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00000179-e1ff-d2b2-a3fb-ffffd6b40000Four books. Four author interviews. One great summer of reading! WNIJ presents the 2013 Summer Book Series.Each Wednesday in June, Morning Edition host Dan Klefstad talks with a local author about their work, and adds it to his list of suggested summer reading.Our series begins June 5th with Marnie Mamminga of Batavia, who brings fond memories of Northwoods Wisconsin vacations to life on the pages of her memoir, Return to Wake Robin. In the weeks that follow, Dan talks with NIU English instructor John Bradley (The Cosmic Chronicles of Billy the Kidder - June 12); Beloit College English Professor Chris Fink (Farmer's Almanac - June 19); and NIU Professor Joe Bonomo (This Must Be Where My Obsession With Infinity Began - June 26).Listen to Dan's interviews each Wednesday this month during Morning Edition, following NPR News at 6:30 and 8:30am. Then return to this page to hear the authors read excerpts from their books. You'll also have a chance to meet these writers in person! Dan will join Marnie Mamminga at Rockford's Just Goods Fair Trade Marketplace on Thursday, June 6th from 3 to 5pm. Then, at the end of the month-long series, our remaining three authors - John Bradley, Chris Fink, and Joe Bonomo - will meet listeners at a writers panel event, Saturday, June 29th from 3 to 5pm at Books on First in Dixon. WNIJ's Dan Klefstad will be there, too, to moderate the discussion and take your questions and comments for the writers.Happy Summer Reading from WNIJ!

Summer Book Series Author to Accept Top Award

www.barriejeanborich.com

(Updated May 26)

This week, one of our Summer Book Series authors will accept a gold medal for her latest work, a creative memoir. Barrie Jean Borich will be honored Wednesday by the Independent Publisher Book Awards, or IPPYs, for Body Geographic. The book is the third installment of WNIJ's series which airs next month.

The series begins June 6, when Rockford native Gary Lawrencejoins me to discuss Baffled, his first collection of short fiction. Many of these stories are set in Rockford or Winnebago County, with two taking place at West High School during the 1970s.

Readers will find familiar sights and people in Lawrence's book.

They include On the Waterfront, an aerospace company he calls "Sundstrom" and a beloved teacher who taught a class called "Ideas of Man."

The following Friday I'll talk with Joseph Gastigerabout his first collection of poems called Loose Talk. Gastiger is a pastor at First Congregational United Church of Christ in DeKalb.

Fellow poet John Bradley says Gastiger's poems take us to "the corner of Memory and Desire" and feature a diverse cast, including Commander Cody, Snow White and Kurt Vonnegut.

On June 20, I interview Chicagoan Barrie Jean Borich about Body Geographic.

This book borrows images of maps and tattoos to chart Borich's journey of self-discovery from the steel mills of her South Side childhood to the "prairie college town" of Champaign, to Minneapolis, hometown of her spouse Linnea.

Borich is also nominated for a Lambda Book Award, or LAMMY, which recognizes LGBT authors. That awards ceremony is June 2.

On June 27, Robert Hellenga returns to WNIJ to discuss his newest book, to be released in July.

The Confessions of Frances Godwin is the fictional memoir of a retired high school Latin teacher. The story moves between Illinois and Italy during various times in Godwin's life. After her husband dies, she begins a series of conversations with God, who takes a sudden interest in her life.

Hellenga was featured during the 2013-14 Winter Book Series.

The Summer Book Series airs Fridays in June during Morning Edition on WNIJ. Listen in on our conversations after NPR news at 6:30 and 8:30. Then come back here for author readings and other information. 

While waiting for the series to begin, enjoy this jingle created by DeKalb musicians Bill Leighly and Erica Ensign:

Good morning, Early Riser! Since 1997 I've been waking WNIJ listeners with the latest news, weather, and program information with the goal of seamlessly weaving this content into NPR's Morning Edition.