praise for Letters to Matt LaFleur
“If the hot take is ephemeral, even instantly forgettable, Letters to Matt LaFleur feels like it might yet become a cult-sports-classic, the sort of book whose limited first print run of 250 copies might someday become treasured collectibles for hardcore Packer fans.”
— NICKOLAS BUTLER, New York Times bestselling author
“Part diatribe, part love letter, Matthew Mabis’s Letters to Matt LaFleur put to the page what the rest of us shout at the screen. Mabis’s acerbic one-sided correspondence might just be the oddest—and most needed—ode you’ll read all season. He is the Monday morning quarterback worth rooting for. A foul-mouthed, first-stringer fan, football’s very own philosopher king.”
— BJ HOLLARS, author of Year of Plenty and Midwestern Strange
“Part epistolary project, part monument to the NFL's only fan-owned team, part ode to the worn loveliness of small towns, Letters to Matt LaFleur is ultimately a celebration of fandom. And what is fandom but a commitment to hope - that they'll win the next game, that they'll meet their potential, that he'll send a letter back, that he's reading at all? Matthew Mabis has endless faith in his team, not that they earned or deserved it that fateful 2022-2023 season, but he keeps writing, cycling through his wardrobe with loss and after loss. He's insightful and funny and irreverent. He loses his grasp on reality more than once as he clings to hope for a team that feels like his. Because the Packers are ours, and Letters to Matt LaFleur directs a choir of fans to believe in the next great thing.”
— MARGARET LEONARD, Dotters Books
“With the post-game wounds still fresh, these letters are, at times, delusional, self-deprecating, hilarious, and audacious. They can be insightful, compassionate, encouraging…but also scathing and critical. I’d rather forget some of these games but reliving them through Mabis is a lot of fun. He is, at times, unhinged, philosophical, nerdy, blunt, brash, desperate, and angry. In short, Mabis at his best.”
— KEN SYZMANSKI, author of Home Field Advantage and Sit Down and Stay Awhile
“If the letters convey a certain angst surrounding the season, the photos inversely show everything great about being a Packer fan: the kinship, the beers, the pilgrimage to Lambeau with your homies, the tailgate, Lil Wayne … It’s a nice visual reminder of some of the beauties of Packers-hood, despite the part where the football was kinda dreadful.”
— ERIC CHRISTENSON, Volume One
“If you’re an NFL fan, you’ll like Letters to Matt LaFleur. If you’re a Packers fan, you’ll probably love it. But this epistolary collection also has plenty to offer those who don’t know (or even care about) the difference between linebacker and cornerback. Pay attention to the presentation: it’s important that author Matthew Mabis opted for typewritten letters, not emails, alongside photography that conjures the 20th century gridiron instead of today’s ultra-HD version. Mabis further invokes a bygone era through his bravado and aggressive expertise—his version of football is not the sort that concerns itself with attracting inclusive audiences and maximizing advertising revenue. This is old-fashioned armchair quarterbacking, where all that matters is yards gained and playoff math, and in the social media era, it’s a relic worth examining. Whether you’re in for the third-down conversion stats or the cultural critique, Letters to Matt LaFleur is a downfield bomb with a wide-open goal line.”
— ERIC RASMUSSEN, editor of Barstow & Grand and Sundog Lit
events
Milwaukee Zine Fest
MILWAUKEE PUBLIC LIBRARY
Saturday, April 20, 10:30am-4:30pm
free & open to the public
Independent Bookstore Day
DOTTERS BOOKS
Saturday, April 27, 10am-6pm
celebrate indie bookstore day with us!
Packers Dinner
TOMAHAWK ROOM
hosted by Chef Nathan Berg
ticketed event (book sold separately)
APRIL 28 - SOLD OUT
Packers Dinner 2
TOMAHAWK ROOM
hosted by Chef Nathan Berg
ticketed event (book sold separately)
MAY 5 - SOLD OUT
Contact
For review copies, events, press inquiries, questions, or to stock Letters to, please contact the publisher using the form below.
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