Scandinavian Mysteries
I’ve been enjoying fiction by Scandinavian authors lately. Håkan Nesser, whose Swedish titles have been translated into English, has written a series of mysteries with Inspector Van Veeteren as the lead investigator. Borkmann’s Point, the first in the series includes many characters and builds into a crescendo who-done-it. Håkan Nesser has won the Best Swedish Crime Novel Award three times. I enjoyed this one enough that I’ve put a hold on the next Nesser novel with Inspector Van Veeteren, The Return.
-Becca Berger, Door County Library Director
March Film Series
March 17, St. Patrick’s Day, the Door County Library brings a little bit o’ Ireland to Sturgeon Bay. Join us in viewing the film Darby O’Gill and the Little People, the Disney classic about a storyteller and a group of leprechauns, at 3:00 pm. Then at 6:30 pm, cross the Irish Sea to Scotland for Local Hero, a comedy about American executives negotiating for oil rights with the people of a small, rural Scottish village. 
March Multicultural Book Discussion
The Calligrapher's Daughter by Eugenia Kim tells the story of Najin Han, the daughter of a skilled artist, a calligrapher, in the early part of the 20th century Korea. In order to escape an arranged marriage near the beginning of the novel, Najin is sent to court to serve as a companion to the Princess. Her time in the royal household ends with the death of Emperor Sunjong, the last emporer of the Joseon dynasty in 1926. She goes on to college, marriage, life as a servant in the house of her in-laws, and later prison and hardship in Korea under Japanese contol at the dawn of World War II.
Background information:
What's Cooking at the Library?
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Before Julia, there was Jessie A small-town Wisconsin girl with personality
and a talent for cooking became a national celebrity. In 1850 Antoine and Johanna DeBoth immigrated from Ottenburg, Belgium to the United States. They settled in De Pere, Wisconsin, a small town just west of Green Bay. The DeBoth family were farmers, blacksmiths and saloon keepers. By 1880 their son, Martin, ran a tavern in the town. He was successful enough to be able to send his children to college. Son, Edward, graduated from Rush Medical School in 1911, and daughter, Jessie, graduated from Ripon College in 1915. By 1927, Jessie and her family moved to Chicago and Jessie began her career as a celebrity chef. She wrote cookbooks, like the Modern Household Encyclopedia, and she wrote a syndicated newspaper column with cooking and household tips. She also began to host on-stage "cooking schools" in cities around the country sponsored by the newspapers. These "classes" had a vaudeville tone. The stage was transformed into a fully equipped kitchen, with popular back-up music and a dramatic performance by Jessie herself. Amidst the frenzy of cooking and cleaning, Jessie appeared in fashionable dresses, hats and furs. The programs covered a variety of subjects, from food preparation to nutrition, menu planning, budgeting, interior design, cleaning and laundry tips. In the beginning admission was free, but as crowds became overwhelming, DeBoth began to charge an entrance fee of 30-40 cents. Even then, the theaters filled to capacity. Each show generated huge lines outside, and thousands had to be turned away. Jessie had become the "homemaking authority" of the country. In the 1940's Jessie's cooking empire expanded to include a radio program based on her column and homemaker's classes. And in the 1950's she had a television program called "Jessie's TV Notebook." Jessie found romance late in life when she married Carl Dreutzer on July 16, 1954. Carl, who was born and raised in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, was a prominent attorney and President of the Chicago Adventurer's Club. An Arctic explorer, big game hunter and gold miner, he brought back rare seals for the Field Museum of Natural History and a walrus for the Brookfield Zoo. Like Jessie, Carl performed on stage as a lecturer for the Chautauqua Circuit. Jessie and Carl spent much of their time in their native Wisconsin at Jessie's summer house on Frogtown Road in Baileys Harbor, Door County. After only 4 years of marriage to Jessie, Carl Dreutzer passed away in 1958. Jessie followed him a year later in 1959. Jessie's legacy lives on through her numberous cookbooks, which reflect the times in which she lived. She was the author of a very modern idea - a celebrity chef/homemaker teaching modern methods instead of traditional skills taught by our grandmothers. Her recipes and cleaning tips made the most of frugal Depression Era and World War II supplies, but her flamboyant, open and friendly personality brought charm to the drudgery of everyday chores. |
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More on Jessie DeBoth:
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More on Carl Dreutzer:
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Scandia Village discusses My Ántonia
From Washington Island to Forestville, Door County has been immersed in 1880's frontier Nebraska as residents all over the county read and discuss My Ántonia by Willa Cather. Twenty-three teens ate pizza and participated in the discussion at Sonny's Pizzeria in Sturgeon Bay. Up north in Sister Bay, a room full of seniors joined in the discussion, with two of those seniors reading the book on a Kindle! As The Big Read Door County 2010 winds down, everyone anxiously awaits the announcement of next year's book choice. Will it be Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers, or For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway?
Door County Library director, Becca Berger, joins Scandia Village residents in a discussion of Willa Cather's My Ántonia
