Search:

Bread of angels / by Smith, Patti,author.;
Includes bibliographical references."A radiant new memoir from beloved artist and writer Patti Smith. A post-World War II childhood unfolds in a condemned housing complex described in Dickensian detail: consumptive children, vanishing neighbors, an infested rat house, and beguiling book of Irish fairytales. We enter the child's world of the imagination where Smith, the captain of her loyal and beloved sibling army, vanquishes bullies, communes with tortoises and turns pennies into gold. The most intimate of Smith's suite of memoirs, Bread of Angels takes us from her teenage years where the first glimmers of art and romance take hold. Arthur Rimbaud and Bob Dylan emerge as creative heroes and role models as Patti starts to write poetry, then lyrics, merging both into the iconic songs and records such as Horses and Easter, Dancing Barefoot and Because the Night. Then she leaves it all behind to marry her one true love, Fred Sonic Smith, with whom she creates a mystical life of devotion and adventure on a canal in St. Clair shores, Michigan with ancient willows and fulsome pear trees. She creates a room of her own, furnished with a pillow of Moroccan silk, a Persian cup, inkwell and fountain pen. The couple spend nights in their landlocked Chris-Craft studying nautical maps and charting new adventures as they start their family. As Smith loses those around her, grief, loss, and gratitude are braided through years of caring for her children, rebuilding her life and, finally, writing again. The one constant in a life driven by artistic fire and the power of the imagination to transform the mundane into the beautiful, the commonplace into the magical, and pain into hope. In the final pages, we meet Patti on the road, the vagabond who travels to commune with herself, who lives to write and writes to live"--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Smith, Patti.; Poets, American; Rock musicians; Women rock musicians;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

They left us everything : a memoir / by Johnson, Plum;
After the death of the author's senile father, and cantankerous ninety-three-year-old mother, she and her three younger brothers must empty and sell the beloved family home. Twenty-three rooms full of history, antiques, and oxygen tanks. The author remembers her loving but difficult parents who could not have been more different: the British father, a handsome, disciplined patriarch who nonetheless could not control his opinionated, extroverted Southern-belle wife who loved tennis and gin gimlets. The task consumes her, becoming more rewarding than she ever imagined. Items from childhood trigger memories of her eccentric family growing up in a small town on the shores of Lake Ontario in the 1950s and 60s. But unearthing new facts about her parents helps her reconcile those relationships with a more accepting perspective about who they were and what they valued. LSC
Subjects: Johnson, Plum; Caregivers; Adult children of aging parents; Aging parents; Parent and adult child.;
© 2014., Penguin Canada Books,
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Advanced parenting : advice for helping kids through diagnoses, differences, and mental health challenges / by Fradin, Kelly,MD,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."Any parent or teacher who has ever walked out of a concerning appointment with their child's doctor or teacher has experienced a heady mix of emotions--fear, love, confusion, concern, sadness, and perhaps even anger. While every parent hopes for a healthy child, the reality is that children face many common challenges, including medical issues like ADHD, asthma, food allergies, autism, school failure, depression, and developmental delays, throughout their formative years. As the role of a parent becomes one of a caregiver, it can be overwhelming for parents and children alike, particularly if money, time, access, or any combination of those are in short supply. As a balm, Dr. Kelly Fradin offers Advanced Parenting, based on her experience as a complex-care pediatrician. In this crucial guide, parents will find empathy and support as well as evidence-based practical guidance. Of greatest import is the need for tools with which to manage the emotional stress that comes from having a child who deviates from the norm, as well as coping with uncertainty and navigating the business of care. Readers will discover ways to optimize the outcomes for their family and make their day-to-day life easier. Advanced Parenting will help families from the beginning of their journey, beginning with recognizing when a child needs help, accepting the implications of a challenge, obtaining a correct diagnosis, learning about the issue, building a treatment team and coming up with a comprehensive plan. Dr. Fradin explores how a child struggling can affect the entire family dynamic including the parent's relationships and the siblings overall well-being, and with her experience as a complex care pediatrician, she will help parents avoid common mistakes. Parents will feel seen, supported, and better prepared to be both a parent and a caregiver"--
Subjects: Parenting.; Parents of problem children.; Problem children;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Under currents [sound recording] / by Roberts, Nora,author.; LaVoy, January,narrator.; Macmillan Audio (Firm),publisher.;
