Market Days reemerges
The festival – consistently ranked one of the best community events – has returned. Market Days, which was abbreviated last summer due to the pandemic, is planned for Aug. 19 to 21, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. It will once again bring shopping, food, fun and lots of music to the downtown Concord area. Find the schedule of events and acts for the three-day affair, plus a map of where to find the major attractions at...
The Golem and the Jinni
By Helene Wecker (486 pages, fantasy, 2013) The Golem and the Jinni, Helene Wecker’s masterful debut novel, blends elements of folklore, fantasy, and historical fiction to create a unique tale that you won’t want to put down. Wecker draws from Jewish and Arab mythology to create her story’s main characters, building an immersive world for them based on both historical research and cultural and family lore. (Wecker is Jewish,...
This week in Concord history
Aug. 19, 1863: With the Union armies in need of more soldiers, Concord takes part in the draft. Of 924 names placed in a turning wheel, the city’s quota of 277 is drawn. The city will pay each man a bonus of $300. Aug. 19, 1855: A visitor to the Canterbury Shaker Village counts six water-powered mills “for weaving, coloring, fulling, and for knitting shirts and drawers.” The first knitting machine was installed at the village...
The Second Sleep
The Second Sleep By Robert Harris (297 pages, thriller/historical fiction, 2019) Editor’s note: This review contains spoilers. The Second Sleep opens in the year 1468. A young English priest, Christopher Fairfax, hastens to reach a remote village in the kingdom of Wessex before curfew. Fairfax has been sent to officiate a funeral for the local priest, Father Lacey, who recently died and left behind no other clergy to look after his...
Spotted at National Night Out on Aug. 3
The City of Concord was among many that celebrated National Night Out on Aug. 3. The Concord Police Department was joined by several other city departments, law enforcement agencies, NH National Guard, and community organizations. This event is for all ages and is held across the country to heighten crime and drug prevention awareness, strengthen neighborhood and community police relationships and to send a message to criminals that...
Vanessa Yu’sMagical Paris Tea Shop
Vanessa Yu’sMagical Paris Tea Shop By Roselle Lim (305 pages, fiction, 2020) Vanessa is cursed with being able to tell people’s fortunes. You might think that it would be a wonderful thing, but Vanessa can’t control it. If she drinks tea, or is even near a cup of tea, the fortunes explode from her mouth, good or bad, for family or strangers. It caused a disaster at her cousin’s wedding. This fortune-telling ability runs in Vanessa’s...
The Anthropocene Reviewed
The Anthropocene Reviewed By John Green (290 pages, nonfiction/essay, 2021) Right from the outset, I’d like to make two points regarding this beautiful collection of essays by John Green. First: consider giving this book a try, even if you’re not usually a fan of nonfiction. I know that some people are averse to nonfiction because it feels more like learning than entertainment – but I think you may be pleasantly surprised by this...
