Local (Madison & WI)

Beginning with the retreat of the Wisconsin glacier and the story of early Native American peoples, Janik narrates the journey of Wisconsin's capital city from the "center of the wilderness" to the "Laboratory of Democracy." Learn how Madison's citizens responded to the Civil War, industrialization and two world wars, as well as how advances in the rights of workers, women, Native Americans and African Americans made Madison the multifaceted city it is today. Comprehensive, accessible and swift, Madison: History of a Model City offers a fresh take on how Madison and its people came into being.

This beautiful story is now reunited wth a never-before published Afterword that traces the land to an earlier time and brings the story full-circle to the farm and its people.

This is a story about a farm and its people, of a hilltop world in the 1930s in southwestern Wisconsin. Ben Logan grew up on a farm with his three brothers, father, mother, and hired hand Lyle—"the fifth Logan boy"— and marked the seasons by the demands of the land. The boys discussed and argued and joked over the events around their hilltop farm, testing each other and themselves as they learned the lessons of the farm and growing up.

Born in Clear Lake, Wisconsin, in 1916, Gaylord grew up as immersed in his parents' political work and community service as he was in playing practical jokes and exploring the natural world surrounding his home town. Along the way he encountered experiences that would shape him in fundamental ways: as a man who stood up for what he believed in the face of opposition and yet who also understood how to treat his opponents with respect. Both traits would serve him well as he rose from law student to state senator to Wisconsin governor and finally to three terms as a United States Senator.

Nelson fought to treat all races equally and to condemn McCarthy-era paranoia, but his greatest contribution was to sound the alarm about another battle: the fight to save the natural world and the earth itself. It was his idea to use teach-ins to let people know that the environment needed their help. Thanks to him, more natural resources were conserved and new laws demanded clean air and water. Now, every year on April 22, people all over the world plant trees and pick up litter to celebrate Earth Day. The Earth and its inhabitants aren't safe yet, but Gaylord Nelson demonstrated that even one person can help to save the world.

The global economic crisis deepens by the day, yet the gambling industry continues to rake in enormous profits as people everywhere pump billions of dollars into slot machines in the hope of winning the ever elusive jackpot. Sandra Adell' s Confessions of a Slot Machine Queen offers an intimate look into problem and compulsive casino gambling and the impact the casino industry is having on vulnerable communities, especially poor and working class people, the disabled, communities of color, and women the fastest growing population of problem gamblers in the United States. Adell' s narrative of gambling and loss unfolds against her history as an unwed and uneducated teen mother from Detroit who beat the odds stacked against her and went on to earn a Ph.D. and a coveted position as a literature professor in a major Midwestern university. In a clear and unaffected prose style, Adell describes how she went from having no interest in gambling to risking everything she had worked for after playing the slots and winning a small jackpot. We watch as she struggles against the lure of the slots only to get seduced time and again until she finally spirals out of control and is forced to confront the demons that lay beneath the surface of her professional persona. Confessions of a Slot Machine Queen is as much a story of redemption as it is a critical examination of the casino gambling industry and the potential dangers of this new and high-tech form of entertainment.

    Despite Wisconsin's rich history, no historical atlas has been produced in the state since 1878. Wisconsin's Past and Present, created by the Wisconsin Cartographers' Guild, has filled this void with a fascinating and colorful portrait of the state's complex development. This useful and entertaining guide, produced to mark 150 years of statehood, provides a lasting resource for map lovers and history buffs of all ages, and anyone interested in Wisconsin's heritage. The Atlas features more than 100 pages of historic and geographic data, including full-color maps, descriptive text, photos, and illustrations.
    The Atlas highlights the peoples and cultures, economy and land, and socio-political landscape of Wisconsin—from Native American mounds to weather hazards to labor history. Situated at the intersections of natural and cultural regions, Wisconsin has always been an area "on thecutting edge." It formed a boundary between the glaciated and unglaciated regions of North America, which evolved into the "tension line" between the Northwoods and the Central Plains. It later became the meeting ground among Native American nations, and a new home to diverse groups of immigrant settlers, who introduced cutting-edge political and economic ideas to the rest of the country. Wisconsin still serves as a borderland between the agricultural Midwest, the industrial Great Lakes, and the Northern forests. The Atlas explores the history of indigenous cultures, immigrant groups, natural resources, agriculture, industries, boundaries, political and social movements, and government institutions in lively detail.

"Wisconsin, with its verdant hills and limestone-filtered waters, was made for making cheese. For more than 160 years, cheese-makers and dairy farmers have been working together to create unparalleled Cheddar, mozzarella, artisan, and other delicious cheeses—more than 600 varieties, types, and styles in all. Wisconsin wins more national and international cheese awards than any other state or country, and you can be sure that its residents have invented just as many ways of enjoying that cheese. With more than 100 recipes—from farmhouse favorites to sophisticated cuisine from top chefs—and packed with cheese trivia, profiles of cheesemakers, and cheese tips, Wisconsin Cheese is the ultimate cheese lover’s resource and a fitting homage to Wisconsin’s rich cheesemaking history. Celebrate Wisconsin Cheese with Recipes Such As: Blueberry Ricotta Coffee Cake Wisconsin Three-Cheese Soup with Parmesan Croutons Wisconsin Buttermilk Blue and Asian Pear Salad Santa’s Wisconsin Cheese Delight Asiago Cheese Puffs Wisconsin Cheddar Scones with Smoked Turkey Hook’s Blue Cheese Cake Cherry Cheddar Crusted Pork Tenderloin Wisconsin Gruyère Fondue Fontiago Polenta with Tomato Basil Concassée Goat Cheese Fudge Milk Chocolate Cheesecake"

Popular public radio show host Michael Feldman and coauthor Diana Cook introduce Wisconsin's weirdest, wackiest, and most outrageous people, places, and things including a man who owes his life to a foam rubber cheesehead, a worm that plays basketball, and the best place to savor chicken in a hubcap.

(20100601)