Lizzie Velasquez was born with a rare condition that does not allow her to gain weight. She not only looks unnaturally thin but her features seem distorted. Also, due to her condition, she has lost sight in one of her eyes. Despite these handicaps, Lizzie is pursuing a college education and has become a motivational speaker, telling her inspiring story to others.
For a limited time only, purchase "Be Beautiful, Be You" at our special discount price Now available in eBook format on Amazon or iTunes. "After spending years wanting to look like everyone else, I realized I needed to love and accept myself just as I am. When I stopped listening to other people and started making a life for myself, I discovered my purpose in life, my passion. Is someone or something hurting you? Are you feeling alone or lonely? Afraid? Misunderstood? Do you wish even just one person would listen to you? Do you have a decision to make and need help choosing a path? I want to give you the tools to figure out what to do about each of those problems." --Lizzie Velasquez, "Be Beautiful, Be You" When an Internet video calling her "The World's Ugliest Woman" went viral, Lizzie Velasquez set out to discover what truly makes us beautiful. Now she shares what she learned on that faith-filled journey. In "Be Beautiful, Be You, " Lizzie uses anecdotes and exercises to teach readers to recognize their own unique gifts and blessings, talk to God in their own words, deal with disappointment, make and maintain healthy friendships, and set realistic goals. In a world filled with airbrushed celebrity photos and plastic surgery, Lizzie Velasquez is a refreshing force of nature whose story will inspire anyone who has ever felt singled out, misunderstood, or afraid--and who hasn't? Lizzie Velasquez is a communications major at Texas State University in San Marcos. She is one of only three known people in the world with a medical syndrome that doesn't allow her to gain weight or create muscle. Lizzie has appeared as a motivational speaker at more than 200 workshops. Her story has been featured in both national and international media, including "The Today Show, Inside Edition, " Australia's "Sunday Night, " Germany's "Explosiv," and "Dr. Drew." This is her second book. "Paperback" View sample pages. Click here to see Lizzie Newz. Lizzie on "Entertainment Tonight " Click here to see Lizzie in "Liguorian" magazine. Listen to Lizzie's interview on the Bobby Bones Show. To see photos from Lizzie's world, visit our Pinterest board. Meet Lizzie
These empowering essays from leading women writers examine the power of the gendered language that is used to diminish women -- and imagine a more liberated world. Words matter. They wound, they inflate, they define, they demean. They have nuance and power. "Effortless," "Sassy," "Ambitious," "Aggressive": What subtle digs and sneaky implications are conveyed when women are described with words like these? Words are made into weapons, warnings, praise, and blame, bearing an outsized influence on women's lives -- to say nothing of our moods. No one knows this better than Lizzie Skurnick, writer of the New York Times' column "That Should be A Word"and a veritable queen of cultural coinage. And in Pretty Bitches, Skurnick has rounded up a group of powerhouse women writers to take on the hidden meanings of these words, and how they can limit our worlds -- or liberate them. From Laura Lipmann and Meg Wolizer to Jennifer Weiner and Rebecca Traister, each writer uses her word as a vehicle for memoir, cultural commentary, critique, or all three. Spanning the street, the bedroom, the voting booth, and the workplace, these simple words have huge stories behind them -- stories it's time to examine, re-imagine, and change.
Turner Buckminster is purely miserable. Not only is he the son of the new minister in a small Maine town, but he is shunned for playing baseball differently from the local boys.
A lyrical, poignant middle grade novel about embracing change, accepting help from others, and finding a place to call home. Perfect for fans of Raymie Nightingale. A Kirkus Best Book of 2019! Lizzie St. Claire wants to be invisible. Forced to move out of her home, she and her mom now live in a transitional housing shelter, Good Hope, until they can get back on their feet. Lizzie just wants to keep her head down at Good Hope and her new school, so she doesn’t have to admit the real reason she and her mom lost everything. But when Lizzie finds herself at the nearby Birchwood Stables, some new friends—along with the arrival of a frightened pony named Fire—help Lizzie to open up and accept help from those around her, even if it means she’ll have more to lose if things change again.
