Great Reads from Great Places: Adults
Beginning in 2022, the Affiliated Centers for the Book began selecting a “Great Reads About Great Places” adult title as a companion to our young readers books.
2023 Adult Great Reads Selection
About the Book
On an autumn morning in 1849, Henry David Thoreau stepped out his front door to walk the beaches of Cape Cod. Over a century and a half later, Ben Shattuck does the same. He ventures on six walks through the book, each one inspired by a walk once taken by Henry David Thoreau.
Shattuck encounters unexpected characters, landscapes, and stories, seeing for himself the restorative effects that walking can have on a dampened spirit. Over years of following Thoreau, he finds himself uncovering new insights about family, love, friendship, and fatherhood, and coming to understand more deeply the lessons walking can offer through life's changing seasons.
Meet the Author
Ben Shattuck, a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, is a recipient of the PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize and a 2019 Pushcart Prize. He lives with his wife and daughter on the coast of Massachusetts, where he owns and operates a general store built in 1793.
More Massachusetts Adult Great Reads
2022
Mercy Street,
by Jennifer Haigh
Mercy Street by Jennifer Haigh was the inaugural selection for Massachusetts Adult Great Reads from Great Places. For more information about the program, see Read.gov from the Library of Congress.