain figured out how to turn common, vulgar American speech into written eloquence; no American writers before him had done so. Schmitz lays it all out and shows precisely how "Huckspeech" transformed American style for the next generations. And Stein took the new "American" style to its logical extremes. Schmitz imitates in his own style some of the quirks of the writers he deals with, and that takes some getting used to. But the chapters on Mark Twain and Gertrude Stein are extraordinarily acute. This is about how American writers learned to write down what Americans say and make it artful while retaining its gross humor. Important topics importantly dealt with.

The book dares to explain the humor generated from the misery of the birth of a new country.

I am a nature photographer and have a passion for finding and photographing orchids. Because of their relatively short flowering times it is really essential to be able to know where and what habitat to find them, when they will be blooming and a bit of the biology of the flower. With this reference I have been able to actively locate these lovely jewels across Minnesota. It isn't a book necessarily full of photos (it has enought though of the more showy varieties) but I still highly recommend this book for anyone truely interested in orchids native to Minnesota. It is a much better reference than similar books I've seen about other states' orchids.

Orchids of Minnesota by Welby R. Smith covers the many species of Orchids that live in the state of Minnesota with all it's diverse plant habitats. The book has nice drawings that make species ID easy.

This is a taxonomic over view of the Orchid species that grow in Minnesota, covering identification, what locations or habits they grow in, were in the state they grow (including state maps) with growing locations illustrated, when they bloom and if they are rare.

The focus of the book is not pretty pictures but the identification and description of the many species and forms of these plants that live in the state. This book is for those that are familiar with plant identification and have a love for "native wild plants" It is not geared to the gardener. It is informative and easy to read, with an illustrated key (used to identify plants), species accounts (covering location were plants grow, habitats they grow in and some historical information).

I recommend this book if you are interested in the identification and ecology and location of the Orchids of Minnesota. I think it would be valuable to those that do not live in the Minnesota too for its over view of each plant. The naming of the plants takes in recent taxonomic work so the book is up to date and the keys are easy to use. A book valuable for the layman as well as those with more Botanical interests. It is a nice looking book for the series minded Orchid lover.

Paul Henjum Specialty Perennials

i know harry davis personally, and he is definitely an incredible man, along with his dear wife charlotte (who has passed on). This book is a wonderful read, and details the struggles of a black youth growing up in the early 20th century, along with talking about harry's dedication to the civil rights struggles in the 60's and 70's. A great book!

UPDATE: 8/11/06 - Harry Davis passed away today. We'll miss you Harry. Please read this book and learn about an exceptional man, and how one person can make a difference.

Overcoming: The Autobiography Of W. Harry Davis is the autobiographical story of a remarkable African-American man who helped to shape civil-rights history in the United States. Exploring Davis' life as one of the first black executives in a major Twin Cities corporation, one of the principle leaders of a historic church merger, the founder of a bank, a member of the U.S. Olympic boxing committee, and the first black mayoral candidate to campaign in the Twin Cities, Overcoming is as much a testimony to the results of dedication, perseverance, and hope, as it is the remarkable life story of an impressive and dedicated man within the context of his life and times. Overcoming is an especially welcome and highly recommended addition to Black Studies biographical reference collections and supplemental reading lists.

Pie In The Sky: A Memoir About Writing And Publishing is Patricia Condon Johnson's personal testimony on the joys and hardships of writing for magazines, writing books, self-publishing books, and the tragedy of losing her daughter to murder. Black-and-white photographs illustrate this thoughtful and deeply engaging accounting which is hallmarked by the author's tenacity and insight. Pie In The Sky is highly recommended reading, especially by those who aspire to have their own writings published, regardless of the pressures and challenges life puts in their way.

In Pie In The Sky: A Memoir About Writing And Publishing, Patricia Johnston shares her personal journey as a writer and self-publisher. Along the way Patricia also shares her views regarding the 1993 murder of her daughter, Jane Ellen Neuman, the subject of a CBS "48 Hours" television program and Patricia's ultimately successful crusade to bring her daughter's killer to justice. As a publisher, Patricia's Afton Historical Society Press has produced 37 titles (many of them award winners) and has pursued partnerships to produce and sponsor television documentaries and art exhibitions. Pie In The Sky will prove of intense interest to anyone who aspires to have their writings published, to become a small press publisher, or who has an interest in the small press phenomena and trends in today's highly competitive and rapidly evolving publishing community.

This book does a great job of giving a brutally honest, indepth view into lives of Indian women. It illustrates how important context is when explaining oppression of women. Painstaking work goes into giving rich details of the lives of women.

I read this book for a graduate school class and thought it was really amazing. First it is interesting to read about the differences between women living in India, a group of people that a western gaze tends to homogenize. It also shows the struggles that NGO's face, and the conflicts between the bureaucrats of those who run the NGO's and the real women who work for them. I would highly reccommend this book if you are interested in third world feminism, NGO's, and reading about real women's lives.