Neighbor News
Presenting local author Neal Sanders on May 3
Sanders will be the guest speaker at the May mtg of the Hannah Adams Woman's Club. Hear him talk about his Medfield-based books/characters
Join the Hannah Adams Woman's Club on Tuesday, May 3rd, for a presentation by local author Neal Sanders.
Inventing Hardington: How Medfield Acquired a Fictional Alter Ego – and Charms Readers Worldwide -- You may not know it, but Medfield has a sizeable fan club… but its fans keep wanting to know more about a fictitious town 18 miles southwest of Boston called ‘Hardington’.
Hardington is the invention of Medfield author Neal Sanders, but the resemblance is unmistakable. One of Hardington’s borders is the Charles River and, the concrete company based just across the river sends its trucks rumbling through town, damaging roads and wayside gardens. There’s a long-closed sanitarium on the north side of town where teens gather on summer nights. A reality TV show came to town a few years ago to build a home in just one week for a family in need of one. In the late 19th Century, the town was host to an Impressionist plein air art colony.
In nine mysteries (of the 16 he has published), Hardington is as much a character as any of its human inhabitants. Its residents talk of vernal pools and rising real estate taxes. There is a considerable divide between families that have been in town for generations, and a new-money elite who tear down old homes to put up ‘starter castles.’
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Neal, who has lived in Medfield ‘off and on since 1980’ sees the town through the eyes of an outsider and takes nothing for granted. He understands why mystery readers search out mayhem set in idyllic small towns. In England, that invariable means the Cotswolds. In the U.S., it’s the small New England town. Medfield, he says, is a terrific place for a murder.
As guest speaker, Neal will talk about what he changes, what he keeps the same, and where the ideas for his books come from. He’ll even share the identities of some of the people who populate his stories. Join us on May 3 at the Church of the Advent, 28 Pleasant Street, at 10:30 a.m. for Neal's presentation. Feel free to arrive at 10 a.m. to learn more about the Hannah Adams Woman's Club.
