Minnesota Book Awards Announces Finalists 

The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library is pleased to announce the finalists for the 24th annual Minnesota Book Awards, sponsored by Marvin Windows and Doors. Congratulations to the authors and publishers of the 32 books which were chosen from among nearly 300 nominations. The finalists were selected on Saturday, January 28 by 24 judges from around the state. Winners in each of the eight book categories will be announced at the Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 14.

Be sure to check out the list for some top-notch reading. During the month of March participate in the Readers' Choice Award, sponsored by the Pioneer Press and TwinCities.com, by voting online for your favorite finalist book. Mark your calendar for the Readers' Choice event on Friday, March 16 at 7:00 p.m. at Open Book in Minneapolis. Meet many of this year's finalists who will give a short presentation of their work, followed by a wine and hors d'oeuvres reception. And stay tuned for information about free upcoming programs featuring finalist authors.

Friday, February 10 Event Showcases the 2012 Book Artist Award Winner 

The Friends recently announced Cave Paper and its founders, Bridget O'Malley and Amanda Degener, as the winners of the 2012 Minnesota Book Artist Award. Now, see their award-winning work for yourself.

An exhibit featuring Cave Paper will be on display in Minneapolis at Open Book, 1011 Washington Avenue South, through March 25, 2012. On Friday, February 10, please join us for a reception celebrating the exhibit and honoring O'Malley and Degener. This event is free and open to the public, and runs from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., with a brief program at 6:30 p.m. The reception features hors d'oeuvres, wine, and live music by Tommy Lieberman and His Rhythm.

Can't make it to Open Book? Cave Paper's work will also be displayed at Saint Paul's Central Library from April 2 through May 13, and exhibited around the state throughout the year. To learn more about the Minneapolis-based pair and the Artist Award, click here. The Minnesota Book Artist Award is sponsored by Lerner Publishing Group and presented with Minnesota Center for Book Arts.

Tickets Now on Sale for April 14 Book Awards Gala

The 24th annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala, sponsored by Marvin Windows and Doors, takes place Saturday, April 14 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in downtown Saint Paul. Celebrate our state's best authors and books, and be part of the excitement when this year's winning titles are announced. Opening reception 7 p.m. Meet the finalist authors, book sales and signings, cash bar. Awards ceremony at 8 p.m. featuring complimentary wine and refreshments during the ceremony, with champagne and dessert at the after-party, immediately following. This annual event has sold out for the past four years, so don't delay! Tickets are $45 each ($40 for members of The Friends and MEMO).

Nominees Announced for Inaugural Hognander Minnesota History Award

Seven books are in the running to win the first-ever Hognander Minnesota History Award, sponsored by the Hognander Family Foundation. This new, biennial award honors an outstanding scholarly work exploring the state's rich history. Click here for a complete list of the nominees. The winner will be honored at the Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 14.   

Free outreach materials: DVDs, Bookmarks, and Posters... Oh My!

Free outreach materials featuring the 2011 Minnesota Book Award winners are available to schools, libraries, book clubs, and other organizations. The bookmarks and posters feature the nine winning books and authors. Also available, two DVDs - one with the 2011 Book Awards Gala and interviews with the winning authors, and one with the four episodes of the TPT "Prized Writers" series featuring Minnesota Book Award winners in conversation.If interested, please contact Ann Nelson at mnbookawards@thefriends.org with quantities desired and mailing address. Reading guides for the 2011 winners as well as previous winners are also available online.

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 Poetry finalist:

On Speaking Terms
Connie Wanek
Copper Canyon Press
Category Sponsor: Wellington Management, Inc.

On Speaking Terms, is amusing, tender, and surprising. The poems in this collection emerge from everyday objects—Scrabble, garlic, lipstick, hawkweed—and the landscapes, waterscapes, and severe winters of the upper Midwest.

"Blue Ink" from On Speaking Terms:

Blue Ink is friendlier than black,
more feminine. You can sign the papers
and still believe
it's not quite final.

You can conjecture in blue ink,
and write a check for more than you have.
People will understand.

