Minnesota Books

"The issue comes down to ...competing paradigms. One is the myth that the Americas had been isolated from the historical world until Columbus broke the barrier in 1492. The other charts world patterns of trade, easily accommodating a Scandinavian expedition west from Vinland in 1362." ~ pg. 86

Alice Beck Kehoe's research sheds new light on the Kensington Runestone found in 1898. Was this stone really inscribed in 1362 or was it a hoax? All the evidence presented by Alice Beck Kehoe leads me to believe that it was real, although she presents both sides of the story.

It seems few of the experts who were consulted were willing to rock the boat and called it a hoax. Still the evidence in favor of it being valid is overwhelming. Page after page presents perfectly good reasons for an expedition in 1362. The story gets even more interesting when Alice Beck Kehoe uncovers evidence (1960 discovery by Helge Ingstad) of a Vinland in a fishing village called L'Anse aux Meadows.

"The site fit the landscape selected by Norse in Greenland and Iceland, and the low mounds resembled Norse ruins there." ~ pg. 24

While this book covers a wide range of topics one of the most interesting notes is about Cinderella's slippers that were made of "vair" (fur) not "verre" (glass). This book is easy to read in one sitting and I think you will find it to be quite entertaining.

~The Rebecca Review

I have to admit that Alice B. Kehoe is my mom. Be that as it may, her new book, "The Kensington Runestone," is one of the most thought-provoking books I've read in years. I also liked that the book is short - 80 pages - and readable in one evening.

Ask anyone the question, "Who discovered America?" and you'll be told that Columbus discovered America, in 1492. Then the English settled Jamestown in 1607, followed by the Pilgrims in Massachusetts in 1620. Right? Don't bet on it.

In 1898 a Minnesota farmer found a rock carved with Norse runes. Translated, it said that a party of 30 Swedes and Norwegians were on a trading journey. Ten men were murdered near the spot, apparently by hostile natives. Ten more of their party were waiting with their ships fourteen days away, on the sea. The inscription ended with "Hail Mary, deliver us from evil" and the year: 1362.

The stone was dismissed as a hoax for several reasons. First, no other archeological evidence existed showing that Norse had explored west of Greenland. Second, scholars said that the runes had grammatical errors, words not seen on other runes, and letters not seen on other runes or carved differently. Third, the farmer was Norwegian, suggesting that he'd faked the stone to promote Norwegians.

Geologists, however, found the weathering in the engraving to be hundreds of years old. And the geologists who interviewed the farmer agreed that he was an honest, intelligent, and respectable man. The farmer never sought money or publicity for his discovery.

The Kensington Runestone passed into obscurity, for nearly 100 years. Kehoe, professor emeritus of anthropology at Marquette University and the author of textbooks on North American Indians and four-field anthropology, has brought together recent research that sheds new light on the Kensington Runestone. One of her goals was to show that using all four fields of anthropology - linguistics, archaeology, physical anthropology, and cultural anthropology - can solve problems that examining only a single field can't.

Linguists now say that the "grammatical errors" in the Kensington Runestone are a dialect from a certain area of Sweden. The unknown runes and words have been found in previously unknown Old Swedish inscriptions.

In the 1960s, archeologists excavated a Norse village in Newfoundland, dated to around A.D. 1000. Kehoe describes the dedicated work over twenty years leading to this discovery. She also notes that archeologists excavate villages where people lived for generations. A party of 30 or 40 men traveling through a region would likely leave little or no evidence obvious hundreds of years later.

Kehoe also describes 14th-century Scandinavian politics. Let's see, the Black Death killed half the population, Norway and Sweden merged, along with a couple of Danish provinces, then Germans took over, a three-year-old boy became king, who later married a ten-year-old girl...OK, I can't keep it all straight. But a lot happened. The Norse lost their lucrative Russian fur trading routes. Kehoe suggests that the Norse may have remembered trading furs with the natives of "Vinland" (North America), and sent a party to explore reopening this area. She shows on a map that Minnesota is as far west of Norway as the Norse traded in Russia to the east. To men familiar with Russian rivers and forests, traveling in northeastern North America wouldn't have been difficult.

She then shows that Kensington, Minnesota, which is a poor area to farm, was an abundant area for hunter-gatherers. The site is a junction between three ecosystems, enabling inhabitants to enjoy a wide variety of food sources year round. More importantly for fur traders, a wide variety of fur-bearing animals are found nearby.

Kensington is also fourteen days journey from not one but two "seas": Duluth, on Lake Superior (easily reached from Newfoundland via the St. Lawrence River), and Hudson's Bay, via Winnipeg and Canadian rivers.

