From lingonberries to lutefisk, much of Minnesota’s traditional cuisine has long-standing roots in its parent Scandinavian and German heritages. These regional dishes are a source of both pride and ignominy for countless Midwesterners, including father-and-daughter chefs Lars and Eva Thorvald, the main characters in Minnesota native J. Ryan Stradal’s heartfelt debut novel Kitchens of the Great Midwest.
After Eva’s mother leaves home, Lars passionately embraces raising his only daughter—including educating her on the refinements of the palate. In good time, Eva develops into an elusive high-brow chef in her own right, far surpassing her father’s mediocre Midwestern success but all the while remaining an enigma within a fiercely competitive industry. Told with tenderness and quirky good humor, Kitchens of the Great Midwest unravels the complicated relationship between food, community and comfort. Each chapter, named in honor of culinary delights from the heartland (think pepper jelly and venison) recounts a farm-to-table success story as well as the equally tumultuous journey of one young woman’s coming of age that is at times hilarious, heartbreaking and entirely relatable.
Kitchens of the Great Midwest was named the Indies Choice Book of the Year for best adult debut in April of 2016. A graduate of Northwestern University, author Stradal works as the fiction editor at The Nervous Breakdown. His short writing has appeared in publications ranging from The Wall Street Journal to Midwestern Gothic and nfl.com. Stradal will appear at a book club event at the Elm Grove Public Library (13600 Juneau Blvd.) at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 14. This event is co-sponsored by Boswell Book Co.
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Book Happening:
Poetry in the Park
6:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 14
Juneau Park
801 N. Lincoln Memorial Drive
Live local poetry will be heard monthly throughout the summer in Juneau Park during the sophomore season of Woodland Pattern’s Poetry in the Park. This diverse reading series will kick off at 6:30 p.m., June 14 with renowned poets John Koethe, Ann-Marie Blanchard, Nick Demske and Mikey Murry. These free events will be held in front of the Solomon Juneau statue, and patrons are encouraged to bring their own blankets, snacks and beverages.
