Dystopian novel is FF Book Club selection for February
Fri, Feb 24 2023, 2pm
Awarded the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson follows the misadventures of Jun Do, a North Korean everyman whose name is a homonym for John Doe. Raised in an orphanage, the son of the orphanage director, Jun Do is sent to combat training in the military and then on an undercover mission to kidnap Japanese women. According to the author, the abduction sequence, which goes badly, is based on historical facts. Jun Do manages to fail his numerous assignments but, nevertheless, is rewarded with ever more-satisfying promotions.
Johnson, who is currently an associate professor in creative writing at Stanford University, based the novel on interviews with North Korean defectors. He visited the country once.
According to journalist Barbara Demick, who has reported extensively on the country, “It is a book full of audacity, more or less conforming to stereotypes about North Korea. I fear that some readers might have a hard time figuring out where fact leaves off and fiction begins. … North Korea, bad as it is, I've not heard of political prisoners being lobotomized with nails inserted over the eyeball.” Ugh!
The Orphan Master's Son is in a class of dystopian novels along with the classics 1984 and Brave New World.
UMRA's Fourth Friday Book Club meeting will be held via Zoom from 2 to 3:30 p.m. on February 24. Email Dorothy Marden or Margaret Catambay for information about how to join the meeting.
Upcoming Events
We will meet at the Mel-O-Glaze bakery on 28th and Minnehaha Parkway and walk to Minnehaha Falls and then back again.
Some of the most valuable and rare maps in the world are held in UMN's own James Ford Bell Library, housed in Andersen Library See https://www.lib.umn.edu/collections/special/bell .
The first meeting of UMRA’s Family History Interest Group for 2023–24 will feature a presentation by Marilyn DeLong about sharing family stories and learning surprising family connections.
UMRA has a special opportunity to engage with the four newest members of the U of M Board of Regents on Wednesday, October 4, via Zoom. The purpose of the event is to share our perspectives as former University employees.
All UMRA members with an interest in photography are welcome to attend the meeting of the UMRA Photo Club on Tuesday, October 10. We welcome photographers of all abilities. Most of us are struggling amateurs. We laugh a lot and learn from sharing and talking about our pictures.
The walk along the Mississippi River in Minneapolis is always changing, with many attractions being added along both sides of the river and, now, the beautiful fall colors.
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The Fourth Friday Book Club will meet from 2 to 3:30 p.m. CDT on October 27 to discuss the life and narrative of Frederick Douglass.
Join us for a 5 mile moderately paced hike around Pleasant Lake located in the heart of North Oaks. It takes us past some of James J. Hill’s original farm buildings as well as beautiful homes built along the lakeshore. The trail is wide, generally flat and consists of packed dirt and crushed rock.
The documents noted for this event specify your managers and can minimize income taxes now, and estate taxes.
The material world we live in is shaped by design. While popular discussions of design typically focus on fashion and furniture, design is fundamental in art, architecture, and indeed nearly all aspects of the everyday world around us. Goldstein Museum of Design curator Jean McElvain will demonstrate and discuss some of the fascinating and often unexpected holdings before we walk through the current gallery exhibit.
Get an insider's perspective on Santa Fe and Taos alongside local artists, exploring the Georgia O'Keeffe museum, enjoying traditional music and learning about native cultures. The deadline for reserving a space is June 2, 2023.
Please join us for an invigorating hike from The Monument located at the intersection of Mississippi RIver Blvd and Summit Avenue in St. Paul to Minnehaha Falls in Minneapolis and back. This hike is on paved trails, approximately 5.5 miles in length, and will be at a pace suitable to the weather.
Topics include tax changes; tax reducing moves required now and tax management in 2024 & 2025.