This collection encompasses 50-plus years of interviews, readings, speeches, and reports on the vibrant literary scene in Minnesota. Not only home to giants F. Scott Fitzgerald and Sinclair Lewis, our state has an array of incredible contemporary poets, novelists, and playwrights. Their words make up majority of this collection.
Repeatedly being named the “Most Literate City in the United States,” the Twin Cities has played host to numerous visiting national writers via book tours, festivals, and lectures. Many recordings of these are also included.
This project was funded by the National Historical Publications & Records Commission.
November 20, 1981 - Local historian and author Virginia Kunz comments on various long-standing Twin Cities sites and their changing look and function.
December 23, 1981 - Bruce Bomier and his daughter, Beth, discuss Christmas elves. The Bomiers’ express the need for more appreciation of elves.
January 7, 1982 - Morning Edition’s Bob Aronson interviews Minnesota author Monica O’Kane about her book Living With Adult Children: A Helpful Guide for Parents and Grown Children Sharing the Same Roof.
January 14, 1982 - MPR’s Lee Axdahl reports on the passing of Sigurd Olson, well-known environmentalist and author. Segment includes a brief summary of Olson’s life, a reading by former Governor Elmer L. Andersen, and interview segments with Olson about his experiences along the Boundary Waters.
January 14, 1982 - Noted environmentalist and author Sigurd Olson passed away on January 13, 1982 in Ely, Minnesota. This All Things Considered news feature honors his passing by airing his own words.
January 14, 1982 - Radio Talking Book presents this episode of Perspective, where Marilyn Alcott interviews author and radio personality Garrison Keillor. The two discuss Keillor’s book Happy to Be Here. He also reads from the book.
January 15, 1982 - MPR’s Mara Ann Tapp profiles and interviews Meridel Le Sueur. The author discusses the book Ripening, a comprehensive collection of her work. Le Sueur also comments on her love for the Midwest and time in Minnesota. Le Sueur is associated with the proletarian literature movement of the 1930s and 1940s.
January 15, 1982 - MPR’s Bob Aronson interviews doctor Ronald J. Glasser, author of 365 Days. The book, about his experiences in the Vietnam War, has been the subject of controversy in Maine, where it has been banned by a school board because of its allegedly inappropriate language.
February 13, 1982 - Minnesota poet Robert Bly performs reading about winter during intermission of The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra broadcast of Baroque Series Concert V.
April 1, 1982 - Midday broadcasts a speech by Mary Bader Papa, author and managing editor of Twin Cities Magazine. Papa spoke at the Minnesota Press Club about Christian feminism.