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Fox and I: An Uncommon Friendship by Catherine Raven

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Life Stories Book Club

"Fox and I" by Catherine Raven

2025-08-21 18:30:00 2025-08-21 19:30:00 America/New_York Life Stories Book Club Discuss memoirs and biographies with other book lovers at the Burke Branch Library! Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library - Meeting Room

Thursday, August 21
6:30pm - 7:30pm

Add to Calendar 2025-08-21 18:30:00 2025-08-21 19:30:00 America/New_York Life Stories Book Club Discuss memoirs and biographies with other book lovers at the Burke Branch Library! Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library - Meeting Room

Discuss memoirs and biographies with other book lovers at the Burke Branch Library!

Life Stories Book Club enjoys memoirs of everyone from the anonymous to the famous with discussions every third Thursday of the month. Bring along your thoughts or even just your listening ears to indulge in some bookish conversation around our latest selection. Reading crafters are welcome to bring their works in progress.

This month, join us to discuss "Fox And I: An Uncommon Friendship" by Catherine Raven. Print and digital copies available to place on hold here.

Want a reminder? Please register to receive an email ahead of the event. Note: Registration is not required.

Contact Abby at ahargreaves@alexlibraryva.org for more information.

About the Book:

When Catherine Raven finished her PhD in biology, she built herself a tiny cottage on an isolated plot of land in Montana. She was as emotionally isolated as she was physically, but she viewed the house as a way station, a temporary rest stop where she could gather her nerves and fill out applications for what she hoped would be a real job that would help her fit into society. In the meantime, she taught remotely and led field classes in nearby Yellowstone National Park.

Then one day she realized that a mangy-looking fox was showing up on her property every afternoon at 4:15 p.m. She had never had a regular visitor before. How do you even talk to a fox? She brought out her camping chair, sat as close to him as she dared, and began reading to him from The Little Prince. Her scientific training had taught her not to anthropomorphize animals, yet as she grew to know him, his personality revealed itself and they became friends.

From the fox, Catherine learned the single most important thing about loneliness: we are never alone when we are connected to the natural world. Friends, however, cannot save each other from the uncontained forces of nature.

Fox and I is a poignant and remarkable tale of friendship, growth, and coping with inevitable loss—and of how that loss can be transformed into meaning. It is both a timely tale of solitude and belonging as well as a timeless story of one woman whose immersion in the natural world will change the way we view our surroundings—each tree, weed, flower, stone, or fox.

AGE GROUP: | Seniors | Adults |

EVENT TYPE: | Book Discussion Groups |

TAGS: | Book discussion groups | Biographies |

Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library

ahargreaves@alexlibraryva.org
Phone: 703.746.1704
Fax: 703.746.1775
Branch manager
Abby Hargreaves

Hours
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Mon, Jan 05 10:00AM to 8:00PM
Tue, Jan 06 10:00AM to 8:00PM
Wed, Jan 07 10:00AM to 8:00PM
Thu, Jan 08 10:00AM to 8:00PM
Fri, Jan 09 10:00AM to 5:00PM
Sat, Jan 10 10:00AM to 5:00PM
Sun, Jan 11 1:00PM to 5:00PM

About the branch

Parking:
There is a library parking lot available.

Public Transit:

  • Metrorail: King Street Station
  • Metrobus: F20
  • DASH Bus: 36A, 36B, 102

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Mon, Jan 12, 10:30am - 12:00pm
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Join us to socialize and engage your mind with a game of bingo served with food, prizes, and fun. Registration is required.

Mon, Jan 12, 1:00pm - 3:00pm
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English practice for English language learners. No registration is needed. Class is held in the Burke Branch Meeting Room.

Mon, Jan 12, 5:00pm - 7:00pm
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Join Dungeon Master Jacob on an epic adventure where you call the shots and leave fate up to the dice.
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Tue, Jan 13, 10:15am - 11:00am
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Join us for a fun-filled hour of stories, music, and movement for ages 0-5!

Tue, Jan 13, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
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Join us for a special uninterrupted playtime with your child and meet other caregivers. Discover how play and learning go hand-in-hand. (ages 0-3).

Tue, Jan 13, 5:00pm - 6:00pm
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Express yourself with our fun crafts! Each week in January is a new art project! Ages 11-17.

Wed, Jan 14, 10:30am - 12:30pm
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Enjoy weekly sessions with other fiber artists. Bring and share your projects, and see others. Quilting tutorials will be provided on the first Wednesday of every month. No registration is required.

Fri, Jan 16, 10:15am - 11:15am
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We sing, play, dance, and rhyme all while promoting your baby’s development and literacy skills. For ages 0-14 months.

