Join us at Henry’s Books in Spearfish on Saturday, November 8 from noon to 2 pm when we will host local author Kathy Bjornestad and photographer Heidi Stefanich for the signing of their new poetry/photography book “Let There Be Birds!”
About the authors:
Kathy Bjornestad is a retired librarian and language arts teacher. She is a Wyoming Fellowship for Creative Fiction recipient, has placed in multiple writing contests, and has published widely. She is part of South Dakota’s 2024 Speakers’ Bureau and has four books out. You can find her at redheadswrite.net.
Heidi Stefanich: Ever since her father got Heidi her first Polaroid camera when she was a young girl, she has been fascinated with photography. She even built a pinhole camera for a grade school science project! Now, after a few decades, raising two kids and living lots of life, she has returned to the craft, finding that it fills a space inside her that craves creativity and beauty. Recently, Heidi’s work has appeared in Wyoming Wildlife magazine (Photo Issue 2021, 2017, 2016), The Wyoming Wildlife Calendar (2017), WREN Magazine (August 2019, September 2019), The 2021 Sundance Wyoming Visitors Guide, The Dahl Art Center’s Proof of Life Online Exhibit, and The Dahl Mountain Photo Competition + Exhibit as part of the Dahl Mountain Culture Festival (2022, 2021, 2020, 2018, 2017) in Rapid City, South Dakota. Her work has also been on exhibit at the Matthews Art Gallery in Spearfish, South Dakota in 2020 and 2021.
About the book:
A book to uplift. To comfort. To warm the soul.
The idea for "Let There Be Birds" sprang from a grandmother’s wish. Its pages delve into history, death and rebirth, and our connection to nature. This blend of poetry and photography celebrates our relationship with birds. The poems take many forms and are meant to be read aloud and shared with all ages, while the color photography captures moments of wonder in the avian world.
“Kathy Bjornestad’s poems are as delightful to the ear as the sweet song of a western meadowlark. Paired with Heidi Stefanich’s photographs, “Let There Be Birds” is a visual and literary feast.”--John Andrews, Editor of South Dakota Magazine
“Poems warble across these pages. Let There Be Birds somehow captures the flesh-and-blood weight of birds while celebrating the lifting wings that carry them. Study the photographs. Slowly read and allow the dropping of boundaries to pull you into the life of birds: ‘Five yellow finches bob and sway— / May expels a gusty spray, / cocks her arm / and flings . . .’ Nature the way it should be presented.”--Steve Boint, Founder of Scurfpea Publishing LLC, author of Winddance
