A national bestseller from the New York Times best-selling author of The Middlesteins, All Grown Up is a wickedly funny novel about a thirty-nine-year-old single, childfree woman who defies convention as she seeks connection. Who is Andrea Bern? When her therapist asks the question, Andrea knows the right things to say: she’s a designer, a friend, a daughter, a sister. But it’s what she leaves unsaid—she’s alone, a drinker, a former artist, a shrieker in bed, captain of the sinking ship that is her flesh—that feels the most true. Everyone around her seems to have an entirely different idea of what it means to be an adult: her best friend, Indigo, is getting married; her brother—who miraculously seems unscathed by their shared tumultuous childhood—and sister-in-law are having a hoped-for baby; and her friend Matthew continues to wholly devote himself to making dark paintings at the cost of being flat broke. But when Andrea’s niece finally arrives, born with a heartbreaking ailment, the Bern family is forced to reexamine what really matters. Will this drive them together or tear them apart? Told in gut-wrenchingly honest, mordantly comic vignettes, All Grown Up is a breathtaking display of Jami Attenberg’s power as a storyteller, a whip-smart examination of one woman’s life, lived entirely on her own terms.
All Grown Up Now is an autobiographical novel about one man's journey from being a green kid on Oklahoma, to being "all grown up now".Two gay men in early 1980s Oklahoma find themselves in a lifelong friendship that transcends the simple label of “friends.” When domestic violence tears their world apart, a desperate act sets the course for healing and a profound new outlook on life. A tale of retail, revenge, re-invention, reckless behavior, and really good clothes, Kenneth D. King's debut is a rollicking coming-of-age story. Growing up as a young gay man in Oklahoma City, the capital city of Places To Not Grow Up Fabulous In, King is designing Barbie dresses by the age of four and knows that his destiny lies as a fashion designer in The Big City. Which Big City isn't necessarily named—it is more of an ideal, where pageantry, fabulous parties, and beautiful clothes are the staples of life. Working tirelessly to graduate from college with a degree in fashion merchandising, he takes his first job as a window display designer, where he meets colleague Mark and strikes up a friendship that will change them both forever.When Mark moves with his significant other, Victor, to San Francisco, he takes a job as a display manager for a chain of stores and hires Ken. Big City, here he comes! But Mark and Victor keep a dark secret of spousal abuse that strains the friendship to its limits. But when Mark needs to be rescued, Ken is there to execute an intricate—and dangerous—kidnapping to save his friend. What he doesn't fully realize, however, is how dramatically that act of friendship will change the course of both of their lives.Beginning as a collection of stories that helped King make sense of an important, tumultuous friendship in his life, this riveting, non-linear depiction of their relationship and the tragic pain caused by domestic violence is as heartbreaking as it is hilarious. Depicting moments in the author's life that sparkle individually, All Grown Up Now: A Friendship in Three Acts creates a jewel of a work that is funny, engaging, and powerful.Kenneth D. King is an haute couture designer in New York. His couture clothing and accessories are in many private collections, have appeared in music videos and television commercials, and are in the permanent museum collections of the DeYoung Museum in San Francisco, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. You can view his design work at: www.kennethdking.com. A writer of books on different aspects of design and sewing technique, King's published works include various articles to Threads magazine, Designer Techniques (Sterling Publishing, 1996), Designer Bead Embroidery (Quarto Publishing, 2006), Cool Couture (Creative Publishing, 2008), and eleven self-published books on CD covering different couture garment construction topics. From 1994-1996 King appeared as the sewing expert on twenty-six episodes of the PBS television series "Sewing Today" and has appeared on a number of TV shows promoting his couture creations and sewing expertise.
I'm All Grown Up-Now What? is a true story of learning to go within to find the courage to a make a dream a reality. Whether you are a baby-boomer, or in your 20's, 30's or even your 70's, it's never too late to live the life of your dreams and start living life from love and passion. If you catch yourself saying, "When I grow up I'll figure out what I want to do," then you need to read this book. When you find your true purpose in life and start to live it, you'll discover that growing old is an option. Start today on that journey of self discovery. You won't be sorry. It's what you have been working towards your whole life. It is your destiny to be all that you can be and to live your life with love in your heart.
A new, sexy standalone from #1 New York Times Bestseller, Vi Keeland. When I first encountered Ford Donovan, I had no idea who he was…well, other than the obvious. Young, gorgeous, successful, smart. Did I mention young? If I did, it bears repeating. Ford Donovan was too young for me. Let’s back up to how it all started. My best friend decided I needed to start dating again. So, without my knowledge, she set up a profile for me on a popular dating site—one that invited men ages twenty-one to twenty-seven to apply for a date. Those nicknamed Cunnilingus King were told they’d go straight to the top for consideration. The profile wasn’t supposed to go live. Another point that bears repeating—it wasn’t supposed to. Nevertheless, that’s how I met Ford, and we started messaging. He made me laugh; yet I was adamant that because of his age, we could only be friends. But after weeks of wearing me down, I finally agreed to one date only—my first after twenty years of being with my high school sweetheart. I knew it couldn’t last, but I was curious about him. Though, you know what they say…curiosity kills the cat. My legs wobbled walking into the restaurant. Ford was seated at the bar. When he turned around, he took my breath away. His sexy smile nearly melted my panties. But…he looked so familiar. As I got closer I realized why. He was the son of the neighbor at our family’s summer home. The boy next door. Only now…he was all man. I hadn’t seen him in years. I left the restaurant and planned to put the entire crazy thing behind me. Which I did. Until summer came. And guess who decided to use his family’s summer home this year?
