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Ghosts of Fourth Street: My Family, a Death, and the Hills of Duluth
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10 copies available
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An open, frank rumination on a brother’s death and its reverberations throughout a family
Every family has its stories and secrets. Laurie Hertzel’s family had more than its share. At an early age, Laurie, the seventh of the ten Hertzel children, took on the challenge of sorting them out. Not old enough to be one of the Big Kids, yet too old to be with the Three Little Kids, she spent most of her time alone, reading, wandering, and observing her family as they moved around her in their house in Duluth. Though her parents were not warm, there were moments of closeness in those years—gifts of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books and special trips to the dairy for a sundae—but everything shattered after the sudden death of Laurie’s oldest sibling, eighteen-year-old Bobby, when she was just nine years old.
Moving back and forth in time, Laurie reflects on Bobby’s death and what happens to a family’s story when no one can talk about a tragedy and its toll. In Ghosts of Fourth Street, readers witness how the apparition of memories, the shadow of needs unmet, and the spirit of a family once whole all linger long after the death of a child and brother. As Laurie shares her experiences, we see the emergence of her fascination with story and truth as she teaches herself to read and finds solace and inspiration in books amid the tensions and competing agendas within her big, complicated family.
With keen attention, candor, and grace, Laurie paints a vivid portrait of 1960s Duluth as she poignantly examines a family contending with grief and the fact that life steadily goes on—snow and school buses, Christmases and Thanksgivings, ice skating and tobogganing and climbing trees, with ghosts always lingering at the edges.
Every family has its stories and secrets. Laurie Hertzel’s family had more than its share. At an early age, Laurie, the seventh of the ten Hertzel children, took on the challenge of sorting them out. Not old enough to be one of the Big Kids, yet too old to be with the Three Little Kids, she spent most of her time alone, reading, wandering, and observing her family as they moved around her in their house in Duluth. Though her parents were not warm, there were moments of closeness in those years—gifts of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books and special trips to the dairy for a sundae—but everything shattered after the sudden death of Laurie’s oldest sibling, eighteen-year-old Bobby, when she was just nine years old.
Moving back and forth in time, Laurie reflects on Bobby’s death and what happens to a family’s story when no one can talk about a tragedy and its toll. In Ghosts of Fourth Street, readers witness how the apparition of memories, the shadow of needs unmet, and the spirit of a family once whole all linger long after the death of a child and brother. As Laurie shares her experiences, we see the emergence of her fascination with story and truth as she teaches herself to read and finds solace and inspiration in books amid the tensions and competing agendas within her big, complicated family.
With keen attention, candor, and grace, Laurie paints a vivid portrait of 1960s Duluth as she poignantly examines a family contending with grief and the fact that life steadily goes on—snow and school buses, Christmases and Thanksgivings, ice skating and tobogganing and climbing trees, with ghosts always lingering at the edges.
- GenresMemoir
152 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication March 31, 2026
2049 people want to read
About the author
Laurie Hertzel
5 books41 followersHertzel was a longtime journalist at the Minneapolis Star Tribune and now teaches in the Low Residence MFA program in Narrative Nonfiction at the University of Georgia. She is the author of three books, including "News to Me: Adventures of an Accidental Journalist," which won a 2011 Minnesota Book Award, and "Ghosts of Fourth Street," a memoir that will be published March 31, 2026.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 9, 2025
I received a free copy of, Ghosts of Fourth Street, by Laurie Hertzel, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is Laurie Hertzel story about growing up in the 1960's, and losing her older brother at a tender age. This was a good read, sad at times, I always wanted a big family, like Laurie had, but never had one.
January 11, 2026
(3.50*)
“I don’t know a family that isn’t somehow haunted. By memories, by the stories we tell and those we don’t tell, by the empty spaces where someone once was — the lost friend, the estranged sibling, the loved one slipping away. Those empty spaces we fill with stories; those spaces where ghosts live.”
