Blinking Jack Stokes was a skinny tenant farmer, and Ruby Pitt Woodrow was "the carefully raised daughter of Carolina gentry.....They didn't fall in love so much as they simply found each other and held on for dear life."--Pbk. cover.

"A picturesque Maine beach town is the setting for Holly Chamberlin s touching and thought-provoking new novel, as a mother struggles to reconnect with her long lost daughter ... Every year on March 26th, Verity Peterson visits Ogunquit Beach, where she puts a handwritten message into a bottle and launches it into the waves. It's a ritual of remembrance for the daughter she hasn't seen in sixteen years--not since her baby's father, Alan, took two-month-old...

This is a powerful semi-autobiographical novel by an authentic man of genius, Thomas Wolfe - about the struggles and triumphs of an aspiring writer named George Webber in the glittering world of New York, about one young man's discovery of life and the world. It follows Webber from humble Southern beginnings to his arrival in The Big City to write. Then he meets Esther Jack, and things go as differently - but wonderfully so - as they possibly could....

The story of four generations of an Italian American family, beginning with an immigrant who came through Ellis Island with big dreams, a small shovel, and his parents' good advice: "Work hard, but remember to enjoy life, and never forget your family."

Abby Michaels is delighted by her life--her first book is being published, surgery removes a scarring birthmark, she has found a new man, and she has been reunited with her sister--but dark secrets from the past and an unknown enemy could destroy her happiness.

Ann Patchett, author of State of Wonder, Run, and Bel Canto, examines her deepest commitments -- to writing, family, friends, dogs, books, and her husband -- creating a resonant portrait of her life.

Wrestling with the disease of alcoholism for most of his life, Jack London tells all in his autobiography John Barleycorn. Beginning with a discussion of the prohibition movement and its effects, London explores the ways that alcohol affects daily life in the Victorian era. Because there were not many forms of affordable entertainment or reliable communication, bars were the perfect spot for social activity. People were able to sit and drink, enjoying...

The Selected Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder is a portrait of this American author, illuminating her thoughts, travels, philosophies, writing career, and dealings with family, friends, and fans. This is a fresh look at the author in her own words. Gathered from museums, archives, and personal collections, the letters span over sixty years, from 1894 to 1956, and shed new light on Wilder's day-to-day living. Here we see her as a businesswoman and an...

Roughing It is a book of semi-autobiographical travel literature written by American humorist Mark Twain. It was written during 1870-71 and published in 1872 as a prequel to his first book Innocents Abroad. This book tells of Twain's adventures prior to his pleasure cruise related in Innocents Abroad. Roughing It follows the travels of young Mark Twain through the Wild West during the years 1861-1867. After a brief stint as a Confederate cavalry militiaman...