Kehoe then considers what was going on in North America in the 14th century. Cahokia (now St. Louis), then one of the largest cities in the world, collapsed, changing the political geography of the Midwest. And lots of other stuff happened, too much to list here.

All together, "The Kensington Runestone" convinced me that a party of Swedes and Norwegians traveled through Minnesota in 1362. The book also showed how narrow-minded "experts" can be when an anomaly challenges their conventional wisdom. Reading "The Kensington Runestone" is a thought-provoking way to spend an evening.

As an amateur historian who has been researching the Kensington Runestone (or KRS), a runic inscription that is an account of a Norse exploration to Minnesota 130 years before Columbus, I have been looking forward to reading Alice Kehoe's new book, The Kensington Runestone: Approaching a Research Question Holistically (Waveland Press). Kehoe is an anthropologist at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, and it is from this field of science that she approaches the question of the Kensington Runestone.
As an anthropologist, Kehoe notes that she is "accustomed to taking a holistic view, encompassing data from archaeology, natural sciences, history and human behavior" (p1). Later she contineues in a similar vein: "[fellow anthropologist Guy] Gibbon and I, looking on as anthropologists familiar with the philosophy of science... see, on one hand, the intertia of mainstream science - the Runestone is a hoax 'everybody knows that' - and on the other hand, anomalies that press upon the accepted position. The range of data and interpetations, from geophysics to world history, calls for the anthropological perspective, weaving together hard science and humanities." (p15).

This book is liable to be a dissapointment for those seeking in depth analysis of specific contentious points regarding the Stone. Rather than focusing intently on the smallest detail, Kehoe steps back, looking at the case from a broader perspective. It is from this persepective that Kehoe finds the weight of evidence supports the claim that the Kensington Runestone is authentic.

Much of the book is spent in summary of the history and agruments regarding the Runestone. In this endeavor, Kehoe is both factual and objective. What she adds to the discussion is an examination of the reasoning behind the arguments. For instance, Kehoe notes that the pro-authenticty philologist Robert Hall was a student of the linguist Leonard Bloomfield, whose work concentrated on the phonetic aspects of the science. Hall used this backround to present the KRS as a document whose abberitions could be explained as a phonetic rendering of the dialect used by the expedition, as opposed to the more formal renderings of the literary record.

Kehoe also examines the historical record, and suggests that during the mid-14th century, Sweden might be looking to establish fur trading on the North American continent, beyond the control of the Hanse. The KRS inscription may have been the result of a failed mission to establish a base for such trade.

Kehoe also believes that the reason it is difficult for so many to accept the KRS as an authentic artifact, is that such acceptance requires a major paradigm shift. "Dropping the pardigm of a pristine New World outside of history until Columbus sailed to the world's edge jolts the structure of beliefs taught to Americans." (p86).
The Ingstad's discovery of the Norse site at L'Anse aux Meadows has begun such a shift, and there is now an acceptance of early Norse in the Canadian arctic. However, the KRS goes far beyond that acceptable level in regards to the paradigm of non-contact between Europeans and North America.

Kehoe finds the Kensington Runestone an interesting study of science vs popular myth, and suggests that it presents a hypothesis which could produce interesting new research and discoveries. This well written and well researched book provides insight into the thought processes behind the opinions. It is highly reccomended for anyone with an intrest in the Runestone, but I would also reccomd it for those with an intrest in the scientific process and the conflict that arises when pardigms are assaulted.

This is a deeply persuasive and thought-provoking account of recent issues surrounding the controversial Kensington Runestone, including some fascinating new contributions from the world of linguistics and biology. This is no work of hokum, but a well argued document likely to lead to much classroom discussion over scientific method. Unexpectedly excellent!

The Kensington Runestone's tale is fantastic: a farmer unearths this headstone-sized artifact in a Minnesota farm field in 1898, and discovers mysterious runes carved into it with the date A.D. 1362, implying that Norse travelers journeyed an unbelievable distance inland from Newfoundland & planted the stone, 130 years before Columbus made landfall in the West Indies. Prior to this book, much of the writing on the Kensington Runestone has been dated, unscientific, and has treated the stone variously as a hoax, UFO-ish mystery, or object for advocacy. But Ms. Kehoe's 87 well-written pages treat the Kensington Runestone as a case study in critical thinking. An anthropologist noted for her North American Indian ethnographies, Ms. Kehoe presents the runestone's facts in the context of pre-Columbian European-North American history and trade economics. Once you read her broad, clear-eyed view -- incorporating archeology, anthropology, geology, Indian history, and economics -- the stone's authenticity suddenly becomes plausible, even likely, even to scientific skeptics like myself. Its authenticity rests not only on a recent geological examination of the stone and on newer learnings about early Swedish runes, but on the surprising economics and geographic scope of fur trading in the mid-14th century. If you want an intelligent eye-opener on the Kensington Runestone's story, I highly recommend this little book. And a good companion is the exhaustive scientific analysis of the stone and its runes, "The Kensington Rune Stone: Compelling New Evidence" (2005) available from its publisher.

