Parenting, parenthood: advice, topics and issues Books

Book SynopsisBoys pose special challenges for today’s stressed parents. In Raising A Son, the Eliums embrace the challenges--and the joys--of raising boys with compassion, commitment, experience, patience, and humor. This fully updated and expanded edition follows the psychological development of boys from infancy to young adulthood. Look for new sections on:  • media and violence • the “boy code” • age-appropriate morality • the out-of-control son • triggers for aggression • when and how to get help• coping with guilt • the highly sensitive son• triggers for withdrawal • why he gets overwhelmed • hypersensitivity and ADD • the right role models

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Book SynopsisIf we really want to change the world, let us raise a generation hardwired for peace and innovation from the very beginning. A child whose brain develops its capacity for self-regulation, self-reflection, trust, and empathy is a joy to parent. As an adult, this individual will have the heart to embrace and exemplify peace, the mind to innovate solutions to social and ecological challenges, and the will to enact them. Such a person is never a genetically predetermined given, but the result of dynamic interactions between genetics and environment, beginning before he or she is even born. Foundations for this level of health begin forming during the prenatal period, and some aspects of optimal development are influenced as early as conception. In the midst of our global human, economic and environmental crises, we have overlooked a profound means of cultivating a sustainable, peaceful future: the choices and attitudes with which we bring our children to life and shepherd them into adulthood. With compassion, good humour and engaging examples, this book points out fundamental missteps we have made through the ages, and explains why they're counter-productive. It gives straightforward guidelines using a unique 7-step/7-principle matrix for parents to foster their children's development in a vibrantly growth-oriented fashion, rather than a protection-oriented fashion. This is an essential guide for raising a generation of peacemakers.

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Book SynopsisAre your kids unable to step away from the screens?  Here is a practical, step-by-step guide that gives parents the tools to teach children, from toddlers to teens, how to gain control of their technology use. As children spend more of their time on tablets and smartphones, using apps specially engineered to capture their attention, parents are concerned about the effects of so much technology use--and feel powerless to intervene. They want their kids to be competent and competitive in their use of technology, but they also want to prevent the attention problems that can develop from overuse. Lucy Jo Palladino shows that the key is to help kids build awareness and control over their own attention, and in this guide she gives parents the tools to do exactly that, in seven straightforward, evidence-based steps.      Parents will learn the best practices to guide children to understand and control their attention—and to recognize and resist when their attention is being "snatched." This approach can be modified for kids of all ages. Parents will also learn the critical difference between voluntary and involuntary attention, new findings about brain development, and what puts children at risk for attention disorders.

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Book SynopsisStepmother tells the story of Marianne Lile, who met a man, fell in love, got married, and arrived home from the honeymoon with a new label: stepmom. It was a role she initially embraced—but she quickly discovered she was alone in a difficult situation, with no handbook and no mentor. Here, Lile describes the complexities of the stepmom position, in a family and in the community, and shares her experience wearing a tag that is often misunderstood and weighed down by the numerous myths in society. Candid and poignant, Stepmother is a story of love and like, resentments and exasperation, resignation and hope—and a story, ultimately, of family.Trade Review2021 Next Generation Indie Book Awards:Winner in Motivational 2021 Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Finalist in Self-Help (Non-Fiction) 15th Annual National Indie Excellence Awards:Finalist in Self-Help: General 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards: Winner in Mind & Spirit 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards: Finalist in Instructional & Insightful Non-Fiction “1 of 8 Best Books on Parenting in 2016” —Caring.com "This is a genuine love story that thoughtfully considers all the ways real-world obstacles conspire against a simple romance. A beautiful examination of a family and the sometimes-fragile ligatures that bind its members.” —Kirkus Reviews, selected by Indie Editors as a review in the Oct 2016 issues “As it wends from battling resentment to persevering to redefining the foundations of family, this memoir is an emotionally raw celebration of motherhood and all its forms.” —Working Mother, "21 New Books to Fall for This Autumn" ”Stepping into the role of motherhood is the bravest venture of any woman’s life — but taking on the role of stepmother requires even thicker skin . . . Readers will be left with a renewed and redefined understanding of motherhood and a substantially deeper respect for it.” —Brit+Co "...A straight-shooting, no holds barred description of life as a stepmom and I defy anyone not to get drawn in and hooked, not to experience a whole range of emotions. And I defy anyone who isn’t from a blended family not to sit up and take note, to start realizing that a stepmom is still a mom, still a big part of a family and, above all, she is a human being who deserves respect." —Readers' Favorite, five stars

