Minnesota Books

MESTIZAJE: CRITICAL USES OF RACE IN CHICANO CULTURE will reach college-level audiences with a detailed survey of Chicano culture and the role race plays in modern expectations of such. Concepts of race, historical memory, and community have contributed to potentials for new multiracial identities, yet most Chicano studies focus on differences and conflicts. MESTIZAJE examines a quarter-century's worth of thinking to consider Chicano public art and its social and political representation.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

I live in Oh and bought the book in OH. I have not figured out how to tell which state the book is for. I can tell you that everything matches with what I know. It is excellent! It includes lots of good practical information. I grow Blueberry, Red and Black Raspberries plus the garden vegtable and fruit plants.

Mike Lynch is an advanced amateur astronomer, but more than that he is a radio personality and writer of a weekly astronomy column for the St. Paul Pioneer Press, these writing/communications skills have enabled him to write this gorgeous book on astronomy for amateurs. In recent years the advances in astronomy have given to us a most amazing set of pictures. Some come from the Hubble orbiting observatory, some from new huge ground based telescopes. These images have been digitally enhanced and colorized to provide images that only a few years ago were simply impossible to obtain. Mr. Lynch has collected a number of these to illustrate the points he is discussing.

This book is a general introduction to every aspect of astronomy from the thinking of the ancients making up stories about the constellations, to the recent research on the planets such as photographs of the surface of Mars taken from probes actually on the surface.

Oh that Galileo could see this book. Remember that he was put under house arrest for suggesting that moons went around Jupiter rather than everything in the heavens going around Earth and we humans.

This is a delightful coffee table book. And it isn't just for Minnesota. The universe doesn't revolve around Minnesota any more than it does Earth.

If you are obsessive or not, you may have noticed over the years that Mike Lynch is incredibly accurate when compared to the TV windbags who don't dare forecast, but only rely on the computers. Mike is a down to earth guy who knows how to read a weather map as well as the sky. He also knows that animals in the wild are indicators of what's coming. I am a weather junkie who got hooked on it when I was in pilot training. Mike reveals the tools of his accurate forecasts in this book in factual and humorous detail. The photography is beautiful.
If you read it, you will laugh and learn, then realize what buffoons there are on TV.

This classic textbook is the first reference for the current usage of the Milwaukee brace for the treatment of Idiopathic scoliosis. Drs. Blount and Moe converted this technology and combined it with sound clinical treatment principles to prevent scoliosis curve progression and therefore, prevent surgery. This book covers clinical as well as fabrication and fitting principles for the Milwaukee brace.

Excellent photography that makes it so easy to see why Minnesota is such a beautiful place to visit and live.

Very easy to use and understand. Clear printing and large pages. Everyone who has looked at my copy has been impressed. It would be nice to have the map expanded a bit more to cover additional suburbs.

I have to admit that I was surprised there was not a photograph of Duluth's Aerial Lift Bridge in this look at "Minnesota" for the From Sea to Shining Sea (second) series, because it is the iconic image of the Zenith City. When Jessica Lange, who was born down the road in Cloquet, come up here to make "Far North" (1988), they managed to put the Aerial Lift Bridge in most of the shots so that it became something of a running joke in the film. It gets mentioned in this book, but no picture. In fact the photograph that accompanies Chapter One, Introducing the North Star State, shows a Minnesotan embracing the cold winter, which serves as a reminder that up here it is winter six months of the year, most of the 12,000 lakes get frozen, along with Lake Superior, which means there comes a time when the Aerial Lift Bridge no longer needs to be lifted. But then that is just our little corner of the North Star State.

The second chapter is devoted to the geography of The Land of Minnesota, which covers how the melting of the glaciers resulted in four geographic regions: the Superior Upland, the Young Drift Plains, the Dissected Till Plains, and the Driftless Area (you have to love these names). Pay attention to the Rivers and Lakes section this time around because with the 6,564 rivers and the aforementioned 12,000 lakes, Minnesota has 90,000 miles of shoreline, which is more than California, Florida, and Hawaii combined. Then there is the great understatement in the Climate section where Hasday informs us that, "Minnesota gets very cold." This, I will admit, is true, and explains why this book has one of the longest sections on climate in the series (think of it as an apologia).

