The granddaddy, or mommy, of summertime reading series here, Fridays at Five at the Hampton Library in Bridgehampton, is back, in a way — virtually, sans the back lawn, the plastic chairs, and the chardonnay — with a shorter-than-usual lineup that continues tomorrow, keeping it local with Sybille van Kempen of Loaves and Fishes talking about her "Bridgehampton Inn Look + Cook Book."
The well-illustrated volume lays out the history of the turn-of-the-19th-century Gurden Corwith house, which later became the Boxtree Inn before its current incarnation. The book's focus, however, is on a gaggle of cooking recipes, with cocktail recipes blended in courtesy of Ms. van Kempen's mixologist son.
The talk can be seen on the Hampton Library's YouTube channel, at the advertised 5 p.m., or at any time over the weekend.
On a heavier note, Friday, July 31, brings Tom Philpott of Mother Jones with "Perilous Bounty: The Looming Collapse of American Farming and How We Can Prevent It." The book comes out on Aug. 11.
He'll be followed on Aug. 7 by Alafair Burke, once described in this paper as a "talented domestic-noir author" of novels including "The Ex" and "The Wife," and now "The Better Sister." More than a tale of sibling rivalry, in an introduction Ms. Burke says it explores "the complexities of female relationships and the diverse roles that women play in contemporary society."
A former prosecutor in Oregon, now a law professor at Hofstra, she lives part time in East Hampton.