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Live Free and Eat Pie!
A Storyteller's Guide to New Hampshire
by Rebecca Rule

$15.95
Softcover, Humor
ISBN: 978-1-934031-17-9


 


Visit "Travels with Becky,"
Becky's blog about
life, New England and,
of course, pie.

audio Where Selectmen Belong
Sixteen Dollar Picnic Table
From "Better than a Poke in the Eye"

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ABOUT THE BOOK
Anyone who hopes to visit or has visited New Hampshire, and, heck, even anyone who LIVES there, will delight in this hilarious guide to the Granite State. Popular New Hampshire storyteller Rebecca Rule provides her interpretation of the state’s history, culture, climate, attractions, vernacular, and more!

REVIEWS
"Many writers try to capture a sense of place, whether they are writing poetry or prose, fiction or nonfiction. Rule captures a lot of what makes New Hampshire special, from the unique expressions to the people they spring from. She alludes to differences between the natives ('someone who can claim five generations in the ground') and the newcomers."
– Concord Monitor

"Rule's dry wit, story-telling flair and the New Hampshirite's shrewd sense of combining practicality with entertainment makes this book a winning attraction for anybody who lives in New Hampshire, visits, is thinking of visiting, passes through or drives up this way on the interstate. As well as anybody who likes to be entertainbbed and educated at the same time."
– Portsmouth Herald

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rebecca Rule has lived in New Hampshire all her life (so far). She is a graduate of the University of New Hampshire and taught writing classes there for a number of years. She is the author of three short story collections about New Hampshire, including The Best Revenge – which was named Outstanding Work of Fiction by the New Hampshire Writers Project – and Could Have Been Worse: True Stories, Embellishments, and Outright Lies. She is best known for her live storytelling events, many sponsored by the New Hampshire Humanities Council. She lives in Northwood, N.H., with her husband, John, and their fox terrier, Bob.
EXCERPTS
“ Along the New Hampshire Border: As you drive into New Hampshire from the north, you'll see that the Welcome to New Hampshire signs acknowledge our Canadian neighbors: "Welcome to New Hampshire. Bienvenue." That means "eat your vegetables" in French. At the rock bottom of the state, we border Massachusetts, but we try not to think about it. The signs at that border, near the state-run liquor stores within spitting distance of the highway, say: "Welcome to New Hampshire. Now go home. But first stock up on Jim Beam." Which is our warm way of saying: "You people drive way too fast and never yield. You frighten us. But we appreciate your business. ”

“ Stickler: Pronounced stick-lah. A stick-lah won't give. A sticklah sticks to the exact rules. A sticklah can make your life miserable, for example, if you want to dump your dump at the dump, and your dumpsticker is expired. If the dumpmaster is a sticklah, he'll turn you away and grin while he's doing it. In these small towns we have a high percentage of sticklahs stickling it to their neighbors. Why? Because they can. And for some reason, they seem to think they should. ”