This autobiography reads like it was actually written by Kent Hrbek; it's fun, enjoyable, and not an in-depth introspective look back at his life. It hits the highlights of his career, briefly touches upon his upbringing, and has no tales told out of school from the dugout. If you're looking for depth, don't bother.

Hrbek comes across as a rare athlete who realizes that the important things in life are not being bowed down to and worshiped because he could hit a baseball. He's honest about his love of beer, his family, and not caring that much about conditioning.

Long-time Twins fans like me will relish this, but wish it had just a little more.

I really enjoyed this book for a couple of reasons. First, Kent Hrbek is a really likable guy who isn't out to impress anyone. He is a truly genuine individual, which is admirable and refreshing. He is also very interesting. No, this book isn't written on a graduate level, but who cares? It's about baseball, a team full of good guys, and one fun loving guy in particular. I read this book right before I read the book written by John Schuerholz. Wow, talk about opposites. The "genius" Schuerholz has no clue about things like the Hrbek charm.

After reading 'Tales', I felt like I had actually been in the dugout with the Twins. The book keeps moving, doesn't well on any point too long and provides just the right amount of detail. Hrbek and Brackin have delivered a baseball classic.

Hrbek's antics and honesty come through as genuine. He seems like a guy were he your neighbor you could just walk up to and have a nice, casual conversation. His views on baseball provide insight for the fan from the other side of the stadium fence. I remember watching him as a kid whenever the Twins came to Seattle, and he was always an impressive player. We ran into Hrbek on the street in downtown Seattle one day and he lived-up to his friendly guy image in person too.

I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it for anyone with an interest in baseball or the Minnesota Twins in particular.

As a Minnesota Twins fan for some forty years, this may be perceived as a somewhat biased view...but I truly don't believe it is. Most of those who follow the game closely, and appreciate its significance on the national psyche for more than a century, will respect this straight-arrow summary--of Kent Hrbek's team, in particular; but, even more importantly, for the significance and integrity of the game in general. Though an unsung hero in terms of individual awards, he was, in the eyes of many objective baseball observers, as good as any--and better than most--first basemen to play the game. And he was an excellent clutch hitter (e.g., his grand slam homerun in the sixth game of the 1987 World Series) who knew the strike zone, and rarely swung at a bad pitch. But, as he emphasizes in his book, his two World Series rings, and the undying support of true baseball fans in the upper Midwest, and throughout the country, totally overshadow the fact that he was, inexplicably, overlooked for the individual honors which, in the view of many, he so richly deserved. He and others refer to his approach to the game as that of a throwback...the type of player from the game's glory days. This is arguably as high a tribute as can be given a player. And, because these qualities are, sadly, in short supply in today's go-for-the-money atmosphere, Kent Hrbek--nearly thirteen years after his early retirement--is still missed by those who love the game... for the game. And for all of those, "Kent Hrbek's Tales from the Minnesota Twins Dugout" is highly recommended. --Ron Howe / Erskine, Minnesota

This book was a great, quick read of antecdotes from Hrbek's career as a Twin. He reveals a lot of suprising off-the-field information that baseball players rarely reveal in career retrospectives. If you were a Twins fan in the glory year runs of 1987 and 1991, you have to check this out.

Book was extremely interesting. Didn't know that there had been so many brewing companies in Minnesota. Would recommend the book to others interested in beer making.

This is clearly the most authoritative book on Minnesota brewing history that could be written. The author's research is thorough and meticulous; his writing is clear and to the point; the photographs alone are worth the price of the book.

I am new to making purchases on Amazon. Everything went very smooth with this seller.I got just what I ordered. Service and packaging was very good.

This book has everything the Minnesota beer lover and historian would want. Great pictures and great insight into Minnesota's rich brewing history. (Wisconsin doesn't have it all!) Recommended read.

Everything you wanted to know,and a whole lot you didn't already know, about brewing beer in Minnesota. As most of the breweries have long since closed and been torn down it was nice to see their images preserved in this book. A "must have" book for Minnesota beer can collectors and historians.

When the Civil War begins, Karl Oskar tries to join the Union army, but is rejected because of his bad leg. Kristina is relieved as she opposes war in general.

It is the Sioux uprising which threatens settlers in Minnesota. Danjel and his oldest son fall victim to their savagery.

