Reading is usually a solitary activity, just you and the author having an intimate conversation. But in Idyllwild, that’s not always the case. Though we do have an unusual number of readers in our small community, we also have a long history of groups of people meeting on a regular basis to share their love of reading, literature and the written word. I recently put out the word that the Idyllwild Library would like to support the many book groups in our area by requesting several copies of their next book choice from other branches of the Riverside County Library System and its Inland Library Network partners. We offered to make them available for check-out here at the library. The response was exciting and warmed my librarian’s heart.

Idyllwild jazz icon Marshall Hawkins, one of the founders of Jazz in the Pines, now in its 19th year, is adding venues and artists to his second jazz festival creation — Town Jazz. Entering its second year, Town Jazz is Hawkins’ effort to bridge a division between the Idyllwild Arts location of Jazz in the…