The astonishing untold history of the million and a half women who surrendered children for adoption due to enormous family and social pressure in the decades before Roe v. Wade. “It would take a heart of stone not to be moved by the oral histories of these women and by the courage and candor with which they express themselves.” —The Washington Post “A remarkably well-researched and accomplished book.” —The New York Times Book Review “A wrenching, riveting book.” —Chicago Tribune In this deeply moving and myth-shattering work, Ann Fessler brings out into the open for the first time the hidden social history of adoption before Roe v. Wade - and its lasting legacy. An adoptee who was herself surrendered during those years and recently made contact with her mother, Ann Fessler brilliantly brings to life the voices of more than a hundred women, as well as the spirit of those times, allowing the women to tell their stories in gripping and intimate detail.
Fascinating and disturbing.” —Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of Small Great Things and Leaving Time A timeless exploration of high-stakes romance, self-discovery, and the lengths we go to love and be loved. Sixteen-year-old Zarin Wadia is many things: a bright and vivacious student, an orphan, a risk taker. She’s also the kind of girl that parents warn their kids to stay away from: a troublemaker whose many romances are the subject of endless gossip at school. You don't want to get involved with a girl like that, they say. So how is it that eighteen-year-old Porus Dumasia has only ever had eyes for her? And how did Zarin and Porus end up dead in a car together, crashed on the side of a highway in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia? When the religious police arrive on the scene, everything everyone thought they knew about Zarin is questioned. And as her story is pieced together, told through multiple perspectives, it becomes clear that she was far more than just a girl like that. This beautifully written debut novel from Tanaz Bhathena reveals a rich and wonderful new world to readers; tackles complicated issues of race, identity, class, and religion; and paints a portrait of teenage ambition, angst, and alienation that feels both inventive and universal.
Meet Ananya, a girl who is profoundly deaf and wears cochlear implants but, like her hearing peers, has multi-identities. She is a daughter, a sister and a friend who likes Minecraft, tennis and the piano! With its positive representation of deafness, 'A Girl like Ananya' will appeal to families of a deaf child as well as forming a valuable hearing loss awareness resource for mainstream schools with deaf pupils. The book, aimed at 6-8 year olds, provides an explanation of Ananya's listening devices and encourages the reader to try to understand the nature of her deafness: "If you know a girl like Ananya, she may tell you that she needs to wear her cochlear implants every day. When she takes them off, she can hear nothing at all. Take a moment to think about this. Can you imagine hearing nothing at all?" A Girl Like Ananya challenges our perception of deafness and disability, beginning with a discussion point: "Before you read this book, explore the following question: Do the two phrases below mean the same thing? 1. the deaf girl 2. the girl who is deaf" This is revisited at the end of the book, where there is an activity for children to complete about their own multi-identities. 'A Girl Like Ananya' is Karen Hardwicke's first book. Karen is a parent of a young deaf adult and has been a Teacher of the Deaf for over ten years. It is important to her that deaf characters are represented in a positive way and that her stories carry an affirming message for children and their parents. The inspiration for 'A Girl Like Ananya' was an extraordinary past pupil, Ananya, whose hearing loss did not stop her learning to read, to write and to achieve all the things that her peers can do and more.
An unexpected love story from Marc Levy, international bestselling author of The Last of the Stanfields, and the most widely read French author in the world. It's been five years since fate upended resilient Chloe Bronstein's world. While she may be living with her father, and her acting career has taken a decidedly unexpected turn, she's alive. And she's intrigued by Sanji, the charming new elevator operator in her quaint Manhattan apartment building. There's just something about the Mumbai-born, Oxford-educated, thoroughly modern elevator man that doesn't quite add up. Sanji is dazzled by Chloe. They have so much in common: Both defiant. Both independent. Both determined to live by their own rules. But there's one thing about Sanji that Chloe doesn't know. Yet. However hesitant Chloe and Sanji's burgeoning romance is--complicated by family, friends, neighbors, and the past--it also awakens them to life's limitless possibilities.
White Like Her: My Family’s Story of Race and Racial Passing is the story of Gail Lukasik’s mother’s “passing,” Gail’s struggle with the shame of her mother’s choice, and her subsequent journey of self-discovery and redemption. In the historical context of the Jim Crow South, Gail explores her mother’s decision to pass, how she hid her secret even from her own husband, and the price she paid for choosing whiteness. Haunted by her mother’s fear and shame, Gail embarks on a quest to uncover her mother’s racial lineage, tracing her family back to eighteenth-century colonial Louisiana. In coming to terms with her decision to publicly out her mother, Gail changed how she looks at race and heritage. With a foreword written by Kenyatta Berry, host of PBS's Genealogy Roadshow, this unique and fascinating story of coming to terms with oneself breaks down barriers.
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A READ WITH JENNA TODAY SHOW BOOK CLUB PICK! “Brave, fresh . . . unforgettable.”—The New York Times Book Review “A celebration of girls who dare to dream.”—Imbolo Mbue, author of Behold the Dreamers (Oprah’s Book Club pick) Shortlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and recommended by The New York Times, Marie Claire, Vogue, Essence, PopSugar, Daily Mail, Electric Literature, Red, Stylist, Daily Kos, Library Journal, The Everygirl, and Read It Forward! The unforgettable, inspiring story of a teenage girl growing up in a rural Nigerian village who longs to get an education so that she can find her “louding voice” and speak up for herself, The Girl with the Louding Voice is a simultaneously heartbreaking and triumphant tale about the power of fighting for your dreams. Despite the seemingly insurmountable obstacles in her path, Adunni never loses sight of her goal of escaping the life of poverty she was born into so that she can build the future she chooses for herself – and help other girls like her do the same. Her spirited determination to find joy and hope in even the most difficult circumstances imaginable will “break your heart and then put it back together again” (Jenna Bush Hager on The Today Show) even as Adunni shows us how one courageous young girl can inspire us all to reach for our dreams…and maybe even change the world.
