Author: fobpl

The historic hotel in BoonsBoro, Maryland, has endured war and peace, changing hands, even rumored hauntings. Now it's getting a major facelift from the Montgomery brothers and their eccentric mother. As the architect of the family, Beckett has little time for a social life. But there’s another project he’s got his eye on: the girl he’s been waiting to kiss since he was sixteen. After losing her husband and returning to her hometown, Clare Brewster soon settles into her life as the mother of three young sons while running the town’s bookstore. Though busy, Clare is drawn across the street by Beckett’s transformation of the old inn, wanting to take a closer look…at both the building and the man behind it... Paperback.

Emma has never fit into the sweater-set-wearing world of her political family, opting for purple hair and Chuck Taylors to keep herself out of countless photo ops, but when she accidentally lets her father’s presidential plans slip on national television, Emma finds herself thrown into the spotlight. Facing pressure to be the perfect First Daughter-in-training, Emma must learn to speak up for herself and for what she believes in. Hardcover.

A debut novel full of sparkle and wit, Horseplay is a story of the animals that touch our hearts… and the men who try our souls. When Judy Van Brunt finally decides to leave her cheating husband, she makes immediate plans to quit her teaching job, take the money she inherited from her mother, and run off, leaving a note on her husband’s pillow. There is only one problem: Where is she going? Hardcover.

Many know of Horatio Hornblower's exploits during the Napoleonic Wars through the novels of C.S. Forester, but how many know the true Hornblower—the man who rose from Midshipman to Admiral of the British Fleet? Using Hornblower family papers discovered in the 1970s, C. Northcote Parkinson has set the record straight in this authoritative biography. Paperback.

Ever wish that you could have a "do over" after a conversation at work? Do you often find yourself regretting what you've said to a coworker - or kicking yourself for not saying something better, stronger, or more precise? In this compelling, entertaining book, Reardon argues that we are responsible for 75 percent of the way we're treated at work, and our success - or failure - at the workplace depends largely on how we handle ourselves in conversation with our colleagues. To break free of the stale scripts and expected actions that allow politically astute people to manipulate us, we must increase our conversational awareness and effectively employ what Reardon calls "comebacks". Hardcover.

With Pulitzer Prize winners Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn as our guides, we undertake an odyssey through Africa and Asia to meet the extraordinary women struggling there, among them a Cambodian teenager sold into sex slavery and an Ethiopian woman who suffered devastating injuries in childbirth. Drawing on the breadth of their combined reporting experience, Kristof and WuDunn depict our world with anger, sadness, clarity, and, ultimately, hope. Through these stories, Kristof and WuDunn help us see that the key to economic progress lies in unleashing women’s potential. Throughout much of the world, the greatest unexploited economic resource is the female half of the population. Countries such as China have prospered precisely because they emancipated women and brought them into the formal economy. Unleashing that process globally is not only the right thing to do; it’s also the best strategy for fighting poverty. Paperback.

This portrait of poverty-stricken Southern tenant farmers during the Great Depression has become one of the most influential books of the past century. In the summer of 1936, Pulitzer Prize–winning writer James Agee and photographer Walker Evans set out on assignment for Fortune magazine to explore the daily lives of white sharecroppers in the South. Their journey would prove an extraordinary collaboration—and a watershed literary event. Paperback.

As the left most inland flank of the D-Day landings, Sword Beach was thought most likely to receive the first German counterattacks. The British troops selected for the assault had the tasks of securing the beach and advancing on the heavily defended medieval town of Caen. The action on this Normandy beach is now covered in all the detail that has become standard with the Battleground Europe series. Hardcover.

High School Chemistry Unlocked focuses on giving you a wide range of key lessons to help increase your understanding of chemistry. With this book, you'll move from foundational concepts to complicated, real-world applications, building confidence as your skills improve. End-of-chapter drills will help test your comprehension of each facet of chemistry, from atoms to alpha radiation. Paperback.

The World Is Flat is an essential update on globalization, its opportunities for individual empowerment, its achievements at lifting millions out of poverty, and its drawbacks–environmental, social, and political, powerfully illuminated by the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Lexus and the Olive Tree. Hardcover.

Nine Americans and their epic quest for gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Paperback.

