A beautiful, lonely hotel clerk and a struggling young writer are trapped in parallel narratives of sexual awakening, surveillance, and grief in twin hotels that hold carefully guarded secrets.

“A delightful and delicious read about . . . the taste memories of this fruit created and shared for generations in homes throughout Indiana.” —Margaret McSweeney, founder and host of Kitchen Chat Whether served in a batch of cookies or in a soup bowl, the persimmon is a favorite fruit of Midwesterners. Called the “divine fruit” or the “fruit of the gods,” persimmons range from the American common persimmon, perfect for every kind of dessert, to Fuyu persimmons, a variety from China that has since won many hearts. In The Perfect Persimmon, award-winning journalist Michelle Medlock Adams serves up persimmon expertise, from knowing when the fruit is at its ripest to sharing the best preparation techniques. Adams hails from the birthplace of the Mitchell Persimmon Festival in Lawrence County, Indiana, where the Midwest’s best-kept secret, persimmon pudding, has people flocking toward what some consider the persimmon capital of the world. Armed with a love of persimmons that has been nurtured from a young age, Adams has collected the best persimmon recipes, guaranteed to satisfy any hankering for the savory or the sweet. Accompanying these recipes are personal anecdotes detailing childhood memories and folktales about greedy possums, wise turtles, and the persimmon seed’s ability to predict winter forecasts, providing a colorful context for this favored fruit. “The Perfect Persimmon is full of yummy recipes, spiced with historical references, topped with small-town charm, and sprinkled with Michelle’s signature style. What a delight!” —Ashley L. Jones, author of Modern Cast Iron “I thoroughly enjoyed traveling with Michelle through time and space to learn about the persimmon, its ecology, and its place in Midwest culture.” —Lisa M. Rose, author of Midwest Foraging

“A beautifully photographed . . . introduction to Japanese cuisine.” —New York Times “A treasure trove for . . . Japanese recipes.” —Epicurious “Heartfelt, poetic.” —San Francisco Chronicle “Expand a home chef’s borders” with this “essential guide to Japanese home cooking” featuring 100+ recipes—for seasoned cooks and beginners who crave authentic Japanese food (Martha Stewart Living). Using high-quality, seasonal ingredients in simple preparations, Sonoko Sakai offers recipes with a gentle voice and a passion for authentic Japanese cooking. Beginning with the pantry, the flavors of this cuisine are explored alongside fundamental recipes, such as dashi and pickles, and traditional techniques, like making noodles and properly cooking rice. Use these building blocks to cook an abundance of everyday recipes with dishes like Grilled Onigiri (rice balls) and Japanese Chicken Curry. From there, the book expands into an exploration of dishes organized by breakfast; vegetables and grains; meat; fish; noodles, dumplings, and savory pancakes; and sweets and beverages. With classic dishes like Kenchin-jiru (Hearty Vegetable Soup with Sobagaki Buckwheat Dumplings), Temaki Zushi (Sushi Hand Rolls), and Oden (Vegetable, Seafood, and Meat Hot Pot) to more inventive dishes like Mochi Waffles with Tatsuta (Fried Chicken) and Maple Yuzu Kosho, First Garden Soba Salad with Lemon-White Miso Vinaigrette, and Amazake (Fermented Rice Drink) Ice Pops with Pickled Cherry Blossoms this is a rich guide to Japanese home cooking. Featuring stunning photographs by Rick Poon, the book also includes stories of food purveyors in California and Japan. This is a generous and authoritative book that will appeal to home cooks of all levels.

Kentucky packhorse librarian Tansy Calhoun doesn't mind the rough trails and long hours as she serves her Appalachian mountain community during the Great Depression. Yet she longs to find love like the heroines in her books. When a charming writer comes to town, she thinks she might have found it--or is the perfect man actually closer than she thinks? Perdita Sweet has called these mountains home for so long she's nearly as rocky as the soil around her small cabin. Long ago she thought she could love, but when the object of her affection up and married someone else, she stopped giving too much of herself away to others. As is so often the case, it's easier to see what's best for others than to see what's best for oneself, and Perdita knows who Tansy should choose. But why would anyone listen to the romantic advice of an old spinster? Saddle up for a heartfelt story of love--love of family, love of place, and the love of a lifetime--from bestselling author Ann H. Gabhart.

