Offbeat moments: a book for the ages

Last update: October 10, 2008 - 1:51 PM

By Laurie Hertzel

Eric Hanson has just published a book.

Now, I realize that “Eric Hanson” is a pretty common name around these parts. This one is not the former Star Tribune reporter who occasionally reviews books on these pages. This one is a Minneapolis writer and illustrator whose work has appeared in the New Yorker, McSweeney’s and Vanity Fair.

His book is called “A Book of Ages: An Eccentric Miscellany of Great and Offbeat Moments in the Lives of the Famous and Infamous, Ages 1 to 100,” (Harmony Publications, 306 pages, $19.95), and with a subtitle like that, it pretty much needs a paragraph all to itself.

Chapter by chapter, the book lists notable achievements age by age. Think chapter one is pretty thin? Well, it is, but there are things to note: Christopher Robin Milne got Winnie-the-Pooh for Christmas. And Seabiscuit lost his 17th consecutive race.

As the ages climb, the achievements get a little more impressive.

Sir John Gielgud’s first nude scene? He was 87. Wallace Stevens broke Ernest Hemingway’s jaw? He was 56. Bob Dylan wrote “Blowin’ in the Wind”? He was, gulp, 20.

The idea for the book came to Hanson when a friend turned 30. Hanson gave him a volume of Keats, one of Shelley and “The Red Badge of Courage” by Stephen Crane. “When he asked why those three, we explained they were all great writers and dead before they were 30,” Hanson said in an e-mail. “The perfect mixture of narcissism and nihilism for anyone turning 30.”

Also ...

• “The Great Minnesota Fish Book” is exactly that — a great big book about Minnesota fish. Writer Tom Dickson, a former Minnesotan, teamed up with artist Joseph Tomelleri to document more than 100 kinds of game fish. The book was published by the University of Minnesota Press (154 pages, $34.95). Dickson will be at Magers & Quinn, 3038 Hennepin Av. S., Minneapolis, for a book-signing at 5 p.m. next Sunday.

• “Undoing,” a collection of poetry by James Cihlar, has been published by Little Pear Press of Massachusetts. Cihlar is managing editor of Milkweed Editions and lives in St. Paul. He will do a reading at 7 p.m. Thursday at Birch Bark Books, 2115 W. 21st St., Minneapolis.

• Khaled Hosseini, author of “The Kite Runner,” will be at the State Theatre, 805 Hennepin Av. S., Minneapolis, at 8 p.m. Friday as part of the “Literary Legends” series. Tickets for Hosseini and for David Sedaris, who will be here next Sunday, are available at www.HennepinTheatreDistrict.org.

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Holiday books 2009

Here are some of Books Editor Laurie Hertzel's favorite sites and blogs. Got a literary link to share? E-mail Laurie.

Twin Cities Literary Scavenger Hunt Home page for the scavenger hunt, which runs now through Dec. 26.
Reading Minnesota A blog that features Minnesota writers, illustrators, publishers, bookstores, and reviewers.
Talk of the Stacks An author series from the Library Foundation of Hennepin County.
Poets & Writers The website for Poets and Writers Magazine--podcasts, author interviews, and writing resources.
Creative Writing A place to keep apprised of writing competitions in the United States.
Gather Minnesota Readers The Website for Minnesota Public Radio's books blog.
The Loft Literary Center The Website for the Loft, a local place for writers and readers.
Good Reads A way to track what you're reading, and what your friends are reading.
Lost Manuscripts Just what it sounds like - a blog (sporadically updated) devoted to missing and destroyed manuscripts.
Maud Newton Very hip, reviews, links, a little attitude.
bookreporter.com A plethora of online book reviews and reading guides.
Rain Taxi Rain Taxi Review of Books.