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A Book of Kells recalls the lives and unearths the egos of John Kell and Kathleen Ward who meet in 1917 when he is a Canadian sailor stationed in Portsmouth, England. Her father, a Methodist Sunday School teacher, brings him home for tea. Kathleen's sister writes to Jack until she gets married in 1924 and Kathleen takes up the correspondence. Meanwhile, Jack has been getting an education and has spent a year evangelizing the Swampy Cree to whom he plans to return for another five years. When he gets Kathleen's letter it is like manna from heaven. He proposes awkwardly and she asks him to come over for another look. But, when he does, she smashes him at tennis and banishes him to his far northern post. However, they agree to give themselves a year to reconsider. Seventy-two letters get through, even though the native reserve is cut off from civilization for six months of the year. They marry in 1927 and she goes up to Oxford House, Manitoba, by canoe along the old fur trade route. Nine months later, in mid-winter, she treks for five days by horse-drawn cariole to find a place to give birth. When I enter the picture during the Great Depression, a stressed-out minister's wife and three little girls are crammed into a duplex on a working-class street in Toronto. We're working our hearts out as little "examples," trying to help Father. In later years, I discovered an emotional toll to pay. I couldn't sit through a church service without breaking into unrestrained weeping. My teen-age and college years were near-suicidal. What seemed to be the fundamental problem was that I had been trained to put away my ego in favor of redeeming my soul. Still, religion was a great strength, protecting our family from tendencies towards alcoholism and mental illness. I struggle desperately to avoid the pitfall of black sheep, which seemed inevitable for the youngest of three "perfect" minister's daughters. The name of this family voyage recalls the famous ninth-century illuminated gospel manuscript, The Book of Kells.

A military plane is shot down over the Iraqi countryside; its young pilot is presumed dead.

A decade later, his fiancée, Maryn, takes a trip to Australia to finally say goodbye to her airman who never came home. The Seattle school teacher meets a divorced marine biologist named Grant on a tour. Grant soon discovers he's attracted as much to Maryn's wit as to her looks. But occasionally, a melancholy creeps into her eyes.

Eventually, she allows Grant to read a letter from her fiancé--the kind soldiers write "just in case." Grant halts his romantic feelings and their friendship blossoms. Later, they reunite in California, but Grant wonders if Maryn's past is truly behind her.

From the author

Wind to Water is a love story, travel adventure and romantic comedy. It chronicles an ordinary man's search for an extraordinary love in a world mostly unfit for such a venture.

This novel seeps over the edges of standard book categories. It's a contemporary love story, deepened by explorations into real geography and history, splashed with comedy and sprinkled with spirituality. I hope you find joy in its complexity, as well as in its desire not to take itself too seriously.

It offers a glimpse into the love that many people hope one day to savor--a love that encourages them to be themselves. I hope it will be a book that lovers buy for lovers and friends buy for friends. I would be honored if you would share this story with someone you care about.

Packed with more color photographs (380) and detailed, color maps (80) than any other parks guidebook on the market, this handy, practical, guide, completely updated for the 2012 edition, offers comprehensive information on the crown jewels of the national park system--the 58 scenic national parks that conserve and protect the flora and fauna in some of our nation's last wilderness areas. This guide helps travelers design custom trips, depending on the time and interests they have.
 
The parks are grouped region by region so that vacationers can plan trips to one or more central location. Each chapter is introduced by a map and a geographical profile, followed by the parks in alphabetical order. Individual parks start with a portrait of the natural wonders available, their history, and the ecological setting and stresses they face. A practical "How to Get There" follows with suggestions on when best to visit and a "How to Visit" section with advice on which activities to engage in, how much time to provide for each, and how to savor the beauty of the place. After the descriptions, each park has an "Information & Activities" page with detailed visitor information, including the location of the visitor centers, the fees, pet guidance, special advisories, camping, and lodging details. Suggested brief, nearby excursions are provided to encourage the traveler to explore beyond the park boundaries.
 
This update includes the lastest information on the 2009 Tsunami which devistated America Samoa National Park, information on road changes that resulted from the recent flooding in Olympic National Park, and changes in Arches National Park, including the collapse of Wall Arch in late 2008. The new edition also has 200 new photos by noted nature photographer Phil Schermeister. These pictures, many of which have never been published before, reflect the beauty and grandeur of our national treasures, while the accompanying text, written by experienced National Geographic writers who have traveled the parks, is full of personal, useful, and practical information.

Cabins float in a cut-off fjord of British Columbia's south coast, where mountains drop into the sea and lifestyles focus on self-reliance and a different sense of purpose. One man tackles an on-going dream to construct a floating cabin on Powell Lake, from the water up - not his first, but his finest. This volume is the ninth in the series entitled 'Coastal British Columbia Stories,' which highlights the unique people and places of Canada's south coast.

It's the phenomenon: 1,000 Places to See Before You Die has 2.2 million copies in print and has spent 144 weeks and counting on The New York Times bestseller list.

Now, shipping in time for the tens of millions of travelers heading out for summer trips, comes 1,000 Places to See in the U.S.A. & Canada Before You Die. Sail the Maine Windjammers out of Camden. Explore the gold-mining trails in Alaska's Denali wilderness. Collect exotic shells on the beaches of Captiva. Take a barbecue tour of Kansas City—from Arthur Bryant's to Gates to B.B.'s Lawnside to Danny Edward's to LC's to Snead's. There's the ice hotel in Quebec, the Great Stalacpipe Organ in Virginia, cowboy poetry readings, what to do in Louisville after the Derby's over, and for every city, dozens of unexpected suggestions and essential destinations.

The book is organized by region, and subject-specific indices in the back sort the book by interest—wilderness, great dining, best beaches, world-class museums, sports and adventures, road trips, and more. There's also an index that breaks out the best destinations for families with children. Following each entry is the nuts and bolts: addresses, websites, phone numbers, costs, best times to visit.

Let it snow! Cozy up to the Castle Mountain Lodge in the middle of the remote Canadian Rockies for Unexpected Gifts.

Christmas represents everything Andi Williams is supposed to have, and doesn't. Running away to a remote mountain lodge in the Canadian Rockies, sounds like the perfect way to escape, until a mix-up finds her sharing a villa with sexy, rough around the edges, Colin Hartford.

Colin's determination to enjoy the holiday he’s missed for the last five years, sweeps Andi into a season of joy that she’s not sure she’s ready for. Can Andi open herself up to everything the holidays have to offer...including love?