Category Archives: Uncategorized

(This story is excerpted from Duck and Cover: Things Learned Waiting for the Bomb (c) 2025. Mark Munger. Find your copy under the “Books” tab on this website.) DEAD LETTER                      Davy Crockett stood tall in the midst of the Mexican horde. … Continue reading

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Remembering John Simon

John and Mark, FinnFest 2023 I met John Simon by a quirk of fate. I’d never heard of the man until, after being asked to participate in FinnFest 2023 (on the strength of my Finnish American trilogy of historical novels, … Continue reading

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Breaking Grandpa

Jack and Callie in Jack’s Solo Old Town Sometimes, my youngest son, a single, avid outdoorsman who works hard at his production job for a local company but plays equally hard on his three-day weekends (fishing every lake between Hayward … Continue reading

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Goodbye, My Friend …

Author John Simon and Me at FinnFest 2023 (Note: This eulogy was written for the Simon Family in lieu of me attending John’s upcoming Celebration of Life in NYC.) I met John Simon by a quirk of fate. I’d never … Continue reading

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Thanks, Ed!

Noted Northland blogger, writer, and reporter (Business North) recently read my second short story collection, Kulkuri (Vagabond) and Other Stories and had some very nice things to say about the work.  “Kulkuri (Vagabond) and Other Short Stories, is Munger’s second collection of … Continue reading

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Thanks, Doc!

Interview With Dr. Arne Vainio MM: Let’s start with some basics. You’re Finnish and Native American … AV: I’m 50% Finnish. I’m also 50% Ojibwe, also known as Anishinaabe. My paternal grandparents immigrated from Finland in the early 1900s. My … Continue reading

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To a Great Minnesotan

(Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and Her Mary Murphy Dinner Quilt. Photo by Meredith Cornett.) I didn’t know Speaker Melissa Hortman well. I didn’t know her husband Mark at all. But over the past year, I got a glimpse of the … Continue reading

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An Artist from the U.P.

INTERVIEW With KASEY KOSKI MM: Let’s start with the basics. Where were you born and where did you grow up? What, if any, Finnish language, cultural, art, and history influenced your early life? KK: I was born in L’Anse, MI … Continue reading

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Great News!

I’m pleased to share with you my friends and Munger readers that my latest novel, published in September 2023, Muckraker, a Novel Noir, is now available through Minnesota libraries as an online read. You’ll find the book at:https://library.biblioboard.com/content/0cdaeb50-c61a-4bad-bfbb-c812aa51a804It’s another way … Continue reading

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A Fine Pair to Draw To!

  Recently, I had the great pleasure to conduct an interview with Ralph and Jaana Tuttila, two renowned Finnish American musicians about their efforts to preserve Finnish and Finnish American music and culture. Here’s the interview: MM: Ralph. Where did … Continue reading

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