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Book SynopsisAt the age of thirty-nine, Sarah Kowalski heard her biological clock ticking, loudly. A single woman harboring a deep ambivalence about motherhood, Kowalski needed to decide once and for all: Did she want a baby or not? More importantly, with no partner on the horizon, did she want to have a baby alone? Once she revised her idea of motherhood—from an experience she would share with a partner to a journey she would embark upon alone—the answer came up a resounding Yes. After exploring her options, Kowalski chose to conceive using a sperm donor, but her plan stopped short when a doctor declared her infertile. How far would she go to make motherhood a reality? Kowalski catapulted herself into a diligent regimen of herbs, Qigong, meditation, acupuncture, and more, in a quest to improve her chances of conception. Along the way, she delved deep into spiritual healing practices, facing down demons of self-doubt and self-hatred, ultimately discovering an unconventional path to parenthood. In the end, to become a mother, Kowalski did everything she said she would never do. And she wouldn't change a thing. A story of personal triumph and unconditional love, Motherhood Reimagined reveals what happens when we release what's expected and embrace what's possible.Trade Review“A debut memoir traces one woman’s pregnancy quest…..An insightful read for single-by-choice mothers interested in alternative therapies.” —Kirkus Reviews "Sarah has provided a gift to all women considering becoming a single mother with a beautifully written book that is both achingly painful and humorously honest. In her description of all that she had to go through to ultimately achieve her dream of having a child, her book reads like a novel that you can’t put down. In the end, you realize that the peaks and valleys that she went through were in many ways a metaphor for life, one that she had no idea at the time would prepare her for her new role as a loving and patient mother." —Toni Weschler, MPH, author of Taking Charge of Your Fertility "In Motherhood Reimagined, Sarah Kowalski speaks to a generation of women who were told that they could have it all—only to discover that career success often comes at an emotional and physical cost. This honest, often heartbreaking, but ultimately uplifting memoir chronicles Kowalski’s race against the ticking clock of infertility. The discoveries she makes about her body and mind translate into a compelling and poignant read . . . This book is a must-read for any women who hears the ticking of her biological clock.” —Marika Lindholm ,CEO and founder of ESME.com (Empowering Solo Moms Everywhere) "'In the end, life dashed every expectation I had about how I would become a mother.' And yet, Sarah Kowalski did become a mother—just not in the way she had imagined. In this powerful, timely, and important memoir, Kowalski reveals how difficult it is to become a mother in your forties, and yet also how the journey has served as a beautiful and transformational process for her. Best of all, she helps anyone interested in becoming a parent who might be struggling with infertility, confused about reproductive options and technology, psychologically and emotionally distressed, and/or lost in the vast jungle of online information about IVF, adoption, sperm/ egg donation, and so on to navigate their way to motherhood. This book fills a gap in the literature on modern parenthood by offering wisdom, insight, and practical advice that will help you realize your dreams—one way or another." —Mei Mei Fox, New York Times best-selling author and contributor at Forbes "Motherhood Reimagined is a courageous journey through familiar life lessons. Using her embodied spiritual practice, author Sarah Kowalski faces her demons with vulnerability, humility, humor and insight." —Elena Brower, author of Art of Attention and Practice You “This very readable story of the author’s journey to single motherhood by choice is a must-read for anyone contemplating becoming an SMC. It feels like a good friend is letting you join her on the trip as she shares her ups and downs, disappointments and celebrations. Informative, emotionally moving, and hard to put down.” —Jane Mattes, psychotherapist and Founder Single Mothers by Choice (SMC), author of Single Mothers by Choice “Brave pioneers come in all sizes, shapes, ages and genders. Make no mistake, Sarah Kowalski is one of them. In her courageous memoir she opens up new territory, illuminating fresh possibilities for what it is to be an authentic dignified human being in the midst of probably the most profound life-changing event, becoming a mother, (in her case while being a single woman). She warmly, confidently and firmly draws the reader into the felt experience of all she faced, physically relationally, psychologically, financially and so on. Funny, inspiring, thought-provoking all at once. Sarah holds nothing back and opens up the chance for us to do the same in whatever we are facing in our own lives. A book for anyone living in our time and place.” —James Flaherty, author of Coaching, Evoking Excellence in Others and Founder of New Ventures West, Integral Coaching "Motherhood Reimagined is a fascinating and intimate look inside the world of becoming a modern-day mother. An honest look at the emotional labor and physical challenges that arise on one woman's path to motherhood. Kowalski is relentless in her pursuit of becoming a mother, and grants us passage through her very own thick jungle of neuroses and tangles of self doubt while she bravely sharpens a machete of insight and truth to carve out her own path. A heroic and emotional journey that pulls you in and won't let you go until both the author and reader have found complete surrender." —Madison Young, author of Daddy: A Memoir and The Ultimate Guide to Sex Through Pregnancy and Motherhood “In the years that I've been communicating with Choice Moms, there are two things that stand out as true: 1) We don't realize how difficult it might be to conceive, which is exhausting to discover in our late 30s and 40s; 2) We underestimate our ability as strong-minded women to "get it done," whatever it takes. Sarah is admirably able to openly capture both the vulnerability and the strength of her story of becoming a mother — a journey that never goes according to plan, and that teaches us more about ourselves than we can ever detail on our To Do lists.” —Mikki Morrissette, founder ChoiceMoms.org, and author of Choosing Single Motherhood: The Thinking Woman's Guide “In Motherhood Reimagined Sarah Kowalski has accomplished what most memoir writers can never do. She has written two memoirs seamlessly woven together. One is an amazingly informative story about infertility and what one woman did to get pregnant. You will laugh and cry at Sarah's ability to capture the ups and downs of this saga. But she has also written a narrative about her spiritual struggles that is as interesting as her journey toward motherhood. This is one of those rare books that is not only replete with important information but it might even slip you onto your own path toward enlightenment.” —Roy M Carlisle, Senior Editorial Consultant, The Crossroad Publishing Company “From the moment we meet Sarah Kowalski, a successful corporate attorney ignoring her biological clock, through her passionate quest to overcome infertility, to her early days of solo motherhood, one thing is for sure: nothing will go as planned. But Kowalski proceeds with determination, dissolving every physical and emotional barrier that dares stand in her way. This book is a must-read for anyone charting an unconventional path toward parenthood.” —Cheryl Dumesnil, author of Love Song for Baby X: How I Stayed (Almost) Sane on the Rocky Road to Parenthood "Motherhood Reimagined is a beautifully written book about one woman’s journey to have a baby on her own. It’s an insightful and moving story that will inspire other women who face similar obstacles to becoming a mother. Well worth the read." —Jacqueline Mroz, Journalist and author, Scattered Seeds: In Search of Family and Identity in the Sperm Donor Generation "Kowalski’s emotionally raw descriptions of her struggles will strike a familiar and comforting chord with other would-be parents.” —Clarion, 5 out of 5 "As a fellow single mother by choice, I really enjoyed this memoir. For so many women, we think the road to motherhood will be easy . . . This is an honest book about the path you never think you’ll take, but it’s the one that’s just right." —BookRiot, "Books About Parenting That Tell It Like It Is"

