E My Name Is Emily

Emily just wants everything to be perfect—is that too much to ask? When Emily’s parents got divorced two years ago, her dad still made time to see her and the twins as much as possible. But since he moved to Chicago with Marcia, his phone calls have started getting less and less frequent and it feels like he might as well live at the North Pole. And if that weren’t bad enough, her mom seems ready to start a new family, too! Emily knows that it’s impossible to get her parents back together, but that doesn’t mean she’s ready for her mom to start dating—and she’s ready to put a stop to it. So, in effort to sabotage her mom’s new relationship, Emily pretends to go out with a boy at school who she’s not even sure she likes. Now, she’s going to have to deal with two unwanted relationships!

For a smart girl, Emily is planning to do something really stupid . . . She's mad at her mother. So what else is new? As a typical teenager, Emily wants a life, but her mother wants to ruin everything! She even treats the family dog better than she does Emily. Besides, she's not even her real mother - Emily and Taylor, her brother, were adopted. As Emily begins the search for her birth mother, she reaches a dead end, but then a man sends her an email that changes her life. She wants to meet him secretly. Her friend Alex warns her not to go because he thinks that cyberspace is full of creeps. But Emily doesn't listen to him and heads into serious trouble. Frantic, Alex tries his best to save her. Will he be too late?

My Name Is Emily Marie shares a journey of memory and loss from author Margot Sharp, based upon the relationship between her mother and granddaughter. Little Emily Marie was named after her great-grandmother and feels close to her. But it is confusing to her when her great-grandma does not seem to remember her at all. She wonders how that could happen; she loves her great-grandma so much. Emily Marie's natural curiosity helps her to accept the changes in her great-grandma and to find fun ways to spend their time together, like running down the hall at the nursing home while Great-Grandma rolls along beside her in her wheelchair. Through the whimsical and tender illustrations of Judy Stead, we realize that it is okay that Great-Grandma cannot remember and that she is sometimes confused about simple things. My Name Is Emily Marie is a sweet and inspiring story that speaks straight to the heart and opens the door to beginning a conversation about memory loss in the elderly with anyone.

Emily and her father play a game to set things right when she returns home after running away.

In a culture obsessed with happiness, this wise, stirring book points the way toward a richer, more satisfying life. Too many of us believe that the search for meaning is an esoteric pursuit—that you have to travel to a distant monastery or page through dusty volumes to discover life’s secrets. The truth is, there are untapped sources of meaning all around us—right here, right now. To explore how we can craft lives of meaning, Emily Esfahani Smith synthesizes a kaleidoscopic array of sources—from psychologists, sociologists, philosophers, and neuroscientists to figures in literature and history such as George Eliot, Viktor Frankl, Aristotle, and the Buddha. Drawing on this research, Smith shows us how cultivating connections to others, identifying and working toward a purpose, telling stories about our place in the world, and seeking out mystery can immeasurably deepen our lives. To bring what she calls the four pillars of meaning to life, Smith visits a tight-knit fishing village in the Chesapeake Bay, stargazes in West Texas, attends a dinner where young people gather to share their experiences of profound loss, and more. She also introduces us to compelling seekers of meaning—from the drug kingpin who finds his purpose in helping people get fit to the artist who draws on her Hindu upbringing to create arresting photographs. And she explores how we might begin to build a culture that leaves space for introspection and awe, cultivates a sense of community, and imbues our lives with meaning. Inspiring and story-driven, The Power of Meaning will strike a profound chord in anyone seeking a life that matters.

A variety of animals parade by in this familiar jumprope alphabet song. The antics never quite quit as a parade of animals sell their wares in this wildly illustrated version of the familiar alphabet ditty and ball-bouncing game. Young readers will delight in meeting such characters as Barbara, the bear with balloons for sale in Brazil; New York Ned, the newt who owns a noodle emporium, and finally the zipper-selling Zambian zebra and zebu, Zelda and Zach.

Danita knows that nobody’s perfect, but it’s never easy to admit that might include your own parents Danita’s parents love to remind their daughter that she weighed less than a loaf of bread when she was born, but now that she’s almost fourteen and perfectly healthy, Danita really wishes they’d give her some space. Obviously still in love and completely devoted to their family, even Danita’s best friend, Laredo, thinks Mr. and Mrs. Merritt are the ideal parents, but Danita can’t help wanting them to focus on anything—or anyone—else. Danita’s wish is about to come true, but is it more than she bargained for?

A one-of-a-kind teacher shares her creative ideas for helping students get the most out of their school year. Illustrations.

The book focuses on individuals writing in the '90s, but also includes 12 classic authors (e.g., Mark Twain, Louisa May Alcott, J.R.R. Tolkien) who are still widely read by teens. It also covers some authors known primarily for adult literature (e.g., Stephen King) and some who write mainly for middle readers but are also popular among young adults (e.g., Betsy Byars). An affordable alternative to multivolume publications, this book makes a great collection development tool and resource for author studies. It will also help readers find other books by and about their favorite writers.