One blustery day in early winter, restless and not quite yet ready to hunker down, I wandered to Jackson Square Mall, a mid-sized antique mall in downtown La Grange. It is a comfortable antique “haunt” in the western suburbs of Chicago, housed in an old factory near the railroad tracks, with small booths and a homey feel. It is fun to go to with friends, but I’m equally comfortable roaming by myself, especially on blustery days when I need a just an hour or two to wander around previous decades.
There are a few dealers at Jackson Square that specialize in books. Most are not antiquarian, instead gently used books in all genre. This is where I easily get lost. Where I have found some old friends between gently worn covers just sitting on shelves waiting for me to find them, like a game of hide and seek. I have made some pleasant discoveries in the closeted recesses of Jackson Square. Books I didn’t know I would like and authors I had never read.
On this particularly blustery day, I came across a title that seemed to call to me. Stillmeadow.
The book was mine from the first paragraph as I stood in the little book nook and read the introduction.
“The way we bought our house in the country would have turned the blood of any expert in home-buying to glacial ice. We had read some dozen books of advice and hundreds of pamphlets, it is true, and we did know that a place advertised as having deep maple shade had no plumbing. Old colonial with five fireplaces, Dutch oven, old hardware, usually meant the roof was falling in and dry rot eating the bones of the timbers. Trout stream indicated half the yard was a swamp.”
With a 1948 copyright date (earlier dates for portions that were printed in magazines like Family Circle) this book actually predated my birth – yet I felt right at home with Gladys Taber’s wit and her charm, her love for the woods and the flora and fauna and for family and cooking and for watching out for the other guy. I found her to be a graduate of Wellesly in 1920 and a creative writing teacher at Columbia University. I learned she wrote some 50 books and countless more newspaper and magazine articles.
Stillmeadow took me through each month of the year at the 1690’s Connecticut farmhouse that Taber’s family and the family of her friend purchased together for a summer retreat, and eventually made it their permanent home.
The illustrations by Edward Shenton helped clinch the deal.
Did I tell you the book was a steal at $7.00 and took me month by month, with a great deal of self control on my part, through it’s chapters, which started in November, which is when I bought it?
I returned to Jackson Square, with some friends, after Christmas, on a bitterly cold Saturday. There, sitting, in the same booth, atop of the shelf, the very same shelf, was The Stillmeadow Road, just waiting for me, and then I opened it the book and it fell to this page.
Did I have any choice but to plunk seven more singles down just to travel this country road for yet another year? Click on the picture and you will understand why this literary wanderer knew it was hers.
I returned to the mall. Each time I would go to the booth. I would play a game with myself and approach it a different way each time. Gladys and I would just have to work to find each other. Ah, but she was craftier than I, and there she would be, again in the cranny with a few more words for me, on the same shelf, three more times. Stillmeadow Seasons, Another Path, and then the last, at least for now, Especially Dogs.
Collectively, they all cost me less than the latest bestseller and they have all kept me company this long, hard winter. Gladys Taber has a comfortable writing style and though these books were written mid-twentieth century, they are relevant today as she talks about gardening and breeding her dogs and of child rearing and the importance of family. She frets over housing developments taking over farms and orchards and of chemicals on crops and of a splintering society and she writes much of it in an bygone era most of you reading this now have longings to return to.
There is often a recipe or two peppered among the stories as well.
I suspect these books were bought in an estate sale and brought to the shelves I love to return to by the booth’s owner, who realizes she has snared a return customer, and who sets the books out like little crumbs of bread for a flittering chickadee that happens by now and then to stop for a bite of good words.
I’ll wander in to Jackson Square Mall as time goes by – and I’ll be on the lookout for Gladys Taber’s other 45 books.
In the meantime, I snared Aunt Jo’s Scrap-Bag. Guess who the author is.
Oh my goodness, these books sound perfect. I am not familiar with the author either. Just the few hints you gave have me hooked. I don’t have the antique store opportunities that you have, but we have plenty of flea markets. I go right to the boxes of books every time. I think the booth’s owner is a very sharp business person. If they were all out at once you may have been overwhelmed and not bought any. 🙂
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Perfect for a Country Mouse! Try flea markets, AAUW used book sales, garage sales (especially if it looks like the house is being vacated), used book stores. I’m guessing these books came out of the same house and were snatched up by a dealer when the house was being sold. You are so right. The owner sold one, the two, then knew I’d be back. I’m the Pavlov dog of books.
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Hi,
We have a 400 member organization of people who love Gladys Taber’s books. We are meeting at her home, Stillmeadow Farm, in June for our annual meeting. You sound as though you might like to join our group, as you will learn all sorts of things about Gladys and her life.
By the way, I don’t mean to sway you from buying books from your favorite mall bookstore, but I can tell you that Gladys’ books sell for even less money on ebay, abebooks and amazon marketplace. Most of the Stillmeadow series books go for just a few dollars each, although her fiction commands VERY high prices, in the hundreds of dollars for the most rare. The Stillmeadow series also includes the 2 books she wrote about her home on Cape Cod which was called Still Cove, plus 4 cookbooks. Beware some scam artists who will ask a tremendous amount of money for the Stillmeadow/Still Cove series, and just keep watching. I can send you a list of all the books she wrote.
