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Lake Wobegon Days
Portions of this book appeared originally in The Atlantic Monthly.
Published
by Playaway
(first published 1985)
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Elaine
rated it
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review of another edition
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Everyone, but especially those who survived the 1940s and 50s.
Shelves:
classics-or-should-be
As a child of the 60s, I have gotten used to books having to be dark and meaningful. Happy endings are rare and suspect. So it is with pleasure that I discovered Garrison Keillor's books. He makes me smile, sometimes nostalgically, but sometimes just out of clear enjoyment of someone saying what I've always felt but never knew how to put into words. I encourage readers to give this book a chance. How anyone can read about Lake Wobegon's citizenry and not love this book is beyond me. A church nam...more
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I'm amazed that Garrison Keillor is seen as the written equivalent of Norman Rockwell; His stories are only nostalgic if you aren't paying attention. The Lake Wobegone of his childhood is a dark, oppressive place, where the laughs are generally at someone's expense and everlasting embarrassment. For those of us who identify, the grim humour and beautifully rendered stories evoke not nostalgia, but a satisfaction that those years are long past.
Leslie
is currently reading it
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anyone who enjoyed A Prairie Home Companion
Shelves:
readingsporadicallyorinspurts
Garrison Keillor is a rambling kind of person/writer who just keeps spewing details and weaving threads in a fabric of Lake Wobegon. His somewhat satirical take on a small town, his own hometown - possibly, I still can't figure out if this is a work of fiction or not, and frankly I don't mind - reminds me of stephen leacock's sunshine sketches of a small town, nostalgia and humour, pride in one's hometown, made up or real. A book to be savoured, read in the right place.
"“Humanki...more
"“Humanki...more
Picture me sitting on a train reading this book, getting to the passage where the boys are in the classroom at lunchtime and the headteacher farts nearby and acts as if nothing happened. Gary makes his friend fall to pieces with laughter because the teacher demands to know what is so funny, and Gary says something like "it smells like a badger fart". The effect on his friend - I think he says something like: ”I’ve never had such an impressive(explosive? Can’t remember the line properl...more
Dear Garrison Keillor,
I read your book and liked it a lot. It took me a while to get through it, though. First I started reading it a couple of years ago, but I got so confused in the first few pages' footnotes about how many meters apart everything in town was that I thought it was going to be a boring book and quit. I started reading it again around August, and when I realized that you were just being cheeky, I quickly picked up on the style and began my enjoyment. I try not to be an...more
I read your book and liked it a lot. It took me a while to get through it, though. First I started reading it a couple of years ago, but I got so confused in the first few pages' footnotes about how many meters apart everything in town was that I thought it was going to be a boring book and quit. I started reading it again around August, and when I realized that you were just being cheeky, I quickly picked up on the style and began my enjoyment. I try not to be an...more
What is Lake Wobegon? Is it a place? Is it a state of mind? Is it nothing more than a nostalgic longing for times gone by? In his first Lake Wobegon novel, Garrison Keillor introduces us to his semi-autobiographical world of memory. He leaps between the present and past as he breathes life into his fictional Midwestern world. His characters are unique and interesting not because they are bigger than life, but because they could be your neighbor, your best friend, or even yourself. Lake Wobegon’s...more
Garrison Keillor is the originator and host of A Prairie Home Companion, a radio show that has been running more or less constantly since 1974; he also hosts The Writer’s Almanac with Garrison Keillor, a five-minute radio segment (usually heard on NPR stations) that is also reproduced in written form on the Internet (via a link on my weblog, if you want to see it). As part of each episode of A Prairie Home Companion, he gives the comedic storytelling segment, “News from Lake Wobegon.” In 1984 he...more
I love Garrison Keillor. Being from the frigid Midwest (okay, Indiana's not as cold as Minnesota), I always feel at home reading Keillor. I discuss that in a little bit in an interview here:
http://www.outsiderwriters.org/content/v...
when asked if having a poem on The Prairie Home Companion website means more if you're from the Midwest.
