The Bookmark: New book on the secrets of Augie's Bar

"Augie's Secrets: The Minneapolis Mob and the King of the Hennepin Strip," by Neal Karlen, will be published in April by the Minnesota Historical Society Press. In the book, Karlen tells the story of his great-uncle, Augie Ratner, proprietor of Augie's Theater Lounge and Bar on Hennepin Avenue, and of the folks who gathered there in the 1940s and '50s.

Back in the day, Augie's was the place where everyone met, Karlen writes — celebrities, politicians, and gangsters: Jimmy Hoffa, Henny Youngman, John Dillinger, Peggy Lee, Groucho Marx.

Karlen writes for the New York Times and Rolling Stone; he lives in Minneapolis. He'll launch the book April 18 at the Mill City Museum.

Also …

• "Minnesota's Bounty: The Farmers Market Cookbook," by Minneapolis food writer Beth Dooley, will be published in May by the University of Minnesota Press.

• "You & I, Me & You," by MaryJanice Davidson, will be published in March by St. Martin's Press. It's the final installment in the FBI trilogy by Davidson, who lives near St. Paul.

• "Sweet Tea Revenge," the latest teashop mystery by Laura Childs, will be published in March by Berkley Books. Childs lives in Plymouth.

• The North Shore's Superior Hiking Trail is one of 30 spectacular paths represented in "Walking Distance: Extraordinary Hikes for Ordinary People," by Robert and Martha Manning and published by Oregon State University Press. Other walks featured in the book include England's Cotswold Way, Spain's Camino de Santiago, and the Tahoe Rim Trail in Nevada and California.

• "The Vatican Diaries," by John Thavis, will be published this month by Viking. Thavis was born in Minnesota and attended St. John's University in Collegeville. He spent 30 years in Rome, covering the Vatican, and is now living in his home state once again.