Some days the lake is blue enough
to be bottled, or injected
directly into a pen,

through as the words dry
they disappear, letter by letter,
sparing you
serious embarrassment.

Connie Wanek, author of three books of poems, lives and writes in Duluth where she was a librarian for many years.

 

Reviews:

"Take my word for it -- this new book by Connie Wanek is outstanding, and some of the poems will stick with you for the rest of your life." – Ted Kooser, 13th Poet Laureate of the United States.

"Wanek’s poems start out in sweet sadness and end up trenchantly bitter...The most attentive readers will call her wise." – Stephen Burt, The New York Times.

"Wanek is a natural. Her carefully crafted poems have a delicious artlessness about them, even as they take us in and lift our neck hairs with the unexpected aptness of her metaphors." – Maxine Kumin, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet.

More:

Listen to Wanek's poem "Monopoly" featured on the Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keillor.

Listen to Wanek read "The Coin Behind your Ear" as featured in The Atlantic Monthly.

Read "Radiator" as featured on American Life in Poetry, a project for newspapers by Ted Kooser.

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m.

Have you read On Speaking Terms? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 Genre Fiction finalist:

Vermillion Drift
William Kent Krueger
Atria/Simon & Schuster
Category Sponsor: Marvin Windows and Doors

An Excerpt from Vermillion Drift:

Some nights, Corcoran O'Connor dreams his father's death.

Although the dream differs in the details, it always follows the same general pattern: His father falls from a great height. Sometimes he stumbles backward over a precipice, his face an explosion of surprise. Or he's climbing a high, flat face of rock and, just as he reaches for the top, loses his grip and, in falling, appears both perplexed and angry. Or he steps into an empty elevator shaft, expecting a floor that is not there, and looks skyward with astonishment as the darkness swallows him.

Hired as a security consultant for an underground iron mine project, Cork O’Connor stumbles across a secret room that contains the remains of six murder victims. As Cork searches for answers, he must dig into his own past and that of his father, a well-respected man who harbored a ghastly truth.

William Kent Krueger is the award-winning author of ten Cork O’Connor novels. He has previously won four Minnesota Book Awards.

Reviews:

"Cork O'Connor…is one of those hometown heroes you rarely see…someone so decent and true, he might restore his town's battered faith in the old values." – The New York Times Book Review.

"Can a writer keep getting better and better? Minnesotan William Kent Krueger surely can, as shown by Vermilion Drift." – Pioneer Press

"One of today's automatic buy-today-read-tonight series. Thoughtful but suspenseful, fast but lasting, contemporary but strangely timeless, Krueger hits the sweet spot every time." – Lee Child, best-selling author of the Jack Reacher series.

More:

Krueger takes on topics ranging from his books to family life on his blog, Kent's Rants.

Videos:

The author discusses his book in an interview with Bookreporter.com.

The Minnesota Book Awards created video interviews with the Award-winning authors at Saint Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN) studios. William Kent Krueger won for Genre Fiction two years in a row:

And catch the re-run of Kent's episode of "Prized Writers - Plotting Mysteries" on TPT MN Channel, Sunday April 18 at 8:30 p.m. Click here for more info. >>

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m. Few tickets remain, tickets are $45 and are now only available by calling 651-222-3242. Click here for more information about the gala this Saturday.

Have you read Vermillion Drift? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 Novel and Short Story finalist:

Losing Camille
Paul Kilgore
Black Lawrence Press/Dzanc Books
Category Sponsor: Anchor Trust

An excerpt from the short story "Roeschler's Home" in Losing Camille:

The Melander farmhouse was unchanged, but its yard was now an island among a churned sea of brown: earthmovers had cut hills and filled swales, tentative roads had laced away the geometry of one hundred thirty years of plowing. A large plywood sign, professionally painted, demanded attention. Future Site of Roeschler Homesites, it said clumsily, in green lettering. Then, in red: Luxurious Country Living. Homes beginning at $499,000.

