A young-adult novel about a boy who enters an eating contest is the next pick for One Book / One Minnesota as the statewide book club heads into its second year.
"Slider," by National Book Award winner Pete Hautman, is the story of a 14-year-old named David, who accidentally charges $2,000 on his mom's credit card and needs desperately to raise the money to pay it back. David also has a little brother with autism, and "it's this thread that gives the novel its deeper moments," according to a review that ran in the Star Tribune.
Hautman, who divides his time between the Twin Cities and Wisconsin, is the author of more than 30 books for adults, young adults and middle-grade students, including "Sweetblood," winner of a Minnesota Book award, and "Godless," winner of a National Book Award.
One Book / One Minnesota is a joint venture of the Friends of the St. Paul Public Library and the Minnesota Department of Education. It began last March as a way to bring people together during the pandemic.
From March through April, Minnesotans can access the e-book of "Slider" for free on the Ebooks Minnesota website. A virtual discussion with Hautman will take place at 1 p.m. April 21 — it's free but registration is required. Go to thefriends.org/onebook.
Previous titles discussed in the One Book / One Minnesota club were "Because of Winn-Dixie," by Kate DiCamillo; "A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota," edited by Sun Yung Shin, and "A Plague of Doves" by Louise Erdrich.
Laurie Hertzel • @StribBooks
