News Flash!: I Have Just Published a Poem in MADISON REVIEW’s Online Journal + A Few Photos From Madison, WI

Posted on December 19, 2014 by Leslie Schultz

I am pleased to be able to let you all know some truly capital-albeit-personal news–I have just published my first poem in the online MADISON REVIEW. The poem is one I wrote this spring, titled “‘Oh, Mrs. Miller!'”. This is my first time in the pages of Madison Review, and, to celebrate, I am sharing the link above and below some photos taken during about a year and a half ago, on my last trip to Wisconsin’s capitol city, home of my alma mater, the University of Wisconsin. On that trip, I made my first climb to the ‘dome walk’ around the top of the Capitol Building, and I even got a distance shot of the Helen C. White English Department windows, where I spent many happy hours–and participated in my first public reading. (I can still recall how my heart raced!)

This is the view of State Street, looking west to the University.

The long, flat pale building with oblong dark windows, near the lake shore, is Helen C. White. Below are a few other images from inside and outside the Capitol.

Wishing you a splendid conclusion to this year’s tasks and renewed energy as you step into 2015,

News Flash!: Nancy Soth Publishes New Book, A FIELD GUIDE TO NORTHFIELD

Posted on December 15, 2014 by Leslie Schultz

Perhaps you’ve heard the recent buzz about Northfield in the national media and want to know more? Perhaps life has stranded you far from Minnesota, and you’re homesick for Northfield’s mixed habitat of prairie and academe? Whether you are preparing for an actual visit or just a trip down memory lane, you’ll want to have a trusty travel companion.

Nancy Soth, author and long-time Northfield resident, has packaged all the telling details–historically accurate or not–into a charmingly wry, user-friendly field guide.

Fans of Nancy’s earlier book, Fantasy Northfield, have waited thirteen years for this new compilation.

Like its predecessor, A Field Guide to Northfield includes too-true quirky embellishments. You will find ephemeral gems from such sources as the local Police Log, Carleton Security Blotter, and (in a hat tip to social media) Facebook gleanings on the topic of “I’m so Northfield that….!” The inspired Venn diagram on the cover gives graphic expression to the Northfield motto: “Cows, Colleges, and Contentment.”

The two volumes together make a handsome cornerstone to Northfield history. They have a permanent place on my local history shelf, right between Carleton: The First Century and the cookbook Cows in the Kitchen.

The perfect holiday gift for Northfield lovers everywhere, copies of A Field Guide to Northfield can be purchased locally at Content Book Store on Division Street. Out-of-towners can drop Nancy an email for purchasing suggestions: nancy.soth@gmail.com.