"Dean Robbins's Wisconsin Idols combines a youthfully innocent wonder at the magic of stardom with a seasoned journalist's incisive analysis of what makes these stars so remarkable-and how they are linked in some way to Wisconsin. The result is one hundred snapshots that range widely, including some greats you've probably never heard of, all told with a born storyteller's vision and verve. It's a great read."--Bruce Murphy, editor and award-winning columnist, Urban Milwaukee

"I loved being a 1950s student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where my professional writing career began. Now, thanks to Dean Robbins's Wisconsin Idols, I've belatedly discovered Wisconsin's cultural richness. It's a fascinating, sharply written index to his mind, and just as important, a reminder that the USA is not just a union of states, but a union of cultural streams, fascinating people, and high achievers. These are people you need to know, from cultural icons to unknowns who should be known. On Wisconsin!"--Avi, Newbery Medal-winning children's author

"Lucky me, I'm included in Dean Robbins's wonderful, skillfully written book. I had no idea that many of these extraordinary people had Wisconsin connections. Wisconsin Idols is artful, thoughtful, and sharp-sighted-and it's bursting with interesting facts and one fascinating anecdote after another."--Kevin Henkes, Caldecott Medal-winning children's author

"Wisconsin Idols sheds light on my quirky home state and the legendary individuals who have left their mark on the world after passing through it. Dean Robbins puts a personal spin on their stories, offering critical analysis, little-known details, and revelatory anecdotes. His essays are infused with wit and flair, especially in the chapter where he dives into my work with Nirvana on Nevermind. It's a wild ride through history that keeps you hooked." --Butch Vig, Grammy Award-winning music producer and drummer for the band Garbage

"Not only are the stories in Wisconsin Idols inspiring, exhilarating and moving-they gave me a whole new way of seeing this state. Not just as a collection of towns and streets and gentle hills, but as a landscape of stories, inhabited by the traces of legendary makers, creators, doers, and thinkers. I'll never travel Wisconsin again without wondering 'what happened here?' and 'who lived there?' This is placemaking at its finest. What an absolute gift."--Anne Strainchamps, Peabody Award-winning host and cocreator of the National Public Radio program To the Best of Our Knowledge

"Each monograph is a tightly written paean to a hero, a protagonist, a mentor, a friend. Any of you readers fortunate enough to grab a copy, congratulations!"--André De Shields, Tony and Emmy Award-winning actor

"Dean is a Wisconsin Idol par excellence, a writer to be celebrated for his curiosity, his great good humor, his elegant prose, his inherent grooviness, and his range of interests. Someone needs to sneak his profile into this wonderful book!"--Jane Hamilton, PEN/Hemingway Award-winning novelist