Second chances shouldn’t feel so sinful. Laura Burne‘s husband is a monster, her diamond ring is a trap, and her pregnancy is the push she needs to finally escape. She runs away seeking safety… and finds Samir Bianchi, her long-lost teenage sweetheart. With his kind eyes and dirty smile, Samir’s still hot as hell—and he still treats Laura like a goddess, baby bump and all. The wild boy she spent one magical summer with is every inch a man, and he’s more than ready to care for her tiny family. But Laura’s been keeping a secret Samir might never forgive. When she finally confesses, will he remain by her side? Or is this fairytale ending too good to be true? Please be aware: this book contains depictions of domestic violence that could potentially trigger certain audiences.
One of the New York Post's Top 10 Career Books of 2012 and a Booklist Top 10 Business Book DO YOU WORK WITH A MEAN GIRL? A woman’s field guide to the new frontier of professional development—working with other women Women-to-women relationships in the workplace are . . . complicated. When they’re good, they’re great. But when they’re bad, they can ruin your day, your week—even your year. Packed with proven advice from two of today’s leading experts in workplace relationships, this one-of-a-kind guide gives women the tools they need to navigate difficult situations unique to women-to-women relationships—whether with a boss, a colleague, a client, or an employee. Have you dealt with a woman in the workplace who: “Accidentally” excludes you from important meetings? Seems intent on taking you down professionally? Gossips about you with other coworkers? Makes you look bad by missing deadlines? Forms a “pack” of mean girls to make your life miserable? Mean Girls at Work isn’t just about surviving difficult situations. It’s about transforming a toxic relationship into one that benefits and supports both of you. This book is also for women who engage in mean behavior . . . but don’t know it. After all, who hasn’t gossiped about a female coworker? Who hasn’t rolled her eyes in the presence of a woman she doesn’t like? Who hasn’t scanned another woman head to toe—which is just a nonverbal way of saying, “You’ve just been judged”? The authors provide invaluable advice to the more subtle ways of being mean—even if they’re not intended. With a workforce composed of a higher percentage of women than ever, workplace dynamics have changed. Crowley and Elster cover every conceivable scenario, providing critical advice on how to rise above the fray and move forward professionally. Mean Girls at Work is your map to dodging the mines and moving forward in today’s transformed workplace. Praise for Mean Girls at Work “An invaluable suit of armor for surviving nine to five!” —Leil Lowndes, bestselling author of How to Talk to Anyone “If you think the emotional cruelty of comedies like Mean Girls and Heathers doesn’t exist in the real world workplace, think again. In Mean Girls at Work, Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster valuably chronicle female vs. female predators and offer solid defensive strategies.” —Ann Kreamer, author of It’s Always Personal: Navigating Emotion in the New Workplace “Whether you are in your twenties and just starting your professional career, your midcareer forties, when you are supposed to have figured it out already, or a woman in her fifties or sixties who’s seen it all—this book is a must-read. . . . The authors have finally given women the tools and the sound advice necessary to deal with . . . conflicts that keep us all from succeeding. . . . Carry this book with you to work every day!” —Carolyn Cassin, President, Michigan Women’s Foundation “A must-read for women of all ages in today’s workforce. This book offers what we all need to develop the capacities to endure this ever-changing workplace. We know it is all about relationships and you need the skills outlined in this book to survive and thrive when the Mean Girls attack.” —Kim Harrington, Coordinator, Professional Development and Training, Office of Human Resources, California State University, Sacramento
Life is all about choices. The ones you get to make and the ones you dont. You can choose the friends you have and the people you want to employ. You can choose your battles but you cant always choose your enemies. You can choose your goals and your dreams although these things dont always choose you. You can choose what you want to eat and where you want to shop. There is however, three choices you cant make. You cant choose who you fall in love with or who falls in love with you. You also cant choose your family.How well do you know your closest friends or people you choose to have in your life? Your lovers? Your own family? The people who claim to be your friends? Even the people youve just met? Would you do to them what they would try to do to you? Would you try to take their boyfriends? Or would you simply talk about them behind their back? Theres a token few who are loyal in that world. What will your friends do for you when the chips are down? This is where Lexi lives, right in the middle of her chaotic events. Everything that happens always begins with something she says, knows, or does, often with disastrous results. She sees everything through her purple tinted sunglasses. What will happen when she loses the glasses and starts seeing things for what they really are? In a strangely humorous way, live the ups and downs of her and her friends romances. Will she choose the nice guy or the bad boy? Will the nice guy become a jerk or will the bad boy become nice? How do people react to situations they arent used to being in? Welcome to Lexis world. Her life is sent through a wringer with Church Boy Blaine, her rock star boyfriend Izzy, a famous dad she didnt know she had, and everyone else in her life. People arent ever what they seem to be. Just look at the chapter titles. That should be enough to want to know more. I would call this tale a twisted dark romance with a keen sense of humor. Something like a warped modern day Romeo and Juliet with all the modern problems. Sorry, no vampires here. Once you start reading you probably wont even miss them. There are plenty of bloodsuckers of a different kind. Careful, you might even learn something. If nothing else, youll get sucked into these colorful and sometimes unlikable peoples lives. Its all about love and hate and the thin line in between. If youre the least bit curious open it to any page and read. Youll want to keep reading to find out what happens. Youll get addicted, youll want more. I hope.