The final book is fatalistic. Moberg takes Karl Oskar and Kristina to the end of their lives. Kristina dies following a miscarriage. It was after a doctor told her she could endure no more pregnancies. Karl Oskar and Ulrika have bitter words as to whose fault it was.

Karl Oskar's loss causes him to retreat within himself. He raises four sons and two daughters alone. Old age follows, as do grandchildren. The Swedish settlers begin to lose their character, intermarrying to create a race of Americans. The melting pot!

We hear the strains of Like An Angel Passing Through My Room as Karl Oskar, recalling his past, awaits death. The last letter to Sweden, written by a neighbor, informs Karl Oskar's sister of his death in 1890 at age 67. The series spans 46 years.

I read all four books. They were great. Iwould like to find more like these.

The Last Letter Home follows the experiences of Karl Oskar Nilsson, and his wife Kristina, from 1860 to 1890. The American Civil War has come, and Karl Oscar agonizes over whether or not to join in the defense of his new country. However, things become a good deal worse when the Dakota Indians become tired of the treatment they are receiving at the hands of the United States, and begin a war against the white inhabitants of Minnesota. Life goes on after these upheavals, but not without costs. This bittersweet book follows the emigrants through to the very end, as the new generation grows up and becomes Americans.

This book is the fourth and final book of the Emigrants series. Crowning the masterful first three books, this book continues to show Vilhelm Moberg as one of the great authors of the Twentieth Century. As before, the characters are so human, that I found myself suffering with them, and sharing their joy. I wish that I could do justice to these books, but fear that I am not eloquent enough to convey just how wonderful they are. If I could recommend any books above all others that I have reviewed, it would be the Emigrants books. Please consider reading these books!

[For those of you with young children, I would like to recommend the Kirsten books in the American Girls series. Written for young readers (primarily girls), it tells the story of a Swedish family that immigrates to Minnesota in 1854.]

This is one of those novels you savor. A novel you will never forget. This one is translated from the Swedish and it loses nothing in the translation. It is helpful, however, to read the three books before this novel. It is the fourth book in the saga, although it isn't absolutely necessary. This novel holds up very well on its own. Thank You!

This is the last volume in a quartet of books by one of Sweden's greatest authors. Translated from Swedish into English, this work of historical fiction was originally published in 1961. Aptly titled, "Last Letter Home", it is the final epic in a four part opus, the first three of which are "The Emigrants", "Unto a Good Land", and "The Settlers". One should read them in the order in which they were written for maximum reading pleasure, even though each book can stand on its own.

In the first volume, "The Emigrants", the author details the emigration of a Swedish family to the New World, grounding it in the reasons for the exodus of so many Swedes from their mother country in the middle of the 19th century. The focus of the first book in this four part opus is on the family, relatives, and friends of Karl Oscar Nilsson, a peasant farmer who unceasingly worked his farm, only to find that, no matter what he did, he could not progress and would continue to live on the cusp of total poverty. The focus of the first book is on their life in Sweden. Gathering up family and friends of the family, the Nilssons decide to take the monumental step of making a fresh start by emigrating to the new world, specifically the United States of America.

The second volume, "Unto a Good Land", focuses on the arrival of the Nilsson family and friends in the United States of America. It details their journey from New York, a journey that was to take them across the Midwest by rail, steamer, and foot, to arrive in the wilds of what would one day be the State of Minnesota. It is in this wilderness that the Nilsson family and friends would homestead and struggle to make a new home. The author regales the reader with the travails this hardy group of settlers would encounter in their efforts to create by the sweat of their brow a new home in the wilderness. The early struggles of the Nilsson family to succeed in what was an unknown frontier is engagingly chronicled.

In "The Settlers", the author continues the story of the Nilsson family and friends. It is the story of a family who struggled to prevail in Minnesota, an alien land of harsh, inhospitable winters and scorching summers. The book continues to chronicle their lives and their adaptation to the adopted country that they would forever call home. It tells the story of the divided Nilsson brothers, each of whom would forge a path alien to the other. The author hones in on the fact that the early settlers were subject to being taken advantage of by the unscrupulous. He highlights the mass migration of disaffected Swedes to Minnesota and details their contribution to the prosperity of that part of the country. The author shows how these early Swedish settlers consolidated themselves into a thriving, bustling community, despite the obstacles and hardships that were to be their lot in the early years of their struggle to make the new land yield to their will.

