The Fox Valley in Illinois has a cluster of charming villages, exemplified by the historic triumvirate of Batavia, Geneva, and St. Charles. I was in search of a decent cup of coffee when I turned a corner in downtown St. Charles and found not only the coffee, but attached to the cafe was also a small independent book store. An over-caffienated bookworm’s dream.
Book shops such as these invariably take on the character of the owner, and Town House Books and Cafe, on 2nd and Cedar streets, is no exception. The offerings were heavily weighted toward local history, travel, and outdoor activities. Among a few new volumes of travel writing, I picked up Paul Shullery’s 1996 story of fly-fishing obsession in England, Shupton’s Fancy (1st ed). It’s a short read, and perfect for my upcoming fishing trip to read in the tent before the lamp goes out at night.
Looking into the cafe, I was tempted to take an early lunch and flip through the new purchases, but I realized that I would be the only male in the room. Clearly, I would be interrupting a local women’s book club, so I decided to look for another spot to eat further along the Fox River, but the Town House coffee was great.
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