July 14, 2009 - Riley Spartz is back on the case. Spartz is a fictional TV reporter that fans may remember as the main character from the mystery novel "Stalking Susan." In a new sequel called "The Missing Mark" Spartz is looking into a human interest story, but winds up in the middle of a missing person case. Amid the mystery and suspense "The Missing Mark" examines how news organizations decide which missing person cases to cover. Both books are set in the Twin Cities. Author Julie Kramer.... a former investigative producer with WCCO-TV told me she got the idea for the book from a classified ad.
July 17, 2009 - Midday’s Gary Eichten talks with sports commentator Howard Sinker about the Minnesota Twins season thus far, as the second half of 2009 Major League Baseball season begins. Sinker sees a team with much more potential than their American League standing.
July 21, 2009 - A story of hope amid despair. A new novel by Mayo Clinic doctor and obesity researcher James Levine tells the story of a young Indian girl forced into a life of prostitution. Dr. Levine says the novel sprang from a visit to the slums of Mumbai and encounter there that haunts him to this day.
July 23, 2009 - All Things Considered’s Tom Crann talks with Democratic U.S. Representative Tim Walz, of Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District, about his and Mayo Clinic’s push for Medicare reform in health bill.
July 31, 2009 - MPR’s Brandt Williams visits the Metrodome for Minnesota Twins batting practice to get a closer look at the bat…or more specifically, the wood of the bat. Traditionally, Major League Baseball bats have been made from white ash, but increasingly organizations are using maple as well. Use of white ash bats are at risk with the spread of emerald ash borer, a green buprestid or jewel beetle native to north-eastern Asia that feeds on ash species.
July 31, 2009 - Teddy Roosevelt: A "Wilderness Warrior".Douglas Brinkley, author of "The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America" joins Midday to discuss the first naturalist president, and what impact his appreciation for nature still has today.
August 3, 2009 - A leader in both football and teaching, former Vikings offensive guard Randall McDaniel joins Midday to talk about his upcoming induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and about being an educator in Minnesota. McDaniel also answers listener questions.
August 3, 2009 - MPR’s Euan Kerr speaks with Penumbra Artistic Director Lou Bellamy about Claude Purdy, a founding member of the Penumbra Theater in St. Paul. Bellamy says Purdy offered many strengths to the stage.
August 5, 2009 - MPR’s Lorna Benson profiles a special little black dog named Batman. 2009 marks the one year anniversary of cancer treatment, a major milestone for the dog and University of Minnesota's College of Veterinary Medicine. In 2008, University researchers began an experimental procedure to save Batman from an aggressive brain tumor that threatened to kill him within a month.
August 6, 2009 - Nicole Johns doesn't look like she has an eating disorder, and for a long time that was a problem.