An unexplored, fascinating history of nineteenth-century agrarian life, told through the engaging lens of three families central to the peppermint oil industry This unconventional history relates the engaging and unusual stories of three families in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries whose involvement in the peppermint oil industry provides insights into the perspectives and concerns of rural people of their time. Challenging the standard paradigms, historian Dan Allosso focuses on the rural characters who lived by their own rules and did not acquiesce to contemporary religious doctrines, business mores, and political expediencies. The Ranneys, a secular family in a very religious time and place; the Hotchkisses, who ran banks and printed their own money while the Lincoln administration was eliminating state banking; and the Todd family, who incorporated successful business practices with populist socialism, all highlight the untold story of rural America’s engagement with the capitalist marketplace. The families’ atypical attitudes and activities offer unexpected perspectives on rural business and life.

A multidisciplinary environmental history of early China’s political systems, featuring newly available Chinese archaeological data This book is a multidisciplinary study of the ecology of China’s early political systems up to the fall of the first empire in 207 BCE. Brian Lander traces the formation of lowland North China’s agricultural systems and the transformation of its plains from diverse forestland and steppes to farmland. He argues that the growth of states in ancient China, and elsewhere, was based on their ability to exploit the labor and resources of those who harnessed photosynthetic energy from domesticated plants and animals. Focusing on the state of Qin, Lander amalgamates abundant new scientific, archaeological, and excavated documentary sources to argue that the human domination of the central Yellow River region, and the rest of the planet, was made possible by the development of complex political structures that managed and expanded agroecosystems.

His destiny could be their salvation, or their destruction… The nightmare that has haunted me all my years is now my reality. I wish, as I have for days, that I had defied Tauriel’s orders. I should have left Victoria at the fortress. Being stripped of my command would have been a welcome recompense. But I had wanted more. I had wanted her. Had duty come first, Victoria would not be chained inside a foul-smelling prison surrounded by death. She would have been safely tucked behind a magical barrier, protected within the goblin king’s territory. Instead, she is here, injured, fierce in her indignation against a crown long thought dead. Because of me. I vow to the gods I will get her home. No matter the cost. Because for her, I will bring down a mountain and take its queen, even if it means losing myself in the rubble. Fae King’s Triumph concludes Khao and Victoria’s story.

Newly revised and updated—The must-have cookie cookbook for bakers of all levels with over 400 recipes from America's most trusted baking resource. From the perfect chocolate chip cookie (whether you prefer it chewy, crisp, or in-between) to simple sugar cookies ranging in flavor from lemon to cinnamon to vanilla, from brownies and blondies to shortbread, graham crackers, macaroons, chocolate biscotti—you’ll discover more than 400 delightful cookies in these pages. From classic flavors to modern techniques, these recipes will inspire and satisfy cookie lovers and bakers at every skill level. King Arthur Baking Company’s talented and trusted test kitchen experts provide an overview of essential cookie ingredients—updated and revised—along with step-by-step instructions and illustrations that result in visually impressive and incredible-tasting cookies. Recipes are enhanced with sidebars full of hints, shortcuts, troubleshooting advice, and recipe lore. With tips on substitutions and variations; information about gluten-free flours; details on measuring and weighing ingredients; instructions for making icings, fillings, and dips; and even advice on high-altitude baking, this truly is the ultimate cookie cookbook.