This collection of ten stories features characters on the move—from youth to independence, safety to adventure, and familiar reassurance to dangerous possibility. A high school teacher haunted by nightmares, sweet memories from a wise grandfather and a Christmas dinner from hell are the subjects of a few of the stories.

Paul Kilgore is a practicing lawyer. He has been a columnist for the Pioneer Press and his work has appeared on Garrison Keillor's "A Prairie Home Companion."

Reviews:

“A haunting collection of the everyday; well-crafted.” – MN Book Awards preliminary judge.

“This volume is worth snapping up for its successful stories, and for the brilliance it hints at. Kilgore is a Minnesotan to the core, and he conveys what it means to be one beautifully in his best stories. We have high expectations for his next effort.” – Pamela Miller, Star Tribune

“The author’s clear eye for detail, and his curiosity about his characters, indicate that he’s probably a pretty good lawyer too!” – Bill Holm, author of Eccentric Islands and Coming Home Crazy

More:

Kilgore was full of literary references when Minnesota Reads posed the Six Questions We Always Ask 

The author penned the following sonnet back in 2000 for A Prairie Home Companion's St. Valentine's Day sonnet contest.

Sonnet for Becky
How heavy do we journey on our way,
The cranberry minivan crammed and tight,
Our daughters equipped for the weekend away,
They’ve pictures to draw, poems and stories to write.
And you beside me, sifting through the mail,
Quick notes announcing news of every kind;
While you recite your distant cousin’s tale
I fight to leave the workweek’s cares behind.
Did we create this intricate world?
A shy love had begun simply enough.
How could we have imagined these girls,
This inexhaustible supply of love?
That summer’s flat on Emerson Avenue…
We talked, loved, wondered; but never knew.

Paul Kilgore, Duluth, Minnesota

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m. Few tickets remain, tickets are $45 and are now only available by calling 651-222-3242. Click here for more information about the gala this Saturday.

Have you read Losing Camille? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!

 

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 Young People’s Literature finalist:

Hamster Magic
Lynne Jonell
Random House Children’s Books/Random House, Inc.
Category Sponsor: Sit Investment Associates

An excerpt from Hamster Magic:

There was a swoosh in the room, and a swirling of grit like blowing desert sand, and the children shut their eyes.  When they opened them again, Celia had become big.

She had also become a hamster.

Celia Willow is the baby of the family, and she’s sick of it. So when Celia's hamster surprises her with his wish-granting powers, she blurts out her deepest desire. But, Celia didn't exactly wish to be furry. Avoiding her parents, her siblings must work together in one night to reverse the hamster magic.

Lynne Jonell is the author of Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat which was honored with a Minnesota Book Award, a Booklist Editor’s Choice and as one of School Library Journal’s Best Books of the Year.

Reviews:

“It’s an unusual premise, to be sure, but there is something both appealing and remarkably nostalgic in this furry tale of cooperation among siblings and magical animals interacting with the human world.” – The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“A couple of steps up from an easy reader, Jonell’s latest book will appeal to those who prefer their fantasy stories furry and friendly.” – Booklist

“This is a short and breezy fantasy a la Edward Eager, perfect for kids who have just learned to read with confidence and want a "real" chapter book.” – Eva’s Book Addiction blog

“Lovely story. Engaging and sweet.” – MN Book Awards preliminary judge

Video:

Lynne Jonell visited KARE-11 television in March. She talked about another of her books, The Secret of Zoom, and discussed her unique style of "method writing."

http://www.kare11.com/news/saturday/article/916225/21/The-Secret-of-Zoom

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45 and are available by clicking here or calling 651-222-3242.

Have you read Hamster Magic? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 Minnesota finalist:

Prairie, Lake, Forest: Minnesota’s State Parks
Chris Niskanen, photography by Doug Ohman
Minnesota Historical Society Press
Category Sponsor: Xcel Energy:

An excerpt from Prairie, Lake, Forest: Minnesota’s State Parks:

We went for a hike. The beach was a tumble of exposed bedrock, some formations looking like model pirate ships in silhouette, but soon the gravel narrowed and an outcrop of jagged rock faced us. The girls scrambled up a well-used trail, and then I saw Grace climbing, hand over hand, up the final short rock wall. I was about to yell my customary warning, but she had summited and Bailey was on her heels. They raised their arms, the Lake Superior wind whipping their hair, and I breathed two words: their Everest.