Lake Wobegon Days = fun, humorous, and heartwarming.
http://www.outsiderwriters.org/content/v...
when asked if having a poem on The Prairie Home Companion website means more if you're from the Midwest.
Lake Wobegon Days = fun, humorous, and heartwarming.
Stephanie
rated it
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review of another edition
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
fans of "A Prairie Home Companion"
LAKE WOBEGON DAYS, the fictional tales of a small Minnesota town, was written by Garrison Keillor in 1985. Keillor is the host of the popular “A Prairie Home Companion” radio show.
Lake Wobegon is full of hard-stock people of Norwegian and German descent, brimming with endearing quirkiness. There are the same locations mentioned on “Prairie”: the Chatterbox Café, Bunsen Motors, Ralph’s Grocery, the Lutheran Church, the Our Lady of Perpetual Responsibility Church.
The residents of ...more
Spending many years in Minnesota it is difficult to escape the works of Keillor. Lake Wobegon becomes a Saturday evening ritual. The characters, although fictional become real. You recognize someone you know in almost every program. Oh yes, this is not Television but Radio performed at it's finest.
To show you how real it is to some people, when I moved to Southern California and was standing in Ralph's Supermarket (Ralph's prett good grocery on the program),
I was wearing a Lake Wobe...more
To show you how real it is to some people, when I moved to Southern California and was standing in Ralph's Supermarket (Ralph's prett good grocery on the program),
I was wearing a Lake Wobe...more
This was probably the only book I've ever read where the narrator's voice in my head was not my own. It was Garrison Keillor's! If you enjoy Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion radio show, then you will almost certainly enjoy this book. It is one HUGE dose of Lake Wobegon. Not only that, his anecdotes are filled with much more un-pc humor than the show features, what with swears and murders making it into the mix. I especially enjoyed his tales of childhood, as they brought me back to my own...more
Nick
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anyone who enjoys sophisticated humor
Recommended to Nick by:
My dad
Shelves:
fiction
"Where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average."
This is one of the many catchphrases one hears when listening to The News from Lake Wobegon.
This book represents all that was and is Lake Wobegon. It takes you to the days of the town's founding as New Albion, and how economic woes across the country struck the town.
It later found salvation from Norwegians and Germans, who make up the town.
T...more
This is one of the many catchphrases one hears when listening to The News from Lake Wobegon.
This book represents all that was and is Lake Wobegon. It takes you to the days of the town's founding as New Albion, and how economic woes across the country struck the town.
It later found salvation from Norwegians and Germans, who make up the town.
T...more
I had heard about this author for years, but never had the urge to read it. I picked it up on a whim when Better World Books was having a sale and I needed one more book for round out a nice ten books. This book, Lake Wobegone, is funny, even though his political opinions are a little on the heavy side for me.
I genuinely liked the book, but I was disappointed that it was not funnier. I did laugh a little; but it came across as very somber.
Keillor should have toned down the ...more
I genuinely liked the book, but I was disappointed that it was not funnier. I did laugh a little; but it came across as very somber.
Keillor should have toned down the ...more
It's hard for me to know for sure if I can really separate my own nostolgia for small town upper plains life from my reading experience, so I guess my judgement is a little suspect on whether Keillor is a great author or not, but for my money, he is. Lake Wobegon Days finds that sweet spot for condemning the darkness in small town life, but celebrating the joys in equal measure. Keillor's voice is natural and unaffected--he doesn't mind talking about day-to-day items of life, and he builds his ...more
And now for something completely different......having spent months in Moose Lake, Minnesota at my husband's birthplace and parents' home, and escaping in our motorhome before it got stupidly cold, I am getting many chuckles from this old book, found at CatTail Cove State Park near Lake Havasu, AZ.
