PeterboroughBuck leads off lyceum series

Since 1828, the end of June has marked the beginning of the eight Sunday events of the Monadnock Summer Lyceum.

This year, the series begins June 30 with author Rinker Buck addressing the question “What Makes a Writer?” Music with Maple TreeO begins at 10:30 a.m. and the lecture at 11 a.m. at the Peterborough Universalist Unitarian Church at 25 Main St.  People can watch the event online at monadnocklyceum.org.

After graduation from Bowdoin, Buck’s list of writing credentials includes writing for The Berkshire Eagle, Hartford Courant, Life and Vanity Fair. He has also authored three New York Times best-sellers: “Flight of Passage,” “Oregon Trail” and “First Job.”

As one of 11 children and the son of a stonemason who worked on the monument to President William McKinley in Adams, Mass., Buck grew up hearing stories about New England and loving the history. He rebuilt his father’s 1948 Piper Cub when he was 15 with his 17-year-old brother, Kern. The two flew from New Jersey to San Juan, Puerto Rico. In another adventure, he built and sailed an 1800s wooden flatboat down the Mississippi. 

His awards include the PEN New England Award, the Eugene S. Pullia Journalism Award and the Society of Professional Journalists Sigma Delta Chi Award. 

When asked about factors creating his writing career, he commented, “All writing is derivative and many writers avoid the memoir genre,” but he often shows a childhood connection. “Flights of Passage” recounted the air trip that resulted in he and Kern being the youngest aviators to fly coast to coast. 

Paul Hernetky will serve as moderator.