BOOKS: THE LIFE AND LOVE OF...
A unique opportunity for your book club or reading retreat dreams.
Are you a Bookworm, Bibliophile, History Buff, Librarian, Educator, or have interest in Book Arts?
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Do you want to expand your book club by reading books about books?
Do you get lost in bookstores or libraries?
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Are you interested in learning how to transform your own story into a one-of-a-kind designed book?
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Are you a book obsessed crafter wanting a chance to make your own book craft or designer as author project?
​It's all about books!
Customize your group retreat today!
Spend a minimum of two (2) nights at camp where you'll have a unique private experience for your group. Three nights is even more rewarding. Lots of space to gather as a group and to spread out individually inside and outside. The Lemon Lodge is a great camp vibe and you can either spread out for more privacy in the Raspberry Residency House or choose that option for less people. And, yes this is an available option if you want a solo or a couple of friends getaway! pics below.
CUSTOMIZE AN ITINERARY WITH ADD-ON OPTIONS INCLUDING:
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* BOOK HISTORY PRESENTATION
* RECOMMENDED READING BOOKS ABOUT BOOKS
* EXPERIENCE MAPPING & DESIGNING A BOOK COVER
* COLLAGE OR TYPOGRAPHY EXERCISES
* JAPANESE BOOKBINDING
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MOVIE NIGHT RELATED TO BOOK THEME
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WHY?
WHY CAMP WONDER WANDER AND YOUR HOST, VAL?
Val is passionate about everything BOOKS: book culture, book design, reading, visiting libraries and bookstores, discovering historic archives, teaching about the history of the book and history of writing, and making her own visual narrative books. She wants to share her knowledge and passion for this material with you!
Val's philosophy of being a wonder wanderer and getting lost is the epitome of what happens in our relationship with books. In her youth, Val was an avid reader and as adulthood bears more responsibilities reading sometimes has more purposes than pure entertainment while her choices of material evolved. As a graphic designer, Val is obsessed with book covers and good design in general so wandering into bookstores to look at all the delights is always fun and inspiring. She's admittedly a bibliophile.
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The camp retreat was established just for this purpose to host groups like yours in your yearning to disconnect from every day life to focus on friends and your shared love of books.
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At the University where she was teaching prior to starting this retreat center and workshops, the general education program was asking faculty to submit course proposals for graduating seniors in any major to take a seminar that covered the 5 subjects – history, literature and philosophy, aesthetics, science, and human behavior - in some capacity with an overarching theme. After much contemplation and brainstorming, Val had an a-ha moment - BOOKS! You see as she became immersed in design education and teaching graphic design history, books not only became something to read, but artifacts of culture, evidence of historical changes in design, and more. Her passion for books grew enormously and she developed a list which has expanded beyond the initial 24 books about books for her students to read and she read them too. Her proposal was met with rave reviews by all of her colleagues and teaching it brought much joy in seeing students who admittedly never read a book (and graduating from college) or those who didn't think they were creative able to present their reading in an innovative way, or those learning about literacy, Malala's story or book censorship for the first time.​
Sample Itinerary
1
arrival night
Enjoy a family style dinner and settle in for the evening. Choose the add-on book history presentation or a book themed movie (title arranged before arrival).
2
full day and night
Choose the food option and you'll have a continental breakfast available and lunch items for grazing on your own. Group meal in the evening for your book club discussion. Add-on activities for the day include a guided Forest Therapy walk and/or a book related craft such as book-binding, collage, typography, or book cover design.
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departure day
Before you depart, you can sleep in after staying up late reading and move into the day slowly. Choose the food option for an early brunch of gluten-free quiche and other farm-to-table yummy options.
Time to hang out with the donkeys and take a tour of the gardens and landscape.