Idyll Banter

Weekly Excursions to a Very Small Town

By: Chris Bohjalian

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Paperback | 15 March 2011 | Edition Number 1

At a Glance

Paperback
242 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
19.5 x 14.0 x 1.8

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"In March 1986, while living in Brooklyn, Chris Bohjalian and his wife were cab-napped on a Saturday night and taken on a forty-five-minute joy ride in which the driver ignored all traffic lights and stop signs. Around midnight he deposited the young couple on a near-deserted street, where police officers were about to storm a crack house. Bohjalian and his wife were told to hit the ground for their own protection. While lying on the pavement, Bohjalian's wife suggested that perhaps it was time to move to New England. onths later they traded in their co-op in Brooklyn for a century-old Victorian house in Lincoln, Vermont (population 975), and Bohjalian began chronicling life in that town in a wide variety of magazine essays and in his newspaper column, "Idyll Banter." hese pieces, written weekly for twelve years and collected here for the first time, serve as a diary of both this writer's life and how America has been transformed in the last decade. Rich with idiosyncratic universals that come with being a parent, a child, and a spouse, Chris Bohjalian's personal observations are a reflection of our own common experience. Chris Bohjalian is a terrific columnist thoughtful and

Industry Reviews

"Chris Bohjalian is a terrific columnist--thoughtful and thought-provoking. Just like me! No, really, this guy is good." --Dave Barry

"[Bohjalian] is writing about one of the most important issues in America today--how do we retain our sense of community. . . . Gentle . . . sensitive . . .heart-warming." --Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel

"These essays carry a community connection and a humble grace. When words read this easily, you know they also carry a lot of work. Bohjalian is a reliable guide, moving from pastures to town steeple to the edge of the playground." --Boston Globe

"Whether you're aching to escape the urban grind or yearning to have your small-town experience reflected back at you, you'll do well to pick up Idyll Banter." --Elle

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Foreword	p. 1
The Yellow House on the Corner of Quaker Street
Now That the Cows Are Gone	p. 9
Sowing the Seeds with a Little Sprout	p. 24
That Roof Didn't Collapse: It's a Home Improvement Project	p. 26
Love Blooms over the Septic Tank	p. 28
Scenic Barn Is Really a Scrapyard	p. 31
Dead Cluster Flies Serve as Window Insulation for the Inept	p. 33
City Slicker Gets a Taste of Country Marketing	p. 35
Theater, On Stage and Off, Inspires Young Actress	p. 40
Two Types of Writing	p. 42
The Center of Town
Losing the Library	p. 47
Walk the Postal Route with a Mailman to Get to Know the Town	p. 54
It's the Cream Cheese Brownies That Bring Out the Vote	p. 57
The Slowest Driver in Vermont	p. 59
Vermont Has Changed--but Not Its People	p. 62
Life, Liberty, and Plenty of Charmin	p. 64
Meetings Messy by Necessity	p. 67
Village's Center Starts in Aisle One	p. 70
The School--Playgrounds and Classrooms
Drama Lives in Preschool Oz Odyssey	p. 75
It's Not Easy to Be a Kid	p. 77
The Thrill, the Stress, the Joy of the Race	p. 79
Isaac and Gus Survive Girl World	p. 82
Inspiring Teachers Make Education Worth Every Penny	p. 84
Will Sleeping Beauty Wake for School?	p. 86
A Crush on Your Teacher Is No Excuse to Act Like a Geek	p. 89
Don't Believe All You Read: The Kids Are All Right	p. 91
A Person Can Learn a Lot from Ian Freeman	p. 94
The Local Wildlife
Surly Cow Displays No Remorse	p. 105
Dead Bat Duty Draws the Line	p. 107
Town's All Atwitter About Rosie	p. 109
It's Not Mind over Matter--It's Mind over Manure	p. 112
The Case of the Curious Crustacean	p. 114
An Old Cat's Name Alone Conjured Wondrous Memories	p. 117
The Green--and Then Spectacularly Yellow and Red--Mountains
Why the Green Mountains Turn Red	p. 123
Vermont Ready to Be Mired in Spring	p. 129
Spirits Live at Bartlett's Swimming Hole	p. 132
The Vermont Woods Look Different Without Any Leaves	p. 134
Snow Colors Vermont in Beauty	p. 136
Cheating Death in the Ap-Gap	p. 139
Sugarers Signal End of Winter	p. 141
Select Numbers Show a Changing Vermont	p. 143
The Church with a Weathervane Atop the Steeple
A Fender Bender with Baby Jesus?	p. 149
Clouds Can't Hide the Sun on a Spiritually Bright Easter Morning	p. 151
Faith Gives a Child Serenity	p. 153
Marriage Weds Love to Laughter	p. 156
Thank You, Friend, for Guiding Me Deeper into My Faith	p. 158
The Cemetery
Of Memory and Hope	p. 163
A Passing of History and Hospitality	p. 170
An Elegy for the State's Finest Red Sox Fan	p. 172
How a Family Copes with Loss: Building Love on Little White Lies	p. 175
Farmers Fletcher and Don Brown Knew How to Grow Community	p. 178
A Family's Farewell to Tiger	p. 180
Brief Excursions Away from Lincoln
Untethered in Spain, Set Free on Route 66	p. 185
Flirtatious Minnie Pulls Up Her Hem	p. 189
Midlife Crisis Results in Taking Part in the Weenie Triathlon	p. 191
Rice Pudding and French Editor Help Novice Cyclist Survive	p. 194
A Gardener Can Take Pride in Those $17 Carrots	p. 196
Nothing Like Mom's Biohazard for Dinner	p. 199
At Denver's Gate B42 When the World Was Transformed	p. 201
Talking Then, Talking Now	p. 205
Candy Hearts Would Have Bewildered Armenian Grandparents	p. 208
On Mother's Day, Grandmother Briefly Returned	p. 211
The Ladies' Room Just Inside Tomorrowland: A Short Story	p. 213
Acknowledgments	p. 225
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Idyll Banter

Weekly Excursions to a Very Small Town

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

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