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Book SynopsisIt Never Ends: Mothering Middle-Aged Daughters explores the complex challenges and unexpected rewards of aging mothers in their relationships with their midlife daughters. Based on interviews with women between 65 and 85, it illuminates issues of closeness, distance, longing, and need that arise. Mothers speak openly about the ongoing effects of the past on the present, the cultural, familial, and interpersonal conflicts that remain, and the varied and often invisible ways they continue mothering. As mothers enter the last decades of their lives, their roles with their daughters often shift and change in complicated ways. Now that they are no longer central in caring for them as they once were, many experience a recalibrating of authority, autonomy, and independence. Their courage is apparent as they reflect on the mistakes they’ve made, acknowledge their regrets, and search to come to terms with their relationships as they now are.Trade Review2018 IBPA Ben Franklin Awards Finalist in Psychology 2017 USA Best Book Awards Finalist inHealth: Aging/50+ “An insightful look at the relationships between senior mothers and their middle-aged daughters . . . An important personal and sociological perspective on women’s lives.” —Kirkus Reviews “A brave book, and one that I admire—a book that will help many aging mothers feel less alone and lead to more open exploration, both in literature and in life.” —Ellen Bass, poet and author of Like a Beggar and coauthor of The Courage to Heal “A rich, thoughtful, multi-layered look into the ways that mothers experience their relationships with their middle-aged daughters variously with love, joy, fulfillment, sorrow, anguish, and longing . . . a warm, clearly written, sorely needed exploration of a topic of profound importance.” —Paula J. Caplan, PhD, author of The New Don’t Blame Mother: Mending the Mother-Daughter Relationship and Associate, W. E. B. Du Bois Research Institute, Harvard University “A book to learn from and savor. The complex, nuanced stories of these women’s relationships with their adult daughters over time form the core of this revealing book as the authors probe the mothers’ yearnings for intimacy, issues of distance and alienation, and modes of forgiveness and renewal.” —Joyce Antler, author of You Never Call! You Never Write! A History of the Jewish Mother and Professor Emerita, Brandeis University “An important work. For every second-wave feminist, this book is a continuation of the consciousness started in the 1960s, and an expansive and intimate story for anyone who has been or intends to be a mother.” —Ruth Rosen, author of The World Split Open: How the Modern Women’s Movement Changed America

