Open Thread: Minicon 54 My involvement with Minicon started early this annum, as I was approached by one of the co-chairs about becoming head of Programming. Citing my entire lack of managerial experience and continued inability to organize, I declined. But I did agree to help the Programming department out. I pitched a bunch of… Continue reading Open Thread: Minicon 54
Tag: Minnesota
Book Review: Cat Pictures Please and Other Stories
Book Review: Cat Pictures Please and Other Stories by Naomi Kritzer This is the first collection of speculative fiction stories by Naomi Kritzer, headlined by the title piece, which won a Hugo Award in 2016. There’s seventeen stories in all. “Cat Pictures Please” is a sweet story about an artificial intelligence accidentally created from a… Continue reading Book Review: Cat Pictures Please and Other Stories
Book Review: Seeking the Storyteller
Book Review: Seeking the Storyteller by Jessica Walsh & Briana Lawrence Alix Andre DeBenit and Randall Fagan are Hunters, tracking down and killing monsters called “demons” that harm humans. They’re experienced and work well together, and the Twin Cities are surprisingly monster-infested so they’re doing quite well for themselves, with a warehouse headquarters and full-time… Continue reading Book Review: Seeking the Storyteller
Book Review: Mammoths of the Great Plains
Book Review: Mammoths of the Great Plains by Eleanor Arnason On an alternate Earth, the mammoth lived into historical times, abiding with the bison and the Native Americans. But then Lewis and Clark saw their first mammoth, and reported on it to President Jefferson and the teeming masses of the East. This is the story of… Continue reading Book Review: Mammoths of the Great Plains
Comic Strip Review: Cartoons by Guindon
Comic Strip Review: Cartoons by Guindon by Dick Guindon During my teen years, one of the delights of reading the newspaper was the cartoons of Richard “Dick” Guindon. Born in Minnesota, he had returned to the Twin Cities in the 1970s to draw his satirical cartoons. Mind you, it was pretty mild satire, but folks… Continue reading Comic Strip Review: Cartoons by Guindon
Book Review: Wolf
Book Review: Wolf by Kelly Oliver Disclaimer: I received a download of this book through a Goodreads giveaway for the purpose of writing this review. No other compensation was offered or requested. When philosophy professor and cad Wolfgang “Wolf” Schumtzig is found dead in his office bathroom of an apparent heroin overdose, it causes difficulties… Continue reading Book Review: Wolf
Book Review: Abraham Lincoln: Selected Speeches and Writings
Book Review: Abraham Lincoln: Selected Speeches and Writings by Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) was the sixteenth president of the United States, shepherding the nation through the dark days of the American Civil War. Though mostly self-educated, he had a gift for the English language, making memorable speeches and writing interest letters. Because of his… Continue reading Book Review: Abraham Lincoln: Selected Speeches and Writings
Book Review: The Inkblots
Book Review: The Inkblots by Damion Searls “What do you see?” Hermann Rorschach (1884-1922) was a German-speaking Swiss psychiatrist who developed an interesting experiment involving inkblots. The son of an artist and himself artistically trained, Rorschach was fascinated by visual perception and hoped to use the things people saw when they looked at his inkblots to… Continue reading Book Review: The Inkblots
Book Review: Herb Kent West Point Cadet
Book Review: Herb Kent West Point Cadet by Graham M. Dean The United States Military Academy in West Point, New York was established in 1802 as a training ground for United States military (primarily Army) officers. It’s known for its high academic standards, strong Code of Honor, oh, and its students’ athletic achievements. The last… Continue reading Book Review: Herb Kent West Point Cadet
Book Review: The Minneapolis Riverfront
Book Review: The Minneapolis Riverfront by Iric Nathanson The city of Minneapolis grew up around the Mississippi River, and in particular, Saint Anthony Falls, which provided hydropower for the many flour mills that at one time made Minneapolis the flour milling capital of America. This book, part of the “Images of America” series, tells the… Continue reading Book Review: The Minneapolis Riverfront