
Come celebrate Stratford Ontario’s literary heritage and take the Stratford Literary Walking Tour — James Reaney’s old high school Stratford Central Secondary School is one of ten stops on the way.
James Reaney was born and raised on a farm three miles east of Stratford in South Easthope Township, and he bicycled to and from high school every day for five years (1939-1944).
Between the highschool & the farmhouse
In the country and the town
It was a world of love and of feeling
Continually floating down
— From James Reaney’s poem “The Bicycle” (1962)

For more of James Reaney’s Stratford and Perth County inspired writing, see the links below:
Plays:
Short stories:
♦ The Box Social and Other Stories (1996)
Poems:
♦ From Twelve Letters To A Small Town, “The Bicycle” (1962) and “Shakespearean Gardens” (1962)
♦ “Brush Strokes Decorating a Fan” (2005)
Perth County history:
♦ The Story of North Easthope (1982)