Happy reading!
Susan
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Wow! Thanks for all of the information on Gladys Taber, Susan. I would love to be able to join your group, but time, distance, and other obligations would prohibit that right now. I’d love to someday see Stillmeadow Farm.
Is there a website for your organization? I knew of her Cape Cod home and appreciate knowing it’s name – Still Cove. Love it.
I didn’t pay very much at all for the books, which were in excellent condition and the mall is respected in the area, but appreciate the heads up on scam artists and prices and will take heed as I discover more of Gladys’ books. I have seen some of her books on amazon and will check out abebooks.
Many thanks.
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Wonderful post. Great blog. And we think alike: I could just envision the senarior which you painted for the dealer and these books.
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Thank you so much. It is so much fun to explore and learn new things – and meet new people – like you. The picture of your tomato soup certainly whetted my appetite yesterday.
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I have not met most of our 400 members, as only about 30-40 are able to attend the annual meetings, which are held in places where Gladys herself had lived. Next year we will probably be in Appleton, Wisconsin, where she spent most of her growing up years. Last year we were at Wellesley College in Massachusetts where she earned her BA. We’ve also been to Virginia, Colorado, Illinois,Cape Cod, etc.
Most of our members join in order to get the 40 page quarterly journal. In it we publish family photos of Gladys and “Jill” (whose real name was Eleanor), short stories by Gladys, excerpts from her columns, and other information that is very hard to find elsewhere.
We are in the process of building our website but it will not be ready in the very near future. The site where you found her photo was a high school project by a teen in Southbury, CT, some years ago, and is owned by the individual. There is another site owned by another individual which is a chat-type site. When we get our site up and running, it will have oodles of information to enjoy.
Always glad to meet another fan of our dear Gladys!
Susan
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Thank you for so much information and expanding my knowledge of Gladys Taber. It sounds like an interesting group and quarterly publication as well. Let us all know when the site is up and running.
I’m just about ready to hit publish on another post about the movie Christmas in Connecticut. Feel free to enlighten us on more about it, Susan.
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These books sound wonderful! Also, you are getting great at posting photographs, I love the way they landed in this one!
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Thanks, Janet. I won’t tell you how many tries it took. It’s fun to learn and play around with this, though not as eerie as Anton’s ghost.
The books are great and I am hoping to discover more from time to time. These two posts were fun to do and it was great to have some of the interesting and informative feedback it generated.
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What wonderful sounding books. I love gentle, home centred books like this, and especially ones that reflect life in a rural setting, as I have no real experience of that, being a city girl all my life! I have a secret dream of moving to America and having a farmhouse in New England so these lovely books would feed my dream nicely!
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. . . and I dream of the English countryside. I hope you can visit New England one day. In the meantime, Gladys Taber’s books are a lovely way to feel the region.
Your outstanding review of Chocolate Cake With Hitler by Emma Craigie has been with me since you posted. Not a dream, to be sure, but a book I think I need to read for all sorts of compelling reasons.
Thank you for stopping by.
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This is the most wonderful posting. I’m thrilled that you have discovered the wonderful Gladys Taber. I so love her work, and her life. Over the years I’ve put some of her words on my blog, and there is always such a nice response. I do think you’d enjoy getting the Friends publications. They come four times a year and are filled with interesting articles.
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Thank you, Nan. I will have to check out the Friends publication. I find that much of what Gladys Taber wrote holds as strong today as they did when she wrote them.
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While looking online today for news of the Friends of Gladys Taber, I discovered this website. I can tell you from past experience, that you will never be disappointed in anything that Gladys wrote. I took “Stillmeadow Sampler” on vacation years ago and immediately knew that I wanted to write this person and thank her for putting into words the things that live in my heart. Imagine my real disappointment when I discovered that she had passed away. I have attended a Friends Reunion, here in my hometown of West Chester PA and was so happy to meet her granddaughters, Alice and Anne and daughter, Constance. Also Ned Shenton, son of Barbara Webster – a great friend of Gladys who lived in this immediate area as well. But I really just wanted to say that you will never regret locating every single book that this woman ever wrote. I have most everyone, including “Morningside” which Connie wrote. Recently I was in an antique barn in the Adirondacks and there was “Country Chronicle” just waiting to come back to our home in the woods — even though I already have a copy of that book in my library here at our fulltime home. Here’s to a writer that tugs at the heart and reminds you of what is truly important.
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My husband and I just got in from a little picnic lunch in the woods nearby and much to my pleasure I found your wonderful comment awaiting me. I can, indeed, imagine your disappointment at discovering Gladys Taber had passed away. I like your phrase of “the things that live in my heart”. That describes her writing so well for me as well. I will keep looking for more of Gladys’ books and hope to experience the excitement of finding more of her books, again and again. Thank you for visiting here on the cutoff.