What would you do if you saw someone committing unimaginable acts of cruelty? Turn the other way or defend those in need—no matter the cost? That’s the dilemma thrust upon Persimmon, a clever and compassionate raccoon, and her loyal forest friends. Instantly, the courageous critters spring into action, risking their own lives to rescue any animal they see suffering at the hands of humans. What the team doesn’t know is just how rampant this violence really is, and soon their exciting rescue missions turn shockingly dangerous and deadly. Will they succeed in saving the animals of the world from humans’ brutality, or will they fall victim to the powerful system of abuse they’re trying so desperately to end? Persimmon Takes On Humanityis the thrilling first book in the animal rights-themed YA series, The Enlightenment Adventures. For anyone who loved the intensity of The Hunger Games, the social commentary of TheJungle, and the heart of Charlotte’s Web, this will be your new favorite book.

A version of the classic Koren folk tale in which the proud and boasting tiger is brought low by his own vanity and foolishness.

It is 1942 in the Dutch East Indies, and Nick Duncan is a young Australian butterfly collector in search of a single exotic butterfly. With invading Japanese forces coming closer by the day, Nick falls in love with the beguiling Anna van Heerden. Their time together is brief, as both are forced into separate, dangerous escapes. They plan to reunite and marry in Australia but it is several years before their paths cross again, scarred forever by the dark events of a long, cruel war. In The Persimmon Tree, Bryce Courtenay gives us a story of love and friendship set against the dramatic backdrop of the Pacific during the Second World War.

Whether served in a batch of cookies or in a soup bowl, the persimmon is a favorite fruit of Midwesterners. Called the "divine fruit" or the "fruit of the gods," persimmons range from the American common persimmon, perfect for every kind of dessert, to Fuyu persimmons, a variety from China that has since won many hearts. In The Perfect Persimmon, award-winning journalist Michelle Medlock Adams serves up persimmon expertise, from knowing when the fruit is at its ripest to sharing the best preparation techniques. Adams hails from the birthplace of the Mitchell Persimmon Festival in Lawrence County, Indiana, where the Midwest's best-kept secret, persimmon pudding, has people flocking toward what some consider the persimmon capital of the world. Armed with a love of persimmons that has been nurtured from a young age, Adams has collected the best persimmon recipes, guaranteed to satisfy any hankering for the savory or the sweet. Accompanying these recipes are personal anecdotes detailing childhood memories and folktales about greedy possums, wise turtles, and the persimmon seed's ability to predict winter forecasts, providing a colorful context for this favored fruit.

Intertwined portraits of courage and hope in Afghanistan and Pakistan Najmah, a young Afghan girl whose name means "star," suddenly finds herself alone when her father and older brother are conscripted by the Taliban and her mother and newborn brother are killed in an air raid. An American woman, Elaine, whose Islamic name is Nusrat, is also on her own. She waits out the war in Peshawar, Pakistan, teaching refugee children under the persimmon tree in her garden while her Afghan doctor husband runs a clinic in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan. Najmah's father had always assured her that the stars would take care of her, just as Nusrat's husband had promised that they would tell Nusrat where he was and that he was safe. As the two look to the skies for answers, their fates entwine. Najmah, seeking refuge and hoping to find her father and brother, begins the perilous journey through the mountains to cross the border into Pakistan. And Nusrat's persimmon-tree school awaits Najmah's arrival. Together, they both seek their way home. Known for her award-winning fiction set in South Asia, Suzanne Fisher Staples revisits that part of the world in this beautifully written, heartrending novel. Under the Persimmon Tree is a 2006 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

It's drinks, it's chickens: It's the cocktail book you didn't know you needed! To add some extra happy to your happy hour , invite a chicken and pour yourself a drink. Author Kate Richards serves up cocktails made for Instagram with the spoils of her Southern California garden, chicken friends by her side. Enjoy any (or all) of the 60+ deliciously drinkable garden-to-glass beverages, such as: Lilac Apricot Rum Sour Meyer Lemon + Rosemary Old Fashioned Rhubarb Rose Cobbler Blackberry Sage Spritz Cantaloupe Mint Rum Punch Cocktails are arranged seasonally, and are 100% accessible for those of us without perpetually sunny backyard gardens at our disposal. Drinking with Chickens will quickly become a boozy favorite, perfect for gifting or for hoarding all for yourself. You don't need chickens to enjoy these drinks or the colorful photos, but be careful, because you may even find yourself aspiring to be, as Kate is, a home chixologist overrun by gorgeous, loud, early-rising egg-laying ladies, and in need of a very strong drink.