Mirage of Destiny wins gold in the 35th Midwest Book Awards!
Winners were announced during a June 28 gala at the Frey Theater in St. Paul
Mirage of Destiny, published by North Star Press of St. Cloud, won gold as the best book of 2024 in the Recreation/Sports/Travel category on Saturday night, June 28, in the 35th annual Midwest Book Awards, the major event of the year hosted by the Midwest Independent Publishers Association. The book, the inaugural work of author Kevin Allenspach, was among 83 titles from 50 different publishers in 32 categories that were finalists during a gala at the Frey Theater on the campus of St. Catherine University in St. Paul.
MIPA covers a region of the United States that includes Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. There were 265 entries, including 208 unique titles, from 118 different independent Midwestern publishers entered in the awards competition, which was judged by a panel of 56 booksellers and librarians.
Mirage of Destiny was one of two gold winners this year that were published by North Star Press. See the video below.
Curtis Weinrich and Liz Dwyer of North Star Press of St. Cloud join Kevin Allenspach in St. Paul.
Mirage of Destiny
The Story of the 1990-91 Minnesota North Stars
1st printing arrived Dec. 30, 2023, from North Star Press of St. Cloud. Deluxe dust jacket version (right) also available only through this website!
Book Release Events
Unveiling: Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Xcel Energy Center during the Wild-Sabres game
Unveiling: Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Xcel Energy Center during the Wild-Sabres game
Unveiling: Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Xcel Energy Center during the Wild-Sabres game
Among those who saw us unveil Mirage of Destiny: The Story of the 1990-91 Minnesota North Stars
was none other than Sue Nelson, who played the organ during games at Met Center. The Hockey Lodge will carry the book going forward, so you can pick it up at Wild games or during business hours.
Launch Party: Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024, at Tom Reid's Hockey City Pub, St. Paul
Unveiling: Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Xcel Energy Center during the Wild-Sabres game
Unveiling: Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Xcel Energy Center during the Wild-Sabres game
A couple former players added to a perfect environment to launch Mirage of Destiny: The Story of the 1990-91 Minnesota North Stars. Two of them -- Chris Dahlquist and Mike Craig -- helped celebrate the book's release all over North America via Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Indigo (Canada) and Target.
Central Minnesota Release Party: Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024, at the Blue Line in Sartell
Unveiling: Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Xcel Energy Center during the Wild-Sabres game
Central Minnesota Release Party: Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024, at the Blue Line in Sartell
We might've been busier with all the local readers and people I knew (and many I didn't) at our 3rd event for Mirage of Destiny: The Story of the 1990-91 Minnesota North Stars than any of the others. It was awesome to see acquaintances from my days covering sports at the
St. Cloud Times. Thank you to all!