Tara Westover was seventeen the first time she set foot in a classroom. Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, she prepared for the end of the world by stockpiling home-canned peaches and sleeping with her "head-for-the-hills bag." In the summer she stewed herbs for her mother, a midwife and healer, and in the winter she salvaged in her father's junkyard. Her father distrusted the medical establishment, so Tara never saw a doctor or nurse....

The food blogger-turned-Food Network star dedicates this humor-laced tale to her "funny family." She and Ladd, her "hunky husband," got off to a rocky start, contending with such rural Oklahoman realities as bobcats in the trash, skunks under the house, mice in the walls, and a tornado. They scare each other with rubber snakes, give up things like Dr. Pepper for Lent, and homeschool their kids. Endearingly, Drummond pokes fun at herself, noting that...

Before he was the #1 New York Times bestselling author of holiday classics such as The Christmas Box, Richard Paul Evans was a young boy being raised by a suicidal mother and dealing with relentless bullying. He could not fathom what the future held for him. Now, in this intimate and heartfelt collection of personal essays, Evans shares his moving journey from childhood to beloved author. With his signature "seasoned finesse" (Booklist), he offers...

A naturalist and adventurer discusses the personalities and quirks of thirteen animals who have profoundly affected her, exploring themes of learning to become empathetic, creating families, coping with loss, and the otherness and sameness of people and animals.

Ben Kilham invites us into the world he has come to know best: the world of black bears. For decades, Kilham has studied wild black bears in a vast tract of Northern New Hampshire woodlands. At times, he has also taken in orphaned infants-feeding them, walking them through the forest for months to help them decipher their natural world, and eventually reintroducing them back into the wild. Once free, the orphaned bears still regard him as their mother....

Good people are all around us doing selfless deeds, from a firefighter who bravely battled for his colleague's health after 9/11 to a good Samaritan who secretly pays for the coffees of everyone in line behind him. Dean has made it her mission to uncover and document good stories to inspire us and gives us a much-needed boost of optimism. All we have to do is open our minds and our hearts, to look for the light on a cloudy day. Because as she reminds...

"Take a stroll through Pine City during the sizzling days of summer, the brilliant colors of autumn, the crystal beauty of winter and the welcome warmth of spring. 'Seasons in Pine City' is a celebration of Pine City and the surrounding community with a sense of pride and gratitude" -- Back cover.

With wit, heartwarming stories and a keen insight into new and exciting ways to see both the past and the future of the country, the actor, writer and woodworker takes a literary journey to America's frontier to celebrate the people and landscape that have made it great.

"Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner Gene Weingarten explores the events of a random day in U.S. history, offering a diorama of American life that illuminates all that has changed--and all that hasn't--in the past three decades. On New Year's Day 2013, two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner Gene Weingarten asked three strangers to, literally, pluck a day, month, and year from a hat. That day--chosen completely at random--turned out to be Sunday, December 28, 1986,...

More stories of growing up in and around small towns in the Midwest.