Containing sixteen essays and over 200 photographs that chronicle the sights, sounds, and experiences of Minnesota’s 66 parks, this book explores the parks through the eyes of rangers, naturalists, and long-time users.

Chris Niskanen was outdoors editor for the Pioneer Press for over sixteen years, and was recently appointed DNR Communications Director by Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton.

Doug Ohman's work is featured in the Minnesota Byways series, which includes Barns of Minnesota and Cabins of Minnesota.

Reviews:

“We at Parks and Trails can’t imagine why anyone who reads Chris Niskanen’s captivating essays and sees Doug Ohman’s fine photos won’t immediately want to get off the couch and head to one of Minnesota’s state parks. These two outdoorsmen have captured the true spirit of our prairies, lakes, and forests.” – Courtland Nelson, Director, Parks and Trails, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

“Niskanen’s lively writing and Ohman’s gorgeous photographs capture the recreational, visual, and historical wonders of the state’s remarkable park system. Everyone who loves exploring Minnesota’s outdoors should own this book.” – Tom Dickson, author of The Great Minnesota Fish Book

“An absolutely beautiful book. Ohman’s photos are, as usual, beautiful.  Text is well written and entertaining.  Book design is exceptional.” – MN Book Awards preliminary judge

More images from Doug Ohman’s website:

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45 and are available by clicking here or calling 651-222-3242.

Have you read Prairie, Lake, Forest? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!

 

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 Memoir & Creative Nonfiction finalist:

Carrier: Untangling the Danger in My DNA
Bonnie J. Rough
Counterpoint

An excerpt from an interview  with Bonnie J. Rough :

“This book has a story in it that’s the journey of making a very hard decision, and learning how to turn off the noise that comes from outside and listen to that tiny voice somewhere on the inside.”

As Bonnie J. Rough and her husband consider becoming parents, their biological legacy haunts every decision. A carrier of the genetic condition hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia, or H.E.D, Bonnie begins a journey to uncover the complicated details of her family’s past. Initially, H.E.D appears to be just a superficial condition resulting in thin hair, a strange facial structure, limited number of teeth and the inability to sweat. However, the story of Earl, Bonnie’s grandfather, reveals how infections, drug dependency and breathing problems controlled his life. Caught between science and the heart, Bonnie and her husband find themselves faced with a modern moral crisis – and one that ultimately reveals the eternal tension between past and future.

Bonnie J. Rough has taught at The Loft Literary Center and this is her first book.

Reviews:

“Bonnie Rough’s account of her own journey toward having a family is beautifully juxtaposed with the story of her forefathers.  Lyrical, artistic, and imaginative writing and structure tease out the details of what it means to be healthy.” – Minnesota Book Awards Preliminary Judge

“Carrier took its tension, honesty, humor and disorder and made me cry. Twice. Hard.” – Minnesota Book Awards Preliminary Judge

“Bonnie Rough has crafted a memoir like no other: lyrical, investigative, haunting, and tender, all fueled by a powerful imagination and fiery intelligence unlike any other in the literary cosmos. Carrier is boundary-busting nonfiction at its finest. This is a book I will not only recommend widely but teach for years to come.” – Robin Hemley, author of Do-Over!

“There are many things to praise in Bonnie Rough’s deeply felt memoir, in her report from the brave new world, but most striking are her compassion and her wisdom as she navigates the harrowing choices, the complex choices that medical technology allows us.” – Jane Hamilton, author of When Madeline Was Young

Audio/Video:

Author Bonnie J. Rough discusses her memoir Carrier: Untangling the Danger in My DNA on KOMO News in Seattle, WA.

