FARMINGTON — The Shiretown Bookers, in affiliation with the University of Maine at Farmington, announces their upcoming exhibition, “Paradise: The Literature of Gardening,” from March 15 through May 15, in the Shiretown Bookers’ Hall at Mantor Library, 116 South St.

Great literature often takes place in a garden; “Pride and Prejudice,” “The Importance of Being Ernest,” “Alice in Wonderland,” “Midsummer Night’s Dream,” “The Secret Garden,” but there is also an entire literature about gardening itself. This is an exhibition of books that celebrate the plot, the plants, and the process: histories, surveys, aesthetic studies, manuals, seed catalogs, and glorious picture-books, works that bring hope to the end of a long, hard winter.

The exhibition is curated by Abby Tooker. There will be an opening reception at the exhibition hall from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Friday, March 15. All events of the Shiretown Bookers are free and open to the public.

The Shiretown Bookers are a group of book lovers and collectors who support the relationship of the university library and the community. The group produces exhibitions, lectures and roundtables on books and collecting throughout the year.

For more information, or to join, contact shiretownbookers@gmail.com, or visit www.shiretownbookers.org.

“Flora,” from Botticelli’s Primavera.