Author Garrison Keillor paid a visit to WFU this morning, sponsored by Bookmarks. I got to be the official photographer for the event (because we couldn't find a real photographer who was free on a Monday morning! ), and I took D along as my assistant.
We worked hard but had a great time. For any GK fans who are wondering, I'm happy to report that he was most charming, witty, and gracious. He was ostensibly promoting his new book, but he gave an hour-long talk on topics ranging from church music to Elizabethan sonnets.
Dagfari's synopsis: "He said that his writing style originally came from his childhood and his family's religious beliefs. Also that it was good that he suffered as a child, because through suffering comes a need to express oneself. He had to read the King James bible a lot, so he was prepared when, at school, his teacher had him memorize Shakespeare and other poets."[Shakespeare trivia from Dagfari: Shakespeare may actually have contributed to or edited the KJV. He would have been 35 years old when it was written, and the 35th word from the beginning is "shake" and the 35th word from the end is "spear".]
GK also talked a lot about poetry in general and sonnets in particular, especially about the way the limitations of the sonnet form help to distill a writer's thoughts by forcing him to choose his words carefully.
We had a great time, and I even got some good pictures!
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