February 26 – Author John Hildebrand at LML

John Hildebrand to Visit Our Library

One of his first books, “Mapping the Farm” John told lovingly of the rituals and hard work of burning the fields in spring, harvesting, helping cattle give birth, hog butchering and meeting the prairie wildflowers, all the scenes from the farmers years and way of life that is disappearing at a rate of three or so a week in the Dairy State.

“Through the Heartland by River” his new book, depicts a three month journey by boat along some of Wisconsin’s rivers which eventually brought John to Mellen and thus we and the Bad River have been immortalized.

Yes. we take our river for granted.  We grumble when it floods the Little League field, we race snowmobiles down it on ice in mid-January, spot log jams at Copper Falls during breakup, and then we lovingly take any friend or relative that shows up in the very short summer season out to see the FALLS.  Will it survive the latest situation remains to be seen.  Perhaps that could be the next chapter.

And yet here we are and as Mellen’s poet laureate wrote, “You swim in a river of chance and coincidence.  You cling to the happiest of accidents; let the rest float by . . . ”  David Wroblewski.

Join us at Legion Memorial Library, Thursday, March 27th at 6 PM to welcome the author, have a book autographed, ask a question or two (like did he really go from Mellen to the sloughs in his little boat?), eat some brownies and enjoy.  Submitted by S. Schultz