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Special to Dorchester Banner/Jill JasutaPhotographer Jill Jasuta and Jim Duffy, author, hold up their new book, Eastern Shore Road Trips: 27 One-Day Adventures on Delmarva, which has made the Amazon best-seller list.
CAMBRIDGE — Eastern Shore Road Trips, a new book focused on exploring the sights and enjoying the rich stories of the Delmarva Peninsula, landed on several Amazon best settler lists after its release earlier this month. Subtitled 27 One-Day Adventures on Delmarva, the book is available now online and will soon land in select retail stores and in independent bookshops throughout the Eastern Shore of Maryland, the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and in southern Delaware. Published by the local venture Secrets of the Eastern Shore, Eastern Shore Road Trips is written by Jim Duffy, an award-winning magazine writer based in Cambridge. He and his wife, the photographer Jill Jasuta, founded Secrets of the Eastern Shore in 2015. The business celebrates the Delmarva region in words, pictures, and fun products. “This new book strives to be a different brand of guide book,” Mr. Duffy says. “It’s informative in the ways you’d expect from a traditional travel book, but it’s also full of tales from days gone by and insights into the character and culture of this amazing place that I am lucky enough to call home.” The book has already landed on several best-seller lists maintained by Amazon, including #1 in the Mid-Atlantic Travel Books category and #2 on Hot New Releases in the U.S. Travel Books category. The excursions in Eastern Shore Road Trips are divided into six categories — Backroads, Small Towns, Museums, Classics, the Great Outdoors, and Beaches & Resorts. Geographically, the content runs from Cape Charles at the southernmost tip of the Eastern Shore of Virginia up into Kent and Cecil counties in Maryland and Sussex County in Southern Delaware. The full table of contents is available for review at SecretsoftheEasternShore.com and on Amazon. “What I’m shooting for here is a book that appeals to locals and visitors alike, as well as to day trippers and armchair travelers,” Mr. Duffy says. ”I really want people to come away from reading it not just inspired to get out and go, but also with a fresh sense for what makes this place such an American treasure.” Ms. Jasuta’s photography work is featured both on the cover and inside the book. The front cover photo depicts the Choptank River Lighthouse in Cambridge at sunset. The back cover is adorned with a landscape from Elliott’s Island Road. The book is the first in a planned series of guidebooks. Future installments planned for the series include a second collection of Road Trips; travel “companions” built around special themes, such as the Harriet Tubman story and Route 50; and a guide to Delmarva oddities that qualify as “strange and wondrous.” For more information about Eastern Shore Road Trips: 27 One-Day Adventures on Delmarva, search for the book on Amazon or visit SecretsoftheEasternShore.com or Facebook.com/SecretsoftheEasternShore. You can also e-mail SecretsoftheEasternShore@gmail.com, or call 443-477-4490. Details on a book release party tentatively slated for Oct. 8 in Cambridge will be available soon.