IT’S A UNIVERSAL TRUTH THAT MAKING FRIENDS as an adult is hard. Without the nudge of classroom-induced proximity or the inherent trauma bond formed at a terrible first job, just how is a twentysomething-plus meant to meet new people?

It was a question Julia and Irvin Dominguez faced when they moved to Rhode Island in 2021. She a Vermont native and he a Georgia boy, the two met as camp counselors before attending the same Tennessee university and falling in love. They weren’t familiar with the Ocean State when Julia got a job offer after graduation, but they took the leap anyway. They put down roots in Warren, but by the winter of 2023, their social life — or lack thereof — was starting to wear thin.

“We obviously love each other so much, but we were like, ‘We need to make some friends,’” Julia says. “We had tried to put ourselves out there and it just wasn’t really sticking.”

Instead, they decided the people could come to them. All it took was the promise of a homecooked meal.

Thus TikTok and Instagram accounts for The Dinner Club RI were born, and the couple found themselves hosting their first dinner just four months later. Then, following its resounding success, Books + Bites came along that August. “I’ve always been a big reader. There’s not a lot to do in northern Vermont,” Julia says.

As the name suggests, Books + Bites marries the two interests. Julia and Irvin welcome book club guests into their home with a snack and a bevvy — usually something seasonal, like a recipe using veggies from their garden in the summer, or fresh-baked snickerdoodle cookies and creamy hot chocolate in December.

Julia usually opens the meeting with introductions and a question related to that month’s read. “I’ll also tell everyone that it’s OK if they didn’t like the book — I didn’t write it. In fact, it makes for a livelier discussion if they didn’t,” she says with a laugh. “We do a lot of literary fiction. I like to choose different POVs, different genres, different ethnicities — we might read an African-American author in February or a Hispanic author in October. I also try not to do super-popular books because people are reading them anyway.” 

Each member can contribute as much or as little as they like with no pressure. Once the book discussion wraps up and veers into chit-chat territory, the group migrates to another room to do a craft and continue their conversations.

“It’s really cool because you’ll see people exchange numbers or exchange Instagrams. This is why we started it: to find and build a community,” Julia says. “Everyone is welcome to join because everyone needs friends.”

Books + Bites has now upped its meetings to twice a month. The first meeting each month will be held at Shop Bloom PVD in Providence from 5:30–7 p.m., while the second will take place at their Warren home from 6:30–8 p.m.

“It’s been really special,” Julia says. “We feel very fulfilled with both our careers, but this is something that fills our cup a lot. We get to have conversations with adults and make good friends.” @booksandbitesri

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A New Chapter

Two friends trade in corporate life to host Book a Break Reading Retreats throughout New England. By Dana Laverty

MUCH LIKE THE CHARMED PROTAGONISTS in a feel-good romance or a cozy fantasy, two book lovers are living their absolute best lives.

Longtime friends Kristen Waidalowski and Jenna Reilly have spent the last year hosting reading retreats via their new venture, Book A Break, where guests enjoy a literary weekend filled with books, crafts, meals, author chats and excursions. And, of course, plenty of down time for reading.

It’s an endeavor with roots in the ennui of the daily grind: Waidalowski and Reilly, who both worked for Tiffany & Co., dreamed of quitting their jobs and tapping into their shared passions of reading and travel. The spark for Book A Break was formed when Reilly stumbled upon an adult summer camp held in a French chateau and a West Coast-based reading retreat.

On Book A Break getaways hosted by Jenna Reilly, left, and Kristen Waidalowski, guests can indulge in as many (or as little) group activities as they wish. Below right, Elizabeth Cooper, left, and Colleen Bunnewith work on a craft during a “daytreat” at Pour Richard’s Wine & Provisions in Franklin, Massachusetts. Photo by Wolf Matthewson

“Our conversations started to morph into, ‘Well, what about us? We could do that. We could do that better,’” says Waidalowski, who lives in Cumberland. “We could put those two together and come up with a great concept.”

They spent the greater part of 2024 planning and researching and founded Book A Break that August. They held their first retreat, a weekend getaway devoted to Onyx Storm, the third book in the uber-popular Fourth Wing romantasy series, in January 2025 at a cozy inn in the Berkshires.

The seventeen guests — most of whom came as solo readers — took part in Onyx Storm trivia, painted vellum page overlays, made bookmarks, sipped on lavender-hued specialty cocktails and dished on unhinged plot theories. Knowing that many readers tend to be introverted and leery of group activities, Reilly knew the weekend was a success when she rounded a corner to see a handful of guests reading together in the living room.

“They were quietly, communally, just enjoying the book as opposed to hiding in their rooms,” says Reilly, a Franklin, Massachusetts, resident. “It was such a beautiful moment. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, we are doing the thing. It’s happening!’ ”

Since then, they’ve held several other retreats, including an adult summer camp in Maine, a “creepy and cozy” getaway in Provincetown, Massachusetts, and a winter wonderland holiday weekend in Vermont with gingerbread books, a Zoom interview with author Layne Fargo (The Favorites) and a tour of the area’s covered bridges, complete with a dusting of snow for that authentic New England vibe. Of that weekend’s eleven guests, four of them had been on previous trips.

If anything has surprised Reilly and Waidalowski, it’s been the sheer diversity of guests. They thought most participants would be moms needing a weekend away, but that hasn’t been the case: Guests have ranged in age from twenty-five to seventy-five, some are outrageously social Bookstagram influencers and others are introverted solo travelers. Some are local, while others have traveled from Texas, Arizona and Las Vegas.

The main thread that binds them together? Books, and the healing power of community.

“Many attendees look at the weekend as a wellness retreat,” Waidalowski says. “Some people relax and recharge with yoga or hiking. For our guests, reading is their wellness. This is what they do for their mental well-being.”

Reilly concurs.

“We have so many people leave and say, ‘I had no idea how much I needed this.’”

Book A Break is planning several retreats for 2026, including a March retreat in the Berkshires and a haunted Provincetown weekend. Visit bookabreak.org for more information.

Short Stories

No time to get away? Take a local “daytreat,” a miniature version of Book A Break’s weekend excursions devoted to all things literary — and glittery, of course. They’re local, easy to get to and a great way to relax and enjoy some “me” time. During January’s daytreat, guests watched the film adaptation of Emily Henry’s People We Meet on Vacation with wine, nibbles and crafts at Pour Richard’s Wine & Provisions in Franklin.

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