This last volume, "Last Letter Home" is a bittersweet continuation of the story of the Nilsson family, as well as that of their friends. With the fabric of their lives now firmly woven into the fabric of their adopted country and with the birth of a new generation, they have earned the right to call themselves Americans. With their destiny now firmly intertwined with that of their adopted country, they face new challenges in this new country. Having conquered the wilderness and having achieved a measure of stability and comfort, they believe that the worst is over, only to find themselves thrust into a Civil War. Moreover, the blood of their friends and family would be shed, as a Sioux uprising, an angry outgrowth of broken treaties and governmental promises, wreaks havoc in Minnesota and its surrounding environs, a region mostly inhabited by Swedish settlers. Still, the Nilssons prevail and leave their mark, not only on the pages of these books but in the heart of the reader.

I have enjoyed all four volumes of this well-written and vibrant epic work. The author, a master storyteller, has woven a captivating tapestry alive with period detail and beloved characters. These are books that those who enjoy historical fiction will love reading.

This is a great book. I so badly could not put it down that I read the whole book in 3 days. I do not read a lot, but had to read this book for a Legal class I am taking in college. I am so glad we had to read it. I would recommend it to anyone. I met Bob Gust, the author of the book and he is just as funny in person. GREAT BOOK!

I couldn't put this book down. I really enjoyed reading it. It redminds me of the McNally books. Easy to read, fun and entertaining.

For those who enjoy the legal thriller genre, this is a must read. Based on a true case, it proves once again that reality can be as interesting and entertaining as fantasy. Great plot and characters and interesting twists at the end. All around an enjoyable book.

Hey - this is a really good read. Author has great insight into human behavior and motivation. The story is woven around a creative legal situation, one that will absolutely not be found elsewhere. If you like legal fiction, you will very much enjoy this book. Great character development. I think I've met some of these people and really knew them by the end.

This book delivered on its promise to break out of the legal thriller mode by adding humor, romance, and poignancy. Amazingly, the facts underlying the main case actually happened in Northern Minnesota--while the book takes some nice twists to tie up all the open questions about what really happened. At times, the story is laugh-out-loud funny as it shifts back and forth from Minneapolis to the Iron Range in Northern Minnesota. That does not detract from the intrigue, however, and at other times it is the suspense that keeps the reader turning the pages. The romantic subplot is more than a diversion, as it ties in with the legal dispute that drives the story. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

As one begins to age, all that's left to do is look back and wonder what has went by. "The Love of Impermanent Things: A Threshold Ecology" consists of Mary Rose O'Reilley looking back at the remains of her long life and trying to make sense of this crazy thing called life. Her language and writing is humorous, enlightening, entertaining, and most of all poignant. "The Love of Imperfect Things" is highly recommended reading, with much readers will relate to.

This is one of the best books I have read in a long time. Take Annie Dillard, Barbara Kingsolver and maybe the Dali Llama and put them together and you get Mary Rose O'Reilley. I loved how she ponders all the questions many of us ponder when we reach a certain age, like `Are we our vocation?' or "How should we be spending our time without guilt", "How we can feel lonely even though we seek solitude" "How come we can't be aimless any more?" All of this is mixed in with ordinary life events written in a very poetic and beautiful way with enough sarcasm to keep it from being boring. I don't know why more isn't said about this author, I think she is extremely talented and I'm glad I fel upon her writing - I hope we will see more of it.

and I am only about 100 pages into it. I heard the author interviewed on NPR and decided impulsively to buy the book. It is incredibly written -- funny, wise, deep, reflecting. I am reading it slowly, savoring the stories, and trying to embrace the wisdom of "living the life that I am". I have a copy for my spiritual director...and plan to buy another for one of my dearest friends. For all of us who seek the One that embraces us in Love and Beauty, I recommend this book. Prepare to laugh...at the stories...at yourself...and then settle into the deepest regions of the heart to contemplate what God calls you to be.

O'Reilly is an excellent writer whose work exhibits the rare combination of sharp observation and deep kindness. She is a seeker, not content with received wisdom or easy answers; her thinking is lively and precise. She also knows how to tell a good story -- and she's very funny.

What a fascinating book! I would highly recommend this read. O'Reilley's way with words is mesmerizing. Her book makes you stop and think about your own history, your own family with all its quirks. Her sense of humor and deep reflection on her life make this book a true pleasure to read.

This is a wonderful story of a child's resilience and determination. Written by a woman of my era and from my own community, it reflected the experiences of my own mother who also spent time in a children's home in the 1920's. The richness of her story and the details of her experiences were humbling and thought provoking. I was deeply moved by her sharing of the culture of the period...one that surely shocks parents of today who have democratized their family structure and have given their children voices not heard during Patty's journey.
Thank you for giving a voice to all those children whose voices were never heard.
Bravo Patty!

