This Week in Saint Paul: Monday, February 3–Sunday, February 9, 2014

February 3, 2014

On Tuesday, Minnesota holds its precinct caucuses. I know that we have spent a good deal of time cultivating a hefty measure of cynicism about politics. It's been stewing for a long time, and out of that big pot, more beef is served every day. Caucuses are a place where you can trade that tired dish for a potluck with your neighbors. Pick your party, ideas, and thoughts to share. I could give you a couple dozen reasons to go, but a big one we should remember is the fact that communities need both artists and art, and need people who recognize how important art is to communities. That's you—and your friends and family.

Hans Weyandt, co-owner of Micawber’s, ends the chapter titled ‘bookseller’

February 1, 2014

Hans Weyandt—who has co-owned Micawber’s with Tom Bielenberg since 2003— is quitting the book business to stay home and care for his three sons as his wife, a pediatric nurse practitioner at Children’s Hospitals and Clinics, takes on a new position. The father of boys ages 6, soon-to-be-4 and 16 months, Weyandt said he’s had many men—especially older men—say they wish they would have done what he is about to do. And despite the prospect of spending more time with dad, Weyandt’s eldest, Elliott, isn’t happy that he will no longer be allowed to roam the stacks at Micawber’s—a place that’s been a part of his life from the beginning—and take a book home with him at whim.

Art by Bob Muschewske

True Myth

By Heid E. Erdrich ● February 1, 2014

Tell a child she is composed of parts (her Ojibway quarters, her German half-heart) she’ll find the existence of harpies easy to swallow. Storybook children never come close to her mix, but manticores make great uncles...