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.
February 14, 1985 - MPR’s Doug Hamilton speaks with local English professor and poet Michael Dennis Brown on the state of modern love poetry today. Brown speaks on poetry’s decreasing popularity in comparison to other forms of media and expression. He also talks about his expectations for the future of poetry and how he hopes it evolves and grows with the world’s changes.
February 18, 1985 - MPR’s Kate Moos profiles Minnesota’s second poet laureate, Laurene Tibbetts. Segment includes brief interview and reading.
July 13, 1985 - MPR’s Mark Heistad interviews Elizabeth Ebbott, author of Indians in Minnesota. Sovereign Nation status and economic development on reservations are discussed.
August 1, 1985 - MPR’s Stephen Smith takes a nature walk with author and journalist Paul Gruchow at Blue Mounds State Park in southwestern, Minnesota. Gruchow writes about the prairie and is a frequent visitor to the park.
August 6, 1985 - James Farrell, St. Olaf professor of history, American studies, and environmental studies, describes the reasons behind and contents of his book The Nuclear Devil's Dictionary. The book sarcastically presents definitions and terms related to nuclear weapons, warfare, and the Cold War era, highlighting the absurdity of nuclear politics.
August 29, 1985 - Garrison Keillor, author of Lake Wobegon Days, answers listener questions about his writing and his show "A Prairie Home Companion."
September 14, 1985 - On this Midday, Al Sicherman, food writer for the Minneapolis Star and Tribune, answers listener questions about food. His book, Caramel Knowledge, is also discussed.
September 30, 1985 - Evelina Chao, an American violinist of Chinese descent and member of The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, talks about writing her novel Gates of Grace, which tells the story of the emigrate Chinese experience in America.
October 9, 1985 - Jackpine Bob Cary muses on the season of change, tying winter to mosquitos and detailing what northern locals are planning as the cold sets in.
October 22, 1985 - MPR’s Stephen Smith chats with author and journalist Paul Gruchow about the season of autumn. In segment, Gruchow reads from his first book, Journal of a Prairie Year.