Read by January LaVoy."From the #1 New York Times bestselling author, a novel about the power of family to harm--and to heal. Within the walls of a tasteful, perfectly kept house in North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains, young Zane Bigelow feels like a prisoner of war. Strangers--and even Zane's own aunt across the lake--see his parents as a successful surgeon and his stylish wife, making appearances at their children's ballet recitals and baseball games. Zane and his sister know the truth: There is something terribly wrong. As his father's violent, controlling rages--and his mother's complicity--become more and more oppressive, Zane counts the years, months, days until he can escape. He looks out for little Britt, warning her: Be smart; Be careful. In fear for his very life, he plays along with the insidious lie that everything is fine, while scribbling his real thoughts in a secret journal he must carefully hide away. When one brutal, shattering night finally reveals cracks in the façade, Zane begins to understand that some people are willing to face the truth, even when it hurts. As he grows into manhood and builds a new kind of family, he will find that while the darkness of his past may always shadow him, it will also show him what is necessary for good to triumph--and give him strength to draw on when he once again must stand up and defend himself and the ones he loves ..."--
Subjects: Thrillers (Fiction); Audiobooks.; Domestic fiction.; Family violence; Adult child abuse victims;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Halal sex : the intimate lives of Muslim women in North America / by Benembarek, Sheima,author.; Eltahawy, Mona,1967-writer of foreword.;
"This unprecedented and compassionate glimpse into the sex lives of seven Muslim women across North America brings a hushed conversation out into the open. Sheima Benembarek's parents never gave her the "the talk." When she left Morocco to go to university in Montreal, she was completely unprepared to navigate an open and active sex life outside of marriage, considered haram within the Muslim world. Now, many years later, she's all too aware of how common this is among immigrants and the children of immigrants living on a more sexually liberated continent. She set out to eliminate the taboo, interviewing Muslims from of a variety of locations, ethnicities, Islamic sects, and socioeconomic backgrounds about a host of topics, from masturbation and hymens to sex work and BDSM. Halal Sex is the culmination of these conversations, distilled into seven rich and compelling stories. Among the subjects are Hind, a niqabi in a polygynous marriage; Azar, a non-binary trans Sufi; Taslim, a virgin in her forties struggling to erect healthy boundaries with her family; and Eman, a lesbian stand-up comic in an interfaith marriage. With great care and thoughtfulness, Benembarek reveals a tapestry of diverse Islam and of individuals forging a path forward, each in their own way: overcoming shame, filling in educational gaps, balancing familial pressures, pushing back against sexism and patriarchy, and--ultimately--prioritizing their own happiness and pleasure."--
Subjects: Muslim women; Muslim women; Muslim women;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Summer romance / by Monaghan, Annabel,author.;
"Benefits of a summer romance: It's always fun, always brief, and no one gets their heart broken. Ali Morris is a professional organizer whose own life is a mess. Her mom died two years ago, then her husband left, and she hasn't worn pants with a zipper in longer than she cares to remember. No one is more surprised than Ali when the first time she takes off her wedding ring and puts on pants with hardware-overalls count, right?-she meets someone. Or rather, her dog claims a man for her in the same way he claimed his favorite of her three children: by peeing on him. Ethan smiles at Ali like her pants are just right-like he likes what he sees. He looks at her as if she's a version of herself she hasn't been in a long while. The last thing newly single mom Ali needs is to make her life messier, but there's no harm in a little summer romance. Is there?"--
Subjects: Romance fiction.; Novels.; Man-woman relationships; Separated women; Single mothers;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Of the sun : a poem for the land's first peoples / by González, Xelena.; Kewageshig, Emily.;
"Of The Sun is a loving homage to the Indigenous peoples of this land--both in González's beautiful, lyrical poem and Kewageshig's warm, vibrant Anishinaabe-styled artwork. A wonderful read aloud you must add to bookshelves at home, at school, and in community!" - Traci Sorell, award-winning author of We Are Grateful Otsaliheliga and At The Mountain's Base A powerful and hopeful ode to Indigenous children. Indigenous. Native. On this land, you may roam. Child of the sun, on this land, you are home. Of the Sun is an uplifting and mighty poem that wraps the Indigenous children of the Americas in reassuring words filled with hope for a brighter future and reminders of their bond and importance to the land. Each page fills them with pride and awe of their cultural heritage and invites them to unite and inspire change in the world. Paired with powerful art reflecting cultures of various Indigenous Nations and Tribes, the poem offers all readers a sense of the history and majesty of the land we live on and how we can better care for ourselves and the world when we recognize our connection to the land and to each other. Written by Xelena González, poet and activist in the Native and Latinx communities, and an enrolled member of the Tap Pilam Coahuiltecan Nation Bold illustrations by prominent Anishinaabe illustrator Emily Kewageshig depict landscapes across the Americas and children from many backgrounds Endnotes provide more information on Native and Indigenous unity and activism in younger generations.
