Born unwanted and raised without love, the child-author invents a rich inner life to see her through years of trauma. Leaving home at 16, the teen-author struggles to find happiness and a sense of place in a world that feels confusing and unfamiliar. Then, years after stumbling into an adulthood mired in tragedy and broken dreams, the woman-author finds herself at a crossroads. The choice she ultimately makes is as stunning as it is brave.Told in unflinching and often lyrical prose, Elephant Girl goes beyond a singular life story to speak of powerful, universal truths and the ability of the human spirit to redeem itself.From the soul of a broken child and the heart of a resilient woman comes a story about turning imagination into possibility and scars into art. - Rosie O'Donnell, Talk Show Host In a culture of bootstraps and bromides, it has become unfashionable to talk about the long-term effects of child abuse and being raised without love or nurture. Unlike psychologist Harry Harlowe's infamous experiments with monkeys and maternal deprivation - where all his subjects ended up abnormal or dead from what has been termed "emotional anorexia" -abused children are supposed to be more resilient. In fact, a significant number of people insist that child abuse isn't really that big of a deal and that such children will eventually enter into adulthood with the same knowledge and tools as those who were not abused, or at least be able to gain them quickly and easily. Less acknowledged is the fact that there can be long-term and even lifelong physical, social and emotional consequences of child abuse. Oftentimes, the one affected doesn't even realize what those consequences are until well into adulthood. High anxiety, hyper-vigilance, thwarted sexuality and brain damage that went undiagnosed until the age of 46 were just some of the after-effects experienced by the author of Elephant Girl: A Human Story. The story of Precious ends with her teenage years. Jeannette Walls concludes Glass Castles as a college student. In A Child Called It, Dave Pelzer is removed from his abusive home by age 12 and eventually finds a loving foster family. In contrast, Elephant Girl: A Human Story is about what happens when there is no clear path to follow, no outside guidance and no dramatic rescue-when the only life-saving graces are imagination, self-determination and, ultimately, an undefeatable sense of hope. This is not an easy story to read. Those who enjoy reading about miracles or quick solutions will surely be disappointed. Those looking to cast blame or buoy their belief that they could have done better will find plenty of ammunition. However, those who are willing to see beyond the convenience and labels of bootstraps and bromides - who believe that human experiences are diverse and complex - will find much to relate to in this rarely told story.

    Having lost both their parents and being left practically destitute, the girls have no money to secure passage on a cruise ship. Fortunately, an old school friend of their father's, Charlie, owns a small ship and offers the sisters free passage on his ship, in exchange for light cooking and housekeeping duties. The girls gloomily embark on the small ship for a 3-month voyage along with Charlie, 16 sailors, and an invalid, changing their lives forever.

    Growing up in Chicago, his world revolved around after-school jobs, a rescued beagle, his pen pal in Holland, and the Cubs' chance to go to the World Series. Then, in December of 1941, news of the attack on Pearl Harbor hit much too close to home. In a few years, Danny found himself in the co-pilot seat of a B-17, stationed with the 390th Bomb Group in Framlingham, England. Anya Versteeg had been just a teenager when Hitler's troops invaded her homeland of Holland in May of 1940. Forced to grow up much too fast, the feisty preacher's daughter eagerly immersed herself in the Dutch Resistance. Certain that God had turned His back on Holland, she did whatever she had to do to save her country before it was too late. By 1945, the people of Occupied Holland were starving. Thousands were dying every day. Then, just days before the war ended, help came to the Netherlands like manna from heaven. Operation Chowhound held special meaning for Lieutenant Danny McClain. Somewhere below in the battered land of tulips and windmills was the girl who needed rescuing, and he would move heaven and earth to find her.

    Comedy: a sex-obsessed man thinks he is visited by an angel and his walk in life is visibly and demonstrably changed.http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007...

    Miriam's unwavering faith throughout the decades of her life not only sustains her, but also impacts the lives of those around her in miraculous ways. Fans of Francine Rivers will love the inviting style of Robin Lee Hatcher.

    Brenna and her family are Irish immigrants. Rebecca travels with her large family from Iowa. Emily is a young bride traveling with her husband Ernest. Six months and two thousand miles later they reach their destination much changed from who they were when they started. Daily life on the wagon train is challenging. Cholera is rampant, crime not unheard of, and death is an ever present visitor. Their hopes and fears are realized in unforgettable experiences of love and loss. Through it all they form a bond with each other that will last a lifetime and encompass the vast and untamed regions of the heart.

    She reluctantly joins an orphan train on a voyage of hope, despair and the search for a home. Not just for her siblings but for almost forty other orphans desperate for a future. Orphan Train Trials Bella Jones and Kathleen Collins are as close as sisters and want to stay together. But their pasts come back to haunt them. A past Orphan Train survivor, can Bella save young twins, Megan and Eileen from a fate worse than the one Bella survived? Kathleen can't help, she has her own problems with missing brothers. Can she save them from the hangman's noose? Orphan Train Christmas Kenny Clark wants a family for Christmas. Kathleen is working hard to secure the best outcomes for all the orphans but what of her chance of happiness?

