We are so pleased to be going back to Steger Mukluk store in Ely, MN February 9th, 2019 at 11 am! Author Katherine Johnson and I will whoop it up with our fans in Ely, MN this weekend. In the bold north, not only are we not afraid of winter we celebrate it. There will be lots of activities in the region celebrating the Winter Festival. On February 16th, there will be a Mukluk Ball at the Grand Ely Lodge. And on February 9th, there will be a Mukluk Ball at the Hygge Festival in Grand Marais, MN. Come read, dance and get a signed book at our book party, Steger Mukluks, 33 East Sheridan St., Ely, MN 55731
Dance Like Nobody Is Watching
After a warm welcome we held our book event and had so much fun. Katharine read the story to the children and I got the kids to dance!
In the book, during the Mukluk Ball, Karhu the bear and Millie the do-si-do champion made up a new dance called The Bear Hug Twist. I showed the kids some dance moves and then I had them make up three dance moves to combine into our very own Bear Hug Twist. We twizzled and hopped, some in shoes and others in boots. The kids were great and now they are ready to dance with Karhu the bear.
The Mukluk Store is featured in THE MUKLUK BALL, Karhu the bear wants his own pair of Mukluks to wear to the Mukluk Ball. Karhu picks blueberries and sells them with bear hugs at the blueberry festival to earn money for his new boots. We were astounded by our own good fortune. Steger's was very generous and gave Katharine and I each a pair of boots! I have never had such nice, comfortable boots. And they were very supportive of our book. What a wonderful way to begin the long cold season with beautiful, warm mukluks!
Kid Tested. Kid Approved.
Today, Katharine Johnson and I signed our book, THE MUKLUK BALL. We sold out of books before the morning was over at the @MNHSPress booth during the MEA Convention #meamn18 for Minnesota teachers. educationminnesota.org
It has been such a blast working with Katharine and the Minnesota Historical Society Press on this book launch. Pre-order your copy here!
We got to meet and greet lots of great teachers today. Minnesota has many wonderful teachers and they are part of what makes this state a nice place to live. Thank you teachers for all your hard work and sharing THE MUKLUK BALL with your students!
It has been such a blast working with Katharine and the Minnesota Historical Society Press on this book launch. Pre-order your copy here!
We got to meet and greet lots of great teachers today. Minnesota has many wonderful teachers and they are part of what makes this state a nice place to live. Thank you teachers for all your hard work and sharing THE MUKLUK BALL with your students!
Pioneer Press Article — The Mukluk Ball
link to article
New books provide teachable moments for young readers – and fun!
by Mary Ann Grossmann
PICTURE BOOKS
“The Mukluk Ball” by
Katharine Johnson, illustrated by Alicia Schwab (Minnesota Historical
Society Press, $16.95.) Put this “up north” picture book at the top of
your Christmas gift list. It is one of the most joyful tales (tails?) of
the season. Karhu, the bear, tells his owl friend Zazaa that this is
the year he’s going to the Mukluk Ball, Finn Town’s liveliest winter
event. But he has to earn money to buy mukluks, so he picks blueberries
and sells them at the Blueberry Festival. It’s $2 “for a PAW-ful” that
comes with a real bear hug.
Karhu
laces up his mukluks and learns to dance; Millie twirls him in a polka;
Mary Ann the librarian shows him the boogie-woogie, and Inga the
folksinger teaches him the chachacha. But Karhu has a problem. The ball
is in January and he can’t stay awake. So he takes a nap snug in his den
until Zazaa wakes him to go to the ball, where the Finn Hall band plays
and Karhu “twirled and whirled, twizzled and spun” until he fell asleep
on Inga’s shoulder. It takes the Shagawa Square Dancers to take him to
their bus and then he is pulled home on a dog sled.
Back home, Karhu snored and dreamed of dancing. His toes tapped in time to the music of the Mukluk Ball.
Author
Johnson says she wears mukluks all winter in Cloquet. Illustrator
Schwab, who lives in Minneapolis, calls this a super fun project for
which “I danced and listened to a lot of music to fall into the rhythm
of the book’s illustrations.” Her colorful, muscular pictures leave no
doubt this is a northern Minnesota story, from the log cabin-style
buildings to Karhu’s den (with a round window), rabbits tobogganing, and
happy dogs pulling the sleeping bear on the sled. Even the endpapers
are covered with colorful floral designs and different pairs of mukluks.
There’s lots of hugging and happiness in this book that will make
readers of all ages smile.
Johnson and Schwab will launch their book at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 17, at Red Balloon Bookshop, 891 Grand Ave., St. Paul.