News from Lake Wobegon

Garrison Keillor's tender and often times hilarious tales of small town life are so rich in imagery, you are at once swept up into his world and more than a little sad when it ends. I have listened to all of Keillor's Lake Wobegan stories, and this tops the list as far as I am concerned...why? Because in this, one of his first outings as storyteller, the stories are primarily intended to capture the feel of nostalgia we all long for, rather than to simply amuse as in some of his later stories, particularly those found on Life These Days and some of his later material. While those later stories also have their own appeal, the earlier stories tug at the heart in a way some of the newer ones fail do. Listening to Summer, I could almost hear the whining of that old window fan which our only relief from the hot summer sun, smell those ripe and even overripe tomatoes in mom's garden, hear the soothing sounds of the crickets at day's end as mama's calls "Supper time!" Keillor is a GENIUS at taking us back to the good old days, not just in our heads, but in the very depths of our being...once there, you never want to leave! Winter stirs in us the memory of a cold, clear night, perhaps watching at the window for a glimpse of Santa's sleigh as it streaks across the evening sky, or standing in front of a Main Street department store lit with thousands of tiny lights as animated figures dance and sing for our amusement...childhood captured in all its wonder for us to experience all over again. Spring is filled with humor and pathos, particularly Letter To Jim...in this bittersweet story, we can all relate to the feelings of unrest and longing that come to us all at some mid point in our lives, and in that moment of indecision about which road to follow, we can FEEL the tugging in both directions and are waiting for the ending and hoping it will be the one we KNOW is right. Fall is likewise beautiful, you can smell the burning wood, feel the damp chill, and see the pumpkins in our mind's eye...Thanksgiving is my personal favorite, just a heartwarming telling of family holidays spent with our 'favorite relatives'. These stories make you yearn for that simpler, more tender time..and as far as I'm concerned, the further away we get from it, the more story tellers like Keillor we need with the ability to bring us back whenever we choose to go there! Bravo, Mr. Keillor, long may you reign!Get more detail about News from Lake Wobegon.