Louisa Clark is no longer just an ordinary girl living an ordinary life. After the transformative six months spent with Will Traynor, she is struggling without him. When an extraordinary accident forces Lou to return home to her family, she can’t help but feel she’s right back where she started. Her body heals, but Lou herself knows that she needs to be kick-started back to life. Which is how she ends up in a church basement with the members of the Moving On support group, who share insights, laughter, frustrations, and terrible cookies. They will also lead her to the strong, capable Sam Fielding—the paramedic, whose business is life and death, and the one man who might be able to understand her. Then a figure from Will’s past appears and hijacks all her plans, propelling her into a very different future. . . . Hardcover

Twenty-six-year-old Jean Louise Finch—“Scout”—returns home to Maycomb, Alabama from New York City to visit her aging father, Atticus. Set against the backdrop of the civil rights tensions and political turmoil that were transforming the South, Jean Louise’s homecoming turns bittersweet when she learns disturbing truths about her close-knit family, the town, and the people dearest to her. Memories from her childhood flood back, and her values and assumptions are thrown into doubt. Featuring many of the iconic characters from To Kill a Mockingbird, Go Set a Watchman perfectly captures a young woman, and a world, in painful yet necessary transition out of the illusions of the past—a journey that can only be guided by one’s own conscience. Hardcover.

Told in three distinct and uniquely compelling sections, Asymmetry explores the imbalances that spark and sustain many of our most dramatic human relations: inequities in age, power, talent, wealth, fame, geography, and justice. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF 2018 BY * Elle * Bustle * Kirkus Reviews * Lit Hub* NPR * O, The Oprah Magazine * Shelf Awareness. Paperback.

For twenty years, Claire Randall has kept her secrets. But now she is returning with her grown daughter to the mysteries of Scotland’s mist-shrouded Highlands. Claire’s spellbinding journey continues through the intrigue-ridden French court and the menace of Jacobite plots, to the Highlands of Scotland, through war and death in a desperate fight to save both the child and the man she loves. Paperback.

Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of both the American Dream and the New South. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. But as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined. Roy is arrested and sentenced to twelve years for a crime Celestial knows he didn’t commit. Though fiercely independent, Celestial finds herself bereft and unmoored, taking comfort in Andre, her childhood friend, and best man at their wedding. This stirring love story is a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of three people who are at once bound and separated by forces beyond their control. Hardcover.

World Without End takes place in the same town of Kingsbridge, two centuries after the townspeople finished building the exquisite Gothic cathedral that was at the heart of The Pillars of the Earth. The cathedral and the priory are again at the center of a web of love and hate, greed and pride, ambition and revenge, but this sequel stands on its own.

In 1922, Count Alexander Rostov is deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, and is sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin. Rostov, an indomitable man of erudition and wit, has never worked a day in his life, and must now live in an attic room while some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history are unfolding outside the hotel’s doors. Unexpectedly, his reduced circumstances provide him entry into a much larger world of emotional discovery. Hardcover.

It is Earth year 2213—but there is no Earth anymore. Not since it was burned to a cinder by the sun, which has mysteriously begun the process of going supernova. The human race has fled to Mars, but this was only a temporary solution while we have prepared for a second trip: a one-hundred-fifty-year journey to a distant star, our best guess at where we might find a new home. Liam Saunders-Chang , the son of two scientists who have been racing against time to create technology vital to humanity’s survival, along with his friend Phoebe, will be on the last starliner to depart before Mars is destroyed. Or so he thinks. Because before this day is over, Liam and Phoebe will make a series of profound discoveries about the nature of time and space and find out that the human race is just one of many in our universe locked in a dangerous struggle for survival. Young Adult, paperback.

The heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life. John and Jenny were just beginning their life together. They were young and in love, with not a care in the world. Then they brought home Marley, a wiggly yellow furball of a puppy. Life would never be the same. Now with photos and new material. Hardcover, like new.

In the summer of June of 1991, I was a normal kid. I did normal things. I had friends and a mother that loved me. I was just like you. Until the day my life was stolen. For eighteen years I was a prisoner. I was an object for someone to use and abuse. For eighteen years I was not allowed to speak my own name. I became a mother and was forced to be a sister. For eighteen years I survived an impossible situation. On August 26, 2009, I took my name back. My name is Jaycee Lee Dugard. Paperback.

