Summer 1959. It was a different time, a quieter and gentler time. America was at peace or rather it was a time between wars. For Davey Malloy it was the start of summertime in Saint Louis, a week after Memorial Day and days after his twelfth birthday. He now had his freedom and the entire summer to do whatever he wanted. He and his best friends Timmy and Sunny were free to go hiking, fishing, play ball, biking, swimming, and exploring. They would have a grand old time that year, but that summer would turn out different than they ever would have expected. It was a summer Davey would never forget, a summer that changed his life forever.Years later, one became a cop and one landed on death row-but life always returned to the summer of '59. If only...
From the bestselling author of HOME TRUTHS comes an addictive psychological suspense with a shock twist you WON'T see coming . . . Six friends. One reunion. Countless secrets. It had always been the six of us. Since we met at university twenty-five years ago, we'd faced everything together. Break-ups and marriages, motherhood and death. We were closer than sisters; the edges of our lives bled into each other. But that was before the night of the reunion. The night of exposed secrets and jagged accusations. The night when everything changed. And then we were five. __________ 'Astute and witty' Sunday Mirror 'Clever, intriguing, chilling - and utterly impossible to put down. Tina Seskis is proving herself to be master of the twist' Grazia 'A chilling tale of university friends 25 years later . . . the tragic fallout of a summer reunion will make you wish you could read that bit faster' Stylist 'This dark whodunit explores just how complex friendships can be' Woman Magazine An earlier version of this novel was published under the title A SERPENTINE AFFAIR
Lainey Carson and Sydney Beaumont were the closest of friends—until they reached high school and Sydney’s burgeoning popularity made it easy for her to leave the contemplative, ungainly Lainey behind. Eighteen years later, Lainey, who lives at home caring for her mother, is an artist who’s never found the courage to live her dreams. When Sydney shows up on her doorstep with her infant daughter, insisting that Lainey is the only friend she can trust, Lainey reluctantly agrees to take temporary custody of the baby to protect her from an abusive father. But that very night, Sydney appears on the evening news—claiming that her daughter has been kidnapped. Unsure of whom she can trust, Lainey is forced to go on the run with a child who is not her own—but whose bond with her grows stronger every day they spend together. In search of a safe place to stay, Lainey befriends a man who, concerned for their welfare, offers them a home. But as the two grow closer she starts to realize that he may be harboring his own secrets. An utterly riveting story that will keep you turning the pages, When We Were Friends asks how we define motherhood and family, whether we ever truly overcome our pasts, and what friendship really means.
For fans of Nina LaCour's We Are Okay and Adam Silvera's History Is All You Left Me, this heartfelt and ultimately uplifting novel follows one sixteen-year-old girl's friend breakup through two concurrent timelines--ultimately proving that even endings can lead to new beginnings. "Stunning." --Nic Stone, bestselling author of Dear Martin and Odd One Out You can't rewrite the past, but you can always choose to start again. It's been twenty-seven days since Cleo and Layla's friendship imploded. Nearly a month since Cleo realized they'll never be besties again. Now Cleo wants to erase every memory, good or bad, that tethers her to her ex-best friend. But pretending Layla doesn't exist isn't as easy as Cleo hoped, especially after she's assigned to be Layla's tutor. Despite budding friendships with other classmates--and a raging crush on a gorgeous boy named Dom--Cleo's turbulent past with Layla comes back to haunt them both. Alternating between time lines of Then and Now, When You Were Everything blends past and present into an emotional story about the beauty of self-forgiveness, the promise of new beginnings, and the courage it takes to remain open to love. "Breathtakingly beautiful....Woodfolk has a way of making words sing and burst with light." --Tiffany D. Jackson, award-winning author of Monday's Not Coming and Let Me Hear A Rhyme
Discover the unexpected ways friends influence our personalities, choices, emotions, and even physical health in this fun and compelling examination of friendship, based on the latest scientific research and ever-relatable anecdotes. Why is dinner with friends often more laughter filled and less fraught than a meal with family? Although some say it’s because we choose our friends, it’s also because we expect less of them than we do of relatives. While we’re busy scrutinizing our romantic relationships and family dramas, our friends are quietly but strongly influencing everything from the articles we read to our weight fluctuations, from our sex lives to our overall happiness levels. Evolutionary psychologists have long theorized that friendship has roots in our early dependence on others for survival. These days, we still cherish friends but tend to undervalue their role in our lives. However, the skills one needs to make good friends are among the very skills that lead to success in life, and scientific research has recently exploded with insights about the meaningful and enduring ways friendships influence us. With people marrying later—and often not at all—and more families having just one child, these relationships may be gaining in importance. The evidence even suggests that at times friends have a greater hand in our development and well-being than do our romantic partners and relatives. Friends see each other through the process of growing up, shape each other’s interests and outlooks, and, painful though it may be, expose each other’s rough edges. Childhood and adolescence, in particular, are marked by the need to create distance between oneself and one’s parents while forging a unique identity within a group of peers, but friends continue to influence us, in ways big and small, straight through old age. Perpetually busy parents who turn to friends—for intellectual stimulation, emotional support, and a good dose of merriment—find a perfect outlet to relieve the pressures of raising children. In the office setting, talking to a friend for just a few minutes can temporarily boost one’s memory. While we romanticize the idea of the lone genius, friendship often spurs creativity in the arts and sciences. And in recent studies, having close friends was found to reduce a person’s risk of death from breast cancer and coronary disease, while having a spouse was not. Friendfluence surveys online-only pals, friend breakups, the power of social networks, envy, peer pressure, the dark side of amicable ties, and many other varieties of friendship. Told with warmth, scientific rigor, and a dash of humor, Friendfluence not only illuminates and interprets the science but draws on clinical psychology and philosophy to help readers evaluate and navigate their own important friendships.
