Celebrate 25 years of the Minnesota Book Awards as East
Central Regional Library presents an evening with four acclaimed and
award-winning Minnesota authors at the North Branch Area Library on Thursday,
May 9 at 7:00 pm. The event is one of
six mini-galas being held across the state following the big gala in St Paul.
The ECRL event will feature readings, discussion and book signings by Catherine
Friend, William Kent Krueger, Kevin Kling, and Julie Klassen. A reception with refreshments will follow
the program provided by the Friends of the North Branch Area Library, the
Chisago Lakes Friends of the Library, the Friends of the Wyoming Area – Giese
Memorial Library, the Friends of the Cambridge Public Library and the Rush City
Friends of the Library. The event is
funded with money from Minnesota's Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and
sponsored by the St. Paul Friends of the Library and the Council of Regional
Public Library System Administrators.
Catherine Friend’s books about life on a small farm include Sheepish, Barn Boot Blues and the
Compassionate Carnivore. Author Kevin
Kling is also a well-known playwright and storyteller, and his commentaries can
be heard on NPR’s All Things Considered. Historical romance author Julie Klassen’s
books include the Tutor’s Daughter,
the Maid from Fairbourne Hall and the Girl in the Gatehouse. The fourth author appearing at the event
is William Kent Krueger, New York Times Bestselling author of the Cork O’Connor
mystery series. Each
author will give a short talk about writing and their books. Books will be available for sale after the
program by Scout & Morgan Books.
The Minnesota Book Awards (MBA) was created in 1988 by The
Friends of the St. Paul Public Library and other organizations as a part of the
Festival of the Book. Awards are given
each year to books created by Minnesota writers or illustrators for books
published in the previous years. Awards
are given in the following categories:
Children’s Literature, General Nonfiction, Genre Fiction, Memoir and Creative
Nonfiction, Minnesota, Novel and Short Story, Poetry, and Young People’s
Literature.