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I lived in VA mywhole life until a few months ago and am temporarily living in CT with my husband who is stationed here. My mother loves Glady, all she stands for, the way she lived her life, and every detail of her home. It is her fondest dream, and has been her forever dream, to see Stillmeadow. I would love to be able to take her before I move. SHe will probably be visiting CT for the last time in the next month or so. Is there any way a visit would be possible? Is it open to the public? It would mean so very much. Thanks!
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It is so nice to hear from you, Amanda, and of your mom’s interest in Gladys Taber and so wonderful of you to see if you can get her to Stillmeadow Farm.
I’m sorry, but, I don’t know if Stillmeadow is open to the public. You can find more information about Gladys Taber in Susan’s comments above. There is a website I found where you can send questions to as well at http://www.friendsofgladystaber.org/ . Good luck – and let me know if your mom gets to Stillmeadow Farm.
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Hi Amanda,
Stillmeadow is still owned by the family and is NOT open to the public. As the home is privately owned, we try to respect their privacy.
Members of the Friends of Gladys Taber have an annual meeting and sometimes it is at Stillmeadow, sometimes at Still Cove on Cape Cod, Gladys’ other home. I suspect we will be back to Stillmeadow either in 2011 or 2012.
There is no harm in driving past Stillmeadow and taking a few photos from the road, but it is legally private property.
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Hi, Susan. I just hit reply for Amanda’s question and here you are. As always, thank you so much for your quick response. Penny
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When I first commented I had clicked the ‘notify me of follow-up comments via email’ and it was such a treat this evening to read some more, and to read the whole piece over again. Truly, truly lovely. I talk about Gladys as if I knew her and as if she is still alive in the world somewhere, and really I guess she is through all her wonderful works.
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Oh, thank you, Nan. I love it when you quote Gladys – like saying hello over the fence. She is alive in her words, scattered about in her books, isn’t she? I don’t know why I never subscribed to the Friends publication and really must remedy that.
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[…] love Gladys Taber’s writings. She so often expresses exactly how I feel. So it was today as I worked outdoors, pulling […]
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So glad to read others love and comments of Gladys. I received my first book from my mom who loved her writings. I now have collected quite a few. I feel as if Gladys is family and she has been and is a mentor to me through her writings.
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I share your gladness, Connie. I was so pleasantly surprised by so many who know and appreciate Gladys Taber. Please read some of the comments above, if you haven’t already, to learn more about the Friends of Gladys Taber.
What a lovely gift from you mom and how wonderful that Gladys words hold so much meaning for you. I was just reading a bit from Stillmeadow Farm last night and here you are, commenting.
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[…] now, however, I think I’ll light a candle and open the Stillwater Sampler by Gladys Taber. This latest addition to my Taber collection unexpectedly jumped into my hands the other day while […]
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Hello, I have reached your blog by one of those long and happy routes. I read of Gladys Tuber through I blog I follow- ‘Welsh hills again’- one of the replies writes of Gladys Taber. Whilst trying to find her books to buy ( I live in England) I stopped by to say hello. I loved your description of the old book shop and your joy of ekeing out a loved book. I shall now go and try and find the first in the series. Best wishes, Jane
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Isn’t it amazing where blog reading takes us, Jane? Just the name “Welsh hills again” compels me to take a look there. Thank you for stopping by here to say hello. Gladys Taber was a gem and her books hold up many, may years after she passed on. They are hard to find these days, though, with antique and second hand shops, the internet and ebay being the say. Good luck in your hunt and I would suggest picking up any one you may find.
There are a few comments above yours that have a link to the Friends of Gladys Taber website, which may have some information for you.
Hope to see you here on the Cutoff again. Penny
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Having found her in a Thrift Shop when I was in my early parenting in the 50’s, and found such joy and comfort with her books now that I’m 80, I continue to enjoy her magic style and depth. I visited Stillmeadow a couple of decades ago and found enchantment there abounded, even to being welcomed at the door by her granddaughter. Her writing is a rare blend and comfort to those who read deeply. Her charm and grace commend her as her own kind of royalty.
We find ‘friends’ in off places, sometimes rescuing us at just the right moment.
Her writing is timeless.
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Marlene, what a delight it was for me to return home this afternoon and find your comment. It is amazing how Gladys Taber’s words have stood the test of time, isn’t it? Your sentiments of her writing being “a rare blend and comfort to those who read deeply” match my own, as well as that we find friends “in off places”. That chance encounter with “Stillmeadow Farm” in a tucked away corner that winter afternoon has subsequently led me to love Gladys Taber’s writings and I have managed to add others to my collection since.
What a treasured memory that is for you, visiting Stillmeadow. If you have the time and are so inclined, please do read the comments left above as they are full of interesting bits about Gladys. There is a link to Friends of Gladys Taber and some other information as well. One of the commenters, Nan, has done some wonderful posts on Gladys Taber over a number of years. If you click onto Nan, it should lead you to her blog and more information.
Thank you for you comment, for reading my post, and for sharing your visit to Stillmeadow. You’ve made my day! Penny
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[…] was at the very same Jackson Square Mall where this cookbook emerged, on the same shelf where my first introduction to Gladys Taber’s words was. When I wrote that first post, I quickly learned through generous comments of others that there […]
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