Sociologists often study exotic cultures by immersing themselves in an environment until they become accepted as insiders. In this fascinating account by acclaimed researcher William A. Corsaro, a scientist "goes native" to study the secret world of children. Here, for the first time, are the children themselves, heard through an expert who knows that the only way to truly understand them is by becoming a member of their community. That's just what Corsaro did when he traded in his adult perspective for a seat in the sandbox alongside groups of preschoolers. Corsaro's journey of discovery is as fascinating as it is revealing. Living among and gaining the acceptance of children, he gradually comes to understand that a child's world is far more complex than anyone ever suspected. He documents a special culture, unique unto itself, in which children create their own social structures and exert their own influences. At a time when many parents fear that they don't spend enough time with their children, and experts debate the best path to healthy development, seeing childhood through the eyes of a child offers parents and caregivers fresh and compelling insights. Corsaro calls upon all adults to appreciate, embrace, and savor their children's culture. He asks us to take a cue from those we hold so precious and understand that "we're all friends, right?"
From the USA TODAY bestselling author of Sweet Thing and Nowhere But Here comes a love story about a Craigslist “missed connection” post that gives two people a second chance at love fifteen years after they were separated in New York City. To the Green-eyed Lovebird: We met fifteen years ago, almost to the day, when I moved my stuff into the NYU dorm room next to yours at Senior House. You called us fast friends. I like to think it was more. We lived on nothing but the excitement of finding ourselves through music (you were obsessed with Jeff Buckley), photography (I couldn’t stop taking pictures of you), hanging out in Washington Square Park, and all the weird things we did to make money. I learned more about myself that year than any other. Yet, somehow, it all fell apart. We lost touch the summer after graduation when I went to South America to work for National Geographic. When I came back, you were gone. A part of me still wonders if I pushed you too hard after the wedding… I didn’t see you again until a month ago. It was a Wednesday. You were rocking back on your heels, balancing on that thick yellow line that runs along the subway platform, waiting for the F train. I didn’t know it was you until it was too late, and then you were gone. Again. You said my name; I saw it on your lips. I tried to will the train to stop, just so I could say hello. After seeing you, all of the youthful feelings and memories came flooding back to me, and now I’ve spent the better part of a month wondering what your life is like. I might be totally out of my mind, but would you like to get a drink with me and catch up on the last decade and a half? M
'The perfect holiday read' Irish Examiner Summer has arrived in Derrybeggs and the biggest event of the year, the annual film festival, is less than a month away. But as plans begin to unravel, tensions mount in the sleepy seaside town. Newcomer Dot joined the festival committee as a way of fitting in and as the first guests arrive to her newly renovated beachside B&B - TV star Molly Cusack and businessman Ryan Schindler - Dot becomes more determined than ever that her move be the fresh start she so desperately needs. Meanwhile heartbroken Merry has returned home to Derrybeggs and is back working at her parents' café. Everyone in town knows that her dream life in Florida tragically fell apart, but Merry is the only one who knows the whole story... When an intriguing American visitor turns up at The Seashell Café with no memory of who he is or why he is in Derrybeggs, Dot, Merry and the rest of the town's residents must come together to try to help him. But will they manage to do this while also saving the film festival?
Lotti Coates lives in the shadow of a genius: her father George is a brilliant and celebrated Australian painter. When Lotti meets the outcast waif Kyla at a suburban Canberra school, two worlds are set to collide. Slowly Kyla is drawn into the orbit of the Coates family. Or is it the other way around? As Lotti and Kyla navigate their way towards adulthood, dark secrets start to unravel, with devastating consequences … We Were Never Friends is a story of friendship, the pursuit of a creative life and the legacies we leave behind. Praise for We Were Never Friends by Margaret Bearman ‘This intelligent, subtle novel is a complex study of family dynamics, class divides, adolescent pecking orders, and the murky moral landscapes of artistic practice and inspiration.’ —Kerryn Goldsworthy, The Sydney Morning Herald ‘Margaret Bearman’s intimate, unsettling novel of family dysfunction perfectly captures the ambivalent passions of girlhood while offering an incisive critique of the cult of artistic genius. Sharp and subtle at the same time, refusing any easy certainties, We Were Never Friends is a haunting portrait of the human capacity for cruelty and love in equal measure.’ —Kirsten Tranter, bestselling author of The Legacy ‘A compelling and authentic journey into the heart of an Australian family. What is art? What’s true courage? I could not put it down.’ —Melissa Ashley, bestselling author of The Birdman’s Wife