Minnesota Through History is the subject of Chapter Three, where several pages are devoted to the Native American settlements that were supplanted by the arrival of the European fur trappers. Hasday covers Minnesota as a developing land, a territory, and then a state in 1858. The slavery issue and the Civil War are covered, as is the Dakota conflict that was happening at the same time. The impact of the Homestead Act and the logging and mining industries on Minnesota are explained. The final sections in the chapter are devoted to the two World Wars, and how the postwar period led to the modern times of today (ending with some rather kind words for former governor Jesse "the Body" Ventura).

The fourth chapter talks about Governing Minnesota, although after explaining the three branches of state government, the rest of the chapter is devoted to a tour of Saint Paul, the one of the Twin Cities that is the state capital. The map of downtown shows where the Minnesota Children's Museum, Science Museum of Minnesota, and Minnesota History Center are located. The final chapter is about The People and Places of Minnesota, which goes into detail on where people came from (although talking only along Finnish people when you mention the Scandinavians in the state is treading on thin ice), and what they do for work up here. With great joy I can tell you that the recipe here is for Minnesota Blueberry Tiramisu, and while the last word frightens me a bit, nothing beats blueberries. The last section is a tour of Minnesota that gives you an indication of what there is to see from the Mall of America to the headwaters of the Mississippi River at Lake Itasca (where you can walk across), and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Throughout the book there are the standard sidebars categories Find Out More (What can be made from iron ore?), Who's Who in Minnesota (Hubert Humphrey), Extra! Extra! ("whaleback" steamers), and What's in a Name? (Minneapolis is a combination of the Dakota word "minne" for "water" and Greek "polis" for "city"), but apparently nothing every happened here first because there is not Famous First box. There are some nice color photographs of Split Rock Lighthouse and the shore of Lake Superior at Grand Marais, and also shots of things further south from here.

The back of the book has an Minnesota Almanac, two-pages of statistics and basic information. A Timeline contrasts Minnesota state and U.S. history, while the Gallery of Famous Minnesotans has photos of Garrison Keillor and Charles Schulz, but also names Bob Dylan and Prince, although younger readers will be most excited about Mary GrandPre (illustrator of the American "Harry Potter" books in case you are out of the loop). After the Glossary, Hasday has a list of websites, books and addresses where young students can go For More Information. But there is plenty of basic information here and if you need something more specific for a school report it might entail more research. The Mighty Mississippi begins in Minnesota and we are going to follow is down to the Gulf of Mexico, so our next stop on the tour is going to be Iowa, the Hawkeye State.

John Radzilowski is a Minnesota native, writer and historian. He therefore brings a special expertise to Minnesota: On-the-Road, a panoramic survey of the cultural, historical, and geographic aspects of a surprisingly multi-ethnic upper midwest state which always ranked high with respect to the environmental, the economic well-being of its citizens, the arts, health, and education. Along with a lively account of Minnesota's history, Minnesota: On-the-Road is enhanced for the traveller with full-color and black/white archival and contemporary photographs and maps; a chronology of major events; "infobits" such as state symbols, songs, etc.; literary extracts; visitor resources and "must-see" sights; cultural highlights and special events; and a select bibliography. Minnesota: On-the-Road is recommended for on-site visitors and armchair travellers alike!

Minnesota in winter is both brutal and beautiful. But there's more to it than Prince, hockey, and snow. Minnesota is rich in culture and history. And this little volume will tell you and your students all about it.

The "Portrait of America" series is a terrific introduction for pre-teens to the 50 states and to the places and events that shaped the history of the United States. This "Minnesota" installment is particularly good. The book is broken down into sections like "History", "Culture", "Economy" etc., and each section is thoughtfully written and edited. The "Culture" section is especially good and is very inclusive.

This book, as well as the entire "Portrait of America" series, will prove to be a valuable teaching tool to all primary school educators.