Arts and Culture

Friday’s announcement that the 2020 Minnesota State Fair was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic was a painful one, bringing a loss of tradition and — for thousands — income. But two of the many fair vendors said it’s the right decision.

The tug of war between public health and the desire for normalcy in the COVID-19 era was on full display Friday as Minnesotans mourned the State Fair’s cancellation and debated the relative risk of large religious gatherings. Meanwhile, the disease claimed 33 more lives.

With more people staying home due to COVID-19, journalist Brigid Schulte says it's impossible to ignore "the fact that women bear so much more of the burden of child care and housework."

Plus, Art Hounds recommend two very different songs by Minnesota musicians.

Porochista Khakpour's work is strongest when she turns the lens on herself to examine how she, too, is complicit; many essays here are just too tantalizingly brief to allow space for deep analysis.

What if Hillary Clinton hadn’t married Bill Clinton? In her newest novel, “Rodham,” author Curtis Sittenfeld explores an alternate life for the former presidential candidate and secretary of state.

Edward Snowden handpicked Barton Gellman as one of three journalists he would work with to reveal government secrets. Gellman's book is an in-depth look at where he agreed and disagreed with Snowden.

While Suzanne Collins leaves readers uncertain of the answer to the question she poses in “The Hunger Games” — how much of character is innate, how much formed — it becomes painfully obvious here.

The novel “Rodham” explores what might have been for Hillary Clinton if she hadn’t married Bill Clinton. Kerri Miller shares her experience reading this what-if tale.

Ken Osmond's Eddie Haskell stood out among many memorable characters on the classic family sitcom “Leave it to Beaver,” which ran from 1957 to 1963 on CBS and ABC, but had a decades-long life of reruns and revivals.