Betty's Child


Donald R. Dempsey - 2009
    Twelve-year-old Donny is a real-life cross between Huckleberry Finn and Holden Caulfield. Donny is doing his best to navigate the world he shares with his cruel and neglectful mother, his mother's abusive boyfriends, churchgoers who want to save Donny's soul, and a best friend who wants Donny to go to work for a dangerous local thug doing petty theft and dealing drugs. Donny does everything he can to take care of himself and his younger brothers, but with each new development, the present becomes more fraught with peril--and the future more uncertain. "Heartrending and humorous. In scene after vivid scene, Dempsey presents his inspiring true story with accomplished style. Dempsey's discipline as a writer lends the real-life tale the feel of a fictional page-turner." Kirkus Reviews "This memoir is for everyone who has ever known someone abandoned, someone unloved, someone with barriers that seem impenetrable. With wit and delicacy, Dempsey exposes wounds that we would prefer to ignore, without ever pushing the reader away with any sense of melodrama. A truly unforgettable memoir." San Francisco Book Review--An estimated 700,000 children are victims of child maltreatment in the United States each year: 78% suffer neglect, 18% are physically abuse, 9% are sexually abused, 8% are psychologically maltreated, and an astonishing 78% suffer neglect. (Source: National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System) Don Dempsey experienced childhood abuse and neglect first hand, but went on to find business success and a fulfilling family life as an adult. "If you're lucky, you make it to adulthood in one piece," says Don. "But there's no guarantee the rest of your life is going to be any better. Abused kids are often plagued by fear and insecurity. They battle depression and have trouble with relationships. In the worst cases, abused children perpetuate the cycle." But Don is living proof that you can overcome a childhood of abuse and neglect. "You start by letting go of as much of the guilt (yes, abused kids feel guilty) and as many of the bad memories as possible. At the same time, you hold on to the things that helped you survive. For me, it was the belief that you can make life better by working at it and earning it. It helps to have a sense of humor, too." Some of Don's experiences will make you cringe, but you'll want to keep reading because of Don's natural storytelling ability and sense of humor. And in the end, you'll appreciate hearing Don's inspiring story.

Reasons to Stay Alive / Notes on a Nervous Planet


Matt Haig
    He could see no way to go on living. This is the true story of how he came through crisis, triumphed over an illness that almost destroyed him and learned to live again.A moving, funny and joyous exploration of how to live better, love better and feel more alive, Reasons to Stay Alive is more than a memoir. It is a book about making the most of your time on earth. Notes on a Nervous Planet: Looking at sleep, news, social media, addiction, work and play, Matt Haig invites us to feel calmer, happier and to question the habits of the digital age. This book might even change the way you spend your precious time on earth.

Screen Schooled: Two Veteran Teachers Expose How Technology Overuse Is Making Our Kids Dumber


Joe Clement - 2017
    Rather than becoming better problem solvers, kids look to Google to answer their questions for them. Rather than deepening students’ intellectual curiosity, educational technology is too often cumbersome and distracting, causing needless frustration and greatly extending homework time. Rather than becoming the great equalizer, electronic devices are widening the achievement gap. On a mission to educate and empower parents, Clement and Miles provide many real-world examples and cite multiple studies showing how technology use has created a wide range of cognitive and social deficits in our young people. They lift the veil on what’s really going on at school: teachers who are powerless to curb cell phone distractions; zoned-out kids who act helpless and are unfocused, unprepared, and antisocial; administrators who are too-easily swayed by the pro-tech “science” sponsored by corporate technology purveyors. They provide action steps parents can take to demand change and make a compelling case for simpler, smarter, more effective forms of teaching and learning.

He's Not Lazy: Empowering Your Son to Believe In Himself


Adam Price - 2016
    But dig a little deeper, writes child psychologist Adam Price in He’s Not Lazy, and you’ll often find conflicted boys who want to do well in middle and high school but are afraid to fail, and so do not try. This book can help you become an ally with your son, as he discovers greater self-confidence and accepts responsibility for his future.

