Harriet Beamer lost a bet to her daughter-in-law Prudence and now she is selling her house in Pennsylvania and moving to Grass Valley, California to live with her son Henry and Prudence. Her little bets are always getting her in trouble. How do you leave a place you have lived all your life and move somewhere else?

Harriet has never been too far away from suburban Philadelphia. She's really never seen much of this country. Her husband Max only took her to the Jersey shores on vacation every year, and Max has been dead for fifteen years. She's not happy about leaving her home, her church and her friends, so she decides to do the traveling her way. She wants to prove there is more to Harriet Beamer than cookies and bingo.

Harriet crates up her dog, Humphrey, packs up her collection of three thousand plus salt and pepper shakers and ships them to Henry. She decides to travel across the United States by public transportation. She starts off by city bus and makes it to the other side of town where she learns that local buses don't go cross-country. She has no special plan, just her new droid cell phone with a GPS. Harriet continues her journey by train, limousine, helicopter and motorcycle sidecar. Her adventures are hilarious and some of the people she meets along the way are one-of-a kind. Did you know there is a Salt and Pepper Shaker Museum in Gatlinburg, Tennessee?

Harriet Beamer has always done what was expected, always kept a schedule, and she feels she is living in a rut. She thinks her life has no purpose, but her travels reveal to her that God's hand is guiding her to help people along the way. Joyce Magnin's story is a crazy adventure you will not want to miss, but an inspirational one as well. Magnin's characters are always quirky and Harriet is no exception. HARRIET BEAMER TAKES THE BUS is a delightful read.