I wasn't quite sure what this book would cover and after finishing it, I am impressed by the scope of the book and how the author ties different stories and facts together. It's a story of relocation, but Grove digs deep into the whys of his family's move and his own career as he explores how to make a positive impact in his own community. All of this may sound a little "heavy" but I found it to be quite readable and plenty of food for thought here. It would be a great selection for a book group that enjoys meaty nonfiction.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. The author did a great job of presenting his case without coming off as being preachy.

I reviewed this book for Racket.

Steve Grove once planted poison ivy on purpose.

He shares an anecdote about this odd gardening choice in How I Found Myself in the Midwest: A Memoir of Reinvention (Simon & Schuster, 2025) to characterize himself as a good dad with a Minneapolis backyard in which he’s setting down literal and proverbial roots. Intentionally or not, Grove’s just-because-we-can noxious plant experiment showcases the fleece vest bravado that landed him a job as commissioner of Minnesota's Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) after he boomeranged back to his home state from Silicon Valley in 2018, then secured his current position as CEO and publisher of the Minnesota Star Tribune in 2023.

More at https://racketmn.com/steve-grove-star-tribune-publisher-book-memoir-review

This was an interesting read although a more appropriate title would have been "How I Found Myself in Minnesota".This is a sort of "you can go home again" about leaving home an going far away when you're young and realizing you want your children raised in the kind of culture/environment that you grew up in. The author goes to California, goes to work for Google in the early days and meets his wife there and they have children and make the decision to return to his home state of Minnesota for numerous reasons. There are many challenges and the author does a good job of relaying them. A worthwhile read in my opinion.

I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon and my nonfiction book review blog.