Rural America

4-H, the iconic rural youth program run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has enrolled more than 70 million Americans over the last century. As the first comprehensive history of the organization, The 4-H Harvest tracks 4-H from its origins in turn-of-the-century agricultural modernization efforts, through its role in the administration of federal programs during the New Deal and World War II, to its status as an instrument of international development in Cold War battlegrounds like Vietnam and Latin America.

Clint Belmet's parents were killed in a Comanche raid when he was young, but that hasn't stopped him from taking a job leading freight caravans on the old Santa Fe Trail, from Saint Louis, Missouri, to Santa Fe, New Mexico - a route that goes right through Comanche territory. Here is the raw, primitive West of the early pioneers, great caravans of freighters rumbling across the deadly prairies, risking attack by Comanche.

Seventeen-year-old Riggle is living in rural Indiana with his uncle and uncle's girlfriend after the death of both of his parents. Now his uncle has gone missing, probably on a drug binge. It's Monday, and $800 in rent is due Friday. Riggle, who's been suspended from school, has to either find his uncle or get the money together himself. His mission exposes him to a motley group of Opioid locals - encounters by turns perplexing, harrowing, and heartening. Meanwhile, Riggle marks each day by remembering the mythology his late mother invented for him about how the days got their names.

Bobi Conn was raised in a remote Kentucky holler in 1980s Appalachia. She remembers her tin-roofed house tucked away in a vast forest paradise; the sparkling creeks, with their frogs and crawdads; the sweet blackberries growing along the road to her granny’s; and her abusive father. An elegiac account of survival despite being born poor, female, and cloistered, Bobi’s testament is one of hope for all vulnerable populations, particularly women and girls caught in the cycle of poverty and abuse.

Folk who value their sanity and their lives would be wise not to visit Larson's Cove this summer. Death, danger, and intrigue have drifted into the small town of Meadowville, and the growing sense that something is amiss is almost palpable on the hot, still air. Larson's Cove isn't a popular spot with the locals, but it is home to Larson's Shed. The seafood restaurant on the bay's falling-down wharf was once somewhat of an icon in the area, but it has stood vacant for quite some time. However, circumstances have recently changed. Boyd Paine, an out-of-towner with a mysterious past, has ...

Andy Adams (1859-1935) was born to pioneer parents in Indiana, worked in Texas for a decade driving cattle, and settled in Colorado Springs, where he penned his cowboy narratives. The Log of a Cowboy chronicles a five-month drive of three thousand head of cattle from Brownsville, Texas, to the Blackfoot Indian Reservation in Montana. This classical work of fiction provides fascinating insights of everyday life on the Great Western Cattle Trail with a team of 12 cowhands, a cook, a horse wrangler and a foreman.

One of the bestselling novelists of the American West brings us a gripping tale of gold, greed, and vengeance.

Nothing exciting ever happens in Palmer. Except that one time the biker gang came to town, and they turned out to be a bunch of middle aged doctors and lawyers reliving their glory days. But Aunt Lorinda insists the man they saw beside the interstate is an escaped convict. It doesn’t help that someone really did escape from the penitentiary up the road. When a handsome stranger walks into town hours later, Sheriff Callen Steiner has a choice: believe the old woman who owns the diner, or believe the well-dressed stranger whose luxury car was stolen. Hayley Beasley can’t stand the way the...

The Riddle of Plumfieldby Harper Stanwick, Sr. is a captivating mystery novel set in early 20th century rural America. When young Betsy Rosten and her family inherit a sprawling estate under the peculiar conditions of her eccentric Grand-Aunt Nelson's will, they are thrust into a complex web of secrets and puzzles. Betsy and her brother Mark must unravel a cryptic riddle to find the hidden treasure that secures their inheritance. The stakes are high, and their only clue lies in a mysterious verse left by their Grand-Aunt. As they explore the old mansion and its surrounding grounds, they ...

A classic story of imperiled love on the western frontiers of 19th-century America. While a battle rages between two outlaw gangs in a remote Utah canyon, Jim Wales struggles to rescue Helen Herrick, who has been captured and held for ransom. Robbers' Roost tells the story of their personal struggle to escape the clutches of the murderous outlaws while simultaneously safeguarding their passion, one that is not likely to survive the beautiful, yet deadly, terrain and people of the old American West.