This father's memory journal takes you on a journey that will become a cherished family memoir. Questions explore family history, childhood memories, lighthearted incidents, cherished traditions, and the dreams and spiritual adventures encountered in a lifetime of living. Hardcover.

Rachel Jenner is walking in a Bristol park with her eight-year-old son, Ben, when he asks if he can run ahead. It’s an ordinary request on an ordinary Sunday afternoon, and Rachel has no reason to worry—until Ben vanishes. Police are called, search parties go out, and Rachel, already insecure after her recent divorce, feels herself coming undone. As hours and then days pass without a sign of Ben, everyone who knew him is called into question, from Rachel’s newly married ex-husband to her mother-of-the-year sister. Inevitably, media attention focuses on Rachel too, and the public’s attitude toward her begins to shift from sympathy to suspicion.As she desperately pieces together the threadbare clues, Rachel realizes that nothing is quite as she imagined it to be, not even her own judgment. And the greatest dangers may lie not in the anonymous strangers of every parent’s nightmares, but behind the familiar smiles of those she trusts the most. Where is Ben? The clock is ticking... Paperback.

This first novel in Alexander McCall Smith’s widely acclaimed series tells the story of the delightfully cunning and enormously engaging Precious Ramotswe, who is drawn to her profession to “help people with problems in their lives.” Immediately upon setting up shop in a small storefront in Gaborone, she is hired to track down a missing husband, uncover a con man, and follow a wayward daughter. But the case that tugs at her heart, and lands her in danger, is a missing eleven-year-old boy, who may have been snatched by witchdoctors. Paperback.

Still engaged to the estimable Mr J.L.B. Matekoni, Mma Ramotswe understands that she should not put too much pressure on him, as he has other concerns, especially a hair-raising request from the ever persuasive Mma Potokwane, matron of the orphan farm. Besides Mma Ramotswe herself has weighty matters on her mind. She has been approached by a wealthy lady to check up on several suitors. Are these men interested in the lady or just her money? This may be a difficult case, but it's just the kind of problem Mma Ramotswe likes and she is, as we know, a very intuitive lady. Paperback.

Sid Halley’s career as a jockey - and his marriage - were brought to a sudden end by a heartbreaking accident. His glory days are over, but now, as a private investigator, he still finds a certain satisfaction in successfully solving a case. His latest one, though, could prove to be his undoing. Rosemary Casper, wife of an elite racehorse trainer, has begged for his help in figuring out why her husband’s most promising horses have been performing so poorly. Halley thinks she’s overreacting at first. Then hints of deceit and brutal danger make him think twice… Paperback.

Within the Marvel Universe, heroes soar high in the skies, ready to battle the villains who threaten their world. Yet living in the shadow of these extraordinary icons are ordinary men and women who view the "Marvels" with a mixture of fear, disbelief, envy and admiration. Among them is Phil Sheldon, a New York City photojournalist who has dedicated his career to covering the exploits of the Marvels and their effect on humankind. Written by Kurt Busiek and masterfully illustrated by Alex Ross, Marvels presents a richly painted historical overview of the entire Marvel Universe, spanning from the 1939 debut of the Human Torch to the fearsome coming of the world-devouring Galactus--and culminating in the shocking death of Gwen Stacy, Spider-Man's first love.

Into the fascinating, pungent setting of Blood and Bone Alley, home of leech, barber-surgeon, and apothecary, comes Matilda, raised by a priest to disdain worldly affairs and focus on spiritual matters. To Matilda's dismay, her work will not involve Latin or writing, but practical tasks: lighting the fire, going to market, mixing plasters and poultices, and helping Peg treat patients. She is appalled by the worldliness of her new surroundings, and the sharp-tongued saints she turns to for advice are no help at all. Paperback.

The story of a plucky, courageous, 12-year old girl named Lyra Belacqua, her beloved daemo,n Pantalaimon, her alethiometer (and all that it helps her discover about "Dust" -- and other things), her powerful, ambitious, and dangerous parents (Lord Asriel and Mrs. Coulter), political intrigue in a world VERY much like our own, evil experiments on kidnapped children and their daemons, "gyptians" (water gypsies), theology and the Church, a window on a parallel universe, angels, witches, and a bear named Iorek Byrnison. Paperback.