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Book SynopsisFetish Girl is a provocative, dark, and erotic memoir that tells it like it is. LaVey pulls readers into her evolving journey: dancer to stripper to dominatrix to erotic wrestler to BDSM aficionado—and all of this while being a single mother trying to do right by her son. This true story doesn’t hold back from diving into these subcultures with a keen eye for the kinky, for the sexy, for the power of taking a risk. “Fans of the Fifty Shades series will undoubtedly find much to savor in this ribald, risqué, and captivating remembrance.” —Kirkus ReviewTrade Review2019 Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Finalist in Memoir (Other) “LaVey’s prose has an unfettered honesty as she proudly displays the joys, scars, triumphs, disappointments, and hard-won lessons of her lifestyle. The tone of the narrative is educational and never judgmental or arrogant, allowing readers to understand the author on several different levels...Fans of the Fifty Shades series will undoubtedly find much to savor in this ribald, risqué, and captivating remembrance.” —Kirkus Reviews “Skip Sunday School and read this book instead! Join Bella LaVey on her unflinching journey through the underworld of sex, where the mingling of pleasure and pain reopen the childhood wound of love withheld and eventually lead to healing. Defined by compassion, humor, and violence, Fetish Girl proves that the spiritual path can be one of adventure, startling discovery, and large men in pink tutus. A moving and courageous book, full of outcasts and deviants--the kind of folks Jesus called friends.” —Donna M. Johnson, author of Holy Ghost Girl: A Memoir “Rich and evocative, Fetish Girl is an unflinching look at learning to live life on one’s own terms while making peace with the past. Bella LaVey compellingly renders the hard choices a single mother makes to support her child and define herself. At its center, this book celebrates healing, connection, and the power we have to shift our narratives.” —Charlotte Gullick, author of By Way of Water “Experience an unforgettable sense of discovery about your own erotic potential as you connect with Fetish Girl. Deep pain that Lavey turns from the inside out gives her permission to be 'sexy, fearless, and wild both in life and art—my life became my art.' You’re right there with her. Smell the ocean, the smoky clubs, the leather. Feel the raw energy that drives a force she embraces since childhood: 'Live free or die'.” —Susan Kaye, Ph.D. Sexologist “The storms LaVey weathers in Fetish Girl are bright, violent, and mostly internal: from breast milk to BDSM, sex work, drug addiction and single motherhood, she ultimately lap dances her way into a life she can truly prize.” —Antonia Crane, author of Spent “Bella is no nonsense, a hustler, and a savvy business woman. She jumps into everything she tries with an enviable amount of enthusiasm, whether it be working as a stripper or dominatrix, female wrestling, raising her kid, or starting a relationship. She makes mistake after mistake, but she owns it. Although her heart is always in the right place (her son), she is often distracted by sex, violence, relationships, drugs, relationships and relationships. There were lots of relationship problems that she wasn’t able to anticipate . . . Bella’s story resonates with truth, and that is invaluable in this day and age.” —NetGalley, 4 out of 5

