Town House Reading Series
Resumes With Top Authors

After taking a break in 2006, the Strafford Reading Series resumes its August program of public readings by outstanding fiction writers, poets, and essayists. The readings will be held on the four last consecutive Wednesdays in August in Strafford’s historic 18th century Town House.

Bring a picnic and join the authors on the Green at 6 p.m.. The readings follow at 7 p.m.

The series begins on Aug. 8 with an evening of nature writing and photography. Vermont writer Mary Holland is a naturalist and nature photographer whose natural history columns are familiar to readers of the Valley News.  She is also the author of a children’s book, "Milkweed Visitors."  

Reading with her will be poet Jenepher Lingelbach, author of "Before Life Hurries On," a book of poems with illustrations by Sabra Field.  

Then, photographer Jon Gilbert Fox and novelist Ernest Hebert will present their new book of photographs and essays, "New Hampshire Patterns."  

Fox’s work is familiar to readers of the New York Times, Vermont Life and other publications; his previous book of photographs was "Intimate Vermont." Hebert, who teaches creative writing at Dartmouth, is the author of numerous novels set in New Hampshire.

August 15 features an evening of Off-Beat Fiction by three Vermont writers. Tinling Choong of Randolph will read from her first novel, "FireWife."

Reading with her will be Strafford authors Ed Doughtie and Dan Deneen. Doughtie, who taught English at Rice University in Houston, will read a story published in the current South Carolina Review. Deneen is familiar to Upper Valley audiences from his work as actor and director with the Parish Players and Strafford’s Thistle.  He will be reading from a longterm project, a novel set in 16th century Mexico. He recently spent seven months researching the novel and living with the Nahua Indians in Veracruz.

August 22 brings readings by two Vermont children’s authors, Leda Schubert and Jessie Haas. Schubert lives in Plainfield and has written several books, including "Ballet of the Elephants," a Kirkus Editor’s Choice for 2006, and also a Junior Library Guild selection; and "Here Comes Darrell," a Winter 2005/6 Book Sense Children’s Pick.

Haas has written several books for children, many of them about horses, including "Jigsaw Pony," "Birthday Pony," and "Unbroken," winner of Publishers Weekly Best Book and several other awards. Her latest novel is "Shaper," winner of a Golden Kite Honor Award.

The series winds up on August 29 with the Regional Fiction of well-known Vermont novelist Howard Frank Mosher and Strafford author Catherine Tudish.  

Mosher, a longtime resident of the Northeast Kingdom, has written 10 novels, many of them about the region which Mosher calls Kingdom County.  Three, including "A Stranger in the Kingdom," have been made into movies by Jay Craven.  

Catherine Tudish is the author of the story collection "Tenney’s Landing" (2005), which was a finalist for the Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers Award.  She will be reading from her new novel, "American Cream," due out in August.