How much do you want to know about your baby even before he or she is born? And are you prepared for the decisions knowledge can bring? Listen to Bonnie on the Good Enough Moms podcast, July 26, 2010. Innovations in genetic and medical technologies enable prospective parents to know more than ever before about the potential life prospects of their future sons and daughters. But that knowledge sometimes brings with it difficult choices, from how much you choose to know to how you will act on that knowledge if you have it. Author Bonnie Rough joins Marti & Erin to talk about her experience as a known carrier of a rare genetic disorder, a story with something to say to us all.

November 13, 2010: 4th Annual Mother Words Reading: A Bonus Podcast from Good Enough Moms & The Loft Literary Center

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45 and are available by clicking here or calling 651-222-3242.

Have you read Carrier? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 Poetry finalist:

Sin Eater
William Reichard
MidList Press
Category Sponsor: Wellington Management

An excerpt from Sin Eater:

The room was full of stars.

Their light white, iridescent.

The blue behind them, darker
than my darkest dream.

He was there.  He wore
a shirt embroidered with stars.

Against that night sky,

I could barely see him.

I thought it better to stay,
discontent as I was.

As I woke, he threw
the window open.

The vacuum was broken.
All of the stars rushed out.

Sin Eater takes its title from a funeral rite practiced in England, Scotland and Wales. The ritual was usually performed by a beggar hired to pray over the deceased while consuming a meal prepared by the family. This act of consumption, it was believed, would remove the sins from the dead person and transfer them to the “sin eater”- whose own soul, thereafter, was irrevocably damned. The poems explore family, loss, love, regret, doubt and faith.

William Reichard holds a Ph.D. in Contemporary American Literature and an M.A. in Creative Writing

Reviews:

“The voice in the poems of Sin Eater is thoughtful but never hesitant; it refuses to impress me with razzle-dazzle; it asks, instead, that I sit in a garden at dusk and listen quietly. I admire these poems' emotional complexity, and the dailiness in them that continues to unfold and expand as I read.” – MN Book Awards preliminary judge

“William Reichard's Sin Eater prepares for us a feast of words, lays it lovingly around the body of beliefs inhabitants of a contemporary world must mourn, and invites us to partake. Master of the terrifying understatement, Reichard gives us poems that walk us calmly toward the empty shell and demonstrate the utter pointlessness of imagining that paradise is anywhere but in the smallest details of the here and now. – Leslie Adrienne Miller (The Resurrection Trade)

“The poems in Sin Eater often have at their center a disarming modesty. Their narrator may be standing at a kitchen sink doing dishes or sitting on a tiny patio listening to the neighbors on their stoops.  But somehow the neighborhood becomes the world and the quietness becomes a protected space which makes room for the mystery and longing at the heart of these poems. William Reichard's poems begin by charming  their readers and end by compelling them: it's an enchantment that makes Sin Eater a wonderful book.” – Jim Moore (Lightning at Dinner)

Read more:

William Reichard

Mudlark Poster No. 84 (2009) - Four Poems by William Reichard

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45 and are available by clicking here or calling 651-222-3242.

Have you read Sin Eater? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 Children’s Literature Finalist:

A Night on the Range
Aaron Frisch, illustrated by Chris Sheban
The Creative Company
Category Sponsor: Books For Africa:

An excerpt from A Night on the Range:

One day, after watching a ball of weeds tumble along the street, Cole decided the moment had come.  He sauntered over to his father, who was working on the car. Cole tipped back his hat. “I’m fixin’ to become a real cowboy,” he said.

Aaron Frisch is the author of more than 90 nonfiction books for children and young adults.

Reviews:

“This is an entertaining-enough tongue-in-cheek story that is suitable for sharing. The illustrations have a retro look and are somewhat muted and understated. Created with watercolor and pencil, they are appropriately scary during Cole's experiences outside and satisfying when he's safely back in his own home.” – Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA.