Laurie Hertzel does a great job in writing a reflective memoir that feels very intimate and heartfelt when detailing the tragic death of her older brother Bobby. Instead of just reporting this case in factual police-style files & details, Laurie illustrates how the family truly felt at that time — disrupted routines, emotional struggles, family secrets, etc.
What I found intriguing for this book is how the author offers a mirror for my own experience. For example, as the reader, I realize that my family fails to handle / process grief properly, as well as, silence in your bloodline can be protective and good for us or secretive and damaging, and most of all that when you tell stories whether in writing, reading, or memory — you’re allowing yourself to process that trauma.
I learned here from Hertzel that memories turn to “ghosts” that can inhabit our everyday lives. I started the review off with a quote that reminds us that those empty spaces we fill with stories are the spaces where ghosts live — that’s the area in which needs to be processed.
Overall, I enjoyed this memoir a ton, as it did not focus on factual event details, but rather emotional truth. It was a powerful read and written beautifully from the eye’s of a first-hand experienced family member. Thank you NetGalley and University of Minnesota Press for the ARC!
“I don’t know a family that isn’t somehow haunted. By memories, by the stories we tell and those we don’t tell, by the empty spaces where someone once was — the lost friend, the estranged sibling, the loved one slipping away. Those empty spaces we fill with stories; those spaces where ghosts live.”
Laurie Hertzel does a great job in writing a reflective memoir that feels very intimate and heartfelt when detailing the tragic death of her older brother Bobby. Instead of just reporting this case in factual police-style files & details, Laurie illustrates how the family truly felt at that time — disrupted routines, emotional struggles, family secrets, etc.
What I found intriguing for this book is how the author offers a mirror for my own experience. For example, as the reader, I realize that my family fails to handle / process grief properly, as well as, silence in your bloodline can be protective and good for us or secretive and damaging, and most of all that when you tell stories whether in writing, reading, or memory — you’re allowing yourself to process that trauma.
I learned here from Hertzel that memories turn to “ghosts” that can inhabit our everyday lives. I started the review off with a quote that reminds us that those empty spaces we fill with stories are the spaces where ghosts live — that’s the area in which needs to be processed.
Overall, I enjoyed this memoir a ton, as it did not focus on factual event details, but rather emotional truth. It was a powerful read and written beautifully from the eye’s of a first-hand experienced family member. Thank you NetGalley and University of Minnesota Press for the ARC!
December 1, 2025
This memoir is misleading. I assumed it was going to be about Hertzel's brother's death (as that is what the memoir is marketed as) but instead it was only about focusing on tiny details, the beauty of those details, and her brother was almost never mentioned until the last three chapters.
If you enjoy reading about someone describing details coated with beauty of life, then I'd recommend this book. But if you came for a story about how grief affects a family and to relate to this family on a deeper level, you won't find it here.
If you enjoy reading about someone describing details coated with beauty of life, then I'd recommend this book. But if you came for a story about how grief affects a family and to relate to this family on a deeper level, you won't find it here.
October 8, 2025
This was a truly enjoyable read. I finished it in a few hours because I enjoyed it so much. Loved the way the author puts us in her shoes viewing life through her eyes as a girl. There are so many relatable parts to this book and the people it’s about. The theme of not talking about the hard stuff is still so relevant today just as it was in the 60s. This is a book that will make you feel the author’s nostalgia and transport you into someone else’s shoes for a bit. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
December 3, 2025
Ghosts of Fourth Street is a memoir about family. Laurie tells about her early childhood growing up with her parents, Trish and Guv, and her large amount of siblings, leading up to and surrounding the death of the oldest child, Bobby.
The book is written in a stream-of-consciousness style, jumping back and forth in time, telling anecdotes about the family; memories that show how realistic a large family could be, living in that era. To me, it read less like a proper book, and more like short memories all pasted together into a book, which unfortunately didn't work for me.