Subjects: Poetry.; Picture books.; Stories in rhyme.; Indigenous peoples; American poetry;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

The southern book club's guide to slaying vampires / by Hendrix, Grady,author.;
Steel Magnolias meets Dracula in this '90s-set horror novel about a women's book club that must do battle with a mysterious newcomer to their small Southern town, perfect for murderinos and fans of Stephen King. Patricia Campbell's life has never felt smaller. Her husband is a workaholic, her teenage kids have their own lives, her senile mother-in-law needs constant care, and she's always a step behind on her endless to-do list. The only thing keeping her sane is her book club, a close-knit group of Charleston women united by their love of true crime. At these meetings they're as likely to talk about the Manson family as they are about their own families. One evening after book club, Patricia is viciously attacked by an elderly neighbor, bringing the neighbor's handsome nephew, James Harris, into her life. James is well traveled and well read, and he makes Patricia feel things she hasn't felt in years. But when children on the other side of town go missing, their deaths written off by local police, Patricia has reason to believe James Harris is more of a Bundy than a Brad Pitt. The real problem? James is a monster of a different kind--and Patricia has already invited him in. Little by little, James will insinuate himself into Patricia's life and try to take everything she took for granted--including the book club--but she won't surrender without a fight in this blood-soaked tale of neighborly kindness gone wrong.
Subjects: Horror fiction.; Paranormal fiction.; Book clubs (Discussion groups); Middle-aged women; Vampires;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Secondhand wishes / by Staniszewski, Anna.;
Middle-schooler Lexi has always tried to keep the chaos under control by keeping to a carefully planned schedule, but today things have just gone wrong: her little brother is back in the hospital because of his twisted-up insides, she is late for school, and her best friend Cassa is hanging out with the new girl; but when she finds a bag of four wishing stones in the antique shop and wishes that Cassa would stop talking to Marina, and it actually happens...she begins to believe in the magic--and mostly her wishes work, just not quite as anticipated, and suddenly she has new levels of chaos to deal with.LSC
Subjects: Magic; Wishes; Brothers and sisters; Children with disabilities; Best friends; Responsibility;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

The island of sea women : a novel / by See, Lisa,author.;
"A new novel from Lisa See, the New York Times bestselling author of The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, about female friendship and family secrets on a small Korean island. Mi-ja and Young-sook, two girls living on the Korean island of Jeju, are best friends that come from very different backgrounds. When they are old enough, they begin working in the sea with their village's all-female diving collective, led by Young-sook's mother. As the girls take up their positions as baby divers, they know they are beginning a life of excitement and responsibility but also danger. Despite their love for each other, Mi-ja and Young-sook's differences are impossible to ignore. The Island of Sea Women is an epoch set over many decades, beginning during a period of Japanese colonialism in the 1930s and 1940s, followed by World War II, the Korean War and its aftermath, through the era of cell phones and wet suits for the women divers. Throughout this time, the residents of Jeju find themselves caught between warring empires. Mi-ja is the daughter of a Japanese collaborator, and she will forever be marked by this association. Young-sook was born into a long line of haenyeo and will inherit her mother's position leading the divers in their village. Little do the two friends know that after surviving hundreds of dives and developing the closest of bonds, forces outside their control will push their friendship to the breaking point. This beautiful, thoughtful novel illuminates a world turned upside down, one where the women are in charge, engaging in dangerous physical work, and the men take care of the children. A classic Lisa See story--one of women's friendships and the larger forces that shape them--The Island of Sea Women introduces readers to the fierce and unforgettable female divers of Jeju Island and the dramatic history that shaped their lives"--
Subjects: Historical fiction.; Women divers; Female friendship;
Available copies: 2 / Total copies: 3
unAPI