Wednesday, September 2, 9am to 5 pm
Minnesota State Fair*

Going to the Great Minnesota Get-Together? Stop by our tent in Carousel Park (in front of the grandstand) during Read & Ride Day for these fun bookish activities:

9:00 to 10:30: GOOD MORNING POEMS
Write a short “good morning poem” using a variety of impromptu exercises with Minnesota poet John Colburn. Maybe you’ll want to read it to a fellow fairgoer—it’s a great way to make poetry and make friends!

10:30 to 12:00: ANIMAL LIT
Moorhead teacher Kevin Carollo comes to the Fair to make cardboard animals (and the language they might use) with fairgoers of all ages. Take your special animal with you or add it to our amazing Animal Lit exhibit, up all day!

12:00 to 1:30: POETRY TAROT
Stop by for a very special Tarot reading by local poet Paula Cisewski—instead of telling your fortune, she will write you a poem on the spot based on your cards!

1:00 to 2:00: DESSA BOOKSIGNING
Meet Minnesota writer and hip-hop recording and performing artist Dessa, who will chat with fairgoers and sign copies of her Rain Taxi chapbook A Pound of Steam.

2:00 to 3:30: SONGWRITING MAD LIBS
Acclaimed local poet-troubadour Brian Laidlaw will lead a drop-in songwriting workshop, in which fairgoers can draft lyrics on the spot and create their very own State-Fair-inspired musical masterpiece.

3:30 to 5:00: COLLABORATIVE COMICS JAM
Join graphic novelist and comics professor Ursula Murray Husted in creating a gigantic collaborative comic! All ages and drawing abilities welcome, and you can pop in for 5 minutes or stay as long as you like. Let's make a State Fair comic to remember, together!

Enter our drawing for a Rain Taxi prize package!

*Read & Ride Day is sponsored by our awesome partners at Metro Public Libraries. Don’t forget, on this day public library cardholders receive discounted admission to the Minnesota State Fair when you purchase your ticket at the gate and show your library card. For details on discounted prices, see HERE.