Billy, a gifted mandolin player in Dogwood, West Virginia, lives his life as an offering to his divine creator, and when Malachi, an angel sent to observe Billy, begins to see the bigger picture of how each painful step Billy takes is a note added to a beautiful symphony, it will forever change the lives of those who hear it.

The author of Whispers in Time presents “a heavenly story designed to enchant readers with its wondrous message of hope and the great power of faith” (Romantic Times). When a fatal car accident sends Angela Rhodes floating toward heaven, she discovers the hard way that there is, in fact, life after death. But back in the land of the living, she’s left behind some unfinished business: a husband and daughter. At heaven’s gate, Angela is granted the opportunity to look after those she loves, but she must first prove herself worthy of such a responsibility. With the help of Al, her handsome spirit guide, Angela embarks on a journey through time that allows her to untangle the web of her many lives. As she weaves together the pieces of her past, Angela hopes to find the key to everlasting peace. But, even more, she hopes to be able to pass it onto the family she left behind.

December 2055... a baseball-fanatic, 101-year-old man, dies and goes to heaven. Beyond blessed by being reunited with loved ones who have gone before, and meeting the two Guardian Angels who ushered him during his time on earth, he is embraced by The Other Side's peaceful, gentle, majestic, comforting, loving, and awe-inspiring beauty. As wonderful as it all is, including seeing Beethoven & Hendrix perform together on stage (John Prine the opening act), to paddle endless winding rivers with a back that never aches, play in baseball games that joyfully run for days yet never tire, it is the opportunity to be sent back to earth by Saint Peter for a decade-long (1911 through 1920) "human experience" that is most intriguing: with the opportunity to see, arguably, the greatest baseball player of them all, Ty Cobb, in action - viewed by a Tiger fan born 3 decades after Cobb retired. "Almost Heaven" takes you back to the 1910s, a decade that began with major league baseball teams constructing the first steel & concrete stadiums to replace their old wooden ballparks, and ends as the dead ball era of Detroit Tigers Ty Cobb & Wahoo Sam Crawford begins its metamorphosis into the live ball era of home run king Babe Ruth. The dead ball era (through 1919) was an era noted for its scientific / small ball approach, when teams played for one run at a time by out-thinking the foe, bunting, stealing bases, "hittin' 'em where they ain't", creating a mental hazard for the opposition by doing the unexpected – and Ty Cobb was its leading practitioner.

The Dogwood Collection bundles three of Chris Fabry’s beloved contemporary fiction titles into one e-book for a great value! Dogwood (2009 Christy Award winner): In the small town of Dogwood, West Virginia, Karin has buried her shattered dreams by settling for a faithful husband whose emotional distance from her deep passions and conflicts leaves her isolated. Loaded with guilt, she tries to raise three small children and “do life” the best she can. Will returns to Dogwood intent on pursuing the only woman he has ever loved—only to find there is far more standing in his way than lost years in prison. The secrets of Will and Karin's past begin to emerge through Danny Boyd, a young boy who wishes he hadn't survived the tragedy that knit those two together as well as tore them apart. The trigger that will lay their pain bare and force them to face it rather than flee is the unlikely figure of Ruthie Bowles, a withered, wiry old woman who leads Karin so deep into her anger against God that it forces unexpected consequences. June Bug (Now a Lifetime original movie titled Child of Grace): “I believed everything my daddy told me until I walked into Wal-Mart and saw my picture on a little poster . . .” For as long as she can remember, June Bug and her father have traveled the back roads of the country in their beat-up RV, spending many nights parked at Wal-Mart. One morning, as she walks past the greeter at the front of the store, her eyes are drawn to the pictures of missing children, where she is shocked to see herself. This discovery begins a quest for the truth about her father, the mother he rarely speaks about, and ultimately herself. But when her father’s past catches up with them, forces beyond his control draw them back to Dogwood, West Virginia, down a winding path that will change their lives forever. Almost Heaven (2011 ECPA Christian Book Award winner for fiction / 2011 Christy Award Winner for contemporary standalone novel): Billy Allman is a hillbilly genius. People in Dogwood, West Virginia, say he was born with a second helping of brains and a gift for playing the mandolin but was cut short on social skills. Though he’d gladly give you the shirt off his back, they were right. Billy longs to use his life as an ode to God, a lyrical, beautiful bluegrass song played with a finely tuned heart. So with spare parts from a lifetime of collecting, he builds a radio station in his own home. People in town laugh. But Billy carries a brutal secret that keeps him from significance and purpose. Things always seem to go wrong for him. However small his life seems, from a different perspective Billy’s song reaches far beyond the hills and hollers he calls home. Malachi is an angel sent to observe Billy. Though it is not his dream assignment, Malachi follows the man and begins to see the bigger picture of how each painful step Billy takes is a note added to a beautiful symphony that will forever change the lives of those who hear it.

Almost Heaven by Sandra James released on Nov 23, 1990 is available now for purchase.

When the Saulnier sisters suffer one disappointment too many in their native France, they decide to pack up and try their luck in America. As journalists they have the run of the country, following stories that take them to places where most Americans have never been—from the back roads of Appalachia to an underground village of homeless people in the New York City subway system. Tight on time, and even tighter on budget, the Saulnier sisters slid easily into a drive-thru diet. Along the way they dined on: • Nathan’s Famous hot dogs at the annual hot dog eating contest in Coney Island • Snapping Turtle Soup as prepared by the Native American elders of the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe • Cheesy Grits from the Armadillo Diner in Texas • And Burgers, burgers, burgers everywhere! As the Saulnier sisters adopted the American way of eating, their relationship to food shortly changes; they soon gain weight—and lose their self-esteem. This new diet is especially hard on Victorine, who temporarily abandons her vegetarianism. It’s not until they meet a couple running an organic farm in upstate New York that they realize how far they’ve strayed from their native food values—and learn that you can eat well in America, too.