    She pilots a mail-delivery plane in the forbidding Alaskan wilderness, the lone woman in a male profession. But even that seems easy compared to finding true love. She likes a fellow pilot and would even consider marrying him--if it weren't for Paul, a mysterious man on her mail route with a gentle spirit and a past to hide. Can Kate break through the walls Paul has put up around his heart? And will her quest for adventure be her demise?

    But they’re Yankees and worse, they’re civil rights advocates almost a decade too early.At first May can pretend they’re the same as everyone else. It means keeping quiet when she knows she should speak up, but it’s worth the sacrifice to win friends. Unfortunately her parents are soon putting their beliefs into action. And when they wake to find that they’re the only family on the block with a Ku Klux Klan cross blazing on their front lawn, the time comes for them to finally decide between what’s easy and what’s right.

    A young man well known in their small town of Hardys Walk, Texas, Bo seems fine, even if Lauren’s intuition says otherwise. Since the accident two years ago that left her brain in a fragile state, she can’t trust her own instincts—and neither can her family. Then Bo vanishes, and as the search for him ensues, the police question whether she’s responsible. Lauren is terrified, not of what she remembers but of what she doesn’t.Unable to trust herself and unwilling to trust anyone else, Lauren begins her own investigation into the mystery of Bo’s disappearance. But the truth can prove to be as shocking as any lie, and as Lauren exposes each one, from her family, from her friends, she isn’t the only one who will face heart-stopping repercussions.

    Cathy Goodwin, Top 500 Amazon Reviewer"I loved MRS. LIEUTENANT. Reading it brought back for me, a military wife, memories of the Vietnam War era, when so many of our young men were in uniform due to the draft, and memories of what it was like being in the sub-culture of the military as a new Army wife." --Mary Raynor"This book should be required reading for every contemporary military spouse, the families of our servicemen and women, and civilians who want to understand the lifestyle of our men and women in uniform. The military isn't just a job or career, it is a WAY OF LIFE that can't be fully understood by those who haven't lived it. Phyllis Zimbler Miller's MRS. LIEUTENANT makes it clear--this is a life she understands at the deepest level." --Bonnie Bartel Latino, co-author of "Your Gift to Me""Phyllis Zimbler Miller's MRS. LIEUTENANT is one of those stellar reads that keep you engaged from the first word to the last, and how long or how short the book is doesn't concern you at all. Keep a box of tissues handy, because you'll need it; I certainly did, and more than once." --George Polley, author of "Grandfather & the Raven"When newly married Sharon Gold suddenly finds herself in the unfamiliar culture of the U.S. Army during the unpopular Vietnam War, she realizes she must quickly adapt to this alien world. If she does not learn to "fit in," the consequences could have a severe impact on her husband.The women's friendship she unexpectedly experiences turns out to be her lifesaver.Don't have a Kindle? No problem. You can get a FREE Kindle app for your iPhone, iPad, Android, PC or Mac at budurl.com/freeKindleapp and in just minutes you can be reading MRS. LIEUTENANT.Scroll to the top of the page and click on the buy button now.

    Calling Crow is haunted by his recurring dream of the Destroyer who will one day lay waste to his village. Then Spanish colonial slavers from the island of Hispaniola arrive on the shores of the Southeast, lands that have been home to the Muskogee people for generations. Calling Crow and another brave are taken and bound into slavery. Life in the gold pits and slave camps is humiliating and brutal, but Calling Crow refuses to let them break his spirit. Aided by a kindly priest, Calling Crow vows to learn the language and ways of an overwhelmingly powerful enemy in order to eventually save his own people. But first he must regain his own freedom.

    She's engaged to Seth Ballantine, a member of the National Guard's 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team, and he's returned from Iraq severely wounded. Jane hasn't seen him for nearly a year, and with trepidation, she heads to the VA hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, where he is being treated.Seth isn't happy to see her. He'd asked her not to come. He wants to end the relationship. But Jane loves him, and despite his injury, she's determined to convince him that they can have a life together. Her faith has never been strong, yet she hopes God will answer her prayers and tell her what to do.Beautifully written, Travelers Rest takes readers on a journey through pain and tragedy to a place of hope and redemption.

    They hid, waging their own private war against Hitler’s tyrannical, and murderous reign. Among these Resistance Fighters, there were groups of Romany people (gypsies).“The Heart of A Gypsy” is a spellbinding love story filled with Romance, and spiced with the magic of the Gypsy culture. It takes place in Poland during the time of the Third Reich, while World War Two was raging. This is a tale of a people who would rather die, than surrender their freedom.Enter into a little known world, where only a few have traveled before… The world of the Romany.If you enjoy romance, secret magical traditions, riveting action, and steamy sex….you will love “The Heart of A Gypsy.”

    The project that was meant to provide an escape for Becker instead becomes a gripping glimpse into the human drama that unfolded during the Nazi occupation and seems to live on in midnight disturbances and bizarre acts of vandalism.