Summer 2021 Events Update:

June 24, 2021

Thank you to everyone who has checked in about the possibility of the Author Literary Luncheons at the Wequassett Resort and our Tailgate Story Times for Summer 2021.

Due to a family medical emergency, all events through our bookstore are currently on pause.

Things may change as we learn more, and if they do, we will update via an e-newsletter and also our website. For now, though, we are grateful for your understanding and support, as we embark on a second summer of reduced revenue without events, and a great deal of "unknown."

Because we feel that stories are important, we are sharing ours below.

If you are a praying person, please send one up for six year-old Mateo, or positive vibes and light and love into the universe are welcome too!

The Story

Mateo, Caitlin's younger son, and Joanne's grandson, was taken to the ophthalmologist last week for an eye exam, thinking glasses would resolve his balance issues and headaches. He was sent directly to the local ER, and, after two failed MRI attempts, taken by ambulance late at night to Boston Children's Hospital where an anesthetized MRI showed a large brain tumor. He went almost directly into a 7-hour surgery. We are forever grateful to the doctors, nurses, and technicians who cared for him with such competence and kindness.

He is home now recovering, and until we know the trajectory of his healthcare, we need to clear the calendar of the extras. Our hope is that the surgery was enough and that his life will slowly return to normal, filled with s'mores, the beach, and Tailgate Story Times. The road to that future is, at the moment, long and uncertain, and so we take it day by day and are filled with gratitude for the support flowing toward our family from so many directions. Thank you.

The Update

Spring 2024

After many quarterly MRIs and detailed care at the wonderful Jimmy Fund Clinic of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Mateo’s brain tumor remnant area is “stable” and while he has particular struggles from the hydrocephalus damage, he is doing really well. He will be under their “watch and wait” care until his 20s to monitor regrowth, and we are incredibly grateful for their expertise and kindness, as well as grateful to the Bookstore Community who have kept us in their thoughts all these years and who have supported us. Caitlin is particularly grateful to her co-owner mother, and immensely helpful father, and the amazing staff working so that she is able to do so much remotely and let Mateo grow a little more under her wing. This is not how I envisioned this stage of life, but — as books show us every day! — life circumstances can change quickly, and the story continues in unexpected directions…