Search:

The forgotten girls : a memoir of friendship and lost promise in rural America / by Potts, Monica,author.;
Includes bibliographical references."Growing up gifted and poor in small-town Arkansas, Monica and Darci became fast friends. The girls bonded over a shared love of reading and learning, even as they navigated the challenges of their declining town and tumultuous family lives--broken marriages, alcohol abuse, and shuttered stores and factories. They pored over the giant map in their middle school classroom, tracing their fingers over the world that awaited them, vowing to escape. In the end, Monica got out, but Darci, along with the rest of their circle of friends, did not. Years later, working as a journalist covering poverty, Monica discovered what she already intuitively knew about the women in Arkansas: Their life expectancy had steeply declined--the sharpest such fall in a century. Most painfully, her once talented and ambitious best friend was now a single mother of two, addicted to meth and prescription drugs, jobless and nearly homeless. What had happened in the years since Monica had left? Why had she escaped while Darci hurtled toward what Monica fears will be a tragic end? What was killing poor white women--and would Darci survive her own life?"--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Potts, Monica; Potts, Monica.; Female friendship; Poor women; Rural poor; Women drug addicts; Women journalists;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Valley of the Birdtail : an Indian reserve, a white town, and the road to reconciliation / by Sniderman, Andrew Michael Stobo,1983-author.; Sanderson, Douglas,1971-author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."A heartrending true story about racial injustice, residential schools and a path forward Divided by a beautiful valley and 150 years of racism, the Waywayseecappo reserve and the town of Rossburn have been neighbours nearly as long as Canada has been a country. Their story reflects much of what has gone wrong in relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians. It also offers, in the end, an uncommon measure of hope. In the town of Rossburn, once settled by Ukrainian immigrants, the average family income is near the national average and more than a third of adults have graduated from university. By contrast, the average family on the Waywayseecappo reserve lives below the national poverty line and less than a third of adults have graduated from high school, with many living in the shadow of the residential school system. Valley of the Birdtail is about how these two communities became separate and unequal--and what it means for the rest of us. The book follows multiple generations of two families and weaves their experiences within the larger story of Canada. It is a story with villains and heroes, irony and idealism, racism and reconciliation. A story with the ambition to change the way people think about Canada's past, present, and future."--
Subjects: First Nations; First Nations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Home for erring and outcast girls : a novel / by Kibler, Julie,author.;
"In turn-of-the-twentieth-century Texas, the Berachah Home for the Redemption of Erring Girls is an unprecedented beacon of hope for young women consigned to the dangerous poverty of the streets by birth, circumstance, or personal tragedy. Built in 1903 on the dusty outskirts of Arlington, a remote dot between the red-light districts of Dallas and Fort Worth, the progressive home bucks public opinion by offering faith, training, and rehabilitation to prostitutes, addicts, unwed mothers, and "ruined" girls without forcibly separating mothers from children. When Lizzie Bates and Mattie McBride meet there-- one sick and abused, but desperately clinging to her young daughter, the other jilted by the beau who fathered her ailing son-- they form a friendship that will see them through unbearable loss, heartbreak, difficult choices, and ultimately, diverging paths. A century later, Cate Sutton, a reclusive university librarian, uncovers the hidden histories of the two troubled women when she stumbles upon the cemetery on Berachah's former grounds. She begins to comb through the home's archives in university's library. Pulled by an indescribable connection, Cate confronts her own heartbreaking past, and to reclaim the life she thought she had forever let go of."-- Dust jacket flap.
Subjects: Historical fiction.; Unmarried mothers; Women; Reformatories for women; Female friendship; Librarians;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

A man of honor / by Bradford, Barbara Taylor,1933-author.; prequel to:Bradford, Barbara Taylor,1933-Woman of substance.;
"The prequel to Barbara Taylor Bradford's New York Times bestselling and dazzling saga A Woman of Substance. Opening five years before the start of A Woman of Substance, A Man of Honor begins with 13-year-old Blackie O'Neill facing an uncertain future in rural County Kerry. Orphaned and alone, he has just buried his sister, Bronagh, and must leave his home to set sail for England, in search of a better life with his mother's brother in Leeds. There, he learns his trade as a navvy, amid the grand buildings and engineering triumphs of one of England's most prosperous cities, and starts to dream of greater things ... And then, high on the Yorkshire moors, in the mists of a winter morning he meets a kitchen maid called Emma Harte. In A Man of Honor, the true Blackie O'Neill is revealed. For the first time, readers discover his story: his tumultuous life, the obstacles facing him, the desire he has to throw off the impotence of poverty and move up in the world. Like his friend Emma, he is ambitious, driven, disciplined, and determined to make it to the top. And like Emma Harte, he is an unforgettable character for the millions who loved the book"--
Subjects: Domestic fiction.; Historical fiction.; Businessmen; Irish; Man-woman relationships; Orphans; Women household employees;
Available copies: 2 / Total copies: 2
unAPI

