Image courtesy J Ryan Stradal Facebook
The Pasadena Public Library will host author J. Ryan Stradal on Tuesday, August 17, on the Authors and Their Journeys series, where he presents his book “The Lager Queen of Minnesota,” a novel of family, Midwestern values, hard work, fate and the secrets of making a world-class beer, on Zoom, from 5 to 6 p.m.
From the bestselling author of “Kitchens of the Great Midwest,” the new book by Stradal tells the story of two sisters, one farm, and a family that’s split when their father leaves their shared inheritance entirely to Helen, his younger daughter. Despite baking award-winning pies at the local nursing home, her older sister, Edith, struggles to make what most people would call a living. So she can’t help wondering what her life would have been like with even a portion of the farm money her sister kept for herself.
In the book, the reader meets a cast of lovable, funny, quintessentially American characters eager to make their mark in a world that’s often stacked against them. In this deeply affecting family saga, resolution can take generations, but when it finally comes, many are surprised, moved, and delighted.
Stradal grew up in the Midwest, in the southern Minnesota town of Hastings, where he often failed his driver’s license exams. He graduated from Northwestern University, where he often slipped on the ice. He does not own a gun and a motorcycle, which makes him unique among the men in his extended family.
His second novel, “The Lager Queen of Minnesota” was published by Viking/Pamela Dorman Books in July 2019. Receiving starred reviews from Kirkus, Booklist, and BookPage, it became a national bestseller its first week of release, and was named one of the best books of the year by NPR, USA Today, Booklist, Paste, and the Texas Library Association, among other places. In 2019, he did a 61-stop book tour that took him to bookstores, libraries, and breweries in 15 states between July and December. The TV rights for Lager Queen are presently being negotiated.
In 2020, “The Lager Queen of Minnesota” was named the winner of the Willa Literary Award by Women Writing the West, to honor the best in literature that feature women’s or girls’ stories set in the West, and was a finalist for the Heartland Booksellers Award.
Stradal is now based in Los Angeles.
To register for the free event, visit www.cityofpasadena.net/
For more information, call (626) 744-4066.
