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Newsletter  Archives

Get out your calendar! You’ll want to make note of the terrific events coming to the stores this month! August 3, Taste of Dorset, 11:00 to 3:00 It’s Dorset’s annual festival! At Sister Wolf, three authors will be signing their books: Carolyn Boehlke 11:00 to 1:00 Jeanne Cooney 11:00 to 3:00 Judith Yates Borger 2:00 to 3:00 Dr. Bob (co-owner of the stores and a professor at the University of North Dakota) will be engaging children in fun science experiments on the lawn in front of the store. Stop by our coffee bar for liquid refreshment to keep you going! Find more details about Taste of Dorset at Sister Wolf's website. August 6, 9:00 a.m. Minnesota Women's Press Glenda Martin and Mollie Hoben will be at Sister Wolf for an open time of sharing about books and reading. Martin and Hoben are the Founding Publishers of Minnesota Women's Press, creators of its Center for Feminist Reading, and editors of the magazine "BookWomen: A Readers Community for Those Who Love Women's Words." Martin has been leading book groups for 30 years. For the past 18 years, Hoben has designed and led Book Groups on the Road and Martin has done the same with Reading Retreats. Join us for a stimulating conversation! August 9, noon Poet/artist Lea Johnstone Johnstone will give a presentation at Beagle about her book, Autumn Drew Its Bedtime Bath: Poems and Paintings of Minnesota, and sign copies of the book. August 11, 2:30 to 4:00 Christina Baker Kline The author of Orphan Train, will give a presentation at the Park Rapids Armory, 203 Park Ave. S. Christina was at both stores last year, and we know this program will be great! Copies of Orphan Train are available at both stores, and we’ll be selling them at the event as well. August 12, 6:00 to 9:00  at Beagle Books Using Art To Inspire Poetry:  An Ekphrastic Poetry Workshop with Bemidji poet, Erin Lynn Marsh We will look at ekphrastic poetry (poems that uses some form of art—a painting, sculpture, music, or other poetry—as inspiration) from well-known authors to give us an idea of the possible ways we can go in writing ekphrastic poetry. We’ll then write our own ekphrastic poems. There will be time to free write and workshop our poems. If you already have an ekphrastic poem you would like to workshop, please feel free to bring it! August 16, noon Karen Kelly Kelly will be at Beagle Books, reading from her book Prospice, and signing copies of it. August 19, 9:00 a.m. Madelyne Camrud Poet Madelyne Camrud will be reading from her latest book, Oddly Beautiful, at Sister Wolf. Inspired by her husband's struggle with Alzheimer's, Madelyne Camrud created a meditation on love, reflection, loss, and grief. She reveals light in unexpected places, from graffiti-splashed walls to a lone bird perched on a winter branch. These images bring hope to dark times, showing us life is oddly beautiful. August 20: Tote Time! We’ll be drawing the names of four people to win totes of books at Sister Wolf. Be sure to register each time you’re in the store. August 30, 10:00 to 11:00 William Kent Krueger Krueger will be at Beagle, signing copies of the latest book in the Cork O’Connor series, Windigo Island. Krueger will be on a tight schedule, and will only be in the store for 1 hour.  The book will be released on August 19 and may be pre-ordered at both stores. August 30, 11:30 Sara St. Antoine Sara St. Antoine will be at Beagle books signing copies of Three Bird Summer. This middle grade book is set in Park Rapids (under a different name) and will be ideal for the children in your life. See Jen’s review of the book in Youth Yak. August 30, 11:00 Jenifer Le Clair    When Jenifer Le Clair was unable to attend the Festival at Sister Wolf in June, we rescheduled her visit. She’ll be signing copies of Cold Coast at Sister Wolf. August 31, 2:00 Three authors event at Sister Wolf Andy Sturdevant Josh Ostergaard Rhonda Fochs The authors will read from their books, followed by a signing and conversation. BestSellers in July Beagle Books The New Midwestern Table   Tamarack County   Best of Itasca     Ordinary Grace   Orphan Train   The Fault in Our Stars Sister Wolf Books     Bohemian Flats   Ordinary Grace   The Burgess Boys     Orphan Train   Burial Rites   Songs of Willow Frost Midwest Connections Books or authors of particular interest to our region The Good Girl  by Mary Kubica Here’s what authors are saying about this thriller: “A twisty, roller coaster ride of a debut.  Fans of Gone Girl will embrace this equally evocative tale of a missing woman, shattered family and the lies we tell not just to each other, but especially to ourselves.” —Lisa Gardner, author of Fear Nothing “Psychologically rich and pulse pounding, THE GOOD GIRL had me hooked from the very first sentence and didn’t let go until the final word. I can’t wait to see what Mary Kubica comes up with next.”  —Heather Gudenkauf, author of Little Mercies The Hundred Year House by Rebecca Makkai Rebecca Makkai’s ingenious new novel is set on an historic estate that once housed an arts colony. Doug, the husband of the estate’s heir, desperately needs the colony files to get his stalled academic career back on track. But what he discovers when he finally gets his hands on them is more than he bargained for. Doug may never learn the house’s secrets, but the reader will, as Makkai leads us on a thrilling journey into the past of this eccentric family.   With intelligence, wit, and a daring narrative approach, Rebecca Makkai has crafted an unforgettable novel about identity, fate, and the incredible surprises life can offer Landline by Rainbow Rowell Rainbow Rowell enters the adult market with this hilarious, heart-wrenching take on love, marriage, and magic phones. This tale gives troubled couple Georgie and Neal another chance to get their marriage right, or not… Honing its lens on the importance of communication and our fixation on hindsight, Landline is poised to capture a new adult audience as well as pull Rowell’s young adult readers into the next stage of readership. See Emily’s review. Notes from Hannah Lies People in Publishing Told Me I could probably start a blog on this topic, but since I don’t have time, I’ll focus on this big lie: “Publishing is quiet in the summer.” A lie, that as the summer has dwindled away, has turned to: “It’s going to slow down, I swear.” One of the great perks of publishing is that it tends to operate much on the same schedule as the school year. There is an extended vacation around Christmas and summer offers “Summer Fridays,” when the majority of employees of New York publishers enjoy working until only 1:00 on Fridays. We then spend the afternoon sitting around with publishing friends from other companies and catching up in parks or bars with early happy hours. All of this sounds fantastic, but when you have to jam a heavy work load into fewer hours, it’s not as glamorous as it sounds. So in my two years here, I have not seen evidence of this “slow summer” and this year I’m particularly feeling the sting of this lie. I’ve been neglecting friends and family, my personal reading pile has grown and I don’t even want to go into what my apartment looks like right now. As we’re coming into August I’m a little desperate in my hope it becomes the truth – so there will at least be a few weeks I can really enjoy the summer. Editor’s note: Hannah was a bookseller at both Beagle and Sister Wolf and is now making her way in the publishing world in New York City.