For October’s Publisher of the Month, we went local with independent nonprofit Coffee House Press.

CHP was founded in 1972 as Toothpaste Press, when its late founder Allan Kornblum saw an opportunity to create his ideal publishing house. From a mimeo magazine to letterpress publisher, CHP has evolved into a trade publisher with international reach.

Through their literary publications and their Books in Action model, CHP acts as a catalyst and connector—between authors and readers, ideas and resources, creativity and community, inspiration and action.

Located in Northeast Minneapolis in the historic Grain Belt Beer bottling building, Coffee House Press publishes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.

My personal favorite among the fantastic authors on CHP’s list is poet Ron Padgett. Several of his books have been published by Coffee House, including Pulitzer Prize finalist How Long, and most recently,  Alone and Not Alone. Padgett’s deceptively casual, easygoing phrases lead you smoothly down the page, until you’re suddenly tripped up by a humorous anticlimax or unexpectedly touching image.

There’s plenty of love for Coffee House Press among the staff here at M&Q. Gary is a fan of Margaret Aldrich’s The Little Free Library Book, because of the revolution that Little Free Libraries have created all over the world.

Derek recommends Laurie Foos’ The Blue Girl and Eimar McBride’s Girl is a Half-Formed Thing.

Ann says The Latehomecomer by Kao Kalia Yang is always a classic, and a Twin Cities must-read, especially for St. Paul residents.

Ann also wants us all to be on the lookout for the upcoming collection of short stories from Brian Evenson. “His stories are so disturbing and fresh and not like anything else you’ve read. They keep haunting you long after you’ve put the book down.” Look for A Collapse of Horses in February 2016!

The display will be up for the rest of October, but we promise we have Coffee House Press titles in the store year round! To find out more about Coffee House Press, its books, and its mission, visit the website, coffeehousepress.org.