Subversive Journeys Around Vermont

Off the Leash is an exuberant, grand tour of some of Vermont's most interesting and undervalued places-from the Domestic Resurrection Circus performed by giant puppets in Glover, to the Dowser's Labyrinth in Danville, to the birthplace of Joseph Smith, one of the founders of the Mormon Church, in Sharon. Vermont is full of quirky places and colorful history, and Helen Husher's collection of stories about her favorite haunts is some of the most captivating travel writing seen in years.

At turns irreverent and witty, philosophical and wise-and always surprising-Off the Leash goes beyond Vermont and well beyond the world of tourism to explore "the richness of life and the treasures in it, and how we lose these things in a world that seems to be mostly about speed and cash." It's a book sure to interest anyone with a taste for eccentric stories, for small-town dramas, for the way our places make us who we are.

"Endlessly, joyously inventive, Helen Husher writes with ferocity, grace, and wit about unknown and unappreciated corners of Vermont. Off the Leash is a perfect gift for the intellectually adventurous traveler, or for the connoisseur of fine writing who never leaves the house."
—Tim Clark, Yankee magazine