'Sky Blue Water' collection sparks controversy with its foreword

This fall, the University of Minnesota Press released a new collection of middle grade and young adult stories written by Minnesota authors from around the state: "Sky Blue Water."

The goal of the collection is to showcase the many realities of young Minnesotans, from Rainy Lake to Lake Calhoun.

But when contributor Shannon Gibney sat down with an early copy of the book, a line in the foreword by storyteller Kevin Kling caught her off guard.

"I came across a line about how Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas, and I kind of just yelped and jumped up from my couch. I was like: What is this?!" Gibney said.

Seeing such a dated colonial narrative — of Columbus "discovering" America — in a collection intended for modern readers was upsetting for Gibney. She raised concerns with the Press, and editors agreed. They pulled 4,000 copies and reprinted it.

In an email to the Star Tribune, the Press said it "deeply regrets the unintended and incorrect meaning of this phrase. This error is out of step with the spirit of inclusiveness the team on this volume is committed to and worked to achieve in the development of the book."

The Press said the line wasn't written by Kling, but instead introduced during the editing process.

Gibney and two of the other contributors to the collection joined MPR News host Tom Weber to discuss the controversial foreword, and to talk about their stories in the now-edited version of "Sky Blue Water."

Marcie Rendon wrote the story "Worry and Wonder," which is about a young girl in foster care and her "relationship with the Indian Child Welfare Act."

"Growing up when I would go the school libraries, there were never any books about Native people. And so my hope is that any Native kid who picks up this book will be able to find a story about themselves or their family or somebody they can relate to, Rendon said. "That's basically why I write."

Kirstin Cronn-Mills' story in the collection, "My Icy Valentine," brings back the awkwardness of first crushes, but sets the story out on a frozen lake. A girl screws up the courage to tell a boy she likes him, but it turns out the boy is gay.

"People think the world is safe now for LBGTQ people and the answer is, oh no it's not. Oh no it's not," Cronn-Mills said.

Gibney's story in the book revolves around a Liberian-American boy in Brooklyn Center who keeps getting in fights with black students.

"I don't feel like this [original] foreword creates a space for that kind of story — which to me is a Minnesota story. That's problematic," Gibney said.

"Sky Blue Water" publication party

There will be a publication party for "Sky Blue Water" at Rose Street Patisserie in Minneapolis on Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. (More details.)

To hear the entire discussion, use the audio player above.