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Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Martha Hall Kelly draws inspiration from her family tree for her new historical novel set on Martha's Vineyard
At age 58, Kelly's second act had arrived. The '75 alum of Hingham's Notre Dame Academy said her history teacher, Mary Glasheen, sparked a love of history and women's stories. 'She got me interested in history, because she told it from a female point-of-view — stories about women. I was hooked after that.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'Miss Glasheen' might be proud to know that today, her student's name is synonymous with Advertisement Kelly's fifth and latest, ' The novel's plot in a nutshell: In 2016, 30-something Mari Starwood is on Martha's Vineyard, talking to Mrs. Devereaux, a 90-something Vineyard painter. The artist is telling Mari about the Smiths, who lived on the Vineyard during World War II. Advertisement In 1942, Cadence, 19 and a columnist for the Vineyard Gazette, and younger sister Briar, a 16-year-old eager to catch German spies in their midst, hold down the family farm with Gram after their brother Tom goes off to war. A book lover, Cadence starts the titular club. Soon Briar says she sees German U-boats lurking off the island's shores, Cadence falls for a British soldier, and they find a mysterious German soldier washed ashore… A love letter to books and book clubs, Kelly's new novel is ripe for summer reading — especially in this neck of the woods, where you could hop a ferry to see the real spots mentioned. Kelly has a I called her ahead of Martha Hall Kelly, author of 'The Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club.' Handout Q. This book was inspired by your family's history on Martha's Vineyard. You've summered on the Vineyard your whole life. A. I've always wanted to write about my family. They came to Martha's Vineyard in 1891. My great-grandmother and great-grandfather worked the mills in New Bedford. He was off the boat from Scotland. She'd worked the mills since she was 6, picking up spools. When they retired, they went to Martha's Vineyard and started a farm in West Tisbury. The stories are, my great-grandfather was not a very nice person. He chopped off the finger of farmer Green next door. There was a property dispute, farmer Green put his hand on the fence, and my great-grandfather took his hoe and chopped his little finger off. Advertisement Then my grandmother, Emma, and my grandfather raised their four kids, including my mother, on Martha's Vineyard. My mom [Joanne] met my father after the war when she was working as a medical secretary at the military hospital, now the He proposed, they were off to the races. They moved to Hingham, originally. Years later they moved back to the Vineyard. Q. You were born in Milton. A. Right. I grew up in Pembroke, later we moved to Hanson. I went to Syracuse, then Northwestern for journalism, graduating in 1981. Q. Did you always want to be a writer? A. When I realized I could write advertising for a living, I was hooked. But I was never really good at it — I was always trying to make the commercials into continuing characters, and the clients were like, 'No, this is just one commercial; you can't do a whole story.' I should've known I really wanted to write novels. Q. Cadence is based on your mom. She wasn't a newspaper columnist, but she did have a book club. A. She did. She grew up with two best friends: Betty Cottle and Shirley Kennedy. Shirley is still with us. Shirley filled me in on so much I didn't know about my mother — old boyfriends, old jobs, trouble they got into doing this and that. Advertisement They were avid readers, swapping books like you wouldn't believe. All they did was read. Members of the military prepared to depart for Martha's Vineyard from Woods Hole. Handout Q. A major plotline centers on A. Isn't that amazing? I'd never heard of them. They were full books, no bigger than a deck of cards. While Germans were burning books, we printed some 1.5 million of those little books. It made a whole generation of men into readers. 'The Great Gatsby' was not a hit, but Q. Gram, a good cook, is based on your grandmother. A. My grandmother sold doughnuts to soldiers for 25 cents a dozen. I don't know how she made money on that. The soldiers on My mother was 14 at the time, but she remembered how handsome they were. A lot were from always talked about how sad that was. The author Martha Hall Kelly's mother, Joanne Hall, and her friend Betty Cottle. Handout Q. How did you research the island's World War II history? A. My mom told me firsthand some stories, but I did a lot of research. Tom Dresser, a historian who lives on the island, [co-wrote] Advertisement Q. What was the most surprising thing you discovered? A. The mock invasion. I didn't realize they sent invasion barges practicing for Normandy to Lambert's Cove Beach in West Tisbury — I grew up on that beach. I had no idea. They had flour bags to simulate bombs going off, they had barrage balloons, the Navy was strafing the beach in planes. People reported seeing soldiers on their bellies working their way through their gardens. They were freaked out. Q. I'm curious: In your acknowledgments, you reference your mom's stories about 'Martha's Vineyard Sign Language.' What's that? A. Oh! My mom was fascinated with that. There was a gene for deafness that came from England back when people first settled on Martha's Vineyard. [Over generations] there was a prevalence of deafness. My mother remembered, growing up, a lot of people were deaf and used 'Martha's Vineyard Sign Language.' Even hearing fishermen out on the sea would use it. The sign for 'cod fish' — you draw your fingers down from your chin like a beard. Or poking one finger out from your forehead, that swordfish. That is not American Sign Language. It's Q. That's so interesting. So you've got two story lines here, Mari and the Smiths. Are you a plotter or a pantser? Advertisement A. I plotted the story of two sisters in 1942. But I was growing tomatoes and thought, 'How do I cook green tomatoes?' I looked up 'fried green tomatoes' and while I was making the recipe, I watched the movie. And, I don't know if you remember, Kathy Bates, there's a frame. Q. I know what you mean. She's the current-day listener, like Mari. A. Exactly! I pantsed Mari's story. Once I added that, the story came alive. Q. You said you initially didn't have books in the novel. A. I was having [writer's block] early on, wishing my mother had told me more about Martha's Vineyard … from when she was growing up. One day I went into the attic and found this manila envelope. I pulled out a stack of essays my Aunt Mary had written, about growing up on Martha's Vineyard. It was an amazing piece of research. In the stack, there was another little envelope with a list of all the books my mom thought my daughter should read. When I tilted the envelope, a gold heart [charm] fell out. She was not sentimental. I thought: 'This is her telling me [to add the books to the story.]' There's no doubt in my mind she led me to that. Interview was edited and condensed. Lauren Daley can be reached at
