The evolution of stores out of the old peddler-and-plantation system, with colored illustrations and pencil drawings.

Each Vermont country store carries its own particular stock of special wares and memorable characters. From the Connecticut River to Lake Champlain, country stores and their dedicated owners offer warmth against the blizzard, advice and a friendly ear or a stern word. Neighbors meet and communities are forged beside these feed barrels and bottomless coffee urns. Author Dennis Bathory-Kitsz returns once again to the Green Mountain State with this updated and revised history and guide to its beloved country stores. When Hurricane Irene threatened many of these local institutions and communities in 2011, Vermonters came together, often at their country stores. Explore the very heart of communities big and small, where locals have been keeping their house keys behind the counter and solving the world's problems on the front stoop for more than two hundred years.

Often hidden on the back roads and byways of the Granite State, country stores are an essential and beloved part of the state's character. Developed from trading posts as travelers settled throughout the state, they are recognizable for their vast array of merchandise and a fragrant blend of tobacco, spices and coffee. The country store became the center of the community, where residents could play checkers, mail letters, attend town meetings and shop. They are still fixtures in many towns today, including the Brick Country Store in Bath, considered to be the oldest in the United States, dating back to 1790; Fadden's General Store and Sugarhouse in North Woodstock, which produces award-winning maple syrup; and the Old Country Store in Moultonborough, which had its beginnings as a tavern. Historian Bruce D. Heald, PhD, chronicles New Hampshire's historic country stores and the keepers behind these unique local landmarks.

The old country stores along the back roads of rural Mississippi are the treasures that remain of a bygone era. Travel back to the Mississippi of yesteryear and hear of the deadly can of molasses that once caused a massacre in Carrollton, Mississippi, in the late 1800s. Find the church near Alston's General Store in Rodney with a Civil War cannonball lodged in its front facade. Or discover the haunts of Causeyville General Store among shelves and corners stocked with relics of the American past. These and other stores remembered here by local author June Davis Davidson were the cornerstones of their communities, and harken back to a time when the sweetest things in life were the smell of peanuts roasting and reaching into the penny candy jar.

Discover design inspiration as a photographer and blogger details the story of her renovation of a 1940s cottage in the California countryside. A little, abandoned vacation house that could, set in the center of rolling fields and trees becomes the cottage home of her dreams. A French country–style cottage filled with original elements and an exquisite mix of rustic and refined. The years of renovation allowed Courtney to create a lifestyle that is fueled by inspiration and beauty, a touch of whimsy, and an abundance of everyday elegance. The journey has been shared on her popular blog French Country Cottage, and now, through the publication of her first book, her readers will experience a reveal of more of her home and property and the inspirations behind her beloved style. Courtney's inspiring photography reveals every nuance of her style and home including a muted color palette, old brassy door knobs, chippy paint, antiques, her greenhouse and garden, and an abundance of entertaining and holiday decorating style. Blurring the lines between indoor and outdoor and embracing well-worn as well loved, French Country Cottage is a style that celebrates simplicity, indulges in romance, cherishes pieces with history and believes a chandelier and fresh flowers belong in every room.

Looks at the history of general stores in North Carolina, providing a collection of photographs of the stores and interviews with their owners.