Once you find yourself in Oysterback, you may never want to leave. Nothing beats Desiree Grinch's corn soup at the Blue Crab Tavern. There's never a wait at The Curl Up 'N Dye Salon de Beaute. In season, you can buy your produce (as you pay your respects) at Dreedle's Funeral Parlor. There's bingo every Tuesday at the V.F.D. The Mosquito Festival is next week. And when the moon hangs over Widgeon Marsh as full and yellow as one of Miss Nettie's oyster fritters, you'll know you're in a place like no other.

Since 1988, readers of the Baltimore Sun have delighted in regular visits to Oysterback -- Helen Chappell's mythical town on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Chappell's stories capture the unique charm of rural life on the Shore, and her memorable characters typify the folksy strength and eccentricity of the natives. "In Oysterback," as the town's Captain Saloman observes, "we have characters we haven't even used yet."