Books » Women's Fiction

Called a ?magnificently crafted story . . . brimming with wisdom? by Howard Frank Mosher in The Washington Post Book World, Crossing to Safety has, since its publication in 1987, established itself as one of the greatest and most cherished American novels of the twentieth century. Tracing the lives, loves, and aspirations of two couples who move between Vermont and Wisconsin, it is a work of quiet majesty, deep compassion, and powerful insight into the alchemy of friendship and marriage.

Three complete novels, The Runaway Quilt, The Quilter's Legacy, and The Master Quilter, from New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Chiaverini.

Join the Elm Creek Quilters on their continuing adventures through American history past and present, told from the unique perspective of the creative artists known as quilters.

The Runaway Quilt: Alerted that her family may have had ties to the slaveholding South, Sylvia Bergstrom Compson searches her attic for her great-grandmother's quilt, a log cabin with black central squares that, according to legend, was a sign of sanctuary to escaping slaves. She also discovers the memoir of her great-grandfather's spinster sister, Gerda Bergstrom. The record reveals not only the founding of Elm Creek Manor, but also a Pennsylvania farming community divided by the issue of slavery. With the help of the Elm Creek Quilters and the clues in her ancestors' quilts, Sylvia grapples with hard truths in coming to terms with her family's past.

The Quilter's Legacy: Resolving to locate her mother's heirloom quilts, Sylvia embarks on a cross-country investigation of antiques shops, quilt museums, and some unexpected places, where offers of assistance are not always what they seem. As Sylvia recovers some of the missing quilts and accepts others as lost forever, she reflects on the woman her mother was and mourns the woman she never knew.

The Master Quilter: Wedding bells are ringing in the ears of the Elm Creek Quilters. Their own Sylvia planned her holiday wedding with sweetheart Andrew in complete secrecy. Eager to honor the newlyweds, the Elm Creek Quilters hasten to stitch a bridal quilt for their favorite Master Quilter. As the quilt blocks accumulate, the Elm Creek Quilters celebrate the joys of new beginnings and the ongoing success of their business -- until forces conspire to threaten their happiness and prosperity. Will the burden of closely guarded secrets strain the bonds of friendship?

"A shared love for quilting," The Hartford Courant has observed, "helps bring women together. Quilters always welcome new ones and share what they know...in the popular Elm Creek Quilts novels." Here in An Elm Creek Quilts Album, Jennifer Chiaverini's captivating storytelling enacts the enduring wisdom of a joyful sisterhood of family and friends.

Pages: 368, Paperback, Vintage

To the outside world, they seem to have it all. Cassie Barrett, a renowned anthropologist, and Alex Rivers, one of Hollywood's hottest actors, met on the set of a motion picture in Africa. They shared childhood tales, toasted the future, and declared their love in a fairy-tale wedding. But when they return to California, something alters the picture of their perfect marriage. A frightening pattern is taking shape-a cycle of hurt, denial, and promises, thinly veiled by glamour. Torn between fear and something that resembles love, Cassie wrestles with questions she never dreamed she would face: How can she leave? Then again, how can she stay?

Pat Conroy called Dorothea Benton Frank's debut, Sullivan's Island, "hilarious and wise," while Anne Rivers Siddons declared that it "roars with life." Here, Frank evokes a lush plantation in the heart of modern-day South Carolina-where family ties and hidden truths run as deep and dark as the mighty Edisto River.

A heartwarming portrait of the mysteries and miracles of everyday life in a small town introduces the charming North Carolina town of Mitford and its colorful inhabitants, including Tim, a bachelor rector, who is falling in love with his neighbor. Reprint.

Set in the steamy, stormy landscape of South Carolina, Sullivan's Island tells the unforgettable story of one woman's courageous journey toward truth.

Born and raised on idyllic Sullivan's Island, Susan Hayes navigated through her turbulent childhood with humor, spunk, and characteristic Southern sass. But years later, she is a conflicted woman with an unfaithful husband, a sometimes resentful teenage daughter, and a heart that aches with painful, poignant memories. And as Susan faces her uncertain future, she realizes that she must go back to her past. To the beachfront house where her sister welcomes her with open arms. To the only place she can truly call home.

When Margaret Lea opened the door to the past, what she confronted was her destiny.All children mythologize their birth...So begins the prologue of reclusive author Vida Winter's collection of stories, which are as famous for the mystery of the missing thirteenth tale as they are for the delight and enchantment of the twelve that do exist.The enigmatic Winter has spent six decades creating various outlandish life histories for herself -- all of them inventions that have brought her fame and fortune but have kept her violent and tragic past a secret. Now old and ailing, she at last wants to tell the truth about her extraordinary life. She summons biographer Margaret Lea, a young woman for whom the secret of her own birth, hidden by those who loved her most, remains an ever-present pain. Struck by a curious parallel between Miss Winter's story and her own, Margaret takes on the commission.As Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good, Margaret is mesmerized. It is a tale of gothic strangeness featuring the Angelfield family, including the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, a topiary garden and a devastating fire. Margaret succumbs to the power of Vida's storytelling but remains suspicious of the author's sincerity. She demands the truth from Vida, and together they confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming, finally, transformed by the truth themselves. The Thirteenth Tale is a love letter to reading, a book for the feral reader in all of us, a return to that rich vein of storytelling that our parents loved and that we loved as children. Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter and, in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life.

Two girls who grow up to become women. Two friends who become something worse than enemies. In this brilliantly imagined novel, Toni Morrison tells the story of Nel Wright and Sula Peace, who meet as children in the small town of Medallion, Ohio. Their devotion is fierce enough to withstand bullies and the burden of a dreadful secret. It endures even after Nel has grown up to be a pillar of the black community and Sula has become a pariah. But their friendship ends in an unforgivable betrayal?or does it end? Terrifying, comic, ribald and tragic, Sula is a work that overflows with life.

Finally in trade paperback, complementing Bantam's new release of River Teeth and our consistently bestselling edition of The River Why, here is The Brothers K, a lyrical and lovely novel of family.