The insightful, audacious, and deeply romantic story of a woman whose life turns upside down after she meets an enigmatic chef on vacation in Italy, from a New York Times bestselling author “Delicious.”—People • “Smart, sexy and funny, full of joy in simple pleasures.”—Minneapolis Star-Tribune What if falling in love means breaking someone’s heart? On the heels of a difficult break-up and a devastating diagnosis, Shakespeare scholar Lizzie Delford decides to take one last lavish vacation on Elba, the sun-kissed island off the Italian coast, with her best friend and his movie-star boyfriend. Once settled into a luxurious seaside resort, Lizzie has to make big decisions about her future, and she needs the one thing she may be running out of: time. She leaves the yacht owners and celebrities behind and sneaks off to the public beach, where she meets a sardonic chef named Dante, his battered dog, Lulu, and his wry daughter, Etta, a twelve-year-old desperate for a mother. While Dante shows Lizzie the island’s secrets, and Etta dazzles with her irreverent humor, Lizzie is confronted with a dilemma. Is it right to fall in love if time is short? Is it better to find a mother briefly, or to have no mother at all? And most pressingly, are the delicacies of life worth tasting, even if you will get to savor them only for a short while? A luscious story of love, courage, and Italian wine, Lizzie & Dante demands to know how far we should travel to find a future worth fighting for.
"Sometimes we are met with overwhelming challenges that knock us off our feet-but [Lizzie has] been able to embody the power of hope and compassion in everything [she does]." --Michelle Obama Born with a rare genetic condition, Lizzie Velasquez always knew she was different, but it wasn't until she was older that she understood what that meant to herself and others. In this daring, inspirational book, Lizzie reveals the hidden forces that give rise to self-doubt and empowers us to unlock empathy and kindness for ourselves and others. Through her own battles with anxiety and depression she demonstrates how we can overcome obstacles and move forward with greater positivity and hope. Dare to Be Kind offers the path to self-acceptance, love, and tolerance, and provides a framework for living with confidence and resilience, and ultimately, forging a radically compassionate world.
“An exquisitely crafted novel of love discovered and friendship found.”—Martha Hall Kelly, author of Lilac Girls Ruby’s life glitters with success, but she still must conquer her tragic past and discover what love really looks like. Lily Decker never meant to become a showgirl. As a young girl in small-town Kansas, she danced to forget the pain of losing her family in a car accident. And dancing made her feel beautiful when the attentions of her Uncle Miles only brought shame. In 1967, Lily is grown and ready to leave her past behind. She changes her name to Ruby Wilde and heads to the Rat Pack’s Las Vegas to make a name for herself as a troupe dancer. However, the competition is fierce and she finds work as a showgirl, instead, doing fan-kicks in sky-high headdresses and sparkling costumes. Her new life brims with glamour and excitement, but something is still missing. Is it love? What choices will she make to feel whole again, and at what cost? With her uncanny understanding of the hidden lives of women, Elizabeth J. Church captures the iconic extravagance of an era and the bravery of a woman who blazes her own path to freedom. Praise for All the Beautiful Girls “[Elizabeth] Church’s lively coming-of-age tale transports us to a world of ostrich-plumed headdresses and pinky-ringed mobsters while tracing a tumultuous quest for acceptance and love.”—People “A gorgeously written novel with the bite of a gin martini, All the Beautiful Girls goes beyond the splashy, gaudy dazzle of Las Vegas in the sixties to reveal the beating heart beneath the glamorous façade of a showgirl with big ambitions.”—Sara Gruen, New York Times bestselling author of At the Water’s Edge “A stirring bildungsroman that follows a girl from trauma in 1957 Kansas to self-discovery in 1960s Las Vegas . . . Church paints an unflinching, frequently heartbreaking portrait of a resilient young woman’s coming-of-age set against an exciting, glamorous backdrop.”—Publishers Weekly “Church’s appreciation of language is apparent as she masterfully creates pictures with words . . . All the Beautiful Girls provides a delightful antidote to cold and dark mid-winter days.”—Associated Press “A beautifully rendered tale of personal redemption filled with friendship, loss, extravagant furs, and feathery headdresses.”—Kirkus Reviews
Lizzie Velasquez recently graduated from Texas State University in San Marcos with a degree in communications. She is one of only three known people in the world with a medical syndrome that doesn't allow her to gain weight or create muscle. Lizzie, an author of three books, has appeared as a motivational speaker at more than 200 workshops. Her story has been featured in national and international media, including The Today Show, Inside Edition, Katie Couric, Dr. Drew, Australia's Sunday Night, and Germany's Explosiv.
The Gift is a beautiful children's book filled with wonder and excitement. A story to captivate the heart of any child and fuel their imagination. Join Esther on her surreal but exciting adventure, as she discovers a very special gift and learns the true meaning of hope, friendship and kindness in a world that can often be so bleak. The Gift is filled with beautifully illustrated colour pictures and is the first in a series of Lizzie Jayne's books.
