Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz wants the residents of the Land of 10,000 Lakes to start “the state’s largest book club.”
Walz, who has been self-isolating with his family after coming in contact with someone with COVID-19, posted a video on Twitter and Facebook featuring him and his family sitting in front of a fireplace, discussing the books they’ve been enjoying.
Let's start the state's largest book club. What are you reading, Minnesota? 📚
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) March 29, 2020
Gwen: Mississippi Sissy
Hope: Uneasy Peace
Gus: Xbox tournament (working on it)
Me: Just finished Cryptonomicon, looking for suggestions. pic.twitter.com/dq7RdoCz4P
“I just finished reading Neal Stephenson’s Cryptonomicon,” Walz says, holding up an e-reader edition of the hefty novel. “If you’re interested in a really exciting book that spans from Douglas MacArthur to Bitcoin—and I’m wondering why it hasn’t been made into a movie—that’s for you.”
Walz’s daughter, Hope, reveals that she’s reading Patrick Sharkey’s Uneasy Peace for a sociology class she’s taking, while his wife, Gwen, says that she’s recently reread Kevin Sessums’ memoir Mississippi Sissy.
Not every Walz appears on camera. “In the spirit of authenticity, [son] Gus is not right here this moment,” Gwen Walz says, “because his Xbox tournament is wrapping up.”
“We’re working on it,” Tim Walz says, shaking his head.
Gus made an appearance in a later video. “Gus’ tournament is over, and he does actually read books,” Tim Walz says, his son sitting behind him. The younger Walz says he’s reading Matthew Stover’s novelization of the movie Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, which he digs “because a bunch of dark things happen in it.”
On Twitter, readers were quick to share suggestions for other books homebound Minnesotans might enjoy, including Amor Towles’ A Gentleman in Moscow, Trevor Noah’s Born a Crime, and Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad.
Michael Schaub is a Texas-based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.