A Little Golden Book for all ages starring the characters from Nickelodeon's Rugrats! Fans of Nickelodeon's Rugrats will love this Little Golden Book about growing up! Angelica is excited about her birthday--until she learns that becoming a big girl means more responsibility. Horrified by the thought of growing up, she takes desperate measures to ward off the weight of adulthood. A laugh-out-loud read for anyone nostalgic for the days of zero obligation.
How to raise kids who can handle the real world Today's Generation iY (teens brought up with the Internet) and Homelanders (children born after 9/11) are overexposed to information at an earlier age than ever and paradoxically are underexposed to meaningful relationships and real-life experiences. Artificial Maturity addresses the problem of what to do when parents and teachers mistake children's superficial knowledge for real maturity. The book is filled with practical steps that adults can take to furnish the experiences kids need to balance their abilities with authentic maturity. Shows how to identify the problem of artificial maturity in Generation iY and Homelanders Reveals what to do to help children balance autonomy, responsibility, and information Includes a down-to-earth model for coaching and guiding youth to true maturity Artificial Maturity gives parents, teachers, and others who work with youth a manual for understanding and practicing the leadership kids so desperately need to mature in a healthy fashion.
Perfect for fans of Shirley Hughes, I'm Actually Really Grown-Up now is a warm and funny story from the creator of Anna and Otis. "Inclusive illustrations are bright, busy and drawn with charming naivety" Praise for Anna and Otis – The Sunday Times The grown-ups are having a party, and Meena would really love to join in but instead she's sent to bed. Only grown-ups get to stay up late. So the next day she makes a very important announcement to her parents: "I'm actually really grown-up now!" In this very funny story we join Meena as she plans her very own grown-up party and explores what it REALLY means to be a grown up. She has a lot of fun experimenting with fashion, going to work and party planning, but she soon finds out that being grown-up might not always be as easy as it seems. I'm Actually Really Grown-Up Now by Maisie Shearring is the follow-up to the wonderful Anna and Otis. Maisie has a special talent for capturing the bittersweet highs and lows of childhood and the humour to be found in everyday situations.
Once our society set aside time for adolescents to grow from children to adults, to become accustomed to their expanding bodies and minds. Now the markers that defined passage—differences in dress, behavior, and responsibilities—have vanished. The institutions that guarded adolescence, such as family and schools, now expect “young adults” to deal with adult issues. Those trends leave teens no time to be teens.All Grown Up and No Place to Go spotlights the pressures on teenagers to grow up quickly. The resulting problems range from common alienation to self-destructive behavior. Quoting teenagers themselves, Elkind shows why adolescence is a time of “thinking in a new key,” and how young people need this time to get used to the social and emotional changes their new thinking brings. Many of his ideas, such as the “imaginary audience” that makes teens so self-conscious, have become seminal in adolescent psychology.Already there are more than 175,000 copies of All Grown Up and No Place to Go in print. In this thoroughly revised edition, Elkind also explores the “post-modern family” in which teenagers are growing up. He helps parents and those who work with youth and understand teens in crucial ways, because the root of so many adolescent frictions is the gap between what teenagers need and what our culture provides.
Many parents in their 50s and 60s don't know how to parent their adult children. Yet increases in health and longevity mean that parents and their children may share 40 or more years together as adults. "All Grown Up" describes how mid-life parents and their grown children can celebrate this new lease on life together by developing loving and egalitarian friendships that are positive and guilt-free. Using conflict resolution strategies borrowed from the field of mediation, a healthy respect for generation-gap issues engendered by the social revolutions of the 1960s and '70s, and a broad spiritual perspective, the author provides both practical solutions to on-going problems, as well as thought-provoking discussions of how these problems came to be. Unlike other books in the field, "All Grown Up" addresses the cultural changes of the late 20th century which deeply affect how we approach parenting, self-development and lifestyle issues. The book provides guidance on how parents of adult children can: communicate with their adult children without judgments, or fear of giving praise; let go - and share activities in a stress-free, equal way; deal with crises in their adult children's lives, knowing when and when "not" to give advice; set boundaries, limits and deadlines; avoid over-identification with their child's successes and failures, and avoid competitiveness; and build understanding, trust and compassion without prying. Wise, compassionate and helpful, "All Grown Up" will appeal to all mid-life and older parents and children, as well as mediators, therapists, and counselors. Marketing for "All Grown Up": National print advertising Nationalprint, radio and web publicity Co-op available Roberta Maisel is a sociologist, educator and professional mediator. A parent of three adult children, she watches over her 93-year old mother and lives in Berkeley, California.
Following the first book "Christmas Past to Christmas Present", it is now twenty-five years later. Liz Watson's children are now grown up, like many in their mid-twenties they believe that the world is theirs for the taking. Until one day when an unimaginable tragedy strikes, which will wreck countless lives. One of her children will not be able to face the consequences; therefore, will travel abroad in hope of purging the demons that haunts him or her daily, making it impossible to get life back on track. As each of Liz's children comes to a crossroad in his or her life, it will bring mystery, murder and corruption. The worst being a case of sexual abuse to a minor, as well as an eccentric kidnapping that will lead one to hope, but demise for another. This is a tale full of conspiracy, suspense, as well as an abiding love of family, which altogether, will leave the reader unable to put this book down. If you enjoy reading this book, you might be interested in reading 'Christmas Past to Christmas Present, ' which is the first book in this series about the Watson Family. Listings of all April Hamilton's books available books on www.AprilHamiltonbooks.com.