The epicenter of the story takes place in southern rural Michigan. Some Cub Scouts discovered human bones in a gravel pit. The team of Sheriff Wayne Puller, Deputy Jack Trip and Sergeant Detective Fanny Gillespie is augmented by Kent County Deputy Clydis Groner and Deputies Edith and Harold James along with Platt family children and other family members. Their old dog named Sniffer manages to uncover many of the clues that help resolve the mystery. Although fiction, the story is set into events of actual history including the war in Viet Nam and beginning of foreign oil importing by the United States. One character is Uncle Helio Outhe, an Athabascan Indian truck driver from Alaska who makes a stand favoring the use of our own oil and of the Alaskan pipeline. Helio with his wife Anna Mae [Groner] Outhe participates with others of the family in softening Grandmas pain over the recent loss of Clarence, her beloved husband. The huge white Outhe camper pulled by a Mack truck was designed in part to give Grandma competing thoughts to occupy her mind. The camper hauled the Michigan deputies on an adventure into Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky in quest of clues to resolve not only the murder but also to include historical stops to enjoy Annie Oakley, John Dillinger, and Big Foot. A Big Foot hunt in company with real mountain men provides humor and adventure eventually culminating in Mr. General being handcuffed to his potbelly stove due to his unfortunate grasp of Grandma out in the Big Foot woods. Along the way traveled by the camper or a squad car the deputies discover some history of the Wabash Cannonball and of Amtrak and of a baby carriage dating from 1905. The carriage is restored in time to become a prize possession of an adopted three-year-old maiden with a happy face and a stack of golden curls. In another adventure encountered while on trip carrying the bones previously found by the Cub Scouts in the gravel pit, a group of deputies encounter a lady picking dewberries and she tells them of a mad Yankee, not a Big Foot, that burned their revival tent. Home finally to Leadford, Michigan, granddaughter Hulda Sunshine James in taking her turn caring for Grandma is awakened to find Grandma scalded by coffee in an eerie darkened kitchen with the blue flame of the oil burner ghosting hotly the steam wreathing the prone figure of Grandma on the floor screaming for God to let her see Clarence. Hulda soon found that her Grandmad been awakened before dawn by a hungry Robin. That darned old Robin, Hulda exclaimed. Im going to get up early tomorrow and tend to that bird. Meanwhile back in Manitou Prairie Nathan and Luisa Platt had found their way into the Hermit Shack venue seeking the last clues in resolution of the Hermit Shack mystery. In the distance they hear the siren of Detective Sergeant Fannys ornate police cruiser cracking the evening air on a streak toward the Platt couple standing with pounding hearts out at the Hermit Shack.

The Hermit’s Hut offers an original insight into the profound relationship between architecture and asceticism. Although architecture continually responds to ascetic compulsions, as in its frequent encounter with the question of excess and less, it is typically considered separate from asceticism. In contrast, this innovative book explores the rich and mutual ways in which asceticism and architecture are played out in each other’s practices. The question of asceticism is also considered—as neither a religious discourse nor a specific cultural tradition but as a perennial issue in the practice of culture. The work convincingly traces the influences from early Indian asceticism to Zen Buddhism to the Japanese teahouse—the latter opening the door to modern minimalism. As the book’s title suggests, the protagonist of the narrative is the nondescript hermit’s hut. Relying primarily on Buddhist materials, the author provides a complex narrative that stems from this simple structure, showing how the significance of the hut resonates widely and how the question of dwelling is central to ascetic imagination. In exploring the conjunctions of architecture and asceticism, he breaks new ground by presenting ascetic practice as fundamentally an architectural project, namely the fabrication of a “last” hut. Through the conception of the last hut, he looks at the ascetic challenge of arriving at the edge of civilization and its echoes in the architectural quest for minimalism. The most vivid example comes from a well-known Buddhist text where the Buddha describes the ultimate ascetic moment, or nirvana, in cataclysmic terms using architectural metaphors: “The roof-rafters will be shattered,” the Buddha declares, and the architect will “no longer build the house again.” As the book compellingly shows, the physiological and spiritual transformation of the body is deeply intertwined with the art of building. The Hermit’s Hut weaves together the fields of architecture, anthropology, religion, and philosophy to offer multidisciplinary and historical insights. Written in an engaging and accessible manner, it will appeal to readers with diverse interests and in a variety of disciplines—whether one is interested in the history of ascetic architecture in India, the concept of “home” in ancient India, or the theme of the body as building.

