The Opposite of Cold

 

ETA: a complete list of author events for this book can be found here.

For part 2 of Book Week, I bring you this: The Opposite of Cold by Michael Nordskog, with photographs by Aaron W. Hautala.

This is a coffee table book in terms of size and lushness of photography, but it's also surprisingly filled with lively text that does more than just act as captions for the photos. Saunas were introduced to the Midwest by immigrant Finns. Yes, along, with Swedes and Norskes, Minnesota also has a sizable Finnish heritage, especially around the Iron Range and in towns like Embarrass and Finland (the latter of which also has an annual festival celebrating St. Urho, a mythical saint conjured up to compete with Ireland's St. Patrick).

Today there are many historical saunas dotting the countryside of Finnish-rooted communities in Minnesota, as well as Michigan and Wisconsin. Some are preserved and available for visitors, such as those included in the Sisu Heritage Tours around Embarrass.

The Opposite of Cold looks at the roots of the sauna, both originally in Finland and how it translated to the U.S. The accompanying photography is gorgeous, and illustrates the creativity of sauna builders over the years, from a sauna perched on the edge of a dock to wooden and stone saunas to barrel-shaped saunas to portable saunas built on skids. Since so many of these saunas are hidden away in the woods or near lakes, the photographer had some excellent natural beauty to work with.

So, whether you're looking for a beautiful coffee table book, or an interesting, well-researched study of this part of Minnesota history, check out The Opposite of Cold.

Note: the author and photographer are giving a talk and slide show this Thursday, Sept. 30, at the American Swedish Institute. A reception begins at 6, with the talk starting at 7. I suspect it'll be well worth a stop. More details here.

My thanks to the University of Minnesota Press for sending me a review copy of this lovely book.

Comments

[Carrie K]

That looks wonderful.

For a minute there, I thought Minnesota was dotted with mythical saunas but whoops. Speed reading. :)