The quest to feature as many MN Book Award nominees before the April 16 ceremony marches on! You can play along at home, and watch as a link to each author’s answers are added to this post
Today you’re in for a treat. Not only can you read Amie Klempnauer Miller’s answers to our 6 questions, but you can go see her read tonight! Amie will be reading with Laurie Hertzel at 7 p.m. tonight at the Hamline Midway Branch Library, 1558 W. Minnehaha Ave., St. Paul. Amie is the author of She Looks Just Like You: A Memoir of (Nonbiological Lesbian) Motherhood, which has been nominated for a MN Book Award in Memoir & Creative Nonfiction.
What book(s) are you currently reading?
I just finished re-reading The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather. I generally only read one book at a time or I end up with a stack of half-read books.
Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character? Who?
I don't know that I ever had a crush on a fictional character, but there were certainly characters I wanted to be. One of the earliest was Harriet Welsch (Harriet the Spy). I used to carry a notebook around and spy on my family.
If your favorite author came to Minnesota, who would it be and what bar would you take him/her to?
Through reading with my daughter, I've come to know and love the work of Cynthia Rylant. I love her writing and her revelry in things like warm soup and birthday balloons and happy dogs.I also really like her approach to her work which is, basically, that writing books adds beauty to the world. If Cynthia Rylant came to town, I would like to take her to the Groveland Tap which is like having a burger and beer in a comfy living room while the kids play.
What was your first favorite book?
I had a lot of favorite books early on. I absolutely loved Little Witch by Anna Elizabeth Bennett, the story of a witch's daughter who always feels out of place ? only to discover that her true mother is Moonfire, the blue fairy. Old Yeller was the first book that made me weep. I still love reading children's literature. I've been re-reading some of my old favorites like Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh, Ramona the Pest, and The Cricket in Times Square.
Let’s say Fahrenheit 451 comes to life, which book would you become in order to save it from annihilation?
My First Summer in Sierra by John Muir. It's a love song to the mountains.
What is one book you haven’t read but want to read before you die?
One that's published in 2059.
Don’t forget! Amie will be reading with Laurie Hertzel at 7 p.m. tonight at the Hamline Midway Branch Library, 1558 W. Minnehaha Ave., St. Paul.