The author is a long-time resident of Wisconsin and a former editor of the Milwaukee Journal and CEO of the satire publication, The Onion. The book is a compilation of a weekly column he once wrote:  “State of Mind,” as he traveled around Wisconsin, interviewing “less-than-famous” but interesting people he found.  Each chapter includes the original newspaper column, followed by an update on what happened to that person since the column was written.

It is a witty, satiric, heart-warming, and reflective book.  The reader gets a chance to meet characters whose stories are worth telling:  parents, poets, teachers, military veterans, entrepreneurs, lawyers, car wash attendants, pilots, and a retired couple that decided to drive every interstate, highway, city street, alleyway, and back road in the state of Wisconsin—with a surprise ending.