The open-range cattle era lasted barely a quarter century, but it left America irrevocably changed. These few decades following the Civil War brought America its greatest boom-and-bust cycle until the Depression, the invention of the assembly line, and the dawn of the conservation movement. It inspired legends, such as that icon of rugged individualism, the cowboy. Yet this extraordinary time and its import have remained unexamined for decades. [This...

"Isa de Smit was raised in the vibrant, glittering world of her parents' small art gallery in Amsterdam, a hub of beauty, creativity, and expression, until the Nazi occupation wiped the color from her city's palette. The "degenerate" art of the Gallery de Smit is confiscated, the artists in hiding or deported, her best friend, Truus, fled to join the shadowy Dutch resistance. And masterpiece by masterpiece, the Nazis are buying and stealing her country's...

Sarah Raymond was an unmarried woman of twenty-four who in May 1865--barely a month after the end of the Civil War--mounted her beloved pony and headed west alongside the wagon carrying her mother and two younger brothers. They traveled by wagon train over the Great Plains toward the Rocky Mountains, with no certain idea of where they would settle themselves but a strong desire to leave war-torn Missouri behind and start a new life. Days on the Road...

"London, 1938: The bookstore just doesn't feel the same to Gertie Bingham ever since the death of her beloved husband Harry. Bingham Books was a dream they shared together, and without Harry, Gertie wonders if it's time to take her faithful old lab, Hemingway, and retire to the seaside. But fate has other plans for Gertie. In Germany, Hitler is on the rise, and Jewish families are making the heart-wrenching decision to send their children away from...

For generations, children around the world have come of age with Louisa May Alcott's March girls: hardworking eldest sister Meg, headstrong, impulsive Jo, timid Beth, and precocious Amy. With their father away at war, and their loving mother Marmee working to support the family, the four sisters have to rely on one another for support as they endure the hardships of wartime and poverty. We witness the sisters growing up and figuring out what role...

Leaving Seattle and her cheating husband behind, single mother Karissa moves to Puget Sound where she meets her new neighbors, who are also dealing with their own crises, and together they start a book club as a distraction until it becomes a way to build a better life together.

In 2010 Sergeant Craig Grossi was doing intelligence work for Marine Recon in a remote part of Afghanistan. While on patrol, he spotted a young stray dog "with a big goofy head and little legs." Fred not only stole Craig's heart; he won over the Recon fighters, who helped smuggle the dog into Camp Leatherneck. Fred eventually made it to Craig's family in Virginia, where months later, it was Fred's turn to save Craig's life.

"After a bad break-up and a health diagnosis of Lupus earlier this year, Savannah takes an impulsive trip to her favorite aunt's home, where she spent childhood summers. When she arrives, Savannah is surprised to see the house overflowing with books and the garden overflowing with roses. Aunt Eleanor recommends books to her visitors, including Savannah, which help them grow and blossom-just like the flowers she nurtures with so much care. While soul-searching...