What Are You Doing Derby Day

Summer, 1954. As Louisville, Kentucky simmered, society struggled to maintain ties to the old ways, which had seemed so correct. An air of gentleness existed then. Methods of doing business lacked the tense, high-pressure atmosphere found in northern cities. And a family name meant more then money, for it indicated a status earned though 200 years of Kentucky history. But, Louisville was changing with the tide of people and new industry moving in. To this setting, middle class Dusty Burton finds himself caught in a frustrating web of worries as he enters his third year of college. Fraternity parties, lifeguarding, the Draft, and Communists in America were surpassed by his love for ‘social girl’ Cindy York. What Are You Doing Derby Day? Dusty believed that question and the spectacular Kentucky Derby would work magic as he tried to win Cindy’s love forever. Here is a peek at youth in the 1950’s through the eyes of Dusty and Cindy during a restless year of conflicts. It is a light-hearted American Graffiti type story packed with humor and memories from that ‘innocent generation’.

Derby Day is a story of death and life and the fragile path to happiness by Diane Murphy, a young woman of passion and resolve who vows never to feel the pain of loss again. Mourning the recent passing of her father and living with the memory of a husband who died when they had all of life before them, she is determined to resist any chance for happiness lest it be taken away once more. Then one Christmas, a note from a special aunt invites her to a family reunion in their beloved Kentucky for the running of the Derby. Can she go back? Should she go back? As the months unfold and Diane struggles with the past and the future, those who care for her and the man who loves her try to point the way. But in the end, only she can measure her steps in walking the fine line between triumph and tragedy.

The history and traditions of the Kentucky Derby, for horse lovers of all ages.--

She had to be braver than she ever thought she could be. As the Vietnam War rages, nineteen-year-old Francie Dalton marries to escape her abusive and religiously oppressive childhood home. Fleeing to Florida and her grandfather’s horse farm, she hopes to find the comfort and safety she has always longed for. When her husband leaves Francie and her newborn daughter, handsome farm manager Frank Weaver offers her the support she never knew she needed and hope in a loving God who is nothing like the vindictive God of her childhood. Just as Francie starts to believe she has finally found the security she has always craved, she is asked to do the unthinkable. To save an innocent life, she must commit a crime that puts everyone she loves at risk. Now, neither the fences around Francie’s horse farm nor the barriers around her heart are enough to keep her safe. Set to the backdrop of the thrilling world of Thoroughbred racing, The Things We Know in Part is a sweeping epic of love and betrayal, of unbelievable hurt and inhuman pain. It’s the story of how far the human spirit can go before it’s crushed, and of how close God can be, even when it seems He’s not.

Born into an African American sharecropping family in 1880s Kentucky, Jimmy Winkfield grew up loving horses. The large, powerful animals inspired little Jimmy to think big. Looking beyond his family's farm, he longed for a life riding on action-packed racetracks around the world. Like his hero, the great Isaac Murphy, Jimmy "Wink" Winkfield would stop at nothing to make it as a jockey. Though his path to success was wrought with obstacles both on the track and off, Wink faced each challenge with passion and a steadfast spirit. Along the way he carved out a lasting legacy as one of history's finest horsemen and the last African American ever to win the Kentucky Derby. The Last Black King of the Kentucky Derby brings to life a vivacious hero from a little-known chapter of American sports history. Readers are transported trackside to witness the heart-pounding story of a vibrant young man chasing down his dream.

"A CRACKING-GOOD READ!"-- People, Best New Books A deft and irresistible retelling of Charlotte Bronte ́s beloved classic Jane Eyre--from the point of view of the dashing, mysterious Mr. Rochester himself. For 170 years, Edward Fairfax Rochester has stood as one of literature's most complex and captivating romantic heroes. Sometimes cruel, sometimes tender, Jane Eyre's mercurial master at Thornfield Hall has mesmerized, beguiled, and, yes, baffled fans of Charlotte Brontv ́'s masterpiece for generations. But his own story has never been told. We first meet this brilliant, tormented hero as a motherless boy roaming Thornfield's lonely corridors. On the morning of Edward's eighth birthday, his father issues a decree: He is to be sent away to get an education, exiled from all he ever loved. Young Edward's journey will take him across working-class England and the decadence of continental Europe before he lands on the warm, languid shores of faraway Jamaica, where his inheritance lies. That island, however, holds secrets of its own, and Edward soon grows entangled in morally dubious business dealings and a passionate, whirlwind love affair with the town's ravishing heiress, Bertha Antoinetta Mason. Eventually, in the wake of a devastating betrayal, Edward must return to England with his increasingly unstable wife to take over as master of Thornfield. And it is there, on a twilight ride, that he meets the stubborn, plain young governess who will steal his heart and teach him how to love again. Mr. Rochester is a sweeping coming-of-age story and a stirring tale of adventure, romance, and deceit. Faithful in every particular to Brontv ́'s original yet full of unexpected twists and riveting behind-the-scenes drama, this novel will completely, deliciously, and forever change how we read and remember Jane Eyre.