How to Be a Hermit by American humorist Will Cuppy is a subjective and partly fictional account of Will's adventures as a hermit on Jones's Island in Wisconsin. Excerpt: "All was excitement that June morning among the clams of Jones's Island (pronounced, by your leave, in two good healthy syllables, thus: Jone'-sez). Softies by the bushel dug themselves deeper into the shoreward mud, and whimpering little quahogs out in their watery beds clung closer to their mothers as they heard the dread news relayed by their kinsfolk of Seaman's Neck, Black Banks Channel, Johnson's Flats, and High Hill Crick."

The Tabernacle By: Jeff Clark The Tabernacle follows the sweeping 13,000 year history of two central Texas farm communities: Alameda and Cheaney. Searching along winding wooded trails, uncovering hidden homesteads miles from the nearest road and listening at last to the words of teachers four decades his senior, author Jeff Clark begins to hear the tale of timeless lands, and the lessons as it finally breaks open in his own life. This sprawling epic is full of firsthand testimony about the harsh settlement of the Texas frontier, as well as surprising glimpses into his storytellers’ twenty-first century lives. The Tabernacle will move you deeply, as it has moved within the lives of many generations encamped along the shores of the Leon River.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The remarkable true story of a man who lived alone in the woods of Maine for 27 years, making this dream a reality—not out of anger at the world, but simply because he preferred to live on his own. “A meditation on solitude, wildness and survival.” —The Wall Street Journal In 1986, a shy and intelligent twenty-year-old named Christopher Knight left his home in Massachusetts, drove to Maine, and disappeared into the forest. He would not have a conversation with another human being until nearly three decades later, when he was arrested for stealing food. Living in a tent even through brutal winters, he had survived by his wits and courage, developing ingenious ways to store edibles and water, and to avoid freezing to death. He broke into nearby cottages for food, clothing, reading material, and other provisions, taking only what he needed but terrifying a community never able to solve the mysterious burglaries. Based on extensive interviews with Knight himself, this is a vividly detailed account of his secluded life—why did he leave? what did he learn?—as well as the challenges he has faced since returning to the world. It is a gripping story of survival that asks fundamental questions about solitude, community, and what makes a good life, and a deeply moving portrait of a man who was determined to live his own way, and succeeded.

When a turbulent family life uproots her dreams, a young girl must travel a long road from northern Minnesota to Florida and back again to return to the cabin lifestyle that to her meant home. Filled with unforgettable stories of animals, plants, and people from her past, Life through Cabin Windows is also a story about forgiveness and redemption, and a practical guide to finding your own special heartland.

"Seven Keys to Baldpate" – A young novelist William Magee travels to the Baldpate Mountain resort, seeking for solitude and inspiration for his greatest novel yet. Soon after he gets in, he finds out that he is not the only one there, for there are seven keys to the place and seven people with various stories of why they are there. "Love Insurance" – The American branch of Lloyds' insurers is specialized in unusual policies, but one day an impoverished Lord Harrowby showed up with the strangest claim of them all. He wants an insurance against his fiancée Cynthia Meyrick breaking off their engagement. "Inside the Lines" – World War I has started, Britain has gone up against Germany, and few Americans are stranded at Gibraltar desperate to catch a boat back home. Spies are everywhere and Germans are plotting to blow up the English troop at Gibraltar. "The Agony Column" (Second-Floor Mystery) – Geoffrey West is an American in London. Since arriving he has been fascinated by the Agony Column, a personal advertisements in newspapers. One morning he spots an American tourist girl reading the same section, decides to place an ad to catch her attention, and soon they start corresponding. "Fifty Candles" – Young Winthrop is in love with Mary Wills and longs to marry her. His pursuit of her will lead him to a party in the home of a former employer, a millionaire with more enemies than friends. Millionaire is killed at the party, no one can be ruled out as a suspect, and some clues point to Winthrop. "Charlie Chan Series" - Charlie is a Chinese American detective who lives on Hawaii and works for the Honolulu Police Department, but often travels around the world investigating mysteries and solving crimes.