Welcome to Halesmere House, where romance might be just around the corner...After years of living in the past, Ella is ready to start building a future. The perfect opportunity presents itself when she is offered a short-term role at Halesmere House in the Lake District, and tasked with kick-starting its artists' residence. She can't wait to start and explore a new career in an inspiring location. But when Ella arrives at Halesmere, she wonders if she's made a huge mistake after she clashes with Max, the new owner. Max has his own reasons to be unsettled by her presence, but despite his misgivings it seems everyone else loves having Ella around. As a single dad, it's his children's attachment to her that bothers him most. Who will pick up the pieces when Ella leaves? What Max doesn't know is that Ella is falling for more than just the Lake District and the community around her. Can her temporary job lead to a permanent happy ending? A tender and uplifting Christmas romance for fans of Heidi Swain, Karen Swan and Sue Moorcroft. Praise for Snowfall Over Halesmere House 'Warmth, community and romance all wrapped up in a sumptuous setting - this is everything I want from a Christmas book!' Donna Ashcroft 'Suzanne's writing flows beautifully and her characters are real and vibrant. I thoroughly enjoyed the story carrying me along until was quite desperate for Ella and Max to find a way to be together.' Sue Moorcroft

Long a bastion of antigovernment feeling, the Ozark region today is home to fervent strains of conservative-influenced sentiment. Does rural heritage play an exceptional role in the perpetuation of these attitudes? Have such outlooks been continuous? J. Blake Perkins searches for the roots of rural defiance in the Ozarks--and discovers how it changed over time. Eschewing generalities, Perkins focuses on the experiences and attitudes of rural people themselves as they interacted with government from the late nineteenth century through the twentieth century.He uncovers the reasons local disputes and uneven access to government power fostered markedly different reactions by hill people as time went by. Resistance in the earlier period sprang from upland small farmers' conflicts with capitalist elites who held the local levers of federal power. But as industry and agribusiness displaced family farms after World War II, a conservative cohort of town business elites, local political officials, and midwestern immigrants arose from the region's new low-wage, union-averse economy. As Perkins argues, this modern antigovernment conservatism bore little resemblance to the backcountry populism of an earlier age but had much in common with the movement elsewhere.

Counterculture flourished nationwide in the 1960s and 1970s, and while the hippies of Haight-Ashbury occupied the public eye, further off the beaten path in the Arkansas Ozarks a faction of back to the landers were quietly creating their own counterculture haven. In Hipbillies, Jared Phillips collects oral histories and delves into archival resources to provide a fresh scholarly discussion of this group, which was defined by anticonsumerism and a desire for self-sufficiency outside of modern industry. While there were indeed clashes between long haired hippies and cantankerous locals, Phillips shows how the region has always been a refuge for those seeking a life off the beaten path, and as such, is perhaps one of the last bastions for the dream of self-sufficiency in American life. Hipbillies presents a region steeped in tradition coming to terms with the modern world.

Afghanistan in the 20th century was virtually unknown in Europe and America. At peace until the 1970s, the country was seen as a remote and exotic land, visited only by adventurous tourists or researchers. Afghan Village Voices is a testament to this little-known period of peace and captures a society and culture now lost. Prepared by two of the most accomplished and well-known anthropologists of the Middle East and Central Asia, Richard Tapper and Nancy Tapper-Lindisfarne, this is a book of stories told by the Piruzai, a rural Afghan community of some 200 families who farmed in northern Afghanistan and in summer took their flocks to the central Hazarajat mountains. The book comprises a collection of remarkable stories, folktales and conversations and provides unprecedented insight into the depth and colour of these people's lives. Recorded in the early 1970s, the stories range from memories of the Piruzai migration to the north a half century before, to the feuds, ethnic strife and the doings of powerful khans. There are also stories of falling in love, elopements, marriages, childbirth and the world of spirits. The book includes vignettes of the narrators, photographs, maps and a full glossary. It is a remarkable document of Afghanistan at peace, told by a people whose voices have rarely been heard.