Writing about Norwegians who settled northern Minnesota....."Our ancestors chose this place, tired from their long journey, sad for having left the motherland behind, and this place remi...more
Writing about Norwegians who settled northern Minnesota....."Our ancestors chose this place, tired from their long journey, sad for having left the motherland behind, and this place remi...more
This book was amusing enough in it's own right as a series of small-town-frontier-fun stories, until some synapse in my head fired and started comparing it to Steinbeck's Cannery Row or The Pastures of Heaven, also comprised of short 'life-in-a-micro-community' vignettes. Suddenly, the book seemed to fall short - there was no discernible central theme, and since the stories were neither chronological nor centered around a main character [though arguably the narrator provides one, the book opera...more
I know, I know, this is supposed to be a funny read.
But I spent three or four weeks wading through not-even-that-sweet treacle (all the time alternating with books I actually enjoyed reading) got to page 225 and thought: why am I inflicting this pain on myself? I'm 53, I couldn't have too many more years to waste. There didn't seem to be any story that was likely to resolved or otherwise. Clever words, yes; lots of nice anecdotes, yes; the odd chuckle, yes; but no belly laughs and no...more
But I spent three or four weeks wading through not-even-that-sweet treacle (all the time alternating with books I actually enjoyed reading) got to page 225 and thought: why am I inflicting this pain on myself? I'm 53, I couldn't have too many more years to waste. There didn't seem to be any story that was likely to resolved or otherwise. Clever words, yes; lots of nice anecdotes, yes; the odd chuckle, yes; but no belly laughs and no...more
I have become a fan of NPR's A Prairie Home Companion, especially Garrison Keillor's News from Lake Wobegon segment. So I decided to read one of his books. I started reading it, but felt something was missing--Keillor's voice. So I bought it on CD. It is unfortunate that the CD is an abridged edition, but I read the portions that were not on the CD.
There are numerous funny stories in this book. Not only Keillor's memorable characters are featured, but you also get the history of t...more
There are numerous funny stories in this book. Not only Keillor's memorable characters are featured, but you also get the history of t...more
Okay, I admit it, I didn't finish this book. I almost never abandon a book, but I just found this one so incredibly dull. There were times when it was funny, and I can see how Keillor's writing could definitely appeal to some, but it just was not for me. I could not relate to the random, stream-of-consciousness writing. This is just a long string of stories about different characters in the town and surrounding area where Keillor grew up in Wisconsin. Some parts are funny, most just aren't.
...more
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Minnesota is proud of this author - I had never read anything by him nor listened to his radio show - I also avoided the movie based on reviews. I decided to read it as it was recently recommended and I needed something lighter after my last two books. This book did make me laugh out loud - also gasp and get very depressed - and at times just plain bored - so I guess it gets 5 stars for the full range of emotions. Keiller makes a very interesting analysis on rural Minnesotans - Lutherans/Cath...more
This book is hilarious. It took me a month or so to read it and every time I picked it up, I had a good, physical laughing reaction. I picked it up at a garage sale for 25 cents, but would easily have parted with 35 cents just to read the chapter titled “School.”
The story starts with the origin of the town of Lake Wobegon and then proceeds to be a story of the author’s boyhood growing up in Lake Wobegon. Most people would enjoy this book. Adult men should get a real kick out of...more
How have I missed reading anything by this guy so far? This book was adorable and hilarious and I enjoyed every minute. A collection of rambling stories about a fictional small town in Minnesota doesn't SOUND like it would be awesome - but somehow it is. If nothing else, it's full of pithy quotes and one should read it with a notebook handy for writing down all the things that make you yell "HA!". Love that the town is a character itself. Love that while reading this you will in on...more
This book took me 3 months to read. I don't think I have the personality to read this type of fiction. Too many characters that don't carry through the book. Too many details that don't matter. Long footnotes that explain too much. By the time I read the footnote I had forgotten what I was reading about in the main text. One chapter had enough footnotes to make a chapter of its own. I could be like Sam I am, I did not like it on a boat, in a tree, in a car, only my ending is I did not like it af...more
I'm going to have to take a break on this. I'm only on page 148 & I'm totally bored with it. It's taken me 2 days to read that much. That's really unlike me. So. I'm going to start another book & read this one little-by-little I guess.
