Chris Hewitt
Critic / Editor
BooksArmed with a degree in the lucrative field of history, Chris has written for publications that vary from a small-town newspaper to a city magazine to national sites. He's probably reading a good book right this minute.
Latest from Chris Hewitt
Review: You love their music, now find out who these musicians are
Nonfiction: “Backbeats” shows how 15 drummers changed the rock ’n’ roll world.
December 15, 2025
![The Rootsí drummer Ahmir ìQuestloveî Thompson on the Main Stage Sunday evening at Soundset 2016. ] JEFF WHEELER ï jeff.wheeler@startribune.com The ninth annual Soundset hip-hop festival took place in its new location at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds Sunday, May 29, 2016 in Falcon Heights.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/P24MEN2MOJ7YT7LSJWOAPAKQ6A.jpg?&w=252&ar=3:2&fit=crop)
(Almost) everyone in this Hastings family is a novelist. What gives?
Local fiction: Everyone but MaryJanice Davidson’s son gets in on the act in this literary clan.
December 15, 2025
Kao Kalia Yang, T. Mychael Rambo and a bunch of surprises
Music, stories and more make up “An Evening of Children’s Literature” at Ordway hall.
December 14, 2025
Review: And ‘The Award’ goes to ... a truly terrible person
Matthew Pearl’s literary satire features a novelist who’s out of touch with his humanity.
December 10, 2025
Does your book club have problems? Facilitators tackle ‘behavioral issues.’
Experts, including a Minnesota book club facilitator, have tips on redirecting when a discussion goes astray.
December 8, 2025
The 20 best fiction and nonfiction books of 2025
Our favorite books in 2025 boast artificial intelligence, hapless “intelligence” agents and the towering intelligence of James Baldwin.
November 29, 2025
Review: Mary Lucia writes about dealing with a stalker in surprising memoir
Local nonfiction: The former Current DJ leavens a painful tale with wicked humor.
November 25, 2025
Those blurbs on book covers? Don’t believe what you read.
Authors are often called on to praise each other’s work. Can they be trusted?
November 19, 2025
There’s a better way to make mashed potatoes, and this is it
Boiling potatoes in water is so 2024. This new technique uses the same ingredients with tradition-busting results.
November 19, 2025
She came home from Hollywood to showcase Minnesota’s fall beauty
Marisa Coughlan wrote, starred in and co-produced “Blue Eyed Girl,” which was filmed in Wayzata and Excelsior.
November 18, 2025
Review: ‘Sunshine Man’ has two protagonists; one wants to kill the other
Fiction: Author Emma Stonex also wrote “The Lamplighters.”
November 17, 2025
Hennepin County Library has a new Prince-themed card 4 U
It’s free to Hennepin County residents at dozens of local locations — or nonresidents can pick one up in person for a $60 fee.
November 11, 2025
