Garrison Keillor is celebrated for his distinctive humor and narrative voice, often drawing inspiration from life in the American Midwest. His works, frequently infused with satire and a gentle observation of human foibles, resonate with readers for their authenticity and wit. Through his storytelling and radio programs, Keillor has established himself as one of the most perceptive and humorous commentators on American life. His ability to capture the essence of ordinary people and their everyday concerns is central to his enduring appeal.
Chosen by Garison Keillor for his readings on public radio's The Writer's Almanac, the 185 poems in this follow-up to his acclaimed anthology Good Poems are perfect for our troubled times. Here, readers will find solace in works that are bracing and courageous, organized into such resonant headings as "Such As It Is More or Less" and "Let It Spill." From William Shakespeare and Walt Whitman to R. S. Gwynn and Jennifer Michael Hecht, the voices gathered in this collection will be more than welcome to those who've been struck by bad news, who are burdened by stress, or who simply appreciate the power of good poetry.
With warmth and humor, the creator and host of A Prairie Home Companion shares his remarkable life story. He reflects on growing up as a Brethren boy in a small Mississippi town during the 1950s, where the early loss of three friends led him to pursue comedy and radio. Through a series of fortunate breaks, he founded A Prairie Home Companion, which aired for forty-two years and reached millions of listeners each Saturday at 5 p.m. Central. His journey included memorable moments like singing with Emmylou Harris and Renée Fleming, performing for the U.S. Supreme Court, and portraying various characters, including a private eye and a cowboy. He reported news from his fictional hometown, Lake Wobegon, and connected with Somali cabdrivers who learned English through his show. Alongside his radio success, he authored bestselling novels, won a Grammy and a National Humanities Medal, and collaborated with Robert Altman on a film that featured significant improvisation. He reflects on his life with gratitude, noting, “I was unemployable and managed to invent work for myself that I loved all my life, and on top of that I married well. That’s the secret, work and love.” As he approaches eighty, he continues to rise early to write each day.
Over 2,200 Jokes from America's favorite live radio show A treasury of hilarity from Garrison Keillor and the cast of public radio's A Prairie Home Companion. A guy walks into a bar. Eight Canada Geese walk into a bar. A termite jumps up on the bar and asks, "Where is the bar tender?" Drum roll. The Sixth Edition of the perennially popular Pretty Good Joke Book is everything the first five were and more. More puns, one-liners, light bulb jokes, knock-knock jokes, and third-grader jokes (have you heard the one about Elvis Parsley?). More religion jokes, political jokes, lawyer jokes, blonde jokes, and jokes in questionable taste (Why did the urologist lose his license? He got in trouble with his peers). More jokes about chickens, relationships, and senior moments (the nice thing about Alzheimer's is you can enjoy the same jokes again and again). It all started back in 1996, when A Prairie Home Companion fans laughed themselves silly during the first Joke Show. The broadcast was such a hit that it became an almost-annual gagfest. Then fans wanted to read the jokes, share them, and pass them around, and the first Pretty Good Joke Book was born. With over 200 new and updated jokes, the latest edition promises countless giggles, chortles, and guffaws anyone--fans of the radio show or not--will enjoy.
The humorist and radio host examines the "politics of kindness," offering a series of nostalgic reminiscences, meditations, and observations on the core values of the democratic ideal
Edited by beloved storyteller Garrison Keillor, this year's volume promises to be full of humor, surprises, and, as always, accomplished writing by new and familiar voices. The preeminent short fiction series since 1915, The Best American Short Stories is the only volume that annually offers the finest works chosen by a distinguished best-selling author.Hermit's story / Rick Bass --Sun, the moon, the stars / Junot Diaz --Mrs. Dutta writes a letter / Chitra Divakaruni --Kansas / Stephen Dobyns --Tumblers / Nathan Englander --Piano tuner / Tim Gautreaux --Uncharted heart / Melissa Hardy --The 5:22 / George Harrar --Islands / A. Hemon --Best girlfriend you never had / Pam Houston --In the kindergarten / Ha Jin --Marry the one who gets there first / Heidi Julavits --Live life king-sized / Hester Kaplan --Africans / Sheila Kohler --Interpreter of maladies / Jhumpa Lahiri --Real estate / Lorrie Moore --Save the reaper / Alice Munro --Bunchgrass edge of the world / Annie Proulx --Robbers of Karnataka / James Spencer --Good shopkeeper / Samrat Upadhyay --Rest of her life / Steve Yarbrough
In 1926, the Soderbjerg brothers, Ray and Roy, plunge into radio and found station WLT (With Lettuce and Tomato) in order to rescue their failing restaurant and become the sandwich kings of South Minneapolis. For the next 25 years the station produces an array of shows and stars.
In this collection of stories from Lake Wobegon, the author takes us to a place that is everyone's home town - where the women are strong and the men are good-looking and all the children are above average. It is a celebration of the life and the people of that place, narrated with wit.
A national holiday in Lake Wobegon is always gaudy and joyful. But what is going on between Clint Bunsen and Miss Liberty? Clint is one of the old reliables in Lake Wobegon – the treasurer of the Lutheran church and the auto mechanic who starts your car on below-zero mornings. For six years he has run the Fourth of July parade, and has turned into an event of dazzling spectacle that has attracted the attention of CNN and prompted the governor to put in an appearance as well. The town is dizzy with anticipation. Until, that is, they hear of Clint’s ambition to run for Congress. They’re embarrassed for him – his unfortunate episodes involving vodka sours, his rocky marriage. And then there’s his friendship with the twenty-four-year-old girl dressed up as the Statue of Liberty for the parade. It’s rumored that underneath those robes she is buck naked, and that her torch contains a quart of booze. It’s Lake Wobegon as it’s always been – good, loving people who drive each other crazy.
Astonished to learn that her impeccable mother led a secret life marked by her passionate love for a Las Vegas man and a private commitment to pleasure, Barbara elects to end destructive patterns in her own life while honoring her mother's final wishes, an effort that coincides with a veterinarian's efforts to marry her reluctant fiancé. Reprint.
"Lake Wobegon Days is about the way our beliefs, desires and fears tail off into abstractions--and get renewed from time to time. . . this book, unfolding Mr. Keillor's full design, is a genuine work of American history." --The New York Times "A comic anatomy of what is small and ordinary and therefore potentially profound and universal in American life...Keillor's strength as a writer is to make the ordinary extraordinary." --Chicago Tribune "Keillor's laughs come dear, not cheap, emerging from shared virtue and good character, from reassuring us of our neighborliness and strength....His true subject is how daily life is shot with grace. Keillor writes a prose that can be turned to laughter, to tears...to compassion or satire, to a hundred effects. He is a brilliant parodist." --San Francisco Chronicle
This collection is a companion to the long-established and highly successful Modern Short Stories One and its essential aims are the same: to offer stories of high literary quality which, though written for adults, can be enjoyed and appreciated by adolescents. The fifteen stories included are by distinguished writers from Africa, America, Australia, India, Ireland, Italy and Great Britain; and within their artistic context several of them deal with the special personal and social concerns of society today.The collection includes stories by the likes of Dorothy Parker, Maeve Binchy, Garrison Keillor, Peter Carey, Flannery O'Connor and Nadine Gordimer.
Garrison Keillor's iconic hometown, Lake Wobegon, "where all the women are strong and all the men are good-looking," has become legendary. This collection features tales of love, reflections on marriage and fatherhood, and musings on various topics, including smoking, baseball, and the challenges of nearsightedness.
The contents are divided into several sections:
1. **Pieces**: Stories like "End of the Trail" and "Three New Twins Join Club in Spring" explore personal experiences and societal observations, while "The Young Lutheran's Guide to the Orchestra" and "Hollywood in the Fifties" provide humorous takes on culture.
2. **The Lake**: This section includes letters that capture the essence of community and relationships, such as correspondence between couples and reflections on local events, including a Memorial Day address.
3. **Letters**: A variety of letters cover themes from family life to humorous anecdotes, touching on topics like basketball, regrets, and the meaning of life.
4. **House Poems**: This segment features poems that delve into everyday life, memories of pets, and personal reflections on guilt and identity.
5. **Stories**: A collection of narratives that explore personal growth, relationships, and the passage of time, revealing the complexities of life and love.
Through these reflections and stories, Keillor captures the heart of small-town life and the universal experiences that connect us all.
Meet Larry Wyler, a man with a big heart, broad shoulders and some very odd baggage. After the runaway success of his début novel, 'Spacious Skies', Larry decides to leave small-town life and his wife Iris, and move to Manhattan. But with his marriage in pieces and his second novel a flop, he suddenly finds himself struck down with a bad case of writer's block . . . Cue his new incarnation as the newspaper columnist 'Mr Blue', agony uncle to the lonely and frustrated. It may not be great literature, but perhaps the simple act of writing once again will help get Larry back on track.
In these reflections on our lives and times, Keillor invites readers to join The Shy Rights Movement, to drop in at The People's Shopper, and to hear the truth behind the Cinderella legend as explained in the consciousness-raised lingo of My Stepmother Myself.
In the spring of 1926, the Soderbjerg brothers, Ray and Roy, plunge into radio and found Station WLT in order to rescue their failing restaurant and become the Sandwich Kings of South Minneapolis. For the next quarter century, the "Friendly Neighbor" station, led by the amorous Ray and the scholarly Roy, produces a dazzling array of shows and stars. A poignant, comic masterpiece from the bestselling author of Lake Wobegon Days.
John Tollefson, a son of Lake Wobegon, has moved East to manage a radio station at a college for academically challenged children of financially gifted parents in upstate New York. Having achieved this pleasant perch, John has a brilliant idea for a restaurant specializing in fresh sweet corn. And he falls in love with an historian named Alida Freeman, hard at work on a book about a nineteenth-century Norwegian naturopath, an acquaintance of Lincoln, Thoreau, Whitman, and Susan B. Anthony.
The American guy is in trouble, under siege, feeling foolish about his gender, and here to his rescue rides the bestselling author of WLT, A Radio Romance. In 20 stories--only five of which have been previously published--Keillor takes a knowing look at the sorrows and comforts of "guyness". Illustrations.
Focusing on the virtue of cheerfulness, Garrison Keillor shares personal anecdotes spanning his life from youth to his eighties. He emphasizes the power of a positive attitude and a strong work ethic in countering the negativity prevalent in today’s world. Keillor argues that embracing cheerfulness is not about ignoring life's challenges but about actively resisting despair. With a blend of humor and insight, this book encourages readers to adopt a joyful outlook in their everyday lives, offering inspiration for navigating stress and gloom.
Rachel leidet unter den Umständen, unter denen man in einem Dorf in den USA leben muss, wenn man selber eher überdurchschnittliche Talente hat. Den nahenden Ferien blickt sie mit Entsetzen entgegen, weil sie merkt, dass ihre ungewollte Andersartigkeit sie ziemlich einsam gemacht hat.
Die Geschichten aus der ganz gewöhnlichen, grauenhaften Alltagswelt kommen in einem leichten Plauderton daher, der aber nicht verhindern kann, dass man die subversive Kraft von Keillors nur scheinbar gemütlichem Humor erkennt. Die Kerle, mit denen wir Mitleid haben müssen, gehören alle der Mittelklasse an, sind mittleren Alters und fühlen sich mickrig. Sie geben sich Mühe, sensibel und monogam zu sein, lernen Salat zu schleudern und ganz offen über Probleme, Gefühle und Betroffenheiten zu diskutieren. Kurz, sie tun alles, um Frauen glücklich zu machen, aber sie wissen: Es wird ihnen alles nichts nützen.
