Cultures of Reading Winterim

By Sloane Walsh ’25 & Megan Sladish ’25

In Ms. Rimany and Ms. Peluchiwski’s Winterim class, Cultures of Reading, students visited public libraries, bookstores, and coffee shops around Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York. The course focused on getting students in or back into reading. The class is great as well if you already love to read. If you are one of these people, Cultures of Reading is a perfect class to take, especially after a hectic Fall term. Thanks to Dr. Regan, who is in charge of planning Winterim classes, each student got forty-five dollars to buy a book and journal of their choice. Students in the class picked several different books and took creative approaches to how they wrote in their journals. 

Along with picking out a book and journal, the class took trips to the local bookstores, starting with Washington’s very own Hickory Stick. The Hickory Stick is a homey bookstore, and the staff was friendly and helpful with the class and gave great recommendations. The second bookstore the class visited was House of Books in Kent, Connecticut. House of Books was recently renovated, giving a modern look with a beautiful interior and a wide range of options. Most students bought journals and books at House of Books, and a few bought a pen from the bookstore’s collection. 

The class also visited The Bookstore in Lenox, Massachusetts, and met the store’s owner, Matt Tannenbaum. Matt was very outgoing and made sure everyone felt welcome in the bookstore. When the class arrived, he gave everyone a handshake, and while checking out a book, he would always provide another recommendation and try to find a book that he thought would be a perfect fit. He even wrapped some students’ books as gifts for the holidays. While in Lenox, the class also got to walk around town and see their beautiful public library and a couple of cute coffee shops. 

On campus, the class built a book tree in the library, visited the Gunn Memorial Library, and had time for free reading and journaling. At the end of the course, students got to create something that displayed their reading. Many students had creative takes on the project, making posters, drawings, book reviews, and more. Be sure to check out the library to see all the fun takes on the classes’ projects!