I adored this book about a little girl's determination to have as normal as life as she could (whatever normal means!). It is always interesting to me how much she, and children like her, love and adore their parents, and yet when the going gets tough for the parents they dump their kids, in this instance in an orphanage. I can hardly believe adults are this cruel, but some of them are. I realize the conditions of the Depression were terrible, but I have also read about many, many families who stayed together and somehow made do. Not here. (Read: Little Heathens by Mildren Armstrong Kalish.)

Patty, soon to become Donna, is resilient and hopeful and sad and ambitious all at once. She is a survivor. She apparently harbors no hostility about any members of her birth family or her adoptive family. Indeed, noting the glaring differences in her adoptive family, she is so kind to them, both while they were living and now that they are gone. I loved reading about her and especially about her love story, which has endured for many years. I believe her husband and the love they have shared since their teen years had a huge part in helping this brave girl learn how to live and to love and therefore become an interesting, sweet, kind, and relatively content woman.

I was adopted in the 70's when the process was very different from the one described in this book- but as I read Patty's Journey- I felt such a connection that I was often moved to tears. This book is about what it is like to know-and to not know. She reminds us of how adoption was and reminds us of how it is.

I cried and marvelled at the resiliance of a child's spirit. I was touched by the deep loyalty siblings showed for each other. I wanted to tell Patty's adoptive parents to be careful, to nurture the empty places, to fill up the gaps with affection, not to ignore the sadness. I vowed to let my children be who they are, not an image I created of who they should be. I was sensitized to the stigma of not living with a biological family in the '40s. I was touched by the faith and personal strength that sustained Patty. How can we learn from her experiences in a political era that considers rebuilding orphanages? We should read Patty's journey for wisdom.

I've now read several nonfiction works by adults who were adopted as children and later reunited with their birth parents. Patty's Journey is very good.

The book is well-written, though not Donna Scott Nordling's prose is not nearly as compelling or literary in quality as that of Betty Jean Lifton's Twice Born. Nor does this book offer the same insight into an adopted child's sense of being different, and lost.

Nevertheless, Nordling's is a very important story for the pain it exposes of children who were torn from their families by unfeeling courts making little or no attempt to keep the biological families together. She and her siblings were taken from their mother after her father stole some radios during the Depression to try and support them; for reasons unclear, her mother never fought to regain custody.

Unlike some adoptees, Nordling's adotpive family offered her a genuine love, despite making some typical mistakes. And in her case, sadly, that family closeness and the years of separation made it impossible for her to renew the warmth she had once had with her biological family.

For all adoptive families, birth families and adopted people, this is a very enlightening and important book.

As a past Camp Wellstone attendee, I wasn't sure whether I would find this book to be a rehash of the ideas and strategies taught in the wonderful training weekend. But I was inspired all over again by Politics the Wellstone Way. It articulates the best of progressive values and the winning, practical way to live them in the sphere of politics. Paul Wellstone's legacy and memory live on strongly in progressive politics, and I think Wellstone Action is doing a wonderful job of making that legacy fruitful. I attended Camp Wellstone not really knowing how I would use the training, but it has proved valuable in ways I didn't expect. I have been recommending this book to people as the next best thing.

I teach politics and grassroots organizing and have reviewed many similar books. Politics the Wellstone Way is hands down the absolute best book in this genre I have seen. Paul Wellstone was an organizing genious and developed a special talent for combining electoral politics and grassroots organizing with effective policy work. Bill Lofy and the other staffers at Wellstone Action have beautifully captured the wisdom and skills Wellstone was able to accumulate in over 30 years in grassroots organizing and electoral campaigning. I highly recommend it for progressive who wants to learn how to win elections and win in issue organizing for progressive issues. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in learning how to rebuild democracy in America.

This book is a tribute to the late Senator Paul Wellstone (D MN) and his wife Shelia, who died in a plane accident. Before his untimely demise, Wellstone was one of the most dynamic examples that liberalism was not dead in the Democratic Party and was not dead in America either.

I loved his floor speeches and sponsored legislation because they intentionally sought an America where people truly were united. He believed in and genuinely loved the American people.

This book, influenced by the workshop series Mark and David Wellstone started to honor their parents, explains how everybody and anybody can become a more effective progressive activist. The best cause in the world looses visibility when organizers cannot get their message out to the public or even figure out how to field organize.

Since even experienced activists can become overwhelmed with all of the tasks we need to do in tight races, having the basic steps laid out was also helpful for us. Another major strength of the book is that it is for novice politicos and veteran organizers alike. The more, the merrier!

Most of all, this book stresses the Wellstone way was and is connecting with people. The right only holds seats because their candidates spin to 'common people' but we do not have to put on such false airs. We can represent the common people because we are them.

This book is designed to be a practical campaign manual for progressive grassroots candidates and organizations in both the context of candidate races, and issue campaigns.

