Located in the northwest corner of Schoharie County, Sharon was established in 1797 after Palatine German and Dutch families had settled in the area, replacing the Iroquois in the 18th century. Set in rolling hills with magnificent vistas over the Mohawk Valley, the area's mineral springs drew native people and Europeans to bathe in the health-promoting waters. The spa era of grand hotels and wealthy guests gave way to a slow but steady decline around 1900; however, from the early 1990s, the town has enjoyed a renaissance with the arrival of creative artists and entrepreneurs, including The Fabulous Beekman Boys, whose reality television series showcased Sharon, linking past to present. The couple lives in the mansion of prominent early resident William Beekman, the first judge of Schoharie County and the owner of the first mercantile.

For over two hundred years, the Catskill Mountains have been repeatedly and dramatically transformed by New York City. In Making Mountains, David Stradling shows the transformation of the Catskills landscape as a collaborative process, one in which local and urban hands, capital, and ideas have come together to reshape the mountains and the communities therein. This collaboration has had environmental, economic, and cultural consequences. Early on, the Catskills were an important source of natural resources. Later, when New York City needed to expand its water supply, engineers helped direct the city toward the Catskills, claiming that the mountains offered the purest and most cost-effective waters. By the 1960s, New York had created the great reservoir and aqueduct system in the mountains that now supplies the city with 90 percent of its water. The Catskills also served as a critical space in which the nation's ideas about nature evolved. Stradling describes the great influence writers and artists had upon urban residents - especially the painters of the Hudson River School, whose ideal landscapes created expectations about how rural America should appear. By the mid-1800s, urban residents had turned the Catskills into an important vacation ground, and by the late 1800s, the Catskills had become one of the premiere resort regions in the nation. In the mid-twentieth century, the older Catskill resort region was in steep decline, but the Jewish "Borscht Belt" in the southern Catskills was thriving. The automobile revitalized mountain tourism and residence, and increased the threat of suburbanization of the historic landscape. Throughout each of these significant incarnations, urban and rural residents worked in a rough collaboration, though not without conflict, to reshape the mountains and American ideas about rural landscapes and nature.

Originally intended as an examination of the rise and fall of the state hospital system, Matthew Christopher's Abandoned America rapidly grew to encompass derelict factories and industrial sites, schools, churches, power plants, hospitals, prisons, military installations, hotels, resorts, homes, and more.

Features more than 100 scenic waterfall destinations throughout New York State. New York State is home to arguably the most famous waterfall in the world, Niagara Falls. But thanks to its diverse terrain and an abundance of rivers and streams, the state also boasts more than 2,000 other waterfalls. From delicate cascades to thundering cataracts, each has its own compelling story. Waterfalls of New York State is a celebration of more than 100 of the Empire State's most beautiful and interesting falls, presented by three long-time waterfall enthusiasts who know their subject matter firsthand: Edward Smathers tackles the Capital and Hudson Valley regions; Scott Ensminger reports on the Finger Lakes and Greater Niagara; and David Schryver covers the North Country. Each waterfall is presented on a two-page spread with a full-page color photograph and descriptive text that includes details about the geology of the falls, local history, driving directions, access information, suggestions for the best vantage point for viewing, as well as other area interests. Sidebars feature handy at-a-glance information, such as the nearest settlement, walk time, trail conditions, GPS coordinates and the size and type of waterfall. Filled with gorgeous photographs and featuring regional location maps, Waterfalls of New York State is a valuable regional travel guide for weekend explorers, fans of waterfalls, visitors and armchair travelers. Canadian travelers from Quebec and Ontario will appreciate the many day trips available just over the border.

Colorado Springs has always held a special fascination for visitors. Early Indian tribes, trappers and hunters, the railroad builders, gold and silver prospectors, health seekers, tourists, and the military have all left their mark on the area. Set against magnificent Pikes Peak and the front range of the Rocky Mountains, Colorado Springs enjoys a history rich with all that is authentically American. With the sesquicentennial anniversary of the area and its gold rush in 2009, this look back seems particularly appropriate. Historic Photos of Colorado Springs showcases nearly 200 photographs of the city, focusing on hallmarks of its past while paying homage to lesser known points of interest. Printed in striking black-and-white and handsomely bound, these vignettes of Colorado Springs are sure to delight the history buff, the curious student, and all citizens wishing to explore their colorful local heritage.

Sharon Bolton returns with her creepiest standalone yet, following a young cop trying to trace the disappearances of a small town's teenagers. Florence Lovelady's career was made when she convicted coffin-maker Larry Grassbrook of a series of child murders 30 years ago in a small village in Lancashire. Like something out of a nightmare, the victims were buried alive. Florence was able to solve the mystery and get a confession out of Larry before more children were murdered, and he spent the rest of his life in prison. But now, decades later, he's dead, and events from the past start to repeat themselves. Is someone copying the original murders? Or did she get it wrong all those years ago? When her own son goes missing under similar circumstances, the case not only gets reopened... it gets personal. In master of suspense Sharon Bolton's latest thriller, readers will find a page-turner to confirm their deepest fears and the only protagonist who can face them.

What happens when two New Yorkers (one an ex–drag queen) do the unthinkable: start over, have a herd of kids, and get a little dirty? Find out in this riotous and moving true tale of goats, mud, and a centuries-old mansion in rustic upstate New York—the new memoir by Josh Kilmer-Purcell, author of the New York Times bestseller I Am Not Myself These Days. A happy series of accidents and a doughnut-laden escape upstate take Josh and his partner, Brent, to the doorstep of the magnificent (and fabulously for sale) Beekman Mansion. One hour and one tour later, they have begun their transformation from uptight urbanites into the two-hundred-year-old-mansion-owning Beekman Boys. Suddenly, Josh—a full-time New Yorker with a successful advertising career—and Brent are weekend farmers, surrounded by nature's bounty and an eclectic cast: roosters who double as a wedding cover band; Bubby, the bionic cat; and a herd of eighty-eight goats, courtesy of their new caretaker, Farmer John. And soon, a fledgling business, born of a gift of handmade goat-milk soap, blossoms into a brand, Beekman 1802. The Bucolic Plague is tart and sweet, touching and laugh out loud funny, a story about approaching middle age, being in a long-term relationship, realizing the city no longer feeds you in the same way it used to, and finding new depths of love and commitment wherever you live.