Here are the numbers of Ann Galardi's life: She is 16. And a size 17. Her perfect mother is a size 6. Her Aunt Jackie is getting married in 2 months, and wants Ann to be a bridesmaid. So Ann makes up her mind: Time to lose 45pounds (more or less). Welcome to the world of informercial diet plans, wedding dance lessons, endless run-ins with the cutest guy Ann's ever seen—and some surprises about her not-so-perfect mother. And there's one more thing—it's all about feeling comfortable in your own skin—no matter how you add it up! Hardcover.

If life were fair, Jam Gallahue would still be at home in New Jersey with her sweet British boyfriend, Reeve Maxfield. She certainly wouldn’t be at a therapeutic boarding school in rural Vermont, living with a weird roommate, and signed up for a mysterious class called Special Topics in English. But life isn’t fair, and Reeve Maxfield is dead. Until a journal-writing assignment leads Jam to Belzhar, where the untainted past is restored, and Jam can feel Reeve’s arms around her once again. But there are hidden truths on Jam’s path to reclaim her loss. Hardcover, like new

The second adventure in the Bartimaeus trilogy finds Nathaniel working his way up the ranks of the government, when crisis hits. A seemingly invulnerable clay golem is making random attacks on London. Nathaniel and Bartimaeus must travel to Prague to discover the source of the golem’s power. Paperback.

Highlights the speeches, letters, poems, and articles of the brave men and women who founded our great nation, including George Washington, John and Abigail Adams, and Benjamin Franklin. Their advice on values such as patriotism, love, civility, education, industry, justice, and piety still rings true today. Our Country's Founders also includes important documents such as the Constitution and Declaration of Independence, a time line, and biographical notes. Hardcover.

Join one little pigeon on her mission to spread the word of peace around the world. Set to the lyrics the iconic song Imagine, this book brings John Lennon's enduring message of peace and tolerance to a new generation. Hardcover, like new.

Edith Nesbit (1858 – 1924) was an English poet and author. Contents include: “The Book of Beasts”, “Uncle James, or The Purple Stranger”, “The Deliverers of Their Country”, “The Ice Dragon, or Do as You Are Told”, “The Island of the Nine Whirlpools”, “The Dragon Tamers”, “The Fiery Dragon, or The Heart of Stone and the Heart of Gold”, and “Kind Little Edmund, or The Caves and the Cockatrice”. These fantastical tales would make for perfect bedtime reading material and are deserving of a place on any family bookshelf. Hardcover.

Get up close and personal and be an eyewitness to some of the most successful, adaptable, and numerous crawly creatures on the planet with DK Eyewitness Books: Insect. See how the first animals to fly actually take to the skies; discover the difference between beetles and bugs; witness a wasp building a nest; play hide-and-seek with moths; and learn much more about the anatomy, behavior, habitats, and classification of the billions of insects on Earth. Hardcover.

A photo essay about the range of plants and animals found in fresh water throughout the year examines the living conditions and survival mechanisms of creatures dwelling at the edge of the water, on its surface, or under the mud. Hardcover.

After her parents die of cholera, Mary Lennox, a difficult and sickly little girl, is brought from India to her mysterious uncle’s sprawling estate on the Yorkshire moors. Mary continues in her self-absorbed ways until one day she discovers a hidden and neglected garden adjoining her uncle’s mansion. Like new, illustrated by Tasha Tudor, some in color. Hardcover.

A complete illustrated course in sketching interior spaces. Ivo Drpic demonstrates how, using simple equipment and easy-to-master techniques, anyone can progress from free-flowing doodles to completely professional, presentation-quality renderings—saving time and the high cost of using professional renderers. Hardcover.

Presents the world's amazingly diverse places with epic grandeur, unparalleled intimacy, romantic beauty, and gritty realism. The photographs are landscapes, cityscapes, famous landmarks, and unfamiliar spots that reveal special qualities of geography or culture one might otherwise never see. Spanning more than eleven decades, the images in Wide Angle are divided into twelve chapters, each depicting a unique geography—including East and Southeast Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, and the Polar Regions. Gorgeous hardcover, 504 pages.

