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Dakota Circle was, by and large, the first book I've read this semester which brought a knowing smile to my face on more than one occasion. No, I'm not from North Dakota, and my time on the Plaines has been largely brief. But, I am a Midwesterner (And, Dr. Isern aside, I would still argue that the Dakotas still constitute a part of the Midwest; even if they be on its periphery), and I grew up surrounded by Norwegians and Germans. There was a much in those pages to recognize from my own life.
The discussion of the 'Dakota Circle' itself proves that point. While reading of these stoic Plaines folks, forming themselves up into democratic circles during parties, I allowed my mind to wander back to the last family gathering I was a part of. Although the family (my Mother's side; and, so, Polish-Germans) did break up into two groups (My Aunts and Mother in one room, everyone else in the second) they formed themselves into just the sort of circles that Dr. Isern describes!
The other articles within he book are all written with a deft, but light, hand. It was said in the beginning that they were largely culled from a weekly newspaper editorial, and its pretty obvious. They present a picture of the Dakotas in all of their excentrisities, allowing the individuals at the center of each story to shine through. Where as another author might have been moved to lampoon the people of these two states, Isern does not; treating them, instead, as part of one big, grumpy, crazy, but loving, family.