Eating, Reading and Living Well is an annual series of films, readings and presentations for youth and adults focusing on learning to live a healthier life. All programs are free and open to the public. Presented by The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library and sponsored by Mississippi Market
Documentary Film Screening:
“Symphony of the Soil”
Tuesday, March 26, 7 p.m.
Highland Park Branch Library, Hillcrest Auditorium
1974 Ford Parkway, Saint Paul
The fourth annual Eating, Reading and Living Well series will kick off with a screening of the documentary film “Symphony of the Soil” which examines our human relationship with soil, its use and misuse in agriculture, and the latest research on its key role in the most challenging environmental issue of our time. Filmed on four continents, featuring esteemed scientists and working farmers and ranchers, “Symphony of the Soil” is an intriguing presentation that highlights possibilities of healthy soil creating healthy plants, healthy humans, and a healthy planet.
Click here to view the trailer.
Documentary Film Screening:
“Last Call at the Oasis”
Wednesday, April 10, 6 p.m.
Merriam Park Library
1831 Marshall Avenue, Saint Paul
The global water crisis will be the central issue facing our world this century. We can manage this problem, but only if we are willing to act now. "Last Call at the Oasis" is a powerful documentary that shatters myths behind our most precious resource and sheds light on the vital role water plays in our lives. Developed, financed and executive produced by Participant Media, the company responsible for "An Inconvenient Truth," "Waiting for Superman," and "Food, Inc."
Click here to view the trailer.
Turn Here, Sweet Corn: Organic Farming Works
Wednesday, April 17, 7 p.m.
Highland Park Library
1974 Ford Parkway, Saint Paul
Minnesota Book Award winner Atina Diffley returns to the neighborhood where she first partnered with series sponsor Mississippi Market. This award-winning memoir offers a master class in organic farming, a lesson in entrepreneurship, a love story, and a legal thriller. Diffley, the owner of one of the first certified organic produce farms in the Midwest, Gardens of Eagan, tells her story of working the land, and reminds us that we live in relationships—with the earth, plants and animals, families and communities. Making these essential relationships work in the face of challenges from weather to corporate politics, hers is a firsthand history of getting in at the “ground level” of organic farming. She will talk about her book, ecological diversity and organic farming.
Food Writing: Why People Read It – and How to Do It Well!
Wednesday, May 1, 6:30 p.m.
Rondo Community Outreach Library
461 North Dale Street, Saint Paul
Claire Stanford, managing editor and writer at Simple, Good and Tasty and Eater Minneapolis, will lead us through great food writing and show us how to write about what we eat.
Stanford teaches Food Writing and Food Blogging at the Loft Literary Center.
Minnesota’s Bounty: The Farmers Market Cookbook
Wednesday, May 15, 7 p.m.
Merriam Park Library,
1831 Marshall Avenue, Saint Paul
Minnesota’s Bounty is a user’s guide to shopping and cooking from your local farmers market, and it applies a practical, easy approach to creating a truly seasonal kitchen. Join author Beth Dooley and photographer Mette Nielsen as they present a fresh look at our region’s sustainably grown foods, the timeless activity of picking ingredients, and some exciting new ways to prepare them. Dooley has suggestions and recipes that inspire simple, modern, and healthy meals following an ingredients-first philosophy, helping readers to be more confident and spontaneous both at the market and in the kitchen.
Summer Reading Program: RAD ZOO
Wednesday, June 12, 10:30 a.m.
West 7th Library
265 Oneida Street, Saint Paul
Mississippi Market is proud to help kick off summer with fun at the library, reading, and healthy snacks. RAD ZOO (Reptile and Amphibian Discovery Zoo) will show and teach us about their live, slithery, and scaly friends.
All programs are free and open to the public.
Sponsored by Mississippi Market, with two Saint Paul Locations:
622 Selby Avenue • 1500 W. 7th Street