Winner of the 2019 Minnesota Book Award for Novel & Short Story Poignant portrayals of life on the edge in northern Minnesota border country, from the best-selling author of These Granite Islands and Vacationland Bitter winters are nothing new in Hatchet Inlet, hard up against the ridge of the Laurentian Divide, but the advent of spring can’t thaw the community’s collective grief, lingering since a senseless tragedy the previous fall. What is different this year is what’s missing: Rauri Paar, the last private landowner in the Reserve, whose annual emergence from his remote iced-in islands marks the beginning of spring and the promise of a kinder season. The town’s residents gather at the local diner and, amid talk of spring weather, the latest gossip, roadkill, and the daily special, take bets on when Rauri will appear—or imagine what happened to him during the long and brutal winter. Retired union miner and widower Alpo Lahti is about to wed the diner’s charming and lively waitress, Sissy Pavola, but, with Rauri still unaccounted for, celebration seems premature. Alpo’s son Pete struggles to find his straight and narrow, then struggles to stay on it, and even Sissy might be having second thoughts. Weaving in and out of each other’s reach, trying hard to do their best (all the while wondering what that might be), the residents of this remote town in all their sweetness and sorrow remind us once more of the inescapable lurches of the heart and unexpected turns of our human comedy.

On a lake in northernmost Minnesota, you might find Naledi Lodge--only two cabins still standing, its pathways now trodden mostly by memories. Vacationland is a moving portrait of a place--timeless and of the moment, composed of conflicting dreams and shared experience--and of the woman bound to it by legacy and sometimes longing, but not necessarily by choice.

If you?re planning a trip, it?s relatively easy to find the fastest route by visiting Yahoo or MapQuest internet web sites or ? if you?re hopelessly old-fashioned- unfolding a map. But how do you choose the most interesting route, and create a trip that is more than just a blur of mile markers and exit signs? Exploring America?s Highways: Wisconsin Trip Trivia may have the answer!Exploring America?s Highways: Wisconsin Trip Trivia provides travelers a guided tour along specific routes throughout the state. Travelers will obtain a wide range of interesting information along the highway including: ? Place Name? Historical Markers? Local Landmarks? Prominent People? Industry and Inventions? Geological? General TriviaDid you know that: ? Jesse James and his gang were chased out of Northfield trying to rob their first bank? ? The first woman ever to reach the North Pole came from Ely, or Mountain Lake was originally named Midway because it was midway between the railroad line that travels from St. Paul to Sioux City, Iowa. These are just a few of the fun things revealed in this book.There is no reason anybody needs to dread long hours of driving time anyway. Just find your route (highlighted in the table of contents) and read along, city by city. It?s that simple.

As the history of a murdered family is pieced together, Detective Frank Yakabuski learns something criminal has been happening at Ragged Lake, with roots going back decades.

Part armchair travelogue, part guide book, this projected three-volume series—divided into the western, central, and eastern United States—will introduce readers to all 155 national forests across the country. This Land is the only comprehensive field guide that describes the natural features, wildernesses, scenic drives, campgrounds, and hiking trails of our national forests, many of which—while little known and sparsely visited—boast features as spectacular as those found in our national parks and monuments. Each entry includes logistical information about size and location, facilities, attractions, and associated wilderness areas. For about half of the forests, Robert H. Mohlenbrock has provided sidebars on the biological or geological highlights, drawn from the "This Land" column that he has written for Natural History magazine since 1984. Superbly illustrated with color photographs, botanical drawings, and maps, this book is loaded with information, clearly written, and easy to use. This volume covers national forests in: Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Minnesota Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Wyoming