Summer Reading

Everyone needs a good summer book, and in the winter, we all need a good book to remind us of summer. The following new titles admirably fill both criteria.

Beneath the Surface: A Natural
History of a Fisherman’s Lake
By Bruce M. Carlson, Minnesota
Historical Society Press, 2007.
256 pages, $27.95

Bruce Carlson, a former aquatic biologist for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and regular contributor to In-Fisherman magazine, spent fifty years vacationing on and studying Ten Mile Lake, near Hackensack, Minnesota. The result, Beneath the Surface: A Natural History of a Fisherman’s Lake, is a remarkable book that takes readers inside the biological dynamics of Carlson’s favorite body of water, giving readers a deep understanding of how a lake’s creatures and plants coexist and depend upon one another. The many chapters devoted to the biological idiosyncrasies of such popular sport fish as walleye, perch, bass, and northern pike may be of particular interest to anglers. Understanding how these fish respond to the ecosystem in which they live is the first step toward having one for dinner, of course, and Carlson provides all kinds of clues for success, based on his experience as both a biologist and fisherman. He also explains how the dynamics of a lake change from day to night and from season to season, providing a holistic picture of life within a lake that’s as scientifically thorough as it is enjoyable to read.

Cabins of Minnesota
Text by Bill Holm, photography by Doug Ohman, Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2007. 128 pages, $19.95

Few aspects of Minnesota life have more pull on the imagination than a cabin by the lake. In this beautiful book, Minnesota’s poet laureate of the examined life, Bill Holm, provides a thoughtful and humorous meditation on why cabins have such a hold on the local psyche, and photographer Doug Ohman provides the fabulous pictures—all kinds of cabins, all over Minnesota, in every season—that make the book worth owning. Every cabin in the state should have a copy to flip through during those lazy summer afternoons, and every home in the city ought to have a copy too, to serve as a reminder of the quiet, uncomplicated beauty that awaits us all “up at the lake.”

Browse images from Cabins of Minnesota in our slideshow.

Minnesota Waterfalls
By Steve Johnson and Kenneth
Belanger, Trails Books, 2007.
140 pages, $21.95

In a state with so many lakes and rivers, it should come as no surprise that Minnesota has its share of waterfalls—hundreds of them, in fact. Steve Johnson and Kenneth Balanger have chronicled and photographed more than fifty waterfalls for this gorgeous little book. Each one is expertly photographed and accompanied by a well-researched history and description, as well as directions for accessing the falls once you get there. A map of the state marked with all the featured waterfalls is also included in the book.

Wishing I Was Fishing
By Eva Wells, illustrated by
Chandra Dale, Beaver’s Pond Press, 2007. 32 pages, $19.95
Wishing I Was Fishing is a great children’s picture book for budding anglers in the family. Appropriate for ages one to six.