NCW Libraries

Depicts the personal struggles of the McCaskill family in 1930s Montana as they face a forest fire, the coming of age of fourteen-year-old Jick, rodeos, and community dances.

"Jefferson Bethke delivers a powerful critique of the nuclear family ideal and calls for a sweeping new paradigm that brings not only longed-for stability but also radical blessings to the world"--

"Jason Bennett is a suburban dad who owns a court-reporting business, but one night, his life takes a horrific turn. He is driving his family home after his daughter's field hockey game when a pickup truck begins tailgating them, on a dark stretch of road. Suddenly two men jump from the pickup and pull guns on Jason, demanding the car. A horrific flash of violence changes his life forever. Later that awful night, Jason and his family receive a visit...

Following the unexpected death of her father, eighteen-year-old Layken is forced to be the rock for both her mother and her younger brother. Outwardly, she appears resilient and tenacious, but inwardly, she's losing hope. One young man brings change to all of this. After moving across the country, Layken meets her attractive twenty-one-year-old neighbor who has an intriguing passion for slams. Within days of their introduction, Will and Layken form...

"Families include one child and one parent, multiple parents and grandparents with many children, and everything in between. Explore diverse families and the many ways that they care for one another"--

"Tonight nineteen-year-old William Lavery is dressed for success, his first black-tie do. It's the Midlands Chapter of the Institute of Embalmers Ladies' Night Dinner Dance, and William is taking Gloria in her sequined evening gown. He can barely believe his luck. But as the guests sip their drinks and smoke their post-dinner cigarettes a telegram delivers news of a tragedy. An event so terrible it will shake the nation. It is October 1966 and a landslide...

"Grayson Hawthorne was raised as the heir apparent to his billionaire grandfather, taught from the cradle to put family first. Now the great Tobias Hawthorne is dead and his family disinherited, but some lessons linger. When Grayson's half-sisters find themselves in trouble, he swoops in to do what he does best: take care of the problem--efficiently, effectively, mercilessly. And without getting bogged down in emotional entanglements. Jameson Hawthorne...

"The Garretts take their first and last family vacation in the summer of 1959. They hardly ever venture beyond Baltimore, but in some ways they have never been farther apart. Mercy has trouble resisting the siren call of her aspirations to be a painter, which means less time keeping house for her husband Robin. Their teenage daughters, steady Alice and boy-crazy Lily, could not have less in common. Their youngest, David, is already intent on escaping...

"Maren Walker dreams of finding her own little door. The doors have appeared to the people in her mountain town for as long as anyone can remember, though no one knows where they lead. Maren's mother was the last to go through, leaving nine-year-old Maren behind. Now living with her grandmother, Maren deals prescription medication to pay their bills and nurture her dream of becoming a nurse. When she faces the possibility of escaping her struggles...

The most trying times in a child's life are during pre-teen and teen years. Most parents and teachers may be ill equipped to deal effectively with adolescents. They are not prepared for the remarkable changes that occur. The physical changes are most noticeable, but the intellectual, social and emotional changes can confound us. The ideas cover preparing for adolescence, the reality of confronting puberty, the family unit, and how to help teens confront...