Word byWord
Read aloud Together
Combining our love of a good book with delicious food, travel and conversation with old and new friends.
Fully Booked!
Tumlinwood Farms Pilot Retreat
Bainbridge Island, WA
August 27-30, 2026
What is it?
Word by Word brings together a small group of women for a retreat devoted to sharing a book as a launching pad to conversations and friendship. Together we read a novel aloud - not silently, not alone- to find the threads that connect the story to our own lives.
Each retreat is intentionally small, anchored by a single book, and held in a setting worthy of the literature we love. We pair this with activities tailored to the location - everything from beach walks, yoga and hikes are on the table.
Read-aloud retreats in beautiful, handpicked locations where we bring the pages to life with conversation and shared experiences
Pilot Retreat
Tumlinwood Farms
Bainbridge Island, WA
Friday
Breakfast
Morning Read Aloud
Yoga
Lunch
Afternoon Reading
Hike or Beach Walk
Evening Drinks with Reading
Dinner
Thursday
Settle in and meet one another
opening reading
dinner together
Saturday
Breakfast
Morning Read Aloud
Yoga
Lunch
Afternoon Reading
Hike or Beach Walk
Evening Drinks with Reading
Dinner
Sunday
Breakfast
Final Reading
Our Book
The Things We Never Say
By Elizabeth Strout
Artie Dam is, by all appearances, a man fully present in his life — a beloved history teacher, a husband of three decades, a sailor on Massachusetts Bay. But inside, he is haunted by a single question: how is it that we know so little about one another, even those closest to us? When a chance event reveals a secret that upends everything, Artie must reckon with the relationships he holds most dear — and with what we choose to say, and what we leave unspoken.
Pulitzer Prize–winning author Elizabeth Strout's newest novel is a quiet, devastating meditation on loneliness, hidden truths, and the love that holds us together.
A copy of the book will be provided — no advance reading required. Come ready to discover it with us, word by word.
Our Story
Thirty-six years ago, Leslie and Nicole met on the first day of college at Wake Forest University - the start of a lifelong friendship. In their junior year, they were students in Dr. Maya Angelou’s class, a transformative and electrifying experience for two insatiably curious nineteen year old’s from the South.
The theme of the class was “I am a human being, and thus nothing human is alien to me.” a quote by the playwright Terence. Dr. Angelou invited the class to learn from the stories that seemed to have no resemblance to their own lives.
Each week, the class would read a new book, play or poetry, wondering together about the paradoxes of being human and our fundamental connection to others. And that’s how empathy slips in! Dr. Angelou’s influence became a touchstone that continued to influence both of their lives after graduation (and will be Leslie’s Jeopardy story should she ever make the show).
Recently, they spent a magical weekend in New York reading together - in Central Park, at small coffee shops, slumped into chairs at the end of long days. The luxury of reading with someone else and being able to bounce ideas and questions off each other in real time was so immediate and rewarding they thought, “Why not share this magic with others?”
About Us…
Nicole
When I was in middle school, we were assigned six books for summer reding. Invariably, I had only completed five b y the last weekend of summer. My friend Nancy always saved the day, taking turns reading my final book into the wee hours of the morning. Those summer nights are special memories of connection and friendship.
As a chaplain and grief counselor, I use poetry and passages from novels as a way into people’s grief, witnessing them re-story their lives after a loss. We read together as I accompany them on their journey.
I want to bring these meaningful experineces into group settings where we read aloud together, listening to one another’s unique voices, both as we read and search for meaning in our own lives.
Leslie
Reading is hard-wired into my DNA. One of my funniest memories of my mom is looking over while we were watching my high school friend in a local beauty pageant. Instead of taking in the swimsuit competition or whatever was going on at the time, my mom was reading her novel with a book light clipped to the page. (I want to clarify, that my friend wasn’t on stage at the time!)
I often find myself wondering if I’m being selfish spending so much time with my nose buried in a book. What do you do with all of the these churning ideas if you just read alone, finish the book and put it back on the shelf? Why is reading treating largely as a solitary experience?
Reading together gives us an excuse to jump right past the small talk and into discussions of significance. The book is the catalyst - it gives us permission to connect with those who are sharing in the experience of the story. Empathy and connection are the goals of the experience and literature, read aloud, is one of the most direct paths there.