5 X Friday: MFA Alum Kevin Fenton

In his new memoir, Leaving Rollingstone, Kevin Fenton (MFA 2005) offers a summary of his story of growing up in a village outside Winona: "I liked those humans. I am sad they are gone." But of course the book covers so much more: the impact of pop culture in the 1960s and '70s (he's the little brother of dancing fiends); the unique nurturance of a Catholic education for rural kids not drawn to farming; the richness of families (nuclear and affective); the tricky weight of inheritance; and the discovery of vocation. In Fenton's case, it's clear the latter is writing--which he's committed to as both a creative writer and an advertising creative. He'll be launching the memoir with the help of local literati Sept 12 at Common Good Books; for now he's got answers to our five questions. . . .

English in the News

Alumna Lucille Broderson (BA 1937) is interviewed, along with her long-time teacher and editor Professor Emeritus Michael Dennis Browne, in CLA's REACH magazine about her second collection of poetry, You're Wearing a Blue Shirt the Color of the Sky: Selected Poems (Nodin). REACH also spotlights reviews of books by alums Matt Burgess and Elizabeth Bourque Johnson. . . . MFA alumnus Burgess, author of the acclaimed debut novel Dogfight, a Love Story, was interviewed this month in the Star Tribune, for the "My Minnesota" feature. . . . Distinguished McKnight University Professor John Watkins was quoted in a Star Tribune article about the American fascination with British royalty. Watkins is also interviewed on the University home page this week. . . . Finally Edelstein-Keller Professor in Creative Writing Charles Baxter's latest story collection Gryphon is reviewed by Claire Messud in the April 28 New York Review of Books.

Alum Matt Burgess in New York Times

Congrats to 2009 MFA alumnus Matt Burgess, whose debut novel Dogfight (Doubleday) was reviewed positively in the Sunday Oct 17 New York Times Book Review.