Libraries of Minnesota

In honor of National Library Week CRPLSA joins with the Minnesota Historical Society Press to celebrate the state’s beloved libraries.

Libraries of Minnesota features stunning photographs by the popular Doug Ohman and library stories by seven of Minnesota’s best known writers of books for children and young adults. Doug will share images from the book and contributing authors Pete Hautman, David LaRochelle, Will Weaver, John Coy, Marsha Wilson Chall, and Kao Kalia Yang will tell stories about their childhood libraries.

From cozy structures near small-town parks to impressive buildings in metropolitan downtowns, public libraries stand at the center of community and learning in Minnesota’s landscape. Libraries of Minnesota celebrates these architectural icons and the joy of reading they have inspired in Minnesotans, present and past.

Doug Ohman, well known as the photographer for the Minnesota Byways series, now turns his camera to this most beloved institution. Over 120 exquisite interior and exterior shots showcase a colorful survey of architecture, from a renovated liquor store to Carnegie libraries to the newest and most wired of information centers.

In powerful, funny, and heartfelt essays, these seven Minnesota authors testify to the special significance of libraries in their lives. Will Weaver sneaked five miles into town on his bicycle to visit the library when he should have been trapping gophers. Pete Hautman’s mom hauled her seven kids to multiple libraries, “like a shepherd rotating sheep from one pasture to the next.” David LaRochelle, facing the frightening prospect of junior high, found escape in the Pirate’s Treasure Hunt summer reading club. John Coy, Nancy Carlson, Martha Chall, and Kao Kalia Yang tell similar timeless stories of young people as they discover, on the shelves of local libraries, the world and all its wonders.

Libraries of Minnesota is the sixth book in the Minnesota Byways series, a sumptuous photographic survey showcasing the state’s classic architectural icons.

The Council of Regional Public Library System Administrators is proud of this collaborative project with the Minnesota Historical Society that resulted in this  new title made possible through Arts and Cultural Heritage Library Legacy funding.  Libraries of Minnesota will be prized throughout the state and for years to come.