“The illustrations for Night on the Range are beautiful, and I really like the way the prose is presented.  At first a lot of text, but in a good way, then when the little boy is scared only one sentence per page.  Then, when he feels safe, a lot of text.” – Minnesota Book Awards Preliminary Judge

“The subtle humor throughout should have an appeal beyond just cowboy fans. Early pages show our hero at his imaginary play. But richer visuals appear when he camps out and imagines the dangers in the shadows. Sheban produces textured surfaces to help create somewhat dreamy but naturalistic scenes and sculpturesque characters with strong emotional content.” – Children's Literature Review

More illustrations from Chris Sheban's website:

"Young Cole, attired in cowboy boots and hat, is aimin' to be a cowpoke. With a vivid imagination, he envisions his dog, Bull's-Eye, as his faithful mount; neighbors as mean rustlers; and their dogs as dangerous wolves. Cowboy Cole likes to relax after a hard day in front of the TV, watching Westerns borrowed from the library." – School Library Journal

"Sheban's signature pebbly surfaces diffuse light to give even the goofiest or most prosaic images an ethereal quality that testifies to the transportive power of imagination...

"...and his mise-en-scene is worthy of Sergio Leone, whether it's a closeup of Cole brushing his teeth with a beef jerky stick or a stunning worm's eye view of Cole and Bull's Eye losing themselves in the wonders of twilight." – Publisher's Weekly

 

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45 and are available by clicking here or calling 651-222-3242.

Have you read A Night on the Range? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!

Each day leading up to the April 16 announcement of the Minnesota Book Awards, we highlight one of the thirty-two finalists. Today, we feature 2011 General Nonfiction finalist:

Paddle North: Canoeing the Boundary Waters Quetico Wilderness
Greg Breining, photography by Layne Kennedy
Minnesota Historical Society Press
sponsored by Minnesota AFL-CIO:

An excerpt from Paddle North: Canoeing the Boundary Waters Quetico Wilderness:

Susan and I lingered on our whale-rock. We watched the deepening colors in the west fade to pinpricks of starlight, reluctant to call an end to our last night in the forest. These campsites, these lakes, and these images are like the people you meet on a long trip-you may renew the acquaintance on some occasion, but more likely you part never to return. This day and our time here will become no more than memory.

Through stories and full-color photos, this book depicts life in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and neighboring Quetico Provincial Park. Stories of canoe building, map making and winter weather are accompanied by images of crackling campfires, glistening lakes and rugged cliffs to highlight the landscape and beauty to inspire travelers to paddle north.

Greg Breining writes about travel, science and nature for the New York Times, Audobon and other national publications.

Layne Kennedy’s photographs have appeared in National Geographic Traveler, Sports Illustrated, Newsweek, Smithsonian, and other magazines.

From Layne Kennedy's blog: "Here's a photograph from the book on a still, clear night on Agnes Lake in the BWCA. From across the lake I had spotted paddlers making their evening campfire. It was a beautiful scene. Can you hear the stillness"

Reviews:

“But the joy and wonder of this book is found within the narrative Mr. Breining weaves as he takes in the landscape his canoe glides through, a narrative that shows he is surely as deft with word-smithing as he must be with paddling.” – Kurt Repanshek

“In Paddle North, Greg Breining and Layne Kennedy have captured the beauty, solitude, and challenges of canoe country. They bring to the reader the essence of the Quetico-Superior wilderness and remind us why we go there. Contained in these pages is the roaring silence, the wild lakes, the rewards of canoe travel, and the unique, lifelong memories with friends and family that only a wilderness canoe trip can bring.” – Greg Seitz, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness

“A paean to the Boundary Waters and Quetico, this stunning book paints pictures in words and with a camera.  The essays conjure up beautiful scenes in your mind and the photographs speak volumes, complementing each other.  This is a volume for nature lovers to treasure whether or not you canoe the wilderness.”  – Minnesota Book Awards Preliminary Judge

Award winners will be announced at the 23rd Annual Minnesota Book Awards Gala on Saturday, April 16, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in downtown Saint Paul. The opening reception begins at 6:30 p.m.; followed by the awards ceremony at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45 and are available by clicking here or calling 651-222-3242.

Have you read Paddle North? What are your thoughts? We welcome your comments!