YOU: Raising Your Child: The Owner's Manual from First Breath to First Grade


Michael F. Roizen - 2010
    But it can be plenty tough, too: Around the clock, you’re working to keep your little one healthy, teach her the difference between right and wrong, and make sure none of her little fingers find their way to the electrical outlets, the dog’s nose, or grandpop’s cup of coffee. In YOU: Raising Your Child, Drs. Mehmet Oz and Michael Roizen, the New York Times #1 bestselling authors of the YOU health series, help you navigate the often tricky journey of parenting with the ultimate guide to raising a happy, healthy child. Dr. Mehmet Oz—host of television’s The Dr. Oz Show—and Dr. Michael Roizen—chief wellness officer and chair of the Wellness Institute of the Cleveland Clinic—have sold millions of books informing readers about healthy dieting, aging, and overall health. Picking up where their prior book, YOU: Having a Baby, left off, the docs provide oh-wow information and insider advice to help parents understand the biology and psychology of raising a child from birth to school age. With humor and cutting-edge biological insights, the authors address everything from troubleshooting infant health issues to creating an environment that supports the emotional and intellectual development of your growing child. They talk about the various approaches to parenting—are you a Marshmallow Mommy or an Iron Maiden, passive or hyperinvolved? The docs help you identify your style of parenting, encouraging passive parents to create clear boundaries and hypervigilant ones to step back more often and let their kids develop. You will learn to become the ideal parent: firm but flexible. The docs also provide an extensive overview of nuts-and-bolts health problems— from asthma to fevers to emergency room visits and the sensitive issue of vaccinations. In YOU: Raising Your Child, America’s most trusted doctors, who co-host a daily Sirius/XM radio program for Oprah Radio, once again come to the rescue with wisdom about how to provide an enriching environment with the ultimate goal of raising a child with a healthy body—and mind. As the docs say in their introduction: “Our goal is to teach you how to create the optimal environment for your child—an environment that’s most conducive to your child thriving in all areas of life, physically, emotionally, socially, and developmentally. Why? Because the latest research shows us that the environment—as defined not only by physical space but also by the behaviors of parents and caregivers—is the number-one determinant of your child’s future.”  *** YOU: Raising Your Child offers a brand-new way to think about parenting. Imagine child development—and your child’s journey though life—as a ride down a long, often unpredictable river. You are the guide, there to control the direction and speed that you travel. For the fi rst few years of their lives, your children are your precious cargo—the passengers who take in everything they see and who learn from you how to paddle on their own. As the guide, you can control the path you take and the environments you choose to travel in—with the goal of creating a healthy and happy life for your child. Here’s just a sample of what you’ll learn: • The mind relies on the environment to give clues and signals about how it’s supposed to develop and what it’s supposed to learn. Dr. Roizen and Dr. Oz show you how to create the best learning landscape possible to help your child thrive. • Breast milk provides the perfect concoction of nutrients to help protect your baby against infection, asthma, and many other conditions (it also burns 500 calories a day to help you lose that baby weight!). But if you aren’t able to breastfeed, we have plenty of tips on exactly what and how much to feed your baby to make sure that he or she is getting the best possible diet from day one. • Get the truth about high fevers and learn the most accurate way to take a temperature (it’s not what you think!). You’ll also get insider tricks for handling everything from earaches to febrile seizures.  • Whether your child is allergic to gluten or peanut butter, there are two dominant theories about why more kids have allergies today than ever before. YOU: Raising Your Child explains them and tells you unique ways to prevent and treat allergies in your child. Our goal is for YOU: Raising Your Child to be the map that you need to safely navigate the waters of your baby’s life from day one to day 2,190, and in it we will give you all the tools you need to steer the best possible course.

Better Than Chocolate: 50 Proven Ways to Feel Happier


Siimon Reynolds - 2005
    From Taoism to psycho-cyberkinetics, this delicious little book distills simple lessons from the world’s major theories about happiness, such as:Ask uplifting questions (they can change the direction of your thinking).Try a low-insulin diet (balancing sugar levels sweetens your mood).Understand Buddhist theory (fewer desires leads to less suffering).Kiss someone (kissing just feels great).Animated with cheery illustrations, BETTER THAN CHOCOLATE is sweeter than a candy bar baked into a brownie and dipped in hot fudge—and a whole lot better for you.

When Love Is Not Enough: A Guide to Parenting With RAD-Reactive Attachment Disorder


Nancy L. Thomas - 1997
    Effective interventions, a full step by step plan, clearer insight and understanding make a powerful difference in helping children heal. If you want to make a difference in the life of a hurting child, this book will do it! This plan was honed on some of the most difficult children in the US and has been used successfully to help thousands of children around the world. Children can learn to be respectful, responsible and fun to be with. This book tells the reader how to do it and then zaps them with a boost of encouragement to get started!

