The bell rang for the next class to begin, and the fifth graders walked into music class. Miss Crabapple stood with her back to the students as she wrote her name on the chalkboard. That was the first day of fifth grade with a grumpy teacher whom everyone feared. As the school year went on, we see the class learn to play beautiful music. We see a quiet student come alive who believed he wasn't good enough and we watch Miss Crabapple's stern side melt away. When you put children together with music, magic can happen.

Myrtle Reed's classic novel is not simply a romantic story, but a celebration of life, love and the exquisiteness of music. The story involves a virtuoso violin player living in Lancaster, whose house is kept by his spinster sister. In a different neighborhood of town, an elderly lady who adopted and raised a young girl is surprised when her relatives- a widow and her son - arrive unannounced and wish to stay. The son, being musically talented, aspires to take up tutorage with the famous violinist of Lancaster. Thus begins an awkward situation that serves as a gauntlet for the passionate story which follows. Notably for a book of this genre, The Master's Violin contains many musings on the nature and value of family, music, parenthood, friendship and life. The reflective and thoughtful narration, along with the poignant descriptions of the master's performances, makes this a unique and memorable story. The author was among the most famous and appreciated novelists of her time. Unusually for a romance author, Reed also published a series of successful cookbooks. Though her fame declined in the years following her death in 1911 at the age of only 36, her books have maintained an appreciative audience into the 21st century.

Celia Laighton Thaxter (1835-1894) was born in Portsmouth, NH. When she was four, her father became the lighthouse keeper on White Island in the Isles of Shoals. After resigning his post eight years later, he built a resort hotel on Appledore Island in Maine. The first of its kind on the New England coast, the hotel became a gathering place for writers and artists during the latter half of the 19th century. In her last year of life, Celia published this work, in which she lovingly describes her Appledore garden and its flowers. The flowers she grew in her cutting garden filled her own rooms and those of the hotel, and this work became famous for its descriptions of the old-fashioned flowers she grew there. Her island garden, a plot that measured 15 feet square, has been re-created and is open to visitors.

Rilla of Ingleside (1921) is the eighth of nine books in the Anne of Green Gables series by Lucy Maud Montgomery, but was the sixth "Anne" novel in publication order. This book draws the focus back onto a single character, Anne and Gilbert's youngest daughter Bertha Marilla "Rilla" Blythe. It has a more serious tone, as it takes place during World War I and the three Blythe boys-Jem, Walter, and Shirley-along with Rilla's sweetheart Ken Ford, and playmates Jerry Meredith and Carl Meredith-end up fighting in Europe with the Canadian Expeditionary Force.

Discover the untold story of Hak Ja Han Moon, the North Korean village girl who is now known to millions as the Mother of Peace. Her heart-wrenching story reveals details of a war-torn childhood and trials of faith as she and her late husband, Rev. Sun Myung Moon, built a vast and still-growing international movement capable of fulfilling God's will for peace in the 21st century.A major milestone of her life, described in never-told-before detail, was her marriage in 1960, at age 17, to the charismatic Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon. For the next 52 years, she joined him in the daunting task of building a global interfaith movement to fulfill God's will for peace in the 21st century.Mother Moon's journey as a religious woman leader is breathtaking: Born in Japanese-occupied Korea in 1943, she spent her early life in nature so she could commune with God. War forced her to flee south with her mother and grandmother; they crossed the Han River Bridge minutes before it was blown up. Later, she walked and worked side-by-side with Father Moon, one of history's most energetic and visionary men. They visited every corner of the earth and, despite relentless persecution, met with world leaders, including Mikhail Gorbachev and Kim Il Sung, to bring God's message for them.During this time, she bore 14 children and buried four. She stood with Father Moon for hours as they officiated at Marriage Blessing Ceremonies for hundreds of thousands of couples. Together, they launched hundreds of organizations and businesses to serve youth, family and peacemaking.Since Father Moon's passing in 2012, Mother Moon has shouldered the leadership of their still-growing movement. She has led "Peace Starts With Me" rallies in six continents and plans to bring Blessing Ceremonies to all people.