This year’s Appalachian Chamber Music Festival will explore the connections between folk and classical music, particularly with the Scot-Irish and Appalachian traditions. Read the Full Story >>
Events & Entertainment
Asking Questions, Recovering Truth
I came across When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill just after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The reviews indicated that it was a book about women’s rage, and also dragons. What’s not to love, I thought? I did indeed love it, but I was also surprised by the tender coming-of-age story about a grieving girl, and the powerful indictment of a society that tries to force its people to sweep their traumas under the carpet. Read the Full Story >>
Freedom’s Run 2022 – Your Solution to the Comfort Crisis
So many things today compete for our attention and energy. So it’s no surprise that when we get a few minutes of peace we seek comfort. But a book I brought on a summer trip to Oregon suggests we should regularly seek to get out of our comfort zones. Read the Full Story >>
Cyber Thriller Debuts at Theater Festival
It took only 20 years for the number of Internet users to grow from a few hundred million to 5 billion people. Today, cyberattacks are constant. And because the United States was an early adopter of connected technologies, we are particularly vulnerable.  Read the Full Story >>
Appalachian Chamber Music Returns In August For a Second Season
Last summer, a new music festival landed in Harpers Ferry, bringing a relevant and approachable experience of classical music. The Appalachian Chamber Music Festival is now back for its second season with a two-week schedule of performances celebrating the history, nature, and culture of Jefferson County and the surrounding region. Read the Full Story >>
Fear & Injustice
When I picked up The Lioness, the latest from author Chris Bohjalian, I thought it would be a well-written beach-read-style page-turner. The combination of 1960s Hollywood and the hot Serengeti settings made me think this novel would be a thriller above all, more fun perhaps than Bohjalian’s past works. But while this book makes for compulsive reading, be forewarned that it does not shy away from extraordinary acts of violence, brutal mistakes, and their rippling consequences. Read the Full Story >>
Celebrate Independence Day 2022
The American Flag carried by members of the Shepherdstown Volunteer Fire Department (above) is a staple of the Shepherdstown’s Independence Day parade in Jefferson County every year. For fireworks and festivals, there are many events in nearby cities and counties during this July 4th weekend. JUL 2 (Sat) — Independence Day Festival in Brunswick · Read the Full Story >>
The 2022 Contemporary American Theater Festival – A Quick Guide
This year’s Contemporary American Theater Festival festival kicks off on July 3 with four days of previews (pay-what-you-can) followed by a packed schedule of opening weekend plays and events on July 8, 9 & 10. Six plays will be presented on a changing schedule Tuesday through Sunday during the following three weeks through July 31. Read the Full Story >>
Both New & Familiar At The 2022 Contemporary American Theater Festival
The Observer put Peggy McKowen, Producing Artistic Director of the Contemporary American Theater Festival (CATF), in the spotlight to answer some questions about this year’s festival, presented this July in Shepherdstown. Read the Full Story >>
Anger & Conspiracy
Alma Katsu’s newest historical horror novel, The Fervor, feels unsettlingly familiar despite its World War II setting. Although the story begins with the outbreak of a mysterious illness in a Japanese-American internment camp, it eventually merges in surprising and satisfying ways with two parallel story lines: one about a female reporter trying to uncover a government conspiracy, and the other focused on a grieving widow who gets sucked into a homegrown white nationalist movement. A touch of magical realism, mostly based on Japanese folklore and fairy tales, ties the book together. Read the Full Story >>
Air Quality Forum – June 2
The Rockwool Ranson facility is required to file an application for its air permit with the WV Department of Environmental Protection in June. The non-profit Jefferson County Foundation will summarize the permitting process as it applies to the Rockwool facility, followed by a discussion about how residents can engage in this review process.  Read the Full Story >>
Enjoy A Local Vacation To Shepherdstown
Shepherdstown, at the northern end of the county, is enough off the beaten path to retain the sleepy charm of a small village that makes it easy to quickly relax with a weekend or midweek get-away.  Read the Full Story >>
A Journey of Discovery in Italy
One Italian Summer is a love letter to mothers, written through the lens of a grieving daughter. As the novel begins, thirty year-old Katy has just lost her mother, Carol, to cancer. Read the Full Story >>
Visit Berkeley Springs, West Virginia
Everybody needs a little time away, goes the song — even from the people, places, and things we love. Fortunately, here in Jefferson County we have an abundance of nearby travel options in the surrounding region that both local residents and visitors can experience.  Read the Full Story >>
An Ordinary Person in a World Turned to War
and that Ukraine’s heritage is not distinct from Russia’s. Highlighting Ukraine’s rich literature is a clear way to counter this false narrative, and Serhiy Zhadan is one of the best writers in translation with whom to start. Read the Full Story >>