Recent content from Laurie Hertzel
The Puppy Chronicles: If you want peace in your life, train your dog to love its crate
Crates are not the answer for every dog. But if your dog loves its crate, you — and the pup — are very lucky.
Independent Bookstore Day is a 12-hour party for Twin Cities book lovers
If you’re anything like me (and good luck to you if you are), every time you go to a bookstore it feels a little like…
The Puppy Chronicles: Leash training is short-term pain for long-term peace
If you don't want your shoulder and neck to suffer, train your dog to the leash.
Little Free Libraries provide books (and joy) to enthusiastic readers
Nearly 10 years after they started in Hudson, Wis., little libraries-on-a-stick have spread across the United States.
It's an amazing spring for big-name writers visiting the Twin Cities
When you see this lineup of book events, you're going to be busy a dozen times over.
Bookmark: Ohio bookstore's remarkable website will help you find books you barely remember
Every now and then, a fragment of a book I once loved will swim toward the front of my brain. Just a floating wisp of…
The Puppy Chronicles: If you have two dogs, pay attention to pack hierarchy
Rosie, our resident black Lab, loves Angus. But at times she gets fed up with him. What then?
The puppy chronicles: Angus goes to school
A well-trained dog is a good dog. But, oh, the training takes time. And there have been lots of changes over the years.
Bookmark: NBCC awards ceremony is an evening of books, writers and words
There’s nothing quite so special as an evening devoted to authors, books and the written word. All year, writers work alone, in front of a…
Readers share books they'd swear an oath on
Your suggestions have been delightful, far superseding anything that anyone has ever actually done.
Review: 'Dancing Bears,' by Witold Szabłowski
NONFICTION: A Polish journalist looks at how individuals — human and ursine — cope with sudden freedom.
The Puppy Chronicles: Oh, the biting!
In which we try to teach Angus that toes are not edible, at least not while they are attached to my feet.
Twin Cities writer helps reveal male kid-lit writers behaving badly
Rumors are flying, stories are being told and maybe between the time I write this and the time you read this, everything will have changed.…
Review: 'Meet the Frugalwoods: Achieving Financial Independence Through Simple Living,' by Elizabeth Willard Thames
NONFICTION: Co-founder of popular website tells you to save money now to be rich later--sort of.
Bookmark: Minnesota colleges bloom in the spring with visits from writers
We write a lot on these pages about the many writers series held around the Twin Cities — Talking Volumes, sponsored by the Star Tribune…
Housebreaking a new puppy at 11 below zero in Minnesota
If you're foolish enough to adopt a puppy in the coldest month of the coldest winter in years, how are you supposed to housebreak him?
Review: 'Educated,' by Tara Westover
NONFICTION: Tara Westover's fascinating memoir tells of growing up an uneducated daughter of Idaho survivalists — and then getting out.
Bookmark: The Newbery and Caldecott – as well as the other ALA awards – are bringing recognition to diverse books
It should be no surprise that “A Different Pond,” written by Minneapolis poet Bao Phi and illustrated by Thi Bui, was named one of…
Minneapolis writer Kelly Barnhill writes fairy tales for grown-ups
After writer Kelly Barnhill won the highest honor in children's literature, she came out with a new collection of stories — for adults.
REVIEWS: Five books to get your gardening juices flowing
Is it spring yet? Sadly, not outside the window. But it is spring in the pages of these five new books.
Bookmark: What treasures have you found in a Little Free Library?
Have you found a neighborhood that is particularly rich in its selection of books?
Review: 'A Kind of Mirraculas Paradise,' by Sandra Allen
NONFICTION: A writer uses excerpts from her uncle's unpublished memoir to offer a revealing look at mental illness.
Review: 'I Am, I Am, I Am,' by Maggie O'Farrell
NONFICTION: Costa Prize-winning novelist Maggie O'Farrell recounts ways she nearly died, from near drowning to near plane crash to near murder.
Minnesota Book Award finalists include Bao Phi, Louise Erdrich, Lesley Nneka Arimah, Steve Sack
The winners will be announced April 21 at the 30th annual Minnesota Book Awards gala in St. Paul.
