Story of a Charlotte farm and orchard: New book by Vermont author
A new book by Vermont author David Holmes probes what it means to be a Vermonter through chronicling the history of his family’s multigenerational farm.
A good book
Before I came upon Seating Arrangements, I had never heard of Maggie Shipstead, It seems she went to Harvard University, the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and went on to become a Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford. Seating Arrangements is one of three novels—along with Astonish Me and Great Circle (currently shortlisted for the Booker Prize).
Burning snakes and stained-glass windows: a trifecta of memoirs
Hello, everyone. I hope you are having a great late summer, enjoying your days, and squeezing in some reading time. I have a stack of books I have read lately and an equally tall stack of books I am looking forward to reading in the future. A bounty of books. A tower of reading yet to come.
Home Made…What We Make When We Make Dinner
Since I’m a retired teacher of roughneck kids as well as a volunteer cook at the Senior Center, it seemed inevitable that I’d read Home Made: A Story of Grief, Groceries, Showing Up—and What We Make When We Make Dinner.
Summertime…and the reading is breezy (for the most part)
It is officially summer, I heard someone say the other day. Summer—a time to swim and walk, sit on the back porch, boat, play tennis, recline in shade-dappled hammocks, paddleboard, read…. Plus, the world is opening up, and there’s a lot of joy in all of that. I hope you are all enjoying yourselves.
Music of the spheres
Well, I guess as I started reading the recent biography of Bob Dylan that I consciously reflected on the prominence of music, not only in my time, but in the universal realm. The human brain forms around it. Is it safe to say that our DNA carries a tune?
Celebrity interview with Odyssey the Llama
He’s nearly six feet tall, 400 pounds and covered in soft wool. He’s got big, dark eyes the color of a deep Andean mountain lake. And he spits when he’s mad.
Juneteenth in the air at Clemmons Family Farm
Renowned aerialist and choreographer Pamela Donohoo headlined Juneteenth festivities at the Clemmons Family Farm on June 21.
Julia Beerworth: Music as a family affair
About ten years ago, Julia Beerworth and her sister-in-law Anna Pepin began singing together at holiday functions. “We played for fun at home,” Beerworth said “and then we decided to try some local bars. I think our first performance was open mic at Radio Bean.”
Beholding the lilacs and two good books
It isn’t easy to compose an article on a laptop while sitting outside in the sun, but this day is too beautiful to spend sitting inside in a darkened room, so I’m going to try. I don’t think I have ever experienced a more beautiful spring than the one we are having.
Nacho Cano: Aligning spirit, outlook, and character with his music
In my last column I wrote about my daydreams in escapism and finally leaving the safety of my apartment to enter the real world. Well, folks, that day has come (sort of)!
Summer music events on the Green
The Library and the Grange are excited to announce a series of free outdoor music and farm events this summer.
The Overstory of the Charlotte Men’s Reading group
Can you imagine… Being Mortal, Lost in Shangri La, hearing the News of the World about the Destiny of the Republic that includes The Underground Railroad, Guns, Germs, and Steel, and The Wright Brothers; that the Soul of the Octopus,
Brood—more than just chickens
Though this book is, yes, wryly funny on occasion, there is longing and sadness clucking softy between the lines.
Angie Thomas: Writing to make a difference
As daffodil and crocus shoots push up through the mud in the places we walk and live, we may tend to forget that some blooms push up through pavement. Angie Thomas is an American young adult author, probably best known for her novel The Hate U Give.
Exploring sounds at sea with Joe McKee
With my cabin fever in mind, I spoke with Los Angeles-based Australian artist Joe McKee: musician, record label owner and creative wizard whom I admire for many reasons—one of which being that he traveled a great distance to produce his latest album,
Greetings from Los Angeles, hello to Francesca
It’s been a long time since I last wrote. I could say life got in the way of my column, but truthfully, I’ve been grappling with its format. This year has been tough on my music discovery—all of the world’s doom and gloom has encouraged me to revisit my all-time favorite sad-guy albums and stay inside.
Sara Nelson: Finding her artistic passion
Sara Nelson hoped 2020 would be her breakout year. She was making jewelry as a side business, and in 2019 she left the corporate world to make it a full-time occupation. She was booked at trade shows in New York, Atlanta and Florida, but then COVID struck and the shows were cancelled. Nevertheless, Nelson is confident that Elli Parr Jewelry business will survive the pandemic.
Fun for kids
Thanksgiving fun for kids includes dad jokes, a coloring page and a word jumble.
Painting on the farm
Lilyanna Mittelstadt made good use of her time at the end of a long summer by painting this mural of her neighbor’s farm—Holly and Mark Rochefort’s Haytumble Farm in Charlotte. Photos by Mark Rochefort