Potluck Paradise

Here is the book that answers the age-old question: What should I bring? Foodies Rae Katherine Eighmey and Debbie Miller combed through hundreds of folksy cookbooks--often spiral-bound or homemade --compiled by groups around the Midwest. Then they tested hundreds of the most popular recipes before winnowing the list to 125 of the tastiest crowd-pleasing dishes: treats such as Swedish Tea Ring, Oven Barbecue Spareribs, Blueberry Buckle, and Party Punch. Recipes are organized by course, so it's as easy as pie for the reader to find the perfect dish for the long community table. Seven 1950s menus-with-recipes for gatherings such as a Card Party and a Ladies Club Luncheon will help today's savvy host create memorable retro gatherings for friends and family. Food and entertaining lore gleaned from the cookbooks and the authors' recollections of growing up in the Fabulous Fifties transport readers back to a time when shared food and hospitality reigned supreme. Rae Katherine Eighmey is a food historian who has written several books of recipes and lore, including Hearts and Homes and A Prairie Kitchen (MHS Press). Debbie Miller is a historian and aficionado of community cookbooks who works as a reference specialist at the Minnesota Historical Society. Dave Wood is the author of numerous books about midwestern culture.

Allegra Goodman has delighted readers with her critically acclaimed collections Total Immersion and The Family Markowitz, and her celebrated first novel, Kaaterskill Falls, which was a national bestseller and a National Book Award finalist. Abandoned by her folk-dancing partner, Gary, in a Honolulu hotel room, Sharon realizes she could return to Boston—and her estranged family—or listen to that little voice inside herself. The voice that asks: “How come Gary got to pursue his causes, while all I got to pursue was him?” Thus, with an open heart, a soul on fire, and her meager possessions (a guitar, two Indian gauze skirts, a macramé bikini, and her grandfather’s silver watch) Sharon begins her own spiritual quest. Ever the optimist, she is sure at each stage that she has struck it rich “spiritually speaking”—until she comes up empty. Then, in a karmic convergence of events, Sharon starts on the path home to Judaism. Still, even as she embraces her tradition, Sharon’s irrepressible self tugs at her sleeve. Especially when she meets Mikhail, falls truly in love at last, and discovers what even she could not imagine—her destiny.

The Reckoning started with the lava flow, threatening to trap Andrew in Puna. Then the hurricane hit. From seeing the hidden fractals within the trees, to meditating in silence for 10 days, to falling in love and seeing that love crumble, the Big Island gives Andrew unparalleled opportunities to grow. Buoyed by a new project, Andrew starts off the new year with a fresh energy and is guided to the biweekly talks of a Hawaiian elder. The elder reminds him of truths that he’d forgotten, and he leads the group through the healing techniques of laulima and ho‘oponopono, giving Andrew a new energy to release the last shred of attachment to a person who simply doesn’t want to be with him. Now that he has created more space and clarity, his social circle expands, and Andrew meets someone who becomes one of the strongest catalysts for joy and growth in his life. But she is leaving the island in just six months. Andrew faces a forking path. All the while, lava is heading toward Pahoa, threatening to isolate all of Puna. The elder taught him that love prevails all trauma, but will that be enough? Ten Thousand Hours in Paradise is a 3-volume true story about the consciousness shift that happens when you embrace Hawaii. Volume 3: Reckoning takes flight with earthshaking changes, powerful healing, a new lava flow, and a hurricane, resulting in a reckoning that changes Andrew forever.

This engaging case study of food, conservation, and life during World War I brings alive the unparalleled, mostly voluntary efforts made by everyday Minnesotans to help win the war.

Minnesota historians present recent and groundbreaking work on a range of people and events that make up the state's history.

They're Minnesota's smallest towns, but they have huge character! Experience the rich stories, histories and cultures of 100 charming small towns, with populations from 5 to 141. And meet the friendly people who call these places home. Each entry in the book features folks who know what it means to help their neighbors and locales that range from quaint to historic. It's one book, and it's one hundred towns to love.

The Book of Joby is an epic fantasy complete in one volume. Lucifer and the Creator have entered, yet again, into a wager they've made many times before, but this time, the existence of creation itself is balanced on the outcome. Born in California during the twilight years of a weary millennium, nine year old Joby Peterson dreams of blazing like a bonfire against the gathering darkness of his times, like a knight of the Round Table. Instead, he is subjected to a life of crippling self-doubt and relentless mediocrity inflicted by an enemy he did nothing to earn and cannot begin to comprehend. Though imperiled themselves, the angels are forbidden to intervene. Left to struggle with their own loyalties and the question of obedience, they watch Lucifer work virtually unhindered to turn Joby's heart of gold into ash and stone while God sits by, seemingly unconcerned. And so when he is grown to manhood, Joby's once luminous love of life seems altogether lost, and Lucifer's victory assured. What hope remains lies hidden in the beauty, warmth, and innocence of a forgotten seaside village whose odd inhabitants seem to defy the modern world's most inflexible assumptions, and in the hearts of Joby's long lost youthful love and her emotionally wounded son. But the ravenous forces of destruction that follow Joby into this concealed paradise plan to use these same things to bring him and his world to ruin. As the final struggle unfolds, one question occupies every mind in heaven and in hell. Which will prove stronger, love or rage? The Book of Joby is an instant classic of contemporary fantasy. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Alexandra Nottingham is caught up in the power politics of the financial world in Raleigh, North Carolina. Her stellar investing acumen rapidly shoots her to the top of her prestigious company, and she dines daily on the NASDAQ, S&P, and Dow Jones financial indicators as though they were licorice sticks from the candy store. Alexandra's name becomes synonymous with prosperity, and she has a prominent client list. Having achieved mammoth professional heights, she bathes in the glory of career success and social prestige. But darkness soon invades her soul, and Alexandra discovers that she is ignoring her true self. It's the wake-up call she needs to make some life-changing decisions. Ironically, in what could possibly be the biggest and best trade of her career, she discovers her twin-flame in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. This sometimes tragic, erotic, and often gentle tale is a story of faith and a walk through The Forest Of Life...