Whether it is used as an icebreaker in conversation or as the subject of serious inquiry, the weather is one of the few subjects that everyone talks about. And though we recognize the faces that bring us the weather on television, how government meteorologists and forecasters go about their jobs is rarely scrutinized. Given recent weather-re...

It is a day in the country, and everthing is hot and still. Then the hazy sky begins to shift. Something is astir, something soundless.

Literary Americana fiction filled with humor and heart When his wife, Angel, is killed in a head-on collision, Gomez Gomez feels he can't go on--so he doesn't. He spends his days in the bushes next to the crash site drinking Thunderbird wine, and his nights cradling a coffee can full of Angel's ashes. Slow, sure suicide, with no one for company but the snakes, Elvis's ghost, and a strange kid named Bones. Across town, Father Jake Morales plays it safe, haunted by memories of the woman he left behind, hiding his guilt, loss, and love behind a thick wall of cassock and ritual. Then a shady business deal threatens the town--and his good friend Gomez Gomez--and Father Jake can't just stand by and watch. But what happens when the rescuer is the one in need of saving? The Beautiful Ashes of Gomez Gomez is quirky, heartfelt, and deeply human. Lives and hopes collide in the town of Paradise, stretching across decades and continents in this epic story of forgiveness, redemption, and love.

A mother reassures her child about the wind, lightning, and thunder when a storm passes through.

The Pen Pal follows the story of Shiloh Ray, who is a military wife, new mother, and college student. Shiloh also suffers from postpartum depression and overall loneliness from living in rural Alaska far away from any family or friends. Shiloh then breaks out of her comfort zone and signs up for a Pen Pal. Weeks pass and she is matched with Penelope Young, this is where her whole life will change. Shiloh and Penelope become the best of friends and write letters every week. Until one day the letters just stop. Penelope had vanished. Shiloh cannot handle the thought of losing her best friend, so she flies across the country to figure out what she did wrong, or what happened to Penelope. Once she gets there, she finds out from Penelope's husband that she is missing. Shiloh takes matters into her own hands, finding out the truth of what happened to her friend. Shiloh will follow clues and figure out the truth no matter what the cost. She also meets a few unexpected friends along the way to help her. Shiloh and her friends will face many challenges and have to race against the clock to find out the truth before someone else covers it up. Trigger Warning! There is talk of suicidal thoughts and mental illness

Whether it is used as an icebreaker in conversation or as the subject of serious inquiry, “the weather” is one of the few subjects that everyone talks about. And though we recognize the faces that bring us the weather on television, how government meteorologists and forecasters go about their jobs is rarely scrutinized. Given recent weather-related disasters, it’s time we find out more. In Authors of the Storm, Gary Alan Fine offers an inside look at how meteorologists and forecasters predict the weather. Based on field observation and interviews at the Storm Prediction Center in Oklahoma, the National Weather Service in Washington, D.C., and a handful of midwestern outlets, Fine finds a supremely hard-working, insular clique of professionals who often refer to themselves as a “band of brothers.” In Fine’s skilled hands, we learn their lingo, how they “read” weather conditions, how forecasts are written, and, of course, how those messages are conveyed to the public. Weather forecasts, he shows, are often shaped as much by social and cultural factors inside local offices as they are by approaching cumulus clouds. By opening up this unique world to us, Authors of the Storm offers a valuable and fascinating glimpse of a crucial profession.