Books
Walking Woodstock
Journeys into the Wild Heart of America’s Most Famous Small Town
by Michael Perkins
and Will Nixon
Illustrated by Carol Zaloom #1 Paperback Bestseller of 2009, Golden Notebook, Woodstock, NY
The Pocket Guide to Woodstock
An Insiders' Guide with Suggested Hikes, a Walking Tour of the Historic Village, Maps, Photographs, and the Best Tips for a Memorable Visit
by Michael Perkins
and Will Nixon
Illustrated by Carol Zaloom #1 Paperback Bestseller of 2012, Golden Notebook, Woodstock, NYBooks
Books
Poetry
Poetry
Poetry
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Quotes
“Are you familiar with the writing of Woodstock poet Will Nixon? If not, you should be because of his funny, wistful, poignant poems.”
-- Catskill Mountain Region Guide“The Hudson Valley has produced some of the great peregrinations of our time, most notably by John Burroughs, an inveterate walker. Add Michael Perkins and Will Nixon to the list—these are charming essays, some of them with a bit more bite than you'd guess.”
-- Bill McKibben
Woodstock: The Golden Age Before Tie Die
We think of the Bohemian Twenties and the Rock ‘N’ Roll Sixties as the wildly colorful eras that made Woodstock famous. But Richard Heppner, our town historian, has chosen the late Forties and early Fifties, after World War Two’s Greatest Generation came home, as the period when Woodstock became the community we recognize and treasure today. By 1960 the population had doubled. IBM had opened nearby in Kingston, transforming our rural hamlet into professional suburbs. A new generation of artists had revived the Arts Colony tradition. Bars like the S.S. Seahorse were hopping. The Sleepy Fifties didn’t afflict this town, where people cast aside old antagonisms between locals and newcomers to have good time. Those who remember the S.S. Seahorse still have a little wickedness in their smiles.
This Saturday, August 4th, Richard Heppner will be our our Village History Walk guest, as we continue The Pocket Guide to Woodstock series led by Michael Perkins and myself. We’ll start at 10 am at the Golden Notebook at 29 Tinker Street. We’ll finish an hour later at the Historical Society of Woodstock on Comeau Drive for a private showing of their terrific summer exhibit, After the War was Over: Post WW II Woodstock and the Building of a Community, led by Deborah Heppner, president of the Historical Society. Light refreshments will be served. The walk fee is a book purchase or $10. Join us to learn about this golden age of Woodstock before tie dye.
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The Mother Grouse Blog is produced by Will Nixon, author of My Late Mother as a Ruffed Grouse and Love in the City of Grudges available on-line.