Carly's Voice: Breaking Through Autism


Arthur Fleischmann - 2012
    Doctors predicted that she would never intellectually develop beyond the abilities of a small child. Although she made some progress after years of intensive behavioral and communication therapy, Carly remained largely unreachable. Then, at the age of ten, she had a breakthrough. While working with her devoted therapists Howie and Barb, Carly reached over to their laptop and typed in "HELP TEETH HURT," much to everyone's astonishment. This was the beginning of Carly's journey toward self-realization. Although Carly still struggles with all the symptoms of autism, which she describes with uncanny accuracy and detail, she now has regular, witty, and profound conversations on the computer with her family, her therapists, and the many thousands of people who follow her via her blog, Facebook, and Twitter. In Carly's Voice, her father, Arthur Fleischmann, blends Carly's own words with his story of getting to know his remarkable daughter. One of the first books to explore firsthand the challenges of living with autism, it brings readers inside a once-secret world and in the company of an inspiring young woman who has found her voice and her mission.

The Horse Boy: A Father's Quest to Heal His Son


Rupert Isaacson - 2009
    But when Isaacson, a lifelong horseman, rode their neighbor's horse with Rowan, Rowan improved immeasurably. He was struck with a crazy idea: why not take Rowan to Mongolia, the one place in the world where horses and shamanic healing intersected? THE HORSE BOY is the dramatic and heartwarming story of that impossible adventure. In Mongolia, the family found undreamed of landscapes and people, unbearable setbacks, and advances beyond their wildest dreams. This is a deeply moving, truly one-of-a-kind story--of a family willing to go to the ends of the earth to help their son, and of a boy learning to connect with the world for the first time.

The Everything Parent's Guide to Sensory Processing Disorder: The Information and Treatment Options You Need to Help Your Child with SPD (Everything® Parents Guide)


Terri Mauro - 2006
    With The Everything Parent's Guide to Sensory Processing Disorder, you can help your child learn how to reduce stress and minimize the symptoms of SPD. In this all-in-one guide, Terri Mauro provides all the information you need regarding SPD, including: An in-depth definition of SPD and its effects. The newest treatments, therapies, and diets. Techniques for use outside of the therapist's office. The latest research on physical causes of SPD. Advice for coping at school, home, and play. Your child deserves to live a life free of the difficulties SPD can bring. The Everything Parent's Guide to Sensory Processing Disorder gives you professional advice to help your child to manage sensory needs and feel calmer, happier, and in control, now and in the future.

Bullied: What Every Parent, Teacher, and Kid Needs to Know About Ending the Cycle of Fear


Carrie Goldman - 2012
    In Bullied, she gives us a guide to the crucial lessons and actionable guidance she's learned about how to stop bullying before it starts. It is a book born from Goldman's post about the ridicule her daughter suffered for bringing a Star Wars thermos to school--a story that went viral on Facebook and Twitter before exploding everywhere, from CNN.com and Yahoo.com to sites all around the world. Written in Goldman's warm, engaging style, Bullied is an important and very necessary read for parents, educators, self-professed "Girl Geeks," or anyone who has ever felt victimized by a bully, online or in person.

50 Things to Do Before You Deliver: The First Time Moms Pregnancy Guide


Jill Krause - 2018
    Centered on what’s most important to expecting moms, 50 Things to Do Before You Deliver narrows the vast field of pregnancy advice to 50 specific, proactive steps for confidence and peace of mind before baby arrives. Unlike other pregnancy books for first time moms, this book includes only what is necessary and helpful, and leaves out the rest. Written by Jill Krause—creator of the award-winning pregnancy blog, Baby Rabies, and mom of four—50 Things to Do Before You Deliver arms moms-to-be with actionable advice and tools that are actually useful.Voiced with honesty, humor, and encouragement from a mom who’s been there, 50 Things to Do Before You Deliver offers: 50 trimester-by-trimester tasks covering only the most important things expectant moms need to focus on Relevant, creative tips for using tech to track, document, and learn about pregnancy Judgment-free advice from other moms, OB-GYNs, and midwives—including guest contributions from Amy Morrison of the blog Pregnant Chicken, and Bryn Huntpalmer of The Birth Hour podcast There are countless pregnancy books for first time moms out there—but 50 Things to Do Before You Deliver is a practical guide that will empower and prepare you during pregnancy and beyond.