City of flickering light / by Fay, Juliette,author.;
"It's July 1921, "flickers" are all the rage, and Irene Van Beck has just declared her own independence by jumping off a moving train to escape her fate in a traveling burlesque show. When her friends, fellow dancer Millie Martin and comedian Henry Weiss, leap after her, the trio finds their way to the bright lights of Hollywood with hopes of making it big in the burgeoning silent film industry. At first glance, Hollywood in the 1920s is like no other place on earth-- iridescent, scandalous, and utterly exhilarating-- and the three friends yearn for a life they could only have dreamed of before. But despite the glamour and seduction of Tinseltown, success doesn't come easy, and nothing can prepare Irene, Millie, and Henry for the poverty, temptation, and heartbreak that lie ahead. With their ambitions challenged by both the men above them and the prejudice surrounding them, their friendship is the only constant through desperate times, as each struggles to find their true calling in an uncertain world. What begins as a quest for fame and fortune soon becomes a collective search for love, acceptance, and fulfillment as they navigate the backlots and stage sets where the illusions of the silver screen are brought to life" --
Subjects: Historical fiction.; Motion picture industry; Burlesque (Theater); Silent films; Friendship; Nineteen twenties;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Ripe : a novel / by Etter, Sarah Rose,author.;
Includes bibliographical references."A year into her dream job at a cutthroat Silicon Valley startup, Cassie finds herself trapped in a corporate nightmare. Between the long hours, toxic bosses, and unethical projects, she also struggles to reconcile the glittering promise of a city where obscene wealth lives alongside abject poverty. Ivy League grads complain about the snack selection from a conference room with a view of houseless people bathing in the bay. Startup burnouts leap into the paths of commuter trains and men literally set themselves on fire in the streets. Though isolated, Cassie is never alone. From her earliest memory, a miniature black hole has been her constant companion. It feeds on her depression and anxiety, its size changing in relation to her distress. The black hole watches, but it also waits. Its relentless pull draws Cassie ever-closer as the world around her unravels. When her CEO's demands cross an illegal threshold and she ends up unexpectedly pregnant, Cassie must decide whether the tempting fruits of Silicon Valley are really worth it. Sharp but vulnerable, funny yet unsettling, Ripe portrays one millennial woman's journey through our late-capitalist hellscape and offers a brilliantly incisive look at the absurdities of modern life"--
Subjects: Magic realist fiction.; Psychological fiction.; Novels.; Women; Affective disorders; Internet industry;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Like mother, like mother : a novel / by Rieger, Susan,1946-author.;
"Lila Peirera is a force to be reckoned with. Raised in 1970s Detroit by her abusive father and stern Bubbe after her mother Zelda's early death, Lila escaped the poverty of her childhood to reach stratospheric heights as editor-in-chief of The Washington Globe. There, she exposes political scandals and establishes a reputation as a no-nonsense, straight-talker. At home, she's just as tough, leaving the raising of her three daughters to her kind and loyal husband. Having always craved more of her mother's attention - and having long-questioned the circumstances surrounding her grandmother Zelda's death - Lila's youngest daughter, Grace, writes an autobiographical novel. In her book, Grace speculates that Zelda never died, rather, she abandoned her children, forcing Lila to become the hard-edged, dispassionate woman Grace grew up with. Grace's book is her attempt to make sense of her mother, but she could never have imagined that Lila would die shortly after its publication. Lila leaves Grace a posthumous directive: find out the truth about what really happened to Zelda. Zigzagging between Washington, D.C., Detroit, and New York City, and probing the truths that all families attempt to hide between generations, Like Mother, Like Mother is a smart, lively, and deeply moving novel about the inescapability of genetic inheritance"--
Subjects: Domestic fiction.; Novels.; Family secrets; Mothers and daughters;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

