Eric Dregni

Eric Dregni teaches creative writing at the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul, Minnesota, and Italian at Hamline University and at the University of Minnesota. He is the author of several books, including Minnesota Marvels (Minnesota, 2001) and Midwest Marvels (Minnesota, 2006), and In Cod We Trust. ... (more)The Visiting Author Series is sponsored by the Friends of the Rochester Public Library. All library services and events are free and open to the public.

Local author Eric Dregni will discuss his new book, “Never Trust a Thin Cook and Other Lessons from Italy’s Culinary Capital”, on Tuesday, November 3 at 4:00 p.m. at the University of Minnesota Bookstore in Coffman Memorial Union, 300 Washington Ave. S.E. Minneapolis. Discover Moderna, Italy, the ... (more)birthplace of balsamic vinegar, Ferrari and Luciano Pavarotti, in Eric Dregni’s classic American abroad tale “Never Trust a Thin Cook and Other Lessons from Italy’s Culinary Capital”. Filled with adventures, awkward social moments and lots of very good food, Dregni recounts his experience of living in Italy. Sample an authentic portrait of how Italians live and a hilarious demonstration of how American and Italian cultures differ while learning the secrets of Italian cuisine through Dregni’s observations and wit. Dregni is also the author of “In Cod We Trust”, “Minnesota Marvels”, and “Midwest Marvels”. Dregni will sign copies of his book following the discussion. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, or to order a signed copy visit www.bookstore.umn.edu/genref/authors.html.

Eric Dregni is an author from Minneapolis, Minnesota who has written and co-written a number of books on various recreational activities and aspects of Minnesotan culture.

Local and award-winning author Eric Dregni will discuss his book, “In Cod We Trust”, on Wednesday, April 22 at 4:00 p.m. at the University of Minnesota Bookstore in Coffman Memorial Union, 300 Washington Ave. S.E. Minneapolis. Dregni delivers a cross-cultural memoir that tells the hair-raising, hilarious ... (more)and sometimes poignant stories of his family’s yearlong Norwegian experiment. Dregni and his expectant wife returned to the land that his great-grandfather fled in 1893 to spend a year immersed in all aspect of Scandinavian culture. “In Cod We Trust” is Dregni’s account of this adventure that included eating herring cakes, experiencing a generous health care system, trying to say warm in a remote grass-roofed hut, and surviving a dinner of fermented fish as they experienced the land of the midnight sun. Dregni will sign copies of his book following the discussion. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, or to order a signed copy visit www.bookstore.umn.edu/genref/authors.html.

Join us for this free event with conversation,food and drink with Eric. His book In Cod we Trust, living the Norwegian Dream. Food provided by the Marina Market.

A vivid portrayal of modern Norway through the eyes of a fourth-generation Norwegian American from Minnesota.

Eric Dregni’s great-grandfather Ellef fled Norway in 1893 when it was the poorest country in Europe. More than one hundred years later, his great-grandson traveled back to find that—mostly ... (more)due to oil and natural gas discoveries—it is now the richest. The circumstances of his return were serendipitous, as the notice that Dregni won a Fulbright Fellowship to go there arrived the same week as the knowledge that his wife Katy was pregnant. Braving a birth abroad and benefiting from a remarkably generous health care system, the Dregnis’ family came full circle when their son Eilif was born in Norway.

In this cross-cultural memoir, Dregni tells the hair-raising, hilarious, and sometimes poignant stories of his family’s yearlong Norwegian experiment. Among the exploits he details are staying warm in a remote grass-roofed hytte (hut), surviving a dinner of rakfisk (fermented fish) thanks to 80-proof aquavit, and identifying his great-grandfather’s house in the Lusterfjord only to find out it had been crushed by a boulder and then swept away by a river. To subsist on a student stipend, he rides the meat bus to Sweden for cheap salami with a busload of knitting pensioners. A week later, he and his wife travel to the Lofoten Islands and gnaw on klippefisk (dried cod) while cats follow them through the streets.

Dregni’s Scandinavian roots do little to prepare him and his family for the year in Trondheim eating herring cakes, obeying the conformist Janteloven (Jante’s law), and enduring the mřrketid (dark time). In Cod We Trust is one Minnesota family’s spirited excursion into Scandinavian life. The land of the midnight sun is far stranger than they previously thought, and their encounters show that there is much we can learn from its unique and surprising culture.

Eric Dregni teaches creative writing at the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul, Minnesota, and Italian at Hamline University and at the University of Minnesota. He is the author of several books, including Minnesota Marvels (Minnesota, 2001) and Midwest Marvels (Minnesota, 2006).

Please join us for this Norwegian party. Along with a reading from author Eric Dregni from In Cod We Trust: Living the Norwegian Dream, there will be Norwegian fare and music.