Author J. Courtney Sullivan lives in Massachusetts but is a longtime summer visitor to Ogunquit. Her latest novel, “The Cliffs,” went on sale July 2 and is a Reese’s Book Club pick.
It’s set in a coastal Maine town inspired by Ogunquit. She’ll be promoting the book at several events around Maine, including Cape Arundel Inn & Resort in Kennebunkport on Thursday, Curtis Memorial Library in Brunswick on July 29, and Dunaway Center in Ogunquit on July 30. For a complete list of events and times, go to jcourtneysullivan.
com. J. Courtney Sullivan with her latest book, set in a coastal Maine town inspired by Ogunquit.
Photo courtesy of J. Courtney Sullivan When I was growing up, the highlight of every summer was a week spent with family at a rental cottage in Ogunquit. Now, my husband and I vacation there with our two kids.
Southern Maine is still one of my favorite places in the world. I fell in love with other parts of the state, too, while researching my new novel, “The Cliffs,” which traces a house in Maine, and the lives of the women who live there over 400 years. On my perfect Maine day, I wake up in an oceanfront room at the Cliff House hotel in Cape Neddick, where I have never actually stayed but would very much like to.
I head to the Old York Historical Society for one of their fantastic walking tours. This summer, there’s one about Maine during the Civil War that I can’t wait to check out. After the tour, I go to Backyard Coffeehouse and Eatery in Ogunquit for one of their incredible egg sandwiches and a latte.
I walk the Marginal Way , and into Perkins Cove. I stop into Perkins Cove Pottery , a shop full of treasures both beautiful and breakable – I never dare take my children inside. Next, I’m on to the Maine Art Collective’s summer pop-up down the road.
My friend Leo Dunn shows his work there, along with 17 other local artists. Leo paints portraits of Ogunquit sea captains from various centuries. I have one hanging in my entryway at home.
I spend the rest of the morning on Ogunquit Beach , reading, swimming and taking a walk to Beach Plum Farm , a salt-water farm with a walking path, gorgeous gardens and ocean views. Lunch is at Pepperrell Cove in Kittery, upstairs on the porch at the Ski Club . People stroll Marginal Way in Ogunquit in 2022.
Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer Since time and distance don’t exist on this perfect day, after lunch, I head 150 miles north to Camp Etna , in Etna, for some psychic mediumship. Founded in 1876, Camp Etna is a summer camp for Spiritualists, many of whom are mediums. Mira Ptacin, who lives on Peaks Island, wrote a fascinating book about Camp Etna called “The In-Betweens,” and she was the first to take me there.
Last summer, my friend Donna Loring and I got readings from an Etna medium named Bonnie Lee. I’d love to see her again. Speaking of Donna, she is a Penobscot tribal elder, and she’s on the board of the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor, a museum dedicated to the history and culture of the Wabanaki.
On my perfect Maine day, I visit the Abbe with her. An exhibit at the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor in 2021. Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer By this point, I’m missing my husband and kids.
We meet up at Goose Rocks Beach in Kennebunkport and have dinner on the front porch of the Tides Beach Club . After dinner, we go to one of our favorite spots – the York Beach arcade, where we play Skee Ball and whack-a-mole and old-timey fortune-teller games as the waves crash against the sand just outside the open doors. Sunset at Goose Rocks Beach in Kennebunkport.
Photo by Marc Kaplan Modify your screen name Please sign into your Press Herald account to participate in conversations below. If you do not have an account, you can register or subscribe . Questions? Please see our FAQs .
Your commenting screen name has been updated. Send questions/comments to the editors..