When a charismatic new preacher arrives in the small country town of Rush Springs the parishioners are delighted by his presence. He's their kind of man and speaks their brand of religion. However, there's much more to this pastor than simple fire and brimstone. Another remarkable piece of storytelling for Kearns and with a Five-Star review from Reader's Favorite, it's one for every booklover's reading list. Now with a Five Star editorial review from Readers' Favorite.

Sarina loves her mother.They have gone beyond the awkward teen angst to become friends. They're even starting to share clothes. She has a little brother, but he hardly bothers her. Then her world spins out of control. Mom and little brother are killed in an automobile accident. While she is reeling from the news, her father (you know, the guy who goes to work and comes home) comes up to her and tells her it wasn’t an accident. It was murder. Then he tells her the agents are here to take them away to a new home and a new life. Sarina is in emotional overload. She learns it was her father ...

Frozen in grief after the loss of her son at sea, Edith Baines stares across the water at a schooner, under full sail yet motionless in the winter wind and surging tide of the Northern Reach. Edith seems to be hallucinating. Or is she? Edith’s boat-watch opens The Northern Reach, set in the coastal town of Wellbridge, Maine, where townspeople squeeze a living from the perilous bay or scrape by on the largesse of the summer folk and whatever they can cobble together, salvage, or grab.

A confused surfer dude, a hoodlum with a taste for fine furniture, a forensic accountant with a fondness for outrageous lies and a possibly murderous farmer mingle on the edge of the prairie as winter descends with a vengeance. On the run from the mob Paul Sorbon heads towards the only refuge he knows on earth. What he doesn't know is that his best friend might soon become his deadliest enemy.

A mystery and adventure narrative, set in the contrasting atmospheres of rural America and hustling New York City during the transformative era of the early 1900s. This enthralling saga ricochets from the eerie tranquility of the countryside to the booming urban sprawl of the metropolis, ingeniously incorporating sequences of romance, espionage, and the eternal quest for treasure. Storyline Michael K. Anderson, an intrepid wanderer, stumbles upon Hart’s Tavern, an ancient shelter in the heart of rural America. His journey leads him across a patchwork of quaint scenes and intriguing ...

In Strangers and Angels, Gabe Reaume presents a new collection of stories about life, making a living, and living life to the fullest. From early days in rural America, to an unusual friendship as a young man with a woman old enough to be his grandmother, to an account of rising through the ranks in his chosen profession, these stories introduce an interesting cast of characters and a heart-warming look at what the world can bring you if you work hard and stay open to the unexpected circumstances and people placed in your midst. Strangers and Angels is about making dreams come true, not ...

John Henry Cole is an operative of Ike Kelly's Detective Agency, based out of Cheyenne, Wyoming Territory. Returning to Cheyenne from what had been a deadly assignment in Deadwood, Dakota Territory, Cole has decided that he has no alternative but to resign from the agency and pursue a different line of work. However, in Cheyenne, Cole learns that Ike Kelly has been murdered and his body burned in a fire that destroyed both the agency office and the shop next door.

Belle Gunness was a farmer, a mother, and a murderer who lured victims to her Indiana farm with promises of love and opportunity. But behind the idyllic rural façade lay a gruesome reality—a farm where dreams were shattered, lives were stolen, and secrets were buried. Dubbed the "Black Widow of La Porte," Belle’s chilling crimes have haunted history for over a century. Whispers from the Murder Farm peels back the layers of this twisted case, exploring Belle’s calculated methods, the psychology behind her crimes, and the failures of law enforcement that allowed her to evade justice.

"Western Whispers" takes place in a time when the West was still wild and untamed, and the clash between progress and tradition was at its peak. In a small, isolated town nestled amidst the golden waves of wheat, a battle ensues between the hardworking farmers and the relentless forces that threaten to destroy their way of life. As tension rises and loyalties are tested, our protagonist finds himself torn between his commitment to his community and his yearning for adventure and freedom. With each page, Ken Cannon masterfully weaves a tale of suspense, passion, and the resilience of the ...

A novel in the historical fiction genre set in the rural landscape of Gilead during the early 20th century. "Under the River's Gaze" is a poignant tapestry of life in the tranquil village of Gilead. Set primarily along the serene Moosatuk River, spanning the early 1900s, the novel details the intersecting lives of its characters against the backdrop of an untouched natural landscape edging into modernization. Central to the story are Robert Lawson and Dr. Russell, two seasoned outdoorsmen who engage in deep, philosophical reflections while hunting, serving as witnesses to Gilead’s looming...