Fri, Jan 16, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
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Come and play with music in this fun parent-child learn & play class! Program focuses on activities that enhance brain development and build social skills, language/motor skills, and more (ages 0-5).

Fri, Jan 16, 3:30pm - 4:30pm
Meeting Room
Have fun on Fridays after school building, making, playing word bingo, and winning prizes! Grades K-5.

Tue, Jan 20, 10:15am - 11:00am
Meeting Room
Join us for a fun-filled hour of stories, music, and movement for ages 0-5!

Tue, Jan 20, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Meeting Room
Join us for a special uninterrupted playtime with your child and meet other caregivers. Discover how play and learning go hand-in-hand. (ages 0-3).

Tue, Jan 20, 5:00pm - 6:00pm
Meeting Room
Express yourself with our fun crafts! Each week in January is a new art project! Ages 11-17.

Wed, Jan 21, 10:30am - 12:30pm
Meeting Room
Enjoy weekly sessions with other fiber artists. Bring and share your projects, and see others. Quilting tutorials will be provided on the first Wednesday of every month. No registration is required.

Thu, Jan 22, 11:00am - 12:00pm
Meeting Room
Join us to learn the basic line dance steps to great Oldies and Motown music. This is a great class for beginners. Bring a friend or come alone. Please wear comfortable

Thu, Jan 22, 12:00pm - 1:00pm
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Viva Line Dancing: Join our intermediate level of line dancing to improve flexibility and enhance memory. We work the dance floors! This class is not intended for beginners.

Thu, Jan 22, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
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Start the New Year right by joining Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Financial Education volunteers to learn about types of debt, how to pay off debt, and tips for working with creditors.

Fri, Jan 23, 10:15am - 11:15am
Meeting Room
We sing, play, dance, and rhyme all while promoting your baby’s development and literacy skills. For ages 0-14 months.

Fri, Jan 23, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Meeting Room
Come and play with music in this fun parent-child learn & play class! Program focuses on activities that enhance brain development and build social skills, language/motor skills, and more (ages 0-5).

Fri, Jan 23, 3:30pm - 4:30pm
Meeting Room
Have fun on Fridays after school building, making, playing word bingo, and winning prizes! Grades K-5.

Sat, Jan 24, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Meeting Room
Join us one Saturday a month to get crafty! Each month is a new fun craft, followed by open play time and bubbles!

Mon, Jan 26, 10:30am - 12:00pm
Meeting Room
Join us to socialize and engage your mind with a game of bingo served with food, prizes, and fun. Registration is required.

Mon, Jan 26, 1:00pm - 3:00pm
Meeting Room
English practice for English language learners. No registration is needed. Class is held in the Burke Branch Meeting Room.

Mon, Jan 26, 5:00pm - 7:00pm
Meeting Room
Join Dungeon Master Jacob on an epic adventure where you call the shots and leave fate up to the dice.
This event is full

Tue, Jan 27, 10:15am - 11:00am
Meeting Room
Join us for a fun-filled hour of stories, music, and movement for ages 0-5!

Tue, Jan 27, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Meeting Room
Join us for a special uninterrupted playtime with your child and meet other caregivers. Discover how play and learning go hand-in-hand. (ages 0-3).

Tue, Jan 27, 5:00pm - 6:00pm
Meeting Room
Express yourself with our fun crafts! Each week in January is a new art project! Ages 11-17.

Wed, Jan 28, 10:30am - 12:30pm
Meeting Room
Enjoy weekly sessions with other fiber artists. Bring and share your projects, and see others. Quilting tutorials will be provided on the first Wednesday of every month. No registration is required.

Wed, Jan 28, 2:00pm - 4:00pm
Meeting Room
Join us at the Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library for Episode 1 of Ken Burn's newest documentary, The American Revolution.

Thu, Jan 29, 11:00am - 12:00pm
Meeting Room
Join us to learn the basic line dance steps to great Oldies and Motown music. This is a great class for beginners. Bring a friend or come alone. Please wear comfortable

Thu, Jan 29, 12:00pm - 1:00pm
Meeting Room
Viva Line Dancing: Join our intermediate level of line dancing to improve flexibility and enhance memory. We work the dance floors! This class is not intended for beginners.

Fri, Jan 30, 3:30pm - 4:30pm
Meeting Room
Have fun on Fridays after school building, making, playing word bingo, and winning prizes! Grades K-5.

Sat, Jan 31, 12:00pm - 2:00pm
Meeting Room
Join us for a fun-filled hour learning more about tarot!