To Dare a Rogue


Tarah Scott - 2016
    THE HIGHLANDER’S IMPROPER WIFE by Tarah Scott and KyAnn WatersA proper young lady should never attend a Masque...Aphrodite is no lady. Upon the death of her betrothed Lord Blackhall, Lady Caroline Wilmont is promised to his brother. But she refuses to allow her first taste of desire to be at the hands of a man who hates her. Taran Robertson scorns marriage to the Sassenach heiress. The night before his wedding he attends a masque. The vixen he meets and seduces has secrets...secrets that may reveal he’s to have an improper wife.THE LOVE OF A RAKE by Linda Rae SandeAt thirty-five, Randall Roderick, Marquess of Reading, decides it's time to trade in his life as the ‘Rake of Reading’ for the life of a married man. Trouble is, his reputation precedes him. When Constance meets him in the park, she's intrigued by the gentleman she thinks is a well-to-do cit with a fascination for horse racing. Determined to discover what’s become of her inheritance and then return to her home and horses to live as an independent woman, she’s not interested in being courted. Or is she? It may take a bit of horse sense for these two to get on the right track in “The Love of a Rake”.A QUESTION OF LOVE by Angeline FortinThough widowhood freed her from the prison her life had become, Eve was still floundering, trying to rediscover the lively girl she'd once been when her first love Francis MacKintosh, Earl of Glenrothes reappeared in her life. Tempted by passion and the longing to truly live again, Eve struggles between her old self and the new, between yearning to be with him and a determination never to put herself under the thumb of another man - even one she discovers she still loves as much as her Glenrothes. MYRIAH FIRE by Claudy ConnIt started with a stolen kiss.Fiery Myriah Whitney is wild of nature, contrary, and independent. But when her father catches her kissing the handsome Sir Roland (how else is she to determine if he is the one who will make her feel thunder and lightning, hear bells and music?), he declares that her days of headstrong independence are over. She will, he commands, announce her engagement to Sir Roland—immediately.But in an age where marriages are about alliances rather than affection, practicality not passion, Myriah wants more—she wants to fall in love. And she does not love Sir Roland. So she runs away to her grandfather with her faithful manservant, Tabson, at her side. A wrong turn in the fog, however, leads to the discovery of an injured young man, and before she knows it Myriah is caught up in world of intrigue and secrets. And when she meets the young man's older brother, the mysterious Lord Kit Wimborne, the sparks fly. Their first encounter—in his bed, both of them naked, no less!—is an explosion of wills, and it is what finally sets Myriah on fire.She has, it seems, finally found her thunder and lightning. LOVING THE MARQUESS by Suzanna MedeirosTo save her family from destitution, Louisa Evans must turn to the head of the family that ruined hers. But the Marquess of Overlea hides a secret that will turn her whole world upside down.

Silver Lining


Elizabeth Beisel - 2020
    When Elizabeth Beisel watched the Olympics on television for the first time, she was seven years old in her parents’ living room. She decided right then and there she would compete at the Olympic Games one day. Eight years later, she made her first of three Olympic Teams as a fifteen-year-old. Despite her huge success in the sport, Elizabeth struggled with doubts, failures, and injuries throughout her entire swimming career. In Silver Lining, she he gives a compelling look inside the pressures that come with being an Olympian, and how she mentally conquered the stress of competing at the highest level for over a decade. From a small-town girl with a dream, to winning Olympic medals, Elizabeth gives you a glimpse inside her life as you’ve never seen it before. She is relatable, open, and honest, and her storytelling in Silver Lining> will leave you feeling emotional and inspired to pursue your own dreams, no matter who you are.  Reviews “Silver Lining is a story of amazing perseverance of one of the greatest leaders in our sports history.” – Rowdy Gaines “You will be inspired, and also discover why Elizabeth is one of the most respected athletes to grace a pool deck for Team USA.” – Katie Ledecky “Elizabeth wonderfully captures what it means to be an elite athlete. Silver Lining shows how perseverance, dedication, and a support team can help one overcome life’s biggest obstacles.” – Caeleb Dressel About the Author Elizabeth Beisel is a three-time Olympic swimmer and two-time Olympic medalist for the United States of America. Visit her at www.elizabethbeisel.com.

Mom's One Line a Day: A Five-Year Memory Book


NOT A BOOK - 2010
    With enough space to record a single thought, a family quote, or a special event each day for five years, this beautiful keepsake makes sure those precious memories will last a lifetime.