You won’t get too far into Nancy Hiller’s new book, Shop Tails: The Animals Who Help Us Make Things Work, without realizing you’re reading more than a book about critters, writes Yaël Ksander in her review for the Limestone Reader. This isn’t the first time Hiller has used woodworking to explore much bigger issues, but Shop Tails was written “at a reckoning point.” Click here to read Yaël’s review.
Students in Rachel Bahr’s English 11 class at Bloomington’s Academy of Science and Entrepreneurship share their annual “Sense of Place” project with Limestone Post! While their unique “places” are as varied as a horse stable, a limestone mill, Dunn Meadow, Community Kitchen, and Monroe Lake, their videos teach us what we share as a community. Click here to learn about the project and watch their videos!
What happens when local news coverage disappears? Limestone Post asked journalist Steve Hinnefeld to look at the daily news landscape in Bloomington. He interviewed people at several local news outlets and filed this report. The landscape has changed recently in subtle and dramatic ways — some for the better, some not so much. Click here to read about who’s reporting B-town’s daily news.
In this inaugural edition of The Limestone Reader Book Review, Yaël Ksander looks at Ian Woollen’s fifth novel, Sister City, which she calls a “wickedly whimsical satire” that connects fictional “sister cities” in Indiana and Mexico. Yaël says Woollen, who lives in Bloomington, writes in the tradition of John Irving and Kurt Vonnegut. Click here to read the inaugural Limestone Reader Book Review.
The pandemic has affected writers and literary arts organizations in unique ways in the past 19 months, says writer Hiromi Yoshida. Several writers and organization leaders told Yoshida how they continue to work through the changes — and take their writing and organizations in new directions. The results, she writes, are inspirational and uplifting. Click here to read their stories.
All of us need a fun break, especially after 14 months of unprecedented isolation, and what’s a better getaway than a good road trip? Writer Diane Walker takes us to waterfalls, small towns, and several fun, affordable, and unusual sites on these “road trips of distinction” — all within a two-hour drive of Bloomington. Click here to join the ride!
For Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, the Writers Guild at Bloomington is featuring four Asian American performers for the virtual edition of its First Wednesdays Spoken Word Series on May 5. Writer Hiromi Yoshida wrote a preview of the event for LP. “To be Asian, however American, is dangerous in this volatile post-Trump era,” Hiromi writes. Click here for Hiromi’s article.
Bachelor Nation is the love–hate cultural bubble comprising the fans, podcasts, blogs, and adjacent programming of reality shows The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. This spring, real-life drama involving racism, sexism, inclusivity, and diversity have taken center stage. Jennifer Piurek explains it all in this article for her LP column Love to See It. Click here to read Jennifer’s column.
Duane Busick’s oral history of the Soup Bowl Benefit, in words and video, gives a behind-the-scenes look at the event that has raised $1.5 million for the Hoosier Hills Food Bank since 1994. This year, the 27th Soup Bowl includes actual soup bowls and a livestream music show. Click here for Duane’s oral history and to learn about this year’s event.
How does pop culture help us express what it is to be human? Jennifer Piurek will explore this and other themes in her Limestone Post column, “Love to See It” — her take on why trends, words, and various art forms help us “both navigate the world and care about life experiences different from our own.” Click here to read Jennifer’s first column!
As we look forward to 2021, it might serve us well to remember how our community responded with remarkable resilience and resolve to the challenges we faced — and continue to face — in this exceptionally challenging year. Limestone Post’s talented and dependable contributors kept us informed on many of the important topics of the time. Click here to read about LP’s Top Stories of 2020.
Abattoir Gallery, at 4th and Rogers streets in Bloomington, will exhibit across mediums while maintaining a safe space for LGBTQ+, Black, and brown people, says its lead curator, Gnat Bowden. Writer Ian Carstens attended the soft opening and says Abattoir “is an open door to the streets of Bloomington to challenge its anti-Black, anti-LGTBQ+ realities.” Click here to read about Abattoir Gallery.