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Book SynopsisIn this award-winning memoir, you’ll meet Hannah, a young girl who has a promising future until she suddenly spirals into sex, drugs, alcohol, and other high-risk behaviors. Off the Rails: One Family’s Journey Through Teen Addiction narrates Hannah’s decline and subsequent treatment through the raw, honest, compelling voices of Hannah and her shocked and desperate mother―each one telling her side of the story. Fearing that they couldn’t keep their teen safe, Hannah’s parents make the agonizing decision to send her to a wilderness program, and then to residential treatment. Off the Rails tells the story of the two tough years Hannah spent in three separate programs―and ponders the factors that contributed to her ultimate recovery. Written for families facing challenges and those that wish to support them, Off the Rails is an inspiring story of love, determination, and a last-resort intervention, as a mother and daughter lose, and then try to find each other again.

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Book SynopsisNegotiating collaboratively in your committed relationship is a new way to achieve individual and marital goals, to resolve differences equitably, to manage conflicts, to create and sustain a satisfying sex life, to figure out where you stand on fidelity, to think about having and caring for kids, and to have committed careers and a satisfying family life. Negotiating collaboratively supports you and your partner seeing yourselves simultaneously as individuals and as a couple—enhances the sense of “being in this together” while also having individual life plans. Negotiating collaboratively supports valuing each other as individuals before seeing each other as husband and wife, and allows modern couples to challenge old gender trappings that can undermine the achievement of balance in a committed relationship. Straightforward and accessible, A Marriage of Equals offers couples a road map for how to negotiate collaboratively around the most essential aspects of a committed relationship—and, in doing so, create the equitable marriage they long for.Trade ReviewIncluded in BookBub's "10 Books That Could Actually Improve Your Life" and Parade's "10 Books That Will Help Declutter Your Entire Life, Marie Kondo-Style "ThirdPath Institute works with couples who aspire to create A Marriage of Equal. This book will now become the resource I strongly recommend to help them achieve their goals. In a world with very little guidance, and lots of obstacles, Catherine Aponte provides straight-forward advice to help couples stay on track to creating healthy and happy relationships. First describing the beauty and strength of collaborative negotiation, then explaining how conflict often escalates to self-protective strategies that derail creative problem solving, A Marriage of Equals then outlines a number of antidotes to avoid this problem. Thank you, Dr. Aponte for creating such an important resource for couples who are looking for a new and better way to live happily every after." —Jessica DeGroot, Founder and President, The Third Path Institute (www.thirdpath.org) “What a pleasure to find such an insightful, helpful, and realistic discussion of what it means to have an equal marriage and what it takes to create one. If you are seeking an egalitarian partnership and a set of concrete strategies to achieve it, this is the book to read.” —Kathleen Gerson, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology and Collegiate Professor of Arts and Science at New York University, and author of An Unfinished Revolution: How a New Generation is Reshaping Family, Work, and Gender in America “A Marriage of Equals does what no other book available does—speak to today’s heterosexual couples who want to have an egalitarian marriage. In clear and respectful language, Catherine Aponte walks men and women through having thoughtful conversations that address gendered expectations and stereotypes that still plague couples no matter how much they want to live differently, and gives them the tools to make that happen.” —Vicki Larson, award-winning journalist and co-author of The New I Do: Reshaping Marriage for Skeptics, Realists and Rebels “Based on decades of clinical practice and supervision, [Aponte] has written a wise book that is theoretically sound (neo-cognitive and interpersonal), with fresh insights on sex and monogamy. As a practicing psychologist who specializes in couples, I will enthusiastically recommend this accessible, compelling and relevant book to any couple—especially young couples!” —Scott Salathe, Psy.D., Salathe Behavior Health, Individual and Couples Therapy, Clinical Faculty School of Professional Psychology, Spalding University, Louisville, Ky. “I loved the Takeaways at the end of each chapter and wish every self-help style book did this. You discuss many different points that can strengthen a marriage. I liked the idea of collaborative negotiation and how positively it can impact all marriages. Couples do need to recognize that to flourish as a couple, they need to flourish as individuals. This book made me realize how critical self-reflection is, the importance of identifying insecurities and working through them, and how we need understand each other’s concerns.” —Greg W., Construction Company Project Manager, lives in Louisville, Kentucky. “Dr. Aponte’s ‘collaborative negotiation’ approach has the potential to really shift dialogues and dynamics in couples just beginning their partnerships, as well as help ‘seasoned’ couples who are stuck in conflict. The book is a challenge to all of us to not let societally proscribed gender roles dictate our expectations of ourselves and our partners in marriage. In short, this book answers the question about how to create a more equitable, just society related to gender. Her work gives me hope that such societal change is possible. She has certainly impacted how I think about and engage in marriage, and I trust everyone who reads her book will be impacted as well. I would recommend the book to couples considering marriage, those wishing to enhance their marriage, as well as to therapists who work with couples in distress and academicians who are teaching the next generation of therapists how to do couples work.” —Brenda Futrell Nash, Ph.D. Director of Clinical Training, School of Professional Psychology, Spalding University, Louisville, KY.