Alright. Well. I finished it. Finally. This book really did nothing for me. I pretty much had to force my way though it. I admit, there were funny parts, but getting to them was pretty painful. I kept reading because it came to me so highly recommende...more
Alright. Well. I finished it. Finally. This book really did nothing for me. I pretty much had to force my way though it. I admit, there were funny parts, but getting to them was pretty painful. I kept reading because it came to me so highly recommende...more
I came late to an appreciation of "A Prairie Home Companion" despite long-time exhortations to try it from peers, who felt that it would resonate with my sense of humor and world view (I am, as I keep relating, from a small town in southwestern Montana). I am happy to report that I am now a SOLID FAN! In that spirit, I had been wanting to read this book for some time. Got it, along with three others ("Happy to Be Here," "Leaving Home," and "Wobegon Boy") a...more
This morning, I finally finished reading Lake Woebegon Days by Garrison Keiller. It took me awhile because I kept getting distracted. Overall, I liked it. I liked that it was basically a bunch of short stories in one book centered on the (fictional) town of Lake Woebegon. This was one of those books where I could never quite tell if the book was true or not, similar to The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien. I feel like may be it was based on his life, but not totally true.
Anyway, I lik...more
Anyway, I lik...more
Lake Wobegon Days is a nostalgic look at a fictional small town in Minnesota. The unnamed baby boomer author grew up there, but had moved away some years before supposedly writing this book. He clearly cherishes his memories of growing up there. But, he’s moved on. Lake Wobegon is no longer his home and he knows it.
While much of the book revolves around the author, much doesn’t. He speaks of the history of the town, right from its founding. Along the way, he discusses the ...more
While much of the book revolves around the author, much doesn’t. He speaks of the history of the town, right from its founding. Along the way, he discusses the ...more
Liz
rated it
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review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anyone desperate to read the last book they've got, but only if they're desperate
(4/8/08): Toilsome. That's a good word to describe this book, if it even is a word. (It ought to be, if it's not.) Four hundred plus pages and not much to it.
Yes, I understand there's not really a plot to it. In fact, I'd bet there's a particular term to describe the type of writing Mr. Keillor endeavors. I don't know it and I just don't care for it. Yeah, there are some interesting parts about how town life affects so many of its residents (one of the problems - too many characters...more
Yes, I understand there's not really a plot to it. In fact, I'd bet there's a particular term to describe the type of writing Mr. Keillor endeavors. I don't know it and I just don't care for it. Yeah, there are some interesting parts about how town life affects so many of its residents (one of the problems - too many characters...more
When you need to comfort of grandma's hug, warm cocoa with marshmallows, and that shabby but insanely comfortable sweater, always turn to Lake Wobegon Days.
Especially, when you can't sleep at night and the nasty creaks and groans of your house are freaking you out, certainly turn to Lake Wobegon Days.
In fact, if you feel cold and can't warm up, climb into a sleeping bag with Garrison! You won't be sorry.
Re-reading this in bits and pieces for about the 5th time and ...more
Especially, when you can't sleep at night and the nasty creaks and groans of your house are freaking you out, certainly turn to Lake Wobegon Days.
In fact, if you feel cold and can't warm up, climb into a sleeping bag with Garrison! You won't be sorry.
Re-reading this in bits and pieces for about the 5th time and ...more
Reading this reminded me of listening to "A Prairie Home Companion" on a lazy weekend afternoon, and for the first hundred pages I found it equally pleasant. However, the radio program is only two hours long, and as the book continued on, I found myself getting restless. The stories of Lake Wobegon are designed to be slow and meandering, just like life in the fictional little town, but I think that kind of humor is best in small doses, and 350 pages was just a bit too much.
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Garrison Keillor (born Gary Edward Keillor on August 7, 1942 in Anoka, Minnesota) is an American author, storyteller, humorist, columnist, musician, satirist, and radio personality.
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“If you lived today as if it were your last, you'd buy up a box of rockets and fire them all off, wouldn't you?”
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“He was admired for never being at a loss for words and never wasting any either.”
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