One recent Thursday, four writers arrived for a weekend in this city where we first met as midcareer students at Vermont College of Fine Arts. Four years later, we were back to celebrate "The Disorder of Longing," the first published novel by one of our own, Natasha Bauman, of Venice, Calif. Writer and editor Virginia Reiser from South Dennis met Bauman's plane in Burlington, while poet Kitty Forbes from Lookout Mountain, Ga., made the three-hour drive with me from Boston.
Checking into Betsy's Bed & Breakfast almost felt like coming home. As students, we had opted for Betsy's thick quilts and private bathrooms, forsaking the nearby dorms while attending intensive 10-day workshops on campus. We dubbed ourselves the Parlor Girls, and many an evening we gathered to unwind over a glass of wine in a sitting room. Our college days were over, but we were back to de-stress and refresh, and to explore the town to see what had changed. Could the small bookstores be the charmers we remembered?
But first, dinner. At the Black Door Bar and Bistro, exposed brick, dark walls, and dim lighting encourage diners to focus on the slow-simmered entrees made with local and organic ingredients. Our reunion kicked off with seared salmon ($14), cider braised short ribs ($14), and grilled rack of lamb with roasted pumpkin and spiced maple syrup glaze ($22).
The next morning, our search began in earnest at Bear Pond Books.
"I love that the old wooden bookcases don't match and that while chain bookstores all look the same, this building has always been part of the town," Bauman said.
Founded in 1973, Bear Pond was across the street until 1992 when a massive flood soaked its basement. Loyal customers helped salvage most of the inventory and move the rest across the street. Two years ago, Claire Benedict and her husband, Kasow, bought their second shop from its longtime owners.
