Arts & Culture

Our Readers’ Favorite Books of 2025

The books—old and new—that our readers and staff enjoyed this year

How a Small Nebraska Town Became an Arts Destination

The Bone Creek Museum of Agrarian Art has put David City on the map

‘Homesick for the Land Itself’

Author, farmer and advocate Brooks Lamb on cultivating common ground through love for the land

Coal Country Thanksgiving

The meaning of an old mountain tradition before it became “heritage cooking”

At Gilliard Farms, Food, Healing and Heritage Grow Together

For 150 years, a family of Gullah Geechee descent has preserved their story through family land

How an Oil Boom Town Is Building New Opportunities Outside of the Oil Field

A decade after the Bakken oil rush, Watford City has remade itself into a growing community by keeping young people local

Farm Aid, at 40, Offers a Lifeline for Farmers Facing Their Worst Crisis in Decades

Willie Nelson, Neil Young and Bob Dylan headline a milestone 12-hour benefit concert

Iowa Republicans Are Erasing the State’s History

Sixty percent of the historical society archives are being trashed with no transparency

Will Cuts in Rural Programs Leave the Same Lasting Wounds as the 2008 Financial Crisis?

Rural families like mine are still grappling with the long-term mental health consequences of housing loss
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From Midwest Connections

Midwest Connections

On Caucus Day in Iowa, a Different Kind of Spin Cycle

Ordinary acts of care teach us to look beyond false claims to glory

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Politics
July 16, 2025

What You Can Do to Protect Public Radio and TV

Our public media was designed to be free from political interference. Let’s keep it that way.

Culture
June 23, 2025

Spearfishing Makes a Splash in Michigan

How one man’s passion brought new life to the sport in the Great Lakes

Agriculture
June 16, 2025

Barbara Damrosch’s Life in the Garden

The acclaimed garden writer’s latest book is part memoir, part garden guide and part call to action