Readers offer advice for digging out from a reading slump
These slumps hit us all from time to time. Here's how some folks get back to the books.
Minneapolis' Graywolf Press leads the pack of finalists for NBCC awards
Minneapolis' Graywolf Press has four books on the finalist lists for the National Book Critics Circle awards — more than any other publisher — and…
Three new books celebrate the homes of other cultures
Authors turn to other countries to show us how to make our lives more beautiful and simple.
The Puppy Chronicles follow Angus the rescue pup as he trains his St. Paul owners
You think you want a puppy? What, are you nuts? Over the next few months we'll tell you exactly what it's like, through the life of a rescue pup named Angus.
If you were being sworn into office, what book would you choose?
There is no law that requires a person being sworn into public office to place a hand on a Bible. There is no law that…
Club Book spring lineup includes William Kent Krueger, Laura Lippman and Peter Geye
Anita Shreve, Emily Fridlund among speakers.
Review: 'The Music Shop,' by Rachel Joyce
FICTION: Set in London in the 1980s, Rachel Joyce's fifth novel is about the down-and-out owner of a record shop who falls in love with a mysterious woman.
Lesley Nneka Arimah: A wordsmith who spins magic
The surreal but intensely human stories of this Twin Cities writer won international acclaim — heady stuff for a debut.
17 books we're looking forward to reading in 2018
Have you read your Christmas books and are wondering what's coming up next year?
For this Minnesota writer, the more difficult the dog, the greater the rewards
Sometimes a dog that requires work and understanding is the most rewarding kind to have.
New book festival will run over 2 days, bringing 100 authors to Minneapolis
The Loft Literary Center announces Wordplay, a new two-day book festival.
Don't feel like reading? 10 tips to bring yourself out of a book slump
Here's how to get your book groove back.
Your ultimate guide to holiday books
The latest bestseller, a glossy cookbook, a fat biography, an old classic — a book is a most welcome present.
BOOKMARK: Readers have a hard time choosing which books to save
I might have been unfair when I asked recently what books you’d rush to save in a disaster. Unfair, because I didn’t tell you my…
Writer Sherman Alexie is back on the road: 'I averted a crisis'
Haunted by his mother's memory, the author halted his book tour this summer. Now he's back on the road — still outspoken, still funny, but a little more careful.
Review: 'To the Back of Beyond,' by Peter Stamm, translated from the German by Michael Hofmann
FICTION: Peter Stamm explores the secrets of a marriage in this strange, lovely little novel.
BOOKMARK: Twin Cities Book Festival was filled with words and laughter
On stage, Al Franken cracked jokes and talked politics. Former U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera praised poet Ray Gonzalez, who smiled and praised him…
Review: 'Admissions: Life as a Brain Surgeon,' by Henry Marsh
NONFICTION: In this second memoir, Dr. Henry Marsh writes poignantly about regrets, retirement and what lies ahead.
BOOKMARK: Readers recall finding books 'in the wild'
We asked if you had ever unexpectedly found a book and picked it up. Here's what you said.
REVIEW: 'Going Into Town,' by Roz Chast
NONFICTION: New York through Roz Chast's eyes is a whole new perspective.
St. Paul writer's second novel was a big surprise
Peter Bognanni's second novel, "Things I'm Seeing Without You," morphed from a book for adults into one for teens almost against his will.
Review: 'Ali: A Life,' by Jonathan Eig
NONFICTION: Jonathan Eig's biography of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali is careful, detailed and highly entertaining.
Minnesota writer named one of National Book Foundation's 'Five Under 35'
Award honors debut fiction writers who show great promise — and this year they're all women, including the Twin Cities' Lesley Nneka Arimah.
In the event of a catastrophe, which books would you save?
With Hurricane Irma headed straight for her house, Connie Ogle had to make some tough decisions. The most excruciating: Which books would she take? Which…
Native Minnesotan writer 'didn't expect' to land on Man Booker shortlist
Missing Minnesota while in California, Emily Fridlund began to write. Now she's on the Man Booker shortlist.