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Federal agents descend on Martha's Vineyard in immigration crackdown
This story was published by our news partner the Vineyard Gazette on Martha's Vineyard. Eyewitnesses and workers on the Island say the FBI and other federal agencies were on the Vineyard Tuesday, stopping vehicles and taking people into custody. Reports of officers in unmarked vehicles making traffic stops in down-Island towns spread across social media in the morning, and witnesses said they saw officers in FBI jackets involved. The bureau did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday. In one video shared online, a masked officer with the FBI is seen talking to a driver in a L&R Electrical Services van along Barnes Road. Thiago Alves, the owner of L&R Electrical Services, confirmed one of his workers was stopped by officers who were with the FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Alves' business is based in Rhode Island, and his worker arrived on the Island on Monday. The man, who Alves said has a green card, was released after questioning, but officers were interested in his immigration documentation. 'They questioned my guys looking for paperwork,' Alves said. Several other workers in the trades had been stopped as well, he said. 'My guy said they are stopping all the work vans,' Mr. Alves said. 'It's nothing against [us], it's pretty much everyone.' ICE also did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday. Other Islanders saw people taken into custody in Vineyard Haven. One Island woman, who asked to be anonymous for fear of reprisal, was driving along State Road at about 7:30 a.m. when she saw officers arrest a man across the street from Vineyard Grocer near the cemetery. While on her way to work, she saw more stops at the Barnes Road rotary, including by officers wearing Drug Enforcement Administration garb. 'They were just grabbing people out of their cars,' she said. A DEA spokesperson confirmed they had an agent assisting ICE, and referred questions to the other agency. Police officials in Edgartown and Tisbury did not return requests for comment. An Oak Bluffs police official referred questions to the FBI. The stops had Island institutions on high alert. The Vineyard public schools, which have many immigrant students, were monitoring the situation, according to Superintendent Richard Smith. In an email to parents sent out Tuesday, Smith said students' well-being is the district's highest priority. 'We want to remind you that we have protocols in place, aligned with state laws and District policies, to handle any requests for student or family information, as well as access to students, staff, or school property,' he wrote. 'This includes requests from immigration authorities. Our staff are trained to follow these protocols to safeguard our students and school community.' The Vineyard Gazette on Martha's Vineyard is a news partner of To subscribe to the Vineyard Gazette, click here. Immigration agents seen arresting several people on Nantucket Tuesday Victim in fatal Cape Cod hit-and-run crash identified as U.S. Army veteran, father Diners at Cape Cod restaurant may have been exposed to hepatitis A Man struck and killed in hit-and-run crash on Cape Cod Bacteria advisory issued for 2 Cape Cod ponds: What's safe and what to avoid Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Longtime Florida Studio Theatre patron is honored for providing $1.25 million bequest
Florida Studio Theatre is honoring the late Mary Jo Reston, an FST supporter for nearly two decades, for providing a $1.25 million gift that will help sustain the nonprofit theater company's artistic excellence for generations to come. Reston will be honored as a Platinum Underwriter in perpetuity for all of FST's programming, FST said, ensuring that the productions she cherished will continue to inspire audiences for years to come. 'Mary Jo Reston was a steadfast supporter of Florida Studio Theatre for many years [but] this was a tremendous surprise to us," FST managing director Rebecca Hopkins said. "We were in awe to discover she had left us such a meaningful gift. She truly understood the mission of FST, and this gift will help us continue to serve our community for decades to come.' Reston, who died in February 2024, was a steadfast presence at FST, attending Mainstage and Cabaret performances for more than 17 years. In 2012, she further demonstrated her commitment by purchasing a brick during the Gompertz Campaign. Without notifying the theater, Reston had named FST as a beneficiary in her estate plans. Her planned legacy gift of $1 million, received in July 2024, was followed by a residual gift of $250,000 in February 2025 that came as an unexpected tribute to FST. Reston was business manager and later a publisher of The Vineyard Gazette in Martha's Vineyard – roles she held for 25 years alongside her then-husband Richard Reston, a former journalist for the Los Angeles Times. The couple went around the world with The Los Angeles Times before moving to Martha's Vineyard in 1975 to run the Vineyard Gazette. The couple became co-publishers in 1988. Reston was deeply involved in running the Gazette, ensuring the paper thrived from behind the scenes. Reston retired from her leadership posts at the Vineyard Gazette in 1999, moving to Sarasota to spend her retirement. She began her career as a schoolteacher in Wisconsin before moving to Washington, D.C., where she worked for the Republican National Committee and at Blue Cross and Blue Shield. "Every year we will remember her as she continues to have an impact on the [Florida Studio Theatre] through her legacy," Hopkins said. Submitted by Wendy Kiesewetter with staff report This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Longtime Florida Studio Theatre patron honored for $1.25 million gift