The death of Bobby is mentioned a couple of times, but the book isn't about him. It's about the entire family. Laurie was much younger than Bobby, so her childhood focus is more on her parents and the siblings closer to her age, so readers don't actually get to know much about Bobby until the chapter that covers his death, in which the book then focuses on.
I wanted to enjoy this. I love memoirs, especially about family, but this felt too personal, like I should only be reading if I knew the family and wanted to read about them specifically. It feels like an afternoon sitting with Laurie as she recounts her childhood to me, but not something I should be reading somewhere across the other side of the world. Well written, but unfortunately didn't hit the mark for me.
The book is written in a stream-of-consciousness style, jumping back and forth in time, telling anecdotes about the family; memories that show how realistic a large family could be, living in that era. To me, it read less like a proper book, and more like short memories all pasted together into a book, which unfortunately didn't work for me.
The death of Bobby is mentioned a couple of times, but the book isn't about him. It's about the entire family. Laurie was much younger than Bobby, so her childhood focus is more on her parents and the siblings closer to her age, so readers don't actually get to know much about Bobby until the chapter that covers his death, in which the book then focuses on.
I wanted to enjoy this. I love memoirs, especially about family, but this felt too personal, like I should only be reading if I knew the family and wanted to read about them specifically. It feels like an afternoon sitting with Laurie as she recounts her childhood to me, but not something I should be reading somewhere across the other side of the world. Well written, but unfortunately didn't hit the mark for me.
November 9, 2025
I gobbled this book up in two days. As someone who grew up in the Midwest, one of five children, I felt almost as if I were reading about my own life.
I remembered playing outside until dinnertime, even in the cold winters, having nightly dinners where everyone had to be sitting at the table — no excuses — sleeping in cramped bedrooms, sharing beds, and occasionally hiding from overwrought, angry parents. Hertzel writes honestly of growing up in a family of 10 kids, where, despite the daily chaos, they had a pretty normal upbringing. That is, until the dynamics changed forever.
Ghosts of Fourth Street is engaging and entertaining. Hertzel's heartfelt, emotional, and honest writing grips readers from the very beginning. If you enjoy reading about families and their idiosyncrasies, I highly recommend this book.
Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this ARC.
I remembered playing outside until dinnertime, even in the cold winters, having nightly dinners where everyone had to be sitting at the table — no excuses — sleeping in cramped bedrooms, sharing beds, and occasionally hiding from overwrought, angry parents. Hertzel writes honestly of growing up in a family of 10 kids, where, despite the daily chaos, they had a pretty normal upbringing. That is, until the dynamics changed forever.
Ghosts of Fourth Street is engaging and entertaining. Hertzel's heartfelt, emotional, and honest writing grips readers from the very beginning. If you enjoy reading about families and their idiosyncrasies, I highly recommend this book.
Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
Although I am older than her, and did not know her, I grew up in the same neighborhood Laurie Hertzel did in the marvelous city of Duluth Minnesota. (I just read that Duluth is the 6th coldest city in the US. Oh, the stories I could tell.)
There were ten children in Laurie’s family and she was #7. The subtitle tells a lot: “My Family, a Death, and the Hills of Duluth. What I liked best about the book is how I was able to relate to the city and its charms.
Hertzel eloquently explains the dynamics of a large family, already slightly dysfunctional, when the death of the oldest brother changes the family dynamics completely. These are the “ghosts” that haunted—and still haunt—the Hertzel family.
I will be buying copies of the book for my siblings when it comes out in March. A poignant read.
There were ten children in Laurie’s family and she was #7. The subtitle tells a lot: “My Family, a Death, and the Hills of Duluth. What I liked best about the book is how I was able to relate to the city and its charms.
Hertzel eloquently explains the dynamics of a large family, already slightly dysfunctional, when the death of the oldest brother changes the family dynamics completely. These are the “ghosts” that haunted—and still haunt—the Hertzel family.
I will be buying copies of the book for my siblings when it comes out in March. A poignant read.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews