What we’re about
LOVE TO READ AND TRY NEW ACTIVITIES?
Join this unique book club where we will casually discuss a book while engaging in an activity or exploring a location inspired by the book! This will be a no-pressure book club. If you don't finish the book, no problem. Please join us anyway for a meal and an event. We'll simply use the book as a platform for a fun activity, and to inspire discussion and conversation among fellow bookworms.
Sometimes the activity will be doing something physical. Other events will have us visiting a museum. Sometimes we'll meet to try new dishes, or maybe a cooking class. Theater, glass blowing, birding, festivals, wine tasting, etc. The possibilities are limitless when fiction inspires activities!
This will be a great way to meet fellow book lovers who also want to live a well-read and well-rounded, adventurous life. Most of the activities will take place in and around Cecil and Harford Counties and surrounding areas.
Are you ready for a new book and a new activity? Grab that book (or eBook) and let's go explore together!
Diane
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- EVENT: Hopkins Farm Brewery Visit/READ: "The Good, Good Pig..." by Sy MontgomeryHopkins Farm Brewery, Havre De Grace, MD
Raise a pint (or two) to our Service Members while listening to music on the farm and discussing May’s Member Choice Book, the good good pig.
# EVENT: Fourth Annual Old Glory Music Festival
- Saturday, May 18, 2024
- Hopkins Farm Brewery (map)
https://www.facebook.com/events/734016498336756
Join us for this FREE event down on the farm for a ROCKIN' good time to honor our Service Members in our Armed Forces.
Featuring four bands, food trucks, fresh brewed beers, Maryland's 9/11 Rolling Memorial and 9/11 artifacts, Silent Auction, and 50/50's
Proceeds benefit America's 9/11 Living Classroom
For more information please visit www.hopeandpeacefoundation.orgLOCATION: Hopkins Farm Brewery
3833 Rider Lane, Havre De Grace, MD 21078NOTE: MAKE SURE TO BRING A CHAIR TO SIT IN TO LISTEN TO THE MUSIC. WE'LL TRY TO FIND A QUIET(ER) PLACE TO GO AND DISCUSS THE BOOK.
NOVEL: The Good, Good Pig The Extraordinary Life of Christopher Hogwood by Sy Montgomery
Genre: AutobiographyFrom Goodreads:
When Sy Montgomery opened her heart to a sick piglet she had no inkling that this piglet, later named Christopher Hogwood, would not only survive but flourish. The Good Good Pig celebrates Christopher Hogwood in all his glory, from his inauspicious infancy to hog heaven in rural New Hampshire, where his boundless zest for life and his large, loving heart made him absolute monarch.Happy Reading,
Diane
- Online discussion of May's Members' Choice Book Winner!" - the good good pig"Needs location
The votes are in and this little piggy went all the way home! That's right! You all chose the good good pig as May's Members' Choice book. Join us* for what is sure to be a lively online discussion. Stay tuned for the paired in-person event!
Zoom link will be provided an hour before the event.
***
Novel: the good good pig by Sy Montgomery
Genre: Memoir, Pig Autobiography"In loving yet unsentimental prose, Sy Montgomery captures the richness that animals bring to the human experience. Sometimes it takes a too-smart-for-his-own-good pig to open our eyes to what most matters in life.”
—John Grogan, author of Marley & Me: Life and Love with the World’s Worst Dog
The Good Good Pig celebrates Christopher Hogwood in all his glory, from his inauspicious infancy to hog heaven in rural New Hampshire, where his boundless zest for life and his large, loving heart made him absolute monarch over a (mostly) peaceable kingdom. At first, his domain included only Sy’s cosseted hens and her beautiful border collie, Tess. Then the neighbors began fetching Christopher home from his unauthorized jaunts, the little girls next door started giving him warm, soapy baths, and the villagers brought him delicious leftovers. His intelligence and fame increased along with his girth. Read more...
*Note that while the online discussion is normally the last Monday, we moved it up a week because the last Monday is the Memorial Day holiday.
Happy reading!
- SHOW: The Secret Comedy of Women and READ: “The Getaway Girls” by Dee MacDonaldDelaware Theatre Company, Wilmington, DE$60.00
Let's get together for a Saturday afternoon matinee performance of The Secret Comedy of Women. Experience this truly brilliant and uplifting female comedy that explores the woman's world with joy, heart and intelligent wit. This 2-woman comedy with song, dance & stories celebrates all things female, from girlhood to womanhood!
