Review of SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL in Publishers Weekly July 8 Issue, p. 188

If you subscribe to Publishers Weekly, look in the July 8th issue for an excellent review of SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: Growing Up in the 1950s at North East Neighborhood House. It is in the back of the magazine in BookLife, in the memoir section, at the top of page 188. While the review has been available online since the beginning of June, this is the first time it has appeared in print. I'm hoping that this will help spread the word to an even wider audience.

See my post of June 7, for the full review. Here is my favorite paragraph:

"Settlement House Girl is engaging, tracing Arnold’s growth from a young girl to an adult journeying into being a writer in her later life, but it’s also a valuable contribution to the social history of 20th-century America, offering urban history enthusiasts a wealth of information about the daily lives of families living in mid-century cities. The detailed accounts of Arnold's experiences provide a unique glimpse into the fabric of community life during this era, highlighting the interactions and shared experiences that defined the settlement house environment."

Cover of July 8, 2024 Publishers Weekly

The July 8th issue is the Fall 2024 Children's Preview issue of PW, focusing on the new books for children. It is the perfect issue for the review of my memoir, which, although written for adults, shows how children's books and my love of reading provided the background for my future career as a children's book author.

SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL Now Available as A KINDLE E-BOOK-- Update!

I am happy to report that my memoir SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: Growing Up in the 1950s at North East Neighborhood House, Minneapolis, Minnesota is now available on Amazon as a print replica Kindle e-book. Because it is published as a print replica the pages appear exactly as they do in the print version. It can be downloaded to your tablet or computer. (Unfortunately, it cannot be read on a Kindle e-reader.) The price for the e-book is $6.99.

Update, November 14, 2024:  SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL is now also available as a Kindle e-book with reflowable text and can be downloaded to your Kindle or phone. YAY!

Meanwhile, SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL continues to get excellent reviews. If you haven’t had a chance to read it yet, now is the time to order either the paperback version, the print replica e-book version or the Kindle e-book with reflowable text. After you have read the book, I’d love to hear from you and find out what you think. And you can post your review on Amazon or Goodreads. Thank you!

SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL Book Launch in Minneapolis and Camp Bovey 75th Celebration

Book launch of SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL at ESNS. Photo of Les Scheaffer, ESNS Director 1948-1966.

I was pleased to have a good crowd at my book launch of SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL a week ago Thursday (April 18th) at East Side Neighborhood Services in Minneapolis. Many thanks to everyone who came. And thanks to my husband Art for being my official photographer!

Gathering for the program at ESNS.

As people arrived I had the chance to chat and, in some cases, catch up on more than seventy years of memories! Some people there were connected to Camp Bovey, others from my grade schools (Holland and Windom) and junior high (Ramsey) and high school (Washburn.) Some of the attendees were from the surrounding Northeast neighborhood, including some from Margaret Barry House, the other settlement house in Northeast Minneapolis, started about the same time as North East Neighborhood House (1915). Margaret Barry House and North East Neighborhood House merged in 1963 under the direction of my father and became East Side Neighborhood Services.  Both the Margaret Barry building and the North East Neighborhood House building have now been converted to apartments and the ESNS programs have moved to a new building down the street at 1700 Second Street Northeast.

Books for sale.

The event was held in the large meeting room at ESNS where tables and chairs had been set up along with refreshments (cookies and cake), a table for book sales, another table for Camp Bovey special 75^th anniversary t-shirts and sweatshirts, and a kids craft table.  

75th Camp Bovey anniversary t-shirts.

Many thanks to Mary Anstett, Lindsay Walz, Inge Melius, and Debi Krause for coordinating the book and shirt sales, and for making sure that everything ran smoothly. All proceeds from the sales went to support Camp Bovey. A reporter from the Northeaster Newspaper came to take notes and will include his report in the May 1 issue.  The April 17 issue of the paper featured an excellent article about the history of Camp Bovey and plans for the coming summer and anniversary celebration.

Presentation and reading of book.

I had created a rotating slide show depicting the 75 years of Camp Bovey’s history and that played on the screen while people gathered. Then, after introductions by Mary and Lindsay, I gave a talk (with more slides) about the creation of my book, followed by reading one of the Camp Bovey chapters from my book. I then opened it up to questions from the audience. I was glad to find people were so interested! And finally, as people lined up for their turn, I signed books that they had purchased.

Autographing books.

It was a very busy evening and I wish there had been more time to chat longer with each and every one of the people who came. 

At ESNS.

Since last Thursday, I have heard from numerous people, and they all say that my book has brought back many of their own memories.  I am glad. One of the reasons I wrote the book is to write those memories down and keep them from getting lost. They are my memories, but they are also part of Northeast Minneapolis history.

Display of Camp Bovey and Hodag memories.

 

SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL: INTERVIEW WITH DEBORAH KALB

I was pleased to be interviewed by journalist Deborah Kalb about my new memoir SETTLEMENT HOUSE GIRL. She has posted it on her blog Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb this week. Deborah Kalb interviews a lot of authors and I am happy to join the list. It is always good to have more publicity! Thank you Deborah!

Here are the questions she asked me. Check out her blog for the answers!

1. What inspired you to write Settlement House Girl?

2. How much of the book comes from your own memories, and how much from research?

3. What do you think are some of the most comment perceptions and misconceptions about settlement houses?

4. What impact do you think growing up in a settlement house had on your life?

5. What are you working on now?

6. Anything else?

North East Neighborhood House, the settlement house in Minneapolis where I grew up.

UKRAINIAN EASTER EGGS

As I do most years in the days before Easter, I made Ukrainian eggs, this time with my granddaughter. Her egg is on the left. I added mine to our collection of eggs through the years. This year the eggs take on a special meaning.

My family celebrated Easter last Sunday, but in Ukrainian Orthodox churches, Easter in 2022 will be celebrated on April 24th, a week after the celebration in Protestant and Catholic churches. That is because the date is calculated by two different methods.  

Easter as it's commonly celebrated in the United States falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon of the spring equinox (always between March 22 and April 25), while Orthodox Easter is celebrated on the Sunday after the first full moon after Passover (between April 4th and May 8th.) 

I became fascinated with the beautiful designs on Ukrainian eggs when I was growing up in Northeast Minneapolis. I started to make them myself when I was a teenager. The designs are drawn in wax with a stylus (kistka) and the colors are added successively.   The eggs can be kept year after year because the inside moisture simply evaporates over time.  (The designs are made on raw eggs.  The eggs are not meant to be eaten but used for decoration.) Some of the eggs in the bowl were made by my children when they were much younger, others by me. Getting them out at Easter time is a well-loved tradition.