The book is based on the Wellstone campaigns for US Senate in Minnesota, which were highly successful and great models for "people power" campaigns. The media strategies used in the first campaign, against Rudy Boschwitz, were classic examples of what I call "guerilla campaigning," in that they used innovative approaches to get the biggest bang for the buck, and gain earned media. Now most campaigns from both parties do the same sort of thing, but at the time, in 1990, it was incredibly innovative.

Of course, the Wellstone campaigns were animated by Paul Wellstone, an incredibly charismatic and tenacious fighter in the political wars. For a less dynamic candidate, it is hard to say if the organization would have been as successful. Still, the lesson is that a strong, smart organization is the key to victory for outfinanced progressive candidates, and this book is designed to help build such organizations.

The book does lose some of its effectiveness for the smaller campaign, unfortunately. It is geared to provide a model for statewide and congressional races. Most smaller campaigns, such as those for state legislature, will not be able to do what is described in this book, for want of personnel or funds. Even so, the book gives terrific pointers for organization, strategy, and tactics considerations.

Until recently, I wasn't able to attend a Camp Wellstone, so I did the next best thing, and purchased this book. It does an excellent job of laying out the basic knowledge needed in a progressive campaign. Very useful in electoral campaigning as well as issue based campaigns. A MUST READ for anyone involved in (or trying to join) an electoral or issue campaign. I have since purchased many books on elections, but this was the first, and in my opinion, the best overall book in my campaigning library.

This book is a basic nuts & bolts read. A very good primer and starter book on elections. READ THIS FIRST and then move on to the Faucheux and Shea type books if you are looking for a more in-depth education on campaigning and elections.

I proudly give POLITICS THE WELLSTONE WAY five stars!

In the world of books, where the ceiling on what constitutes a young writer reaches the age of 40, Toby Thompson should be applauded for simply going for it at 24, for packing up his car and heading halfway across the country to a small northern Minnesota town to track down the history of an enigmatic singer by walking up to people he's never met and asking them to talk about their most famous son, Bob Dylan. Crazy? Yeah, sure. Honorable? Gutsy? Pretty damn cool? Yes! Yes! Yes! Such a trek should be required for all aspiring writers, the push out the door (and out of their comfort zone) to find the story that is brewing somewhere in America. Even better is that Thompson knocks out a home run in his debut book, sharing a never-been-told story about Bob Dylan to an audience who was begging for it in 1971 and to future generations who continue to discover the poetry and magic of "Positively 4th Street," among others, as their musical tastes come of age.

As the 60's gave way to the 70's, Thompson captures two major forces spreading across America: Bob Dylan and New Journalism, weaving these two complimenting stars together in one wild romp. The running inner-monologue of Thompson's witty thoughts and observations are a cross between Hunter S. Thompson and Tom Wolfe adding up to a style that breathes fire. Above all the story is fun to read, inspired by the passion and idealism of a young man who doesn't know any better. And thank god for that.

English professors take note: This should be required reading for all of your students.

In these current "Times, they are a changin'" it is good to look back. Toby Thompson's take on 1968 Hibbing, Minnesota, is like Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream, only necessarily different.

As Jerry Jeff Walker says in his Viva Terlingua intro to London Homesick Blues, "I gotta put myself back in that place." And in this case, that place is Hibbing, Minnesota, 1968, former home of Robert Zimmerman, then AWOL Bob Dylan.

While Robert Bob Dylan Zimmerman was secluded in Woodstock, NY, young Toby Thompson went off to Hibbing, Minnesota, in search of Zimmerman/Dylan's past in (dis)order to ascertain the present and future - and the reader is taken along for the trips, summed up in a Postgush comment from Richard Goldstein: I think the real meat of this book is that you start out wanting to find Bob Dylan's "Rosebud" and you end up caring more about Toby's hidden bottle of Scotch.

It's a great Look Back. And to answer this reviewer's question posed in the title - What Would Dylan Do?: Obama-backin' Bob is going back to that place - back to Minneapolis - the University of Minnesota - positively near 4th Street - to do a gig on Election Night 2008. Do look back, it's alright. See ya'all there! /TundraVision, Amazon Reviewer

Bob Dylan is one of the most creative songwriters of the twentieth century. "Positively Main Street: Bob Dylan's Minnesota" tells of Toby Thompson's travels to learn more about Bobby Zimmerman, the man behind the legend. Thompson talks with the people who knew Zimmerman as a boy to further understand the mind behind the music. With interviews conducted by the author and never before released photographs, "Positively Main Street" is a must for any Dylan fan.

