Beyond Yonder

This is a hilarious send-up of life in Vermont, the characters of which are a mixed bag of ""chucks'' (natives) and ``flatlanders'' (those who ``recently'' have moved to Vermonteven if as long as 30 years earlier). Morris, marketing director for a Vermont manufacturer of wood stoves, knows the territory. The seemingly endless, bleak and dreary winters (when ``ice dams'' form on the roof and cause leaks) are followed by mud season, the few short weeks of summer (when wood for winter is gathered and zucchini abounds) and the beauty of autumn (when ``leaf peepers'' number in the thousands). The story, set in the fictional town of Upper Granville, is told from the viewpoint of a local entrepreneur, Darwin Hunter, who is attempting to write a local history. The town is near enough to Burlington (the state's largest city) for occasional shopping sprees and aerobics classes for flatlanders, which add to the fun. Morris has written a marvelous comedy that's a must for ``chucks'' and ``flatlanders'' alike. (April)