Upper Peninsula: Region One
Anderson, Lauri
October 27, 1942 -
Place of Birth: Foxcroft, ME
Place of Principle Residence: Hancock, MI
Biography:
Lauri Arvid Anderson was born to Ruby Littlefield of “Old New England” and Arvid Anderson (a Finnish immigrant) in 1942 in Maine. He attended the University of Maine and achieved his BA in English in 1965 and his MA in International Education in 1969 from Michigan State University. From 1965 to 1967 Anderson volunteered for the Peace Corps in Nigeria and then served as an English teacher at North County High School in Vermont between 1967 and 1969. In 1971 Anderson completed a MA in English at the University of Pacific and taught at Mizpah Mission School as the chair of English and Dean until 1972. He then moved to Izmir, Turkey to work at the American Collegiate Institute as the chair of English until 1976. From there Anderson went to Hancock, Main where he still serves as the chair of English and the Division Head of Humanities. In addition her served as and English instructor for the Phillips-Andover Academy, a school for gifted minority students, from 1995 to 1997. Anderson has authored five prose works and one book of poetry, many of which exemplify a sarcastic tone, and Anderson’s Finnish heritage. He is the brother of poet Wendy Anderson and author Stuart Anderson and has three children, Eric, Charlotte, and Lucy.
Selected Works:
- Impressions of Arvo Laurila (2005)
- Misery Bay (2001)
- Children of the Kalevala (1997)
- Heikki Heikkinen and Other Stories of Upper Peninsula Finns (1995)
- Hunting Hemingway’s Trout (1990)
- Small Winter Wars (1983)
- Snow White and Others (1971)
Awards:
- 1996-1997 FinnFest guest writer
- 1995 MLA guest writer
- 1994 Honorable Mention, Fiction Contest, Finnish American Reporter
- 1988 Honorable Mention, Writers of the Future
- 1985 Selected for NEH Institute in Commonwealth Literature, Indiana U.
- 1983 Selected for NEH Seminar in Twelfth-Century Civilization, Mt. Holyoke
- 1981 Selected for NEH Seminar in American Humor, U. of New Mexico
Critical Reception:
Anderson has written and received many grants to continue his academic and creative work.
For Back to Misery Bay:
“Lauri Anderson deftly and often humorously captures the love-hate relationship that his Finnish-American characters have with Misery Bay, their hearts’ home in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Many of Lauri Anderson’s Finns seem determined to raise their various dysfunctionalities to an art form, but through their very fallibility they tug at our hearts. As one wise old Finn advises his war-shattered nephew, People are really screwed up but love them anyway. They’re all we have.
—Judy Hakola, Lecturer in English, University of Maine
For Hemingway’s Trout:Stories:
This short collection of stories and sketches about Ernest Hemingway and an army of fictional characters who study his work is mildly interesting but lacks the order, tension and overarching theme necessary to form an exciting whole.
- Publishers Weekly
Brief, amateurish essays about Ernest Hemingway here alternate with seven short stories, each constructed around some character or image from Hemingway’s work….some of the individual stories are entertaining, but the collection feels contrived, the prose dated by references to the Sixties. Book budget dollars would be better spent on new editions of Hemingway.
- Library Journal
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Anderson teaches at Finlandia University in Hancock, Michigan. Several of his books, including Children of Kalevala, take place in Upper Michigan.
Barr, Nancy
1972—
Place of Birth: Springfield, IL
Place of Principal Residence: Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan.
Biography
Nancy Barr is the only child of a working class couple. Her father, Harry, has always been supportive or her and encourages her to dream big. Her mother, Patricia, died when she was nine. After her mother’s death, Barr and her father moved to the Michigan Upper Peninsula. There they lived in the small town of Rapid River, which is at the top of Little Bay de Noc. As a child, Barr dreamed of being many things—such as a doctor, a police officer, and a fighter pilot—but writing never crossed her mind. She didn’t consider it until her freshman year of college. Following the path of journalism, Barr obtained an associates degree with honors from Bay de Noc Community College. She went on to graduate cum laude from Lake Superior State University, with a bachelor’s degree. She began a career as a newspaper journalist, covering police, courts, schools, and local governments for the Daily Press in Escanaba, Michigan. Later, Barr became the news editor for the Daily Mining Gazette in Houghton, Michigan. After working for three years there she took a job at Michigan Technological University, where she currently works. Nancy Barr is engaged to be married and has three cats.
