"Nothing is as it appears and everything is as it should be" is the motto of coastal Maine's Singapore Inn, where three guests pursue different ends on a snowy Christmas eve. Hector, a celebrity race car driver and an impeccable Irish drunk who speaks with a lilting brogue, desperately seeks an elusive bottle of Irish whisky. His wife wants to lay a wreath on her mother's grave on this first anniversary of her death in an automobile accident she blames on Hector. The only other guest also has plans for that bottle of whiskey: it will certainly coax her husband-who also died exactly a year ago-from his grave. Invisible cats, flying ghosts and an ageless innkeeper who may or may not be an angel spell madcap merriment that concludes with lives restored and relationships healed. This holiday delight is by the author of Good Morning Miss Vickers and other popular comedies.

A collection of the best columns written over the past three decades by Fr. Bernard Reiser, founding pastor of Epiphany Catholic Church in Coon Rapids, Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, MN. Read about Fr. Reiser's take on everyday topics such as family, kindness, gratitude, prayer, helping others, and staying focused on what's important in life. Fr. Reiser's essays are rich in symbolism, wise in understanding of human nature, and fruitful in explicating the word of God.Father is a master in the art of spiritual storytelling; he engages, entertains, and challenges with undeniable hope. He has a gift and he shares it generously in this lovely book. Included are stories with the deep conviction that our human journey and our spiritual journey are intrinsically linked. He shares observations that are sometimes so wondrously obvious and visible, and he does it in a way that feels like you're hearing from a close friend.It becomes clear as you page through Reiser's Ramblings that Fr. Reiser clearly loves his vocation as a priest and delights in sharing his years of study and the fruits of his prayer with the reader. Fr. Reiser opens up the Scripture in familiar language, stories, and metaphors that are accessible to the ordinary person in the pew. How uplifting and inspiring to hear the Gospel woven with from Father's personal life experiences! All profits from the sale of Reiser's Ramblings go to Haitian relief efforts sponsored by Reiser Relief Inc. (ReiserRelief.org)

Oscar-nominated Charlotte Rampling most recently appeared in hit ITV drama Broadchurch, the BBC’s London Spy and HBO’s Dexter, and the feature film 45 Years. Her career has spanned popular entertainment and arthouse cinema, having starred in English, French and Italian films from 1966’s Georgy Girl (opposite Lynn Redgrave), to films with French director François Ozon, including 2003’s Swimming Pool. Having shied away from biographies and autobiographies (“too personal”) Rampling has now written Who I Am (first published in French) a lyrical, and intimate self-portrait via reminiscences. Highly personal, packed with photographs from her personal archive, Rampling recounts her childhood and youth as the daughter of an army officer (who won a gold medal for the 4 x 400 relay in the infamous 1936 Berlin Olympics), and the memories and passions that would inspire her life and later work as an actress. Written in a style that gives a unique insight into her screen persona, it is an idiosyncratic and beguiling insight of one of the most consistently adventurous and interesting actors.

Being a Christian means that there is a difference between how you live and how someone who has not yet found God lives. How Christians live their lives on Sunday mornings is how they are challenged to live their lives throughout the rest of the week. How Christians behave in every situation reflects not only who they are, but whose they are. Living a Christian lifestyle on a daily basis might seem like a difficult task at times. This book provides guidance and support for young Christians and reassurance and understanding for more experienced Christians. Through personal stories and insights, you’ll find encouragement for your own faith journey, no matter where you are right now. Prayer, faith, church life, and scripture are just some of the topics to explore and take to heart. With passion, humor, and grace, The Ramblings of an Unqualified Christian provides inspiration and encouragement to live the Christian life in all circumstances. Whether you are a new Christian or have been following Christ for most of your life, you will find a companion for your journey in these pages.

Although his earliest days were spent in a town, author Harold William Marihart had the dream of one day becoming a farmer. From very young age, he enjoyed helping his grandparents and others with the chores on their farms. In The Ramblings of a Merry Heart, Marihart narrates these and many other stories from his eighty years. In this memoir, he shares some of the highlights of his life-his birth in small-town Minnesota in 1931, being raised as an only child, attending school, helping with farm chores, earning money as a produce "salesman" at age seven, buying his first car, becoming a sailor, meeting his wife, navigating parenthood, and realizing his dream of owning a ranch. Including photos, The Ramblings of a Merry Heart includes descriptions of true events and anecdotes from Marihart's long life. It is eighty years of love and laughter bound into one book.

Do you long for a time when life was simpler? When everyone knew your name? Do you reminisce about family traditions, growing up in the 50’s and 60’s? Do you remember your teen years and that first kiss? Does your mouth start to water and your heart start to swell as you think back to family holiday meals presided over by mom or grandma? Well then, you can now take that trip down memory lane and re-create those luscious foods in the pages of “The Ramblings of an Old Man” by well-known personal chef and culinary instructor, Chef Cal Kraft and his constant feline companion, Miss Kitty. It all began in 2006. The author realized that he had spent over half his life living in the suburban community of Danbury Forest, a quaint neighborhood where families, escaping the hustle and bustle of Metropolitan DC, played together and supported each other in times good and bad. So he wrote a story about that and sent it in to the neighborhood paper. Chef Cal initiated what became his hugely popular monthly column, “The Chef’s Corner,” for the community newsletter. In it he shared tales about his family and his life growing up in the suburbs of New York. He also wrote about events within the community along with tales of past traditions in his life and others. Several of his articles ventured into the world of fiction as he imagined stories that might have occurred. Each contribution was accompanied by a tasty recipe, often tying the articles and recipes together. A long time, popular culinary instructor in Northern Virginia’s Adult Community Education Program, Chef Cal is well-equipped with recipes that he knew his students, and now his readers, would rush to make themselves. Ramblings’ contributions of over fifty recipes include traditional Italian delicacies; tasty old-fashioned comfort dishes; soups and casseroles; quick and easy desserts and special holiday treats. Also included is Chef Cal’s interpretation of miniature apple pies. Without a doubt his book will be pulled out to create his meals whenever family and friends are gathered. Several times as Chef Cal was writing his stories, he found that Miss Kitty, the gorgeous white cat that lived with the author and his wife during most of this time, had something to say. So he wrote about that too. In some instances, he even let Miss Kitty write her own story. While the “Ramblings of an Old Man” is dedicated to the residents, both past and current of that wonderful community known as Danbury Forest, it also resonates with communities all across America. No matter where you live, be it a small hamlet, a rural town, a village, or in a big city, these stories are for you. Some are humorous, others sad. Some true, some imagined. They all however, tell a story and offer an opportunity to re-create the foods that accompanied it. So sit back and enjoy, “The Ramblings of an Old Man.”

The mind is a mysterious thing, even to someone trained in psychology. As forensic psychologist in the town of New Bern, North Carolina, Dr. Trattoria has seen hundreds of patients and interacted with thousands more. Patients come to Dr. Trattoria for help, but there is no easy solution to a problem related to the human condition. This is especially true when he must formulate an answer to a problem that suits someone else. This collection of stories about the varied clientele Dr. Trattoria has treated shows the impressive spectrum of psychological distress humans are capable of enduring. From getting woken up in the middle of the night by a phone call from a stranger threatening to kill his entire family to a new stepfather looking to improve the family dynamics with his teenage stepdaughters, it’s never a dull day for this forensic psychologist. The Ramblings of a Psychologist is part memoir, part mystery novel, part philosophical treatise. Dr. Trattoria considers himself an investigator, solving his patients' conundrums one painful dilemma at a time.