Summer in Somerville

The US tour is moving north. Today I'm in Somerville, NJ, a Dutch settled town built at a crossroads shortly after the American Revolution. Nowadays Somerville still has its historical buildings and its past seems close at hand, though the city has modern amenities, good shops, and proximity to Princeton University that make this a cosmopolitan and charming place.  New Jersey is no slouch when it comes to authors. The roster of Jersey writers includes Junot Díaz, Philip Roth, Allen Ginsberg, and Amiri Baraka, to name just a few. It's also home to the Dodge Poetry Festival, the largest poetry event in North America, and though the 2012 event doesn't happen until October, I've been watching the roster grow with interest.  As for me, I've heard a rumour that I might be doing a spot of Kayaking.