EVENT: The Secret Comedy of Women (Showtime is 2:00 PM)
LOCATION: Delaware Theater Company
Wilmington's Riverfront
200 Water Street
Wilmington, Delaware 19801
302.594.1100FEE: Tickets are $60 which includes all fees.
If you are interested in this event, please send your payment to me via Venmo - @Diane-Flemming-2 or PayPal - paypal.me/DianeFlemming. I will get us seats located near each other.
PLEASE RSVP BY APRIL 1 as these performances sell out quickly.We can meet after the theater to discuss the book and the show at one of the restaurants TBD on the Riverfront.
Thank you to our member, Lyn, for the event and book suggestions.
NOVEL: The Getaway Girls by Dee MacDonald
Genre: FictionFROM GOODREADS:
One morning, Connie McColl wakes up and decides to swap her ordinary life, for an extraordinary adventure…Connie McColl is finally free to make her own decisions for the first time in decades. And when she meets glamorous Gill and downtrodden Maggie, at a rather dull flower arranging class, it seems that she’s not the only one dreaming of adventure. The three very different women all agree it’s about time they had a holiday to remember.
So they make a pact for this summer to be their best yet - and drive off into the sunset together…
As they meander their way along the beautiful beaches of France and onto the glorious delights of Italy in their luxury campervan, the new friends have plenty of fun and frolics in the sunshine. But the vacation isn’t quite what they expected…
Gill will do anything to have one last holiday romance, Connie has a surprise inheritance awaiting her in Italy, and Maggie has a secret that is going to catch up with them all…
In the end, all three women discover that the journey they thought would be their last really is just the beginning…
Happy Reading,
Diane
- The Rocks King and Queen Seat Trail Hike and "These Silent Woods" By Kimi GrantKing & Queen Seat at Rocks State Park, Jarrettsville, MD
TAKE A HIKE!!
We'll hike the King and Queen Seat trail of Rocks State Park. We'll meet in the Rapid's Parking area and begin the hike from there. After the hike, we'll find a picnic bench and eat lunch and discuss our joint book club pick, These Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant.So, pack a lunch and plenty of water and let's explore this beautiful section of Rocks State Park.
LOCATION: Rocks State Park 3634 Rocks Rd. (Rt. 24) Jarrettsville, MD 21084
The King and Queen Seat rises 190 feet above Deer Creek. The soaring natural rock outcrop provides a breathtaking view. There are many vertical rock faces on the outcrop, some of which are as high as 94 feet. Please use caution in this areaHead out on this 3.2-mile loop trail. Generally considered a moderately challenging route, it takes an average of 1 hour 38 minutes to complete. This is a very popular area for hiking, so you'll likely encounter other people while exploring.
Begin by heading uphill towards King and Queens Seat. This is a rocky outcropping that offers a great view. The loop continues through the forest crossing the occasional stream along the White and Blue Trails. The trail does cross some paved roads in the park, so use caution when crossing.
FEE: Weekends Maryland residents $3/person; out-of-state residents $5/person
Park in the Rapids parking area on Route 24. Rapid’s Parking lot: 3634 Rocks Rd. (Rt. 24) Jarrettsville, MD 21084
Take the purple blazed trail from the parking lot to the white blazed loop trail.
*The Rocks of Deer Creek* (by Thomas Wysong, 1880), a collection of short stories featuring a variety of myths and legends about the areas in and around Rocks State Park and the King and Queen Seat, played a role in attracting trainloads of tourists in the late 1800's.
NOVEL: These Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant
From Goodreads: No electricity, no family, no connection to the outside world. For eight years, Cooper and his young daughter, Finch, have lived in isolation in a remote cabin in the northern Appalachian woods. And that's exactly the way Cooper wants it, because he's got a lot to hide. Finch has been raised on the books filling the cabin’s shelves and the beautiful but brutal code of life in the wilderness. But she’s starting to push back against the sheltered life Cooper has created for her—and he’s still haunted by the painful truth of what it took to get them there.The only people who know they exist are a mysterious local hermit named Scotland, and Cooper's old friend, Jake, who visits each winter to bring them food and supplies. But this year, Jake doesn't show up, setting off an irreversible chain of events that reveals just how precarious their situation really is. Suddenly, the boundaries of their safe haven have blurred—and when a stranger wanders into their woods, Finch’s growing obsession with her could put them all in danger. After a shocking disappearance threatens to upend the only life Finch has ever known, Cooper is forced to decide whether to keep hiding—or finally face the sins of his past.
Vividly atmospheric and masterfully tense, These Silent Woods is a poignant story of survival, sacrifice, and how far a father will go when faced with losing it all.
Happy Reading,
Diane