Selected Works
- Page One: Hit and Run (2006)
- Page One: Vanished (2007)
Critical Reception
Nancy Barr is new to the world of fiction. She has written two mystery novels, which have received very positive reviews from newspapers. Major review publications (such as Publishers Weekly and Library Journal) generally don’t review books put out by small publishers, so that has been a problem since reviews by such publications are necessary for strong nationwide sales.
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work
Nancy Barr writes about what she knows. “The U.P. is a character in my books.” She says, “I made a point to use real towns as settings because this is a special area…It takes a certain kind of person to really embrace the U.P….I love the lifestyle.” Her work also stems form her experience as a journalist and the people she has encountered over the years.
Carter, James L.
October 17, 1935—
Place of Birth: Marquette, MI
Place of Principal Residence: Marquette, MI
Biography:
James L. Carter was born to Cecille and Forest Carter in Marquette, MI on October 17, 1935. In 1961 he earned his BA in History at Aquinas College, followed by his MA in 1967 at Northern Michigan University. Between earning his BA and MA, Carter was a teacher at Sacred Heart School and Spring Lake Public Schools. When he graduated from Northern, Carter took over the University’s position of Assistant Director of Research and Development. Eight years later he became Director of the University Press until his retirement in 1996. His experience in journalism goes back to graduate school, where he worked as a reporter for the Mining Journal in addition to his studies. Carter’s first book, Grand Marais: Voyageurs’ Harbor was published in 1967, followed by other works including historical and book review articles for magazines and newspapers. Currently, Carter devotes his time to editing books on Great Lakes history. He and his wife, Nancy, live in Marquette, MI and have two children: Emily and Catherine.
Selected Works
- Grand Marais: Voyageurs’ Harbor (1967)
- The Grand Island Story (1974)
- The Story of Caribou Island, Lake Superior (2001)
Awards:
- 1978 Award of Merit, Historical Society of Michigan
- 1980 Superior-A State for the North Country
- 1991 Helen Longyear Paul Memorial Award, Marquette County Historical Society
- 1991 Charles Follo Award, Historical Society of Michigan
- 1996 Northern Michigan University Press Award
- 1997 Center for Native American Studies Humanitarian Award
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Carter has devoted most of his life to researching and writing about the history of Michigan. In addition to publishing many of his own books on the topic, Carter reviews works of those who do the same.
Freisinger, Randall R.
February 6, 1942—
Place of Birth: Kansas City, Missouri
Place of Principal Residence: Houghton, MI
Biography
Randall Freisinger was born to Winifred and Earl Freisinger in Kansas City, Missouri on February 6, 1942. He attended the University of Missouri-Columbia between 1959-1975, earning his BJ, MA, and PhD in English Literature. Ever since 1972, Freisinger has taught at Michigan Tech University, and today serves as a Professor of Rhetoric, Literature, and Creative Writing. In addition to teaching, he is the Associate Editor for Laurel Review. His poems have been and continue to be published in many literary magazines, and in 1997 published a book-length manuscript of poems, Plato’s Breath, which won the 1996 May Swenson Poetry Award. Freisinger lives with his wife, Jill, and his two stepsons, Ian and Quentin, in Houghton, Michigan.
Selected Works
Plato’s Breath (1997)
Awards
1975 Flume Press National Chapbook Award
1996 May Swenson Poetry Prize for Plato’s Breath
n/a Nominated for Pushcart Prize (four times)
Critical Reception
For Plato’s Breath:
[Freisinger’s] poems are funny, sad, light, dark, hopeful, grim, and quite often all of these at once. Don’t overlook this book.
The Missouri Review
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work
Freisinger teaches Humanities at Michigan Tech University, where he helps students develop a deeper appreciation for literature and creativity.
Graham, Loren R.
June 29, 1933—
Place of Birth: Hymera, IN
Place of Principal Residence: Summer: Munising, MI Winter: Cambridge, MA
Biography:
Loren Graham was born to Hazel and Ross Graham in Hymera, IN on June 29, 1933. He earned his BS at Purdue University in 1955 and his MS and PhD at Columbia in 1960 and 1964, respectively. In the past, Graham has taught at Indiana University, Columbia University, and Harvard University and is today a Professor of History of Science at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. For most of his life, Graham has enthusiastically embraced the history of Russia, in particular the history of scientific thought in the Soviet Union. His research is the product of both intellectual and personal observation as Graham studied for two years at Moscow State University in USSR during the early 1960s and has since built a lengthy traveling record in the area. The fruit of his labor has taken on forms that both the scholarly and the layman audience can enjoy, ranging from a strongly academic style in Science in Russia and the Soviet Union: A Short History to his autobiographical Moscow Stories for general audiences. This work has not gone unrecognized; Graham has won many fellowships, awards, and honors, including being named a Guggenheim Fellow and winning the Sarton Medal from the History of Science Society. In addition, he is part of the American Philosophical Society, the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, and the Russian Academy of the Humanitarian Sciences. Graham and his wife, Patricia, spend their summers in Michigan and their winters in Massachusetts and have one daughter, Marguerite.
Selected Works:
- Science, Philosophy and Human Behavior in the Soviet Union (1987)
- Science and the Soviet Social Order (1990)
- Science in Russian and the Soviet Union: a Short History (1993)
- The Ghost of the Executed Engineer (1993)
- A Face in the Rock: The Tale of a Grand Island Chippewa (1998)
Awards:
- Finalist for National Book Award
- Follo Award of Michigan Historical Society
- Honorable Mention for the Annual Award for Excellence by the Association of American Publishers
- Stuart D. and Venice Gross Award for Excellence in Literature
- One of the “Notable Books of 1993” from the New York Times
- Danforth Fellow
- Guggenheim Fellow
- Sarton Medal from the History of Science Society
Critical Reception:
For Moscow Stories:
“Not only are the stories captivating but they are also well told: Graham’s that rare academic who knows how to write for a popular audience.”
Publishers Weekly
“...Graham writes ...as an ordinary American living through these years [1960-2005] alongside Russians…”
Moscow News
“Exciting, shocking, reflective, humane, strong-minded, compelling and touching…essential reading for anyone…involved in the affairs of modern Russia…”
History
For Science in Russia and the Soviet Union: A Short History:
“Loren Graham’s informative history…leaves one wondering how science could function at all….The remaining, very open, question is: How well will a newly freed Russian science survive the removal of the Soviet hand that nourished and battered it?”
New York Times Book Review
“...well written, frequently insightful, and firmly grounded in the scholarly literature….This new social history will surely add much to an already complex and dramatic tale.”
American Historical Review
For The Ghost of the Executed Engineer: Technology and the Fall of the Soviet Union:
“In this gem of a book, Loren R. Graham, our foremost authority on Soviet science and technology, draws the reader into the life story of Peter Palchinsky, a remarkable Soviet engineer who was executed in 1929 for treason…Like all memorable books, [this one] leaves the reader wrestling with large questions. The fate of Palchinsky was specific to Stalinist Russia, but the story Mr. Graham tells prompts us to reflect on the tenuous position of the state-supported social critic in all places, at all times.”
New York Times Book Review
“[A] provocative and engaging volume.”
New Republic
“This remarkable book by Loren R. Graham deals with one of the many independent minds crushed by the Soviet government.”
American Historical Review
“A terrific read, and a needed reminder of what happens when technology is loosed from social responsibility.”
Boston Globe
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
One of Graham’s books, A Face in the Rock: The Tale of a Grand Island Chippewa, is a heavily researched account on the Chippewa Indians of Grand Island, a location very near to Graham’s summer home in Munising, MI.