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Book SynopsisAn Amazon Bestseller Jo’s mother, Babe, liked to drink, dance, and stay up very late. When the husband she adored went on sales calls, she waited for him in the parking lot, embroidering pillowcases. Jo grew up thinking that the last thing she wanted was to be like her mother. Then it dawned on her that her own happiness was derived in large part from lessons Babe had taught her. Her mother might have had tomato aspic and stewed rhubarb in her fridge, while Jo had organic kale and almond milk in hers, but in more important ways they were much closer in spirit than Jo had once thought. At a turbulent time in America, Never Sit If You Can Dance offers uplifting lessons in old-fashioned civility that will ring true with mothers, daughters, and their families. Told with lighthearted good humor, it’s a charming tale of the way things used to be—and probably still should be.

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Book Synopsis“With sensitivity and candor, Baraf examines mental illness, immigration, forgiveness, and community—all framed within the precocity of her life’s circumstances.” —Ms. Magazine “At the Narrow Waist of the World is a compelling account of what it is like to live through turbulence and come out on the other side.” —Foreword Clarion Review “Deftly written, impressively candid, insightfully presented, At the Narrow Waist of the World is an extraordinary and memorable read.” —Midwest Book Review “By the end of At the Narrow Waist of the World, we have come to know, admire and even cherish its author in a way few memoirists manage to achieve . . . . ” —Jewish Journal Raised by a lively family of Spanish Jews in tropical and Catholic Panama of the 1950s and 1960s, Marlena depends on her many tíos and tías for refuge from the difficulties of life, including the frequent absences of her troubled mother. As a teenager, she pulls away from this centered world—crossing borders—and begins a life in the United States very different from the one she has known. This lyrical coming-of-age memoir explores the intense and profound relationship between mothers and daughters and highlights the importance of community and the beauty of a large Latin American family. It also explores the vital issues of mental illness and healing, forgiveness and acceptance. At the Narrow Waist of the World examines the author's gradual integration into a new culture, even as she understands that her home is still—and always will be—rooted in another place.Trade Review2019 Foreword INDIES Finalist in Adult Nonfiction: Autobiography & Memoir “With sensitivity and candor, Baraf examines mental illness, immigration, forgiveness, and community—all framed within the precocity of her life’s circumstances.” —Ms. Magazine “At the Narrow Waist of the World is a compelling account of what it is like to live through turbulence and come out on the other side.” —Foreword Clarion Review “Deftly written, impressively candid, insightfully presented, At the Narrow Waist of the World is an extraordinary and memorable read.” —Midwest Book Review “By the end of At the Narrow Waist of the World, we have come to know, admire and even cherish its author in a way few memoirists manage to achieve . . . . ” —Jewish Journal