Covers just about all the features that can be included in home landscapes--from lawns and foundation plantings to fences, driveways, bridges, steps, outdoor rooms, pools and outdoor lighting. Home landscapers can follow her step-by-step instructions and carry out the project on their own or use her tips on hiring professionals to do the work. There are also suggestions for choosing and caring for trees, shrubs, vines, ground cover and perennials, with lists of plants appropriate for individual situations. Hardcover, like new.

The best of the old and the finest of the new come together in this delightful celebration of the "new" style of country living. Hardcover.

Fun for a cat lover! This amusing and unprecedented portfolio features a gallery where cats, not humans, are the models for some of the greatest art in the Western world. Hardcover.

Did you know you can beat stress, lift your mood, fight memory loss, sharpen your intellect, and function better than ever simply by elevating your heart rate and breaking a sweat? Aerobic exercise physically remodels our brains for peak performance. John J. Ratey, M.D., embarks upon a fascinating and entertaining journey through the mind-body connection, presenting research to prove that exercise is truly our best defense against everything from depression to ADD to addiction to menopause to Alzheimer's. Hardcover.

“A wake-up call for the entire planet . . . [A New Earth] helps us to stop creating our own suffering and obsessing over the past and what the future might be, and to put ourselves in the now.” —Oprah Winfrey. Paperback.

TV, radio, traffic, telephones, pagers - our minds are bombarded daily by constant noise and clutter. No wonder so many people find it increasingly difficult to listen and comprehend. The Zen of Listening is grounded in the Zen concept of mindfulness, a simple yet profound way of learning how to filter our distractions and be totally in the present. Paperback.

A book for entomological beginners, large dictionary of basic terms used in entomology. Paperback.

Edited by Dick Sternberg, a former fisheries biologist who has built his reputation as a top angling educator, "Freshwater Fishing Secrets" highlights top techniques for taking everything from bass to walleyes, cats to stripers. Hardcover.

Why is it that the pros' swings deliver such consistent power and accuracy, while you and your buddies hook, top, shank, and rack up enough mulligans to make a stew? Are the pros doing something you can learn to make the ball fly straighter and farther every time you swing the club? Jim McLean, a pioneer in using video to analyze the swing, shows how to swing a club using the same technique that made Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino,Lorena Ochoa, and Tiger Woods champions. Hardcover, like new condition.

Celebrates the accomplishments of individual champions, shares their inspirational stories and chronicles the extraordinary circumstances each faced. The stories are brought to life with stunning archival images and artifacts from the USGA's collection, connecting the present to a more distant past. Hardcover, like new.

In this book Santella interviews 50 luminaries in the golf world about their favorite courses and experiences. Old Country favorites like Royal Dornoch and Machrihanish in Scotland are featured, but so are venues far off the linksters’ beaten path, like Nirwana, Bali, where the course runs beside rice paddies in the shadow of ancient temples, and China’s Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, where players tee off at 10,000 feet, at the base of the Himalayas. More than 40 spectacular photos capture the allure of these unforgettable golf destinations. Hardcover.

Paleo-style diets are all the rage as fitness enthusiasts, including the booming nation of CrossFitters, have adopted high protein, low-processed-food diets to fuel their exercise. Paperback.

Lavishly illustrated with full color photos, over 300 recipes are included for the outdoor cook. Special sections on pit roasting a whole pig, beef shoulders, alder wood-smoking salmon the old Indian way, and a Hawaiian Luau. Hardcover.

Recipes include: Terrific T-Bone Steak with Redeye Marinade The Baron's Famous Barbecued Brisket Ancho- and Chiptole-Rubbed Pork Loin Smokehouse Spareribs Garlicky Barbecued Leg of Lamb Spicy Green Onion Sausage Barbecued Polynesian Chicken Black Pepper Shrimp Smoky Hickory and Brown Sugar Cured Salmon Grilled Potato Salad Toasted Sesame Oriental Cabbage Slaw Barbecued Beer Beans for a Big Crowd. 480 pages! Paperback.

More than 500 of the very best barbecue recipes, inventive, delicious, unexpected, easy-to-make, and guaranteed to capture great grill flavors from around the world. 556 pages! Paperback.

Sturdy canvas tote shows off your support of the library while carrying your literary treasures.

Each card displays a unique photo of our beautiful community. For a limited time, a donation of $1 will be made to Tap-In for each deck purchased.