The Louise Erdrich readers out there will, in my opinion, appreciate Susan Power. I recently finished her first book, The Grass Dancer, which I found at a local resale shop. Other than a slight tear in the jacket, there was little or no evidence to indicate that it had even been read by its previous owner and donor. Or maybe it had been and then carefully handled. The best hand-me-downs show little or no evidence of a previous owner/user and prompt an observation and comment such as: "I know someone, who has that same book or a shirt just like that."

I received a response to my email to the author Mary Rose O'Reilley. (Cf. entry of January 12th) It was a light hearted response, which I am interpreting as a sign that Ms O'Reilley is not interested in any further discussion of the point that I raised in my original email.

Curious to note. Susan Power is on the faculty of Hamline University in St. Paul. Ms. O'Reilley is on the faculty of St. Thomas University also in St. Paul. Ms Erdrich resides in Minneapolis and co-owns a bookstore, Birchbark Books, and a publishing company. The latter's mission is to publish works in Ojibwe.  Maybe all this says is that there are great regional and contemporary authors out there. One only has to snoop around, keep one's eyes open, and be willing to read something by an author unknown to himself or herself.

What is my next read? The Design of Everyday Things, by Donald Norman. My son recommended this one.