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Book SynopsisBonnie S. Hirst is a woman of faith who has always believed that everything in life works out for the best. So, when her daughter, Lacey, is accused of a terrible crime, although Bonnie is devastated, she is also convinced that God will protect her family from harm. He always has, after all. But when her prayers are not answered and Lacey is sentenced to life in prison, Bonnie questions every aspect of her existence: her beliefs, her role as a mother, and the purpose behind the events that are tearing her family apart. As Bonnie and her family navigate the complicated labyrinth of the legal system, she struggles with the duality of presenting a façade of being okay on the outside and screaming for air on the inside. Finally, she is guided to ask for help—a concept previously foreign to her—and is rewarded with a bubble of friends who surround her and her family with love. Poignant, hopeful, and ultimately uplifting, Test of Faith is the story of one mother’s spiritual journey of awareness—and her discovery that even when your life seems to have radically veered off course, there are always blessings to be found, if you can just keep your heart open enough to receive them.Trade Review“Deeply personal, heart-breaking but ultimately inspiring story, Test of Faith: Surviving My Daughter's Life Sentence is an extraordinary and deftly presented account that is an inherently compelling read from cover to cover.” —Midwest Book Review

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Book SynopsisWhen Janice Morgan, a divorced college professor living in a small town in Kentucky, learns that her son has been arrested for possession of a stolen firearm and drug charges, she feels like she’s living a nightmare. Dylan’s turbulent period as a college student in Cincinnati before this should have warned her, but it’s only now that she realizes how far he has drifted into substance abuse and addiction. As Dylan passes through the judicial system and eventually receives a diversion to drug court, Morgan breathes a sigh of relief—only to find that she, too, has been sentenced right along with him. In the months to follow, she leads a double life: part of it on campus, the rest embarking upon what she calls “rescue missions” to help Dylan stay in the program. But resilience, dark humor, and extreme parenting can only carry you so far. Eventually, Morgan discovers that she needs to gain a deeper understanding of the bipolar and addiction issues her son is dealing with. Will each of them be able to learn fast enough to face these complexities in their lives? Clearly, Dylan isn’t the only one who has recovery work to do.

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Book SynopsisIn the United States, more than 15 million women are parenting children on their own, either by circumstance or by choice. Too often these moms who do it all have been misrepresented and maligned. Not anymore. In We Got This, seventy-five solo mom writers tell the truth about their lives—their hopes and fears, their resilience and setbacks, their embarrassments and triumphs. Some of these writers’ names will sound familiar, like Amy Poehler, Anne Lamott, and Elizabeth Alexander, while others are about to become unforgettable. Bound together by their strength, pride, and—most of all— their dedication to their children, they broadcast a universal and empowering message: You are not alone, solo moms—and your tenacity, courage, and fierce love are worthy of celebration.

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Book SynopsisApproximately 1 in 7 women suffer from postpartum depression after having a baby. Many more may experience depression during pregnancy, postpartum anxiety, OCD, and other mood disorders. Postpartum depression is, in fact, the most common pregnancy-related complication—yet confusion and misinformation about this disorder are still widespread. And these aren’t harmless myths: the lack of clarity surrounding mothers’ mental health challenges can have devastating effects on their well-being and their identities as mothers, which too often leads to shame and inadequate treatment. In this one-of-a-kind anthology, thirty mothers break the silence to dispel myths about postpartum mental health issues and explore the diversity of women’s experiences. Powerful and inspiring, Mothering Through the Darkness will comfort every mother who’s ever felt alone, ashamed, and hopeless—and, hopefully, inspire her to speak out.