A two-spirit journey : the autobiography of a lesbian Ojibwa-Cree elder / by Chacaby, Ma-Nee,1950-author.; Plummer, Mary Louisa,author.;
Includes bibliographical references."A Two-Spirit Journey is Ma-Nee Chacaby's extraordinary account of her life as an Ojibwa-Cree lesbian. From her early, often harrowing memories of life and abuse in a remote Ojibwa community riven by poverty and alcoholism, Chacaby's story is one of enduring and ultimately overcoming the social, economic, and health legacies of colonialism. As a child, Chacaby learned spiritual and cultural traditions from her Cree grandmother and trapping, hunting, and bush survival skills from her Ojibwa stepfather. She also suffered physical and sexual abuse by different adults, and in her teen years became alcoholic herself. At twenty, Chacaby moved to Thunder Bay with her children to escape an abusive marriage. Abuse, compounded by racism, continued, but Chacaby found supports to help herself and others. Over the following decades, she achieved sobriety; trained and worked as an alcoholism counsellor; raised her children and fostered many others; learned to live with visual impairment; and came out as a lesbian. In 2013, Chacaby led the first gay pride parade in Thunder Bay. Ma-Nee Chacaby has emerged from hardship grounded in faith, compassion, humour, and resilience. Her memoir provides unprecedented insights into the challenges still faced by many Indigenous people."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Chacaby, Ma-Nee, 1950-; Lesbians; Indigenous elders; Ojibwe; Cree;
Available copies: 3 / Total copies: 3
unAPI

A man of honor [sound recording] / by Bradford, Barbara Taylor,1933-author.; Kelly, Aidan(Actor),narrator.; prequel to:Bradford, Barbara Taylor,1933-Woman of substance.[sound recording].; Macmillan Audio (Firm),publisher.;
Read by Aidan Kelly."The prequel to Barbara Taylor Bradford's New York Times bestselling and dazzling saga A Woman of Substance. Opening five years before the start of A Woman of Substance, A Man of Honor begins with 13-year-old Blackie O'Neill facing an uncertain future in rural County Kerry. Orphaned and alone, he has just buried his sister, Bronagh, and must leave his home to set sail for England, in search of a better life with his mother's brother in Leeds. There, he learns his trade as a navvy, amid the grand buildings and engineering triumphs of one of England's most prosperous cities, and starts to dream of greater things ... And then, high on the Yorkshire moors, in the mists of a winter morning he meets a kitchen maid called Emma Harte. In A Man of Honor, the true Blackie O'Neill is revealed. For the first time, readers discover his story: his tumultuous life, the obstacles facing him, the desire he has to throw off the impotence of poverty and move up in the world. Like his friend Emma, he is ambitious, driven, disciplined, and determined to make it to the top. And like Emma Harte, he is an unforgettable character for the millions who loved the book"--
Subjects: Audiobooks.; Domestic fiction.; Historical fiction.; Businessmen; Irish; Man-woman relationships; Orphans; Women household employees;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Hope Blooms : plant a seed, harvest a dream / by Wade, Mamadou,1997-author.;
"There is an old saying that it takes a village to raise a child, but Jessie Jollymore has experienced through the youth of Hope Blooms, an inner city initiative she founded that engages at-risk youth, that sometimes it takes the children to raise the village. A dietitian who worked in inner city health for 15 years, Jollymore witnessed the challenges people face every day with food security, isolation, discrimination, and poverty. An idea bloomed of creating sustainable, youth-driven micro-economies: growing local food systems, growing social enterprises, and mentoring youth to become leaders of change. This led to over 50 youth ages 6 to 18 leading the way in growing over 3,000 pounds of organic produce yearly for their community, building innovative outdoor classrooms, and building a successful Fresh Herb Dressing social enterprise, with 100% of proceeds going toward growing food, and scholarships for youth. In this inspiring, vibrant book, the youth behind Hope Blooms tell the story of the social enterprise they built from the soil up, the struggles of "creating something from nothing," successfully navigating the world of business, and ultimately building resilience and leaving behind a legacy. Includes youth's words of wisdom, stories, and poetry, and over 75 colour photos."--
Subjects: Recipes.; Mentoring; New business enterprises; Problem youth; Produce trade; Social entrepreneurship;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI