What's new with the Longfellow Big Read?

Upcoming book discussion groups promise to be lively discusssions!  Although we would like to see everyone read as much poetry as possible beforehand, please come even if you have read just a few poems.  The discussions have been lively exchanges about Longfellow's writing and use of images dear to New Englanders; how his poetry fits into the context of local and national history; and Longfellow's connections to other local writers. 

Dianne Hoagland, a very well-regarded former middle school teacher and member of the History Book Group at the Inn, has been diligently preparing to lead the April 4th and April 11th groups.  Marian Carlson, author of a wonderful biography of Longfellow (American Genius: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow), will be hosting the last book discussion group.  Marian heads the Longfellow Bicentennial Committee and is a dear friend of the Inn.  She has loaned a number of items relevant to the Longfellow Bicentennial Year to the Goodnow Library.  Be sure to check out the display just to the left of the library entrance.  Thanks Marian!

Reservations are coming in for the Patriot's Day Brunch.  We need your help in celebrating America's most beloved poem, so start preparing now, one line at a time, for a community read of "Paul Revere's Ride."  This is a rare chance to have a weekend brunch at the Inn.  Thanks to the memebers of the Sudbury Ancient Fyfe and Drum Companie who have graciously volunteered to provide music for the event instead of marching to Concord for the day!  Come make history at the old Inn with your family and friends!

Since the launch of the Longfellow Big Read, there has been such an overwhelmingly positive outpouring of affection, not only for Longfellow, but also for the Inn.  It is very clear that many people have chosen to live in Sudbury because of the unique history of the town, which has been influenced in large part by the Inn and its owners.  Heartfelt thanks to everyone in Sudbury who has supported this programming! 

About the Longfellow Big Read ...

Longfellow’s Wayside Inn is honored to be the first grant recipient in a pilot initiative created by the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Poetry Foundation to celebrate great American poets and the nation’s historic poetry locales. From Longfellow’s birthday on February 27, 2008, to Patriot’s Day, April 19, 2008, the Wayside Inn is sponsoring a community read of the works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Our goals are to reenergize community interest in the importance of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow as this country’s greatest poet and to educate the Sudbury community about the importance of the Tales of a Wayside Inn within the larger context of all of Longfellow’s works. Programming will include book discussions, lectures, classes, cultural assemblies in the schools, and a special concert of Longfellow’s poetry set to music.

Public events began at the Martha-Mary Chapel at the Wayside Inn on February 27th with Dana Gioia, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, speaking on the poet’s life and works. Events have been scheduled at the Wayside Inn as well as at the Goodnow Library, the Sudbury Public Schools, and the Sudbury Senior Center. Check out the Upcoming Events calendar to the right for an overview of what will be happening every week, or the more detailed Events page.

The anthology Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Favorite Poems will be distributed free at all events. This short, comprehensive anthology of Longfellow’s most beloved poems will be the basis for the book discussion groups that will be happening around town as well. The Book Discussion Group page lists resources for group leaders and participants who want to learn more about Longfellow. This page lists titles suitable for adults, young adults, and children. We encourage everyone to read Longfellow during their lunch hour, to their families at night, before the start of community meetings, and together at one of the many book discussion groups. Copies of the Dover Thrift Edition as well as the other recommended Longfellow titles are available at the Wayside Inn Giftshop. Please help support the ongoing historic preservation of the oldest Inn in the country by buying your books at the Inn!

Teacher Resources include Reader’s Guides and Teacher's Guides that will be made available to all program participants. Longfellow educational materials are made possible through the generous support of the Poetry Foundation.

Check in every week to read the poem of the week, and don’t forget to browse the audio files in our online audio library of Longfellow recordings. Because our goal is to make Longfellow accessible to everyone, all lecture events and the Longfellow concert will be recorded and broadcast on Sudbury Cable Channel 8.