Superb, intersting account of growing up as Bobby Zimmerman, before becoming Bob "Die-lan". "Die-Lan" is the way Minnesotans pronounce Dylan. (The same way that I pronounced it 40 years ago.)
Great interview with Echo Helstrom "The Girl from the North Country". (Thompson doesn't bring up the thought that others think that "The Girl..." is actually Bonnie Beecher.) But from Thompson's accounts I think Echo would be someone very easy to fall in love with. I find it interesting that even after Dylan "Made it" Beatty Zimmerman (Bob's Mother) was still working in Hibbing. This is a recommended read that is as inyteresting as the John Sandford novels are about Minnesota.

Toby Thompson is truly an Odd Fellow: admitting in this updated, refurbished University of Minnesota Press edition that he first went to Hibbing, MN as a desperate means of "breaking through" in the journalistic market.

I would say that takes a lot of nerve but no doubt he admits so because he, like the rest of us before him, has seen that his work far transcends such a naughty, simple conspiracy and the fact that he was able to sit down and interview Bob Dylan's mother in Hibbing at a time when the Zimmerman family still had a viable presence on the Range is nothing short of dreamy, not to mention the quality of the relationship he forged with Echo Helstrom.

The book's new preface as well as the recent, upbeat, revealing interview with this great author make this purchase a MUST for fans of Dylan, even those who cherish the first edition from the Stoned Age.

Three Cheers for Mr. Thompson.

Dude, I mean, like, Dostoevsky's poetics have, like, lossa problems man. I mean, like, what's the deal with that Marmaledov dude? Is he related to Ziggy or something? I don't get it man. It's all voodoo to me. But it's a good read, I mean, making love with his ego is such an, ahhhh, maybe I should keep this to myself. But I really dig that stuff about the landlady and the axe, that was inspirational, metatarsal, trippy dude. Whatever.

Bakhtin's "Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics" remains an essential critical writing to understand the complex and eclectic critical imagery of Bakhtin. The plurality of consciousness within a novel (polyphony) together with the idea of simultaneity in the relationships among characters confine to this work an extremely contemporary view of what literary creation is like or must be conceived of.
Bakhtin's defense of the independency of the hero from the author stands not only as a strong critique to those critical trends which regard biographical information as the only source to fully capture the essence of a literary work, but also it enables a new kind of open criticism which embraces the role of the reader in the process of authoring a text, that is, providing the text with a meaning. Bakhtin's interest on physiology to capture the real insight of human perception and, hence, of human understanding of a literary work is, in my opinion, a great advance for the reader to become an undisputed element in the literary chain formed by the author, the text and the reader.
Bakhtin's work has rapidly become a cornerstone in the current flow of literary criticism and his "Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics" stands as one of his finest achievements.

This book is the ideal introduction to the thought of Mikhail Bakhtin. Bakhtin is becoming established as one of the giants of 20th century literary criticsm, despite his work being unknown in the West until the 1970's. This book is less about Dostoyevsky per se, rather a profound meditation on how Dostoyevsky's art exemplifies the central concern of Bakhtin, the concept of 'dialogism'. This idea defies a simple definition; the book in exploring manifold aspects of it, itself becomes truly dialogic. If you value Dostoyevsky as an artist, require an antidote to the chill winds of modern 'Theory', or simply appreciate genius at work, catch up with one of the best kept secrets in literature

Bakhtin's critique of Dostoevsky's work has revealed so much more to me about the form of this great author's novels than I would have ever been able to understand for myself. What makes Bakhtin such a masterful theorist is his methodical approach to understanding an author's work discussing the historical influence of form and the critical misinterpretations that have preceded the work. He is so attentive to levels of narration that he is able to identify voices in relation to the author and the other characters. This helps to clarify the structure of the narrative and the many ways we can interpret it. Many people have marvelled at the brilliance of Doestoevsky's work but haven't been able to put their finger on why it is so great. Bahktin not only names the reason, but also gives an incredible amount of thorough evidence as to why this is so in a comprehensible way. The technical theory is easy to understand as he is very careful to define his terms and the reasons he uses them. His survey of the development of literary forms, particularly the carnavelesque is informed and inspiring, but be careful as it is slightly idealistic and, though perfectly relevant, you feel that he is assimilating it a little too easy to his critique of Doestoevsky. The narrative techniques he identifies are not only useful in understanding Doestoevskys work but are incredibly useful in thinking about current authors. This is a very important piece of critical work I have come back to again and again.

Bakhtin's seminal work owes a lot to thinkers like Nietzsche, buy by gum, does he stand on his own. The most brilliant exposition I've read on Dostoevsky (with Rozanov in second place) and perhaps the most perceptive and insightful comments on the literary process and theory this century.