Natalie Merriman's world has fallen apart. Leaving her family's ranch in the Nebraska Sandhills, she travels to Omaha to pursue her education. Her goal is to return home as a country school teacher but she is miserable. She has little in common with the other students, who consider her a country bumpkin. So do some of the faculty, even though Natilie is far better educated than most of the others. When Natalie meets Ezra Caldwell, a second year student, she finds a kindred soul. Ezra is quite different from the cattlemen she grew up among, more gentle and refined. He is kind to Natalie, and he treats her as an equal, something she has never experienced. When Ezra asks for her hand, she accepts. Even so, Natalie's father strongly objects. When she invites Ezra to her family home over Christmas vacation, Ike Caldwell dislikes him from the start. Ike wants his daughter to marry a neighboring rancher and kicks Ezra out of the house. When Ezra leaves, Natalie goes with him. Not having any place to go, they marry and finish the school year. When Ezra is offered a job in Colorado, the couple decide to visit Natalie's family on the way. Yet a late blizzard stops the train and Ezra becomes ill. Not long after they arrive in O'Neill, he dies and soon after, Natalie discovers she is pregnant. With her dreams shattered and sick with grief, Natilie returns to her family. Trouble soon follows. Ike has not given up the idea of her marriage to his neighbor. The pressure becomes so great that Natalie is forced to leave her family again, this time on Christmas Eve. With her baby due at any moment, she rides off into the night and is caught in a ground blizzard. Trying to reach shelter, she is rescued by an unlikely pair of angels who carry her to to the safety of a dilapidated line shack. There her child is born on Christmas Day. Yet Natalie's odyssey is far from done. For her angels turn out to be US Marshals and Natalie finds herself the middle of a manhunt.

The Christmas Star

Religion & Spirituality

Adair, Avery

Literature & Fiction

White Turtle Books

When a famous black musician is shot down at his eightieth birthday celebration in a small settlement in rural Arkansas, no one can imagine why. Smiley Jones is a living legend, a sweet grandfatherly soul loved by all, and there is intense political pressure to find his killer. To solve the case, the sheriff calls in Jazz Phillips, renowned former head of the Arkansas CID. The governor calls in the FBI, whose bumbling Senior Agent almost blows the case.   Despite the incompetence of the FBI, Jazz quickly discovers a dark side of Smiley Jones that yields a wide field of suspects. Narrowing the list down, Jazz discovers this is no simple murder and he finds himself plunged into the shadow world of national security. He also discovers he is on the trail of an international assassin. Jazz finds himself no longer the hunter but the prey of a man never seen, a professional who leaves no loose ends.

Murder in the Choir

Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

Reed, Joel B.

Mystery

When an old friend calls in a favor, Jazz Phillips, former head of the Arkansas CID, agrees to help catch a cat thief. Known for breaking tough cases as a consultant to the FBI, Jazz doesn't take the case too seriously. Then a personal journal recovered from the thief outlines the most unusual series of murders Jazz has ever seen. Yet, Jazz is not certain a serial killer is at work. The journal is vague and the writer is unknown. Nor are the victims clearly identified. While there are details that match suspicious deaths in the area, the pattern does not fit the normal profile of a serial killer. Only when he digs deep into the past does Jazz discover he is not on the trial of one murder, but two, working as a team to extract revenge. One is a violent slasher, the other, a cold mastermind.

Murder by the Board

For those who have trouble finding spiritual nurture in a religious setting, a former priest draws on a rich heritage of Celtic and American Indian spirituality to rediscover spirituality.

The Agnostic's Guide to Prayer

Abinitio, Samuel

New Age & Spirituality

Children always know when there is serious illness in the family. Nothing is more scary to them than not being told what this is and how it works, and children need to feel free to ask questions. They also need answers they can understand. This wonderful story by a special education teacher with many years of experience is written to help parents give their children answers about bipolar disease. It helps both parents and children to understand that mental illness is no different than cancer or heart disease. It is something to be treated and managed, not something to be ashamed of or kept secret.

Dancing Crazy

Children's Books

Larson, Kathleen A.

Growing Up & Facts of Life