3 new Laura Ingalls Wilder books for those who can't get enough 'Little House'
This year there are several new Wilder books to choose from.
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Review: 'The Best We Could Do,' by Thi Bui
NONFICTION: Thi Bui tells the story about her parents' escape from Vietnam in intense drawings and terse text.
Review: 'A Disappearance in Damascus: Friendship and Survival in the Shadow of War,' by Deborah Campbell
NONFICTION: A Canadian journalist working in Syria goes on the hunt for her translator, who has been arrested.
BOOKMARK: Lit Crawl MN offers 'literary adventure' all over Minneapolis
Make your own chapbook, catch some poetry karaoke, and much more.
With vacation reads, Minneapolis veers from the rest of the country
The results of a study of books people read while traveling may surprise you.
REVIEW: 'The Heart's Invisible Furies,' by John Boyne
FICTION: A young gay man struggles with his identity and survival in postwar Ireland.
Do you like to share beloved books with strangers?
BOOKMARK: There are so many ways to give books. You can be mysterious, leaving books where strangers might find them.
Lack of diverse lineup leads to cancellation of Mpls. writing conference
21 of the 22 speakers booked to discuss writing for children were white. "We made a mistake," says Loft Literary Center leader.
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Imbolo Mbue, who is coming to the Twin Cities, talks about her novel and about being an Oprah author
Imbolo Mbue’s debut novel “Behold the Dreamers” looks at the American dream from the points of view of two couples — a wealthy New York…
BOOKMARK: A new subset of memoir – the memoir of dying – brings news from the abyss
Over the past 25 years or so, memoir writers have plumbed nearly every facet of life: traumatic childhood, coming of age, parenthood, divorce, parents’ demise,…
REVIEW: 'The Misfortune of Marion Palm,' by Emily Culliton
FICTION: A mother of two leaves her family behind after embezzling thousands of dollars in this comic novel reminiscent of the works of Maria Semple.
More beloved kids' books to love, recommended by readers
Readers weigh in on their favorite books from childhood.
Review: 'Morningstar: Growing Up With Books,' by Ann Hood
NONFICTION: Ann Hood details how she grew up bookish in an un-bookish family — and how reading changed her life.
Talking Volumes' fall lineup includes Sherman Alexie and Amy Tan
Memoir, history, fiction and spies: There's something for everyone at this book club.
BOOKMARK: We asked readers if they keep a book journal: Here's what they said
Do you keep a journal of the books you read? Here's what some folks do to track their books, with ratings from "blah" to "excellent."
These new picture books have a unique Minnesota twist
A new crop of kids' books celebrates adventure, family and, like any good Minnesota book, summer.
Celebrating a world before Kindle
Dublin abounds in museums and libraries. Here are three that are custom-made for lovers of the printed page.
So many books, so little time: 10 tips on how to get more reading done
What do you mean, you're busy? Help is on the way.
Review: 'The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83¼ Years Old,' translated from the Dutch by Hester Velmans
FICTION: An elderly man begins keeping a journal to keep up his spirits in this dark, funny and true-to-life novel by an anonymous Dutch author.
Review: 'F. Scott Fitzgerald in Minnesota: The Writer and His Friends at Home,' by Dave Page with photographs by Jeff Krueger
NONFICTION: This big, lavish book explores the St. Paul streets that F. Scott Fitzgerald called home.
Bookmark: Writers and musicians organize to raise environmental awareness
Back in the 1960s, Minnesota poet Robert Bly and his friend David Ray, also a poet, formed a group called American Writers Against the Vietnam…
Unplanned teenage gig in Duluth library fosters love for children's books
When I was 13, I got a job shelving books at the public library in Duluth, the most stultifying job ever held by anybody on…
Fargo goes beyond the 'Ya, you betcha' and offers big surprises
The neon lights glow bright along downtown Fargo's Broadway strip.
Your ultimate guide to 45 books to read this summer
Our summer books guide highlights books of fiction, mystery and young-adult fiction.
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