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Book SynopsisSouthern women are inundated with rules starting early—from always wearing sensible shoes to never talking about death to the dying, and certainly not relying on song lyrics for marriage therapy. Nevertheless, Katherine Snow Smith keeps doing things like falling off her high heels onto President Barack Obama, gaining dubious status as the middle school “lice mom,” and finding confirmation in the lyrics of Miranda Lambert after her twenty-four-year marriage ends. Somehow, despite never meaning to defy Southern expectations for parenting, marriage, work, and friendship, Smith has found herself doing just that for over four decades. Luckily for everyone, the outcome of these “broken rules” is this collection of refreshing stories, filled with vulnerability, humor, and insight, sharing how she received lifelong advice from a sixth-grade correspondence with an Oscar-winning actress, convinced a terminally ill friend to write good-bye letters, and won the mother of all “don’t give up” lectures by finishing a road race last (as the pizza boxes were thrown away). Rules for the Southern Rule Breaker will resonate with every woman, southern or not, who has a tendency to wander down the hazy side roads and realizes the rewards that come from listening to the pull in one’s heart over the voice in one’s head.Trade Review2020 CIBA Hearten Book Awards 1st Place Winner “Katherine Snow Smith’s sure voice, deft pen, hilarious sense of humor and always original slant on things offer the reader much to enjoy in these delightful essays—and also much to identify with, especially for another Southern girl. Her delightful, humorous accounts always convey a deeper truth—about self-image, especially for women; about raising children; about an early death in the family and the later loss of a friend; about politics and belief—about life itself. Snow Smith’s own lifetime of writing and observant living is distilled in this kind, original, and compulsively readable book.” —Lee Smith, author of Fair and Tender Ladies and winner of the Robert Penn Warren Award for Fiction and the Southern Book Critics Circle Award “Katherine’s ability to observe her life from the balcony while it plays out on stage is a gift to her readers. Her keen perspective—which is unapologetically southern and chock-full of grit, forgiveness, and humor—reminds us that we all aspire to love well and to laugh until our face hurts.” —Charla Muller, author of Pretty Takes Practice: A Southern Woman’s Search for the Real Meaning of Beauty “Rules for the Southern Rulebreaker is a warm, genuine memoir about living fully beyond the bounds of others’ expectations.” —Foreword Reviews “Smith writes of going her own way with humor and honesty, encouraging readers not to take themselves too seriously and find value in friends and family. Readers of essays from Sloane Crosley, Samantha Irby, or Bailey White will laugh out loud.” —Booklist

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Book SynopsisFly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants mom Jennifer Magnuson knew her spoiled suburban brood needed a wake-up call—she just couldn’t find the time to fit one in. But when her husband was offered a position in India, she saw it for what it was: the perfect opportunity for her family to unplug from their over-scheduled and pampered lives in Nashville and gain some much-needed perspective. What she didn’t realize was how much their time in India would transform her as well. A combination of Eat, Pray, Love and Modern Family, with a dash of Chelsea Handler thrown in for good measure, Peanut Butter and Naan is Magnuson’s hilarious look at the chaos of parenting against a backdrop of malaria, extreme poverty, and no conveniences of any kind—and her story of rediscovering herself and revitalizing her connection with those she loves the most. In India, after years of parenting under a cloud of anxiety, Magnuson found a renewed sense of adventure and fearlessness (a discovery that was totally worth the many months of hiding anti-malarial medication in her kids’ morning oatmeal), and started to become the mother she’d always hoped to be. Hers is a story about motherhood that will not only make you laugh and nod with recognition—it will inspire you to fall in love with your own family all over again.Trade Review“In this thoughtful, often hilarious book, Magnuson crosses parenting cultures with her husband and five children, gaining insight into herself, and ultimately finding her tribe. A powerful debut, Magnuson has the gift of conversational prose laced with a quick wit.” —Marcelle Soviero, Editor in Chief Brain, Child: The Magazine for Thinking Mothers “Jennifer Hillman-Magnuson places readers in India through evocative details and scenes, and introduces us to characters who breathe. We journey with her as she navigates mothering five children in this vastly different culture, and it is an entertaining, illuminating and enjoyable ride.” —Erin Byrne, award-winning writer of travel, fiction, poetry and film “Peanut Butter and Naan is equal parts hilarious, moving and inspiring. Jennifer Hillman Magnuson's journey through India with her brood makes me want to hop on a plane with my kids and live life to the fullest!” —Deva Dalporto, MyLifeSuckers.com “Honest, hilarious, heart-warming. Jennifer Hillman-Magnuson avoids a universal set of motherhood do's and don'ts and tells instead a refreshing tale of how far she was willing to go - literally across the globe - to teach her children, and ultimately herself, what it is to live a meaningful life.” —Glenys Loewen-Thomas, contributor to Cup of Comfort book series

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