Michael Patrickf Smith News Today

A new book chronicles the stories of sometimes broken, often desperate men who ventured to the northern plains in service of an industry that exemplifies late-stage capitalism.

We asked, you answered! From Louise Erdrich novels to oil field memoirs — see a list of books that will help you learn more about our state.

Hear musician and author Michael Patrick F. Smith read from acclaimed book, "The Good Hand," perform original songs, and answer questions from the audience at an author event at Zandbroz Variety in Fargo.

Tuesday, April 19, 2022 - Michael Patrick F. Smith is on a book tour in North Dakota about his time in the bakken. His book is The Good Hand: A Memoir of Work, Brotherhood, and Transformation in an American Boomtown. He visits with Bill Thomas. ~~~ In this week’s Natural North Dakota, we learn about an upcoming meteor shower. ~~~ April is National Poetry Month. We share an excerpt from a recent episode of The Great American Folk Show.

The downtown bookstore will welcome fiction and nonfiction writers at the upcoming events.

Letter to the Editor: A note on oil patch workers Carlsbad Current-Argus A note on oil patch workers The debate over the impact of gas and oil on our environment and economy seems to have skipped over an important facet of the issues. What about the mental, emotional and physical health of those who work in the oil patch? What place do oil booms and busts have in shaping the lives of individuals, communities and economies?  Reading Michael Patrick F. Smith’s The Good Hand which relates his...

But there is no harvest without work. Written By: Mike Jacobs | × Mike Jacobs, Grand Forks Herald columnist. GRAND FORKS — In another dry spring not so many years ago, while the wind howled and the dust blew, I expressed alarm to my farmer neighbor. He shrugged his shoulders and said, “Plant in the dust and the bins will bust.” I laughed then, but as I’ve mulled those words through the years, I come to respect their profound message of resignation and of hope. So, on Saturday, I p...

North Dakota’s Gold Rush: A Memoir About the Fracking Boom A new book chronicles the stories of sometimes broken, often desperate men who ventured to the northern plains in service of an industry that exemplifies late-stage capitalism. Clay S. Jenkinson, Editor-at-Large   |   April 4, 2021 Michael Patrick F. Smith would not seem to fit the profile of an oil field worker. He’s an actor, a musician and a playwright who sublet his Brooklyn, N.Y., apartme...

The Promises and Pitfalls of a Modern-Day Boomtown A decade ago, Williston, N.D., became a magnet for desperate men, thanks to oil in the Bakken Formation. In an interview, author Michael Smith talks about life in an oil patch and the human cost of fueling the nation. Clay S. Jenkinson, Editor-at-Large   |   April 2, 2021   |  Features You can listen to the companion audio version of this and other essays in the series using the player belo...

By Michael Patrick F. Smith Viking: 464 pages, $29 If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookstores. What are you doing right now? Have you taken any risks lately? When’s the last time you were truly scared? In the summer of 2012, Michael Patrick F. Smith read an article in Men’s Journal about the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota. At the time, he was working a white-collar job in lower Manhattan, living in Bro...