Event

"Fritiof’s Story" release event

Wednesday, April 19, 2017 • 7:00 pm

"Fritiof’s Story," a book written by Augustana English professor emerita Dr. Ann Boaden, will be released at the Augustana Historical Society meeting. The program is free and open to the public.

The book was inspired by stories from the boyhood of Dr. Fritiof Fryxell, a Moline native who founded the Augustana Department of Geology and become internationally known as geologist, mountaineer and writer. 

The college’s geology museum, containing one of the most expansive collections in the Midwest, is named for him. Fryxell and Boaden initially worked together on the young adult novel, and Boaden completed it three decades after his 1986 death.

Part historical, part fictional, the book tells the story of a Swedish-American working-class family from the west end of Moline during the summer of 1912. The novel chronicles how this family copes with an unexpected disaster.  Characters and situations are based on Fryxell’s reminiscences recorded by Boaden.

Illustrated by local artist William Hannan, "Fritiof’s Story" will take readers to a time long gone, yet familiar to those acquainted with the history of the Quad Cities. Peopled with historical characters, the book appeals to local history buffs, and friends of Augustana College, as well as to those who enjoy interesting characters and a glimpse of how a genius is born.