Susan Wadley first visited Karimpur--the village "behind mud walls" made famous by William and Charlotte Wiser--as a graduate student in 1967. She returned often, adding her observations and experiences to the Wisers' field notes from the 1920s and 1930s. In this long-awaited book, Wadley gives us a work of unprecedented scope: a portrait of an Indian village as it has changed over a sixty-year period.
She hears of changes in agriculture, labor relations, education, and the family. But Karimpur's residents do not speak with one voice in describing the ways their lives have changed--viewpoints vary considerably depending on the speaker's gender, economic status, and caste. Using cultural documents such as songs and stories, as well as data on household budgets and farming practices, Wadley examines what it means to be poor or rich, female or male. She demonstrates that the forms of subordination prescribed for women are paralleled by those prescribed for lower castes.
Villagers also speak of political struggles in India, and of the importance of religion when confronting change. Their stories, songs, and life histories reveal the rich fabric of Karimpur and show how much can be learned from listening to its people.

Equity is the tool to achieve diversity and inclusion that will help eliminate injustice and fairly distribute the benefits of an equitable environment to everyone. Corporate culture around the world has already stated efforts for sustainable development through corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives in rural areas. This infrastructure must be strengthened so that the rural community can become an active part of changing the world of work. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Efforts of Businesses in Rural Areas evaluates growth trajectories and educational opportunities in rural areas. It further explores the inclusion efforts of marginalized groups in rural society. Covering topics such as the construction industry, rural populations, and workplace inclusivity, this premier reference source is a valuable resource for policymakers, investors, professionals, business leaders and managers, economists, sociologists, students and educators of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.

In his first book, Time to Talk, Michael Healy-Rae established himself as part of the great tradition of Kerry storytellers with his chronicles of life in rural Ireland. Now, in his second book, his superior storytelling skills come to the fore once again as he shares more stories of what he's witnessed and heard in the heart of the country. From his Kerry childhood to musings on rural Ireland today, A Listening Ear brings readers back to the countryside and characters that we have grown to love. With his quick wit and remarkable observations, Michael is a consummate chronicler of country life and the charm of local heroes.

Discover Jo Bartlett's wonderful Seabreeze Farm series! Another wonderful new series from the top 10 bestselling author of The Cornish Midwife, Jo Bartlett. Welcome to Seabreeze Farm. Freya Halliwell is looking forward to marrying the man of her dreams and starting their new life together. After the death of both of her parents, Ollie, along with Freya's aunt, are the only family she has, but all the family she needs. Until Freya discovers a shocking secret that makes her question everything she thought she knew about her once happy family and especially the man she used to call dad. Devastated and feeling more alone than ever before, Freya needs time and space to come to terms with the news. But until then the wedding is off! Seabreeze Farm is the perfect place for Freya to recover. But could this beautiful farm perched high on the cliffs, also hold the answer to Freya's past and reunite her with the family she never even knew she'd been wishing for? This book was previously published as Finding Dad. Praise for Jo Bartlett: 'I love second chance stories. I love returning home stories. So a book combining both is an absolute winner for me. The Cornish Midwife is simply gorgeous. Stunning setting, wonderful characters, and oozing with warmth. A triumph from Jo Bartlett.' Jessica Redland 'Perfectly written and set in the beating heart of a community, this story is a wonderful slice of Cornish escapism.' Helen J Rolfe

Discover Jo Bartlett's wonderful Seabreeze Farm series! Another wonderful new series from the top 10 bestselling author of The Cornish Midwife, Jo Bartlett. Welcome to Seabreeze Farm. Freya Halliwell is looking forward to marrying the man of her dreams and starting their new life together. After the death of both of her parents, Ollie, along with Freya's aunt, are the only family she has, but all the family she needs. Until Freya discovers a shocking secret that makes her question everything she thought she knew about her once happy family and especially the man she used to call dad. Devastated and feeling more alone than ever before, Freya needs time and space to come to terms with the news. But until then the wedding is off! Seabreeze Farm is the perfect place for Freya to recover. But could this beautiful farm perched high on the cliffs, also hold the answer to Freya's past and reunite her with the family she never even knew she'd been wishing for? This book was previously published as Finding Dad. Praise for Jo Bartlett: 'I love second chance stories. I love returning home stories. So a book combining both is an absolute winner for me. The Cornish Midwife is simply gorgeous. Stunning setting, wonderful characters, and oozing with warmth. A triumph from Jo Bartlett.' Jessica Redland 'Perfectly written and set in the beating heart of a community, this story is a wonderful slice of Cornish escapism.' Helen J Rolfe