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Not Trying: Infertility, Childlessness, and Ambivalence
by Kristin J. WilsonOne message that comes along with ever-improving fertility treatments and increasing acceptance of single motherhood, older first-time mothers, and same-sex partnerships, is that almost any woman can and should become a mother. The media and many studies focus on infertile and involuntarily childless women who are seeking treatment. They characterize this group as anxious and willing to try anything, even elaborate and financially ruinous high-tech interventions, to achieve a successful pregnancy. But the majority of women who struggle with fertility avoid treatment. The women whose interviews appear in Not Trying belong to this majority. Their attitudes vary and may change as their life circumstances evolve. Some support the prevailing cultural narrative that women are meant to be mothers and refuse to see themselves as childfree by choice. Most of these women, who come from a wider range of social backgrounds than most researchers have studied, experience deep ambivalence about motherhood and non-motherhood, never actually choosing either path. They prefer to let life unfold, an attitude that seems to reduce anxiety about not conforming to social expectations.
Not Trying: Infertility, Childlessness, and Ambivalence
by Kristin J. WilsonOne message that comes along with ever-improving fertility treatments and increasing acceptance of single motherhood, older first-time mothers, and same-sex partnerships, is that almost any woman can and should become a mother. The media and many studies focus on infertile and involuntarily childless women who are seeking treatment. They characterize this group as anxious and willing to try anything, even elaborate and financially ruinous high-tech interventions, to achieve a successful pregnancy. But the majority of women who struggle with fertility avoid treatment. The women whose interviews appear in Not Trying belong to this majority. Their attitudes vary and may change as their life circumstances evolve. Some support the prevailing cultural narrative that women are meant to be mothers and refuse to see themselves as childfree by choice. Most of these women, who come from a wider range of social backgrounds than most researchers have studied, experience deep ambivalence about motherhood and non-motherhood, never actually choosing either path. They prefer to let life unfold, an attitude that seems to reduce anxiety about not conforming to social expectations.
Not What I Expected
by Rita Eichenstein Daniel J. SiegelA pediatric neuropsychologist presents strategies to help parents of special-needs children navigate the emotional challenges they face.As diagnosis rates continue to rise for autism, ADHD, learning disabilities, and other developmental differences, parents face a maze of medical, psychological, and educational choices - and a great deal of emotional stress. Many books address children's learning or behavior problems and advise parents what they can do to help their kids, but until Not What I Expected: Help and Hope for Parents of Atypical Children there were no books that explain what the parents are going through - and how they can cope with their own emotional upheaval - for their own sake, and for the wellbeing of the whole family. With compassion, clarity, and an emphasis on practical solutions, Dr. Rita Eichenstein's Not What I Expected: Help and Hope for Parents of Atypical Children walks readers through the five stages of acceptance (similar to the stages of grief, but modified for parents of special-needs kids). Using vivid anecdotes and suggestions, she helps readers understand their own emotional experience, nurture themselves in addition to their kids, identify and address relationship wounds including tension in a marriage and struggles with children (special-needs and neurotypical), and embrace their child with acceptance, compassion and joy.
Not with My Daughter!: A Dad?s Guide to Screening Dates and Boyfriends
by Terry VaughanEvery father experiences the anxiety of knowing that one day his daughter is going to do the inevitable and start dating. In addition to cleaning his shotgun, he can become her date's worst nightmare by also arming himself with the body language and interview skills necessary to figure out who the potential boyfriend is in less than ten minutes.In Not with My Daughter!, Terry Vaughan gives dads vital information on how to decode the gestures, facial expressions, and verbal statements of all prospective boyfriends. With two daughters of his own rapidly coming of age, Vaughan realized he couldn't water-board every new boyfriend who came through his door. He came up with strategy that all dads can use to effectively "interview" and accurately assess the new men in their daughters' lives. With Terry's help, dads will learn how to Master the checklist of items that will accurately assess the boyfriend within seconds Recognize how his utilization of space and volume could be indicators of aggression Uncover words that are used to hide something and those that reflect sincerityBased on his extensive military training, Vaughan provides dads with the skills and information they need to interpret what kinds of signals boyfriends are sending out, and then do something smart and positive with the information.
Not Without Laughter
by Langston HughesA leading figure of the Harlem Renaissance, poet Hughes wrote only one novel - but it is an incredibly powerful and moving work. This 1930s coming-of-age tale, which unfolds amid an African-American family in rural Kansas, explores the dilemmas of life in racially divided society.
Not Without My Sister
by Kristina Jones Celeste Jones Juliana BuhringKristina, Celeste, and Juliana were all born into the Children of God cult, and from as early as three years old were mistreated and used as sexual beings. They were denied access to formal schooling, forced to wander the streets begging for money, and were mercilessly beaten for "crimes" as harmless as reading an encyclopedia. After being separated from each other and their mothers and forced to live in various missions with multiple foster parents, the sisters eventually managed to escape. In this startling exposé, they have come together to reveal in horrific detail the group that has destroyed the lives of so many. Their intertwining stories reveal a community spread throughout the world whose legacy of anorexia, depression, drug abuse, suicide, and even murder are impossible to erase. Together, the sisters found a strength that finally enabled them to uncover and free themselves from the shadows of their past.
Not Without You
by Harriet EvansHOW CAN THE WHOLE WORLD KNOW YOU WHEN YOU HARDLY KNOW YOURSELF? Sophie Leigh's real name is Sophie Sykes. But she hasn't been called that for years, not since she became an A-list movie star. Living in Los Angeles, she can forget all about the life she left behind in England. But she's lost something of herself in the process, too. Glamorous 1950s starlet Eve Noel had none of Sophie's modern self-confidence. She didn't choose her name. A Hollywood producer did. In fact, he made all her decisions--what to wear, when to smile, who to love. Right up until the day she simply vanished from the spotlight. No one knows where she went, or why. As Sophie's perfect-on-the-outside world begins to crumble, her present collides with Eve's past. She must unravel the mystery around her idol's disappearance before it's too late for them both.und Eve's disappearance to save them both--but is she already too late?Blending her trademark wit, emotional insight, and gift for characterization this is Harriet Evans at her best.
Not Working
by Lisa OwensFor fans of HBO's Girls, Bridget Jones's Diary and Where'd You Go, Bernadette?, a laugh-out-loud, irreverent debut novel about a woman trying--not to have it all--but to figure it all out. Twenty-something Londoner Claire has just resigned from her job without a plan--and although she is pleased, her family and friends can't seem to understand. Before too long, she manages to push away both her safe, steady, brain-surgeon boyfriend and her difficult but loving mother. Quirky, questioning Claire hilariously navigates and comments on the emotions and minutiae of day-to-day life as only someone without the distractions of a regular routine can. Brilliantly observed, touching and wildly funny, Not Working is the story of a life unraveling and a novel that skewers the questions that have been keeping us all awake at night.From the Hardcover edition.
Not Working: A Novel
by Lisa OwensIn the tradition of Jennifer Close's Girls in White Dresses comes a "a pin-sharp, utterly addictive debut" (Vogue U.K.) told in vignettes that speak to a new generation not trying to have it all but hoping to make sense of it all. "Full of crackling, voice-of-a-generation observations."--Glamour (U.K.) "A deadpan comic debut for the procrastination generation."--The GuardianClaire Flannery has just quit her office job, hoping to take some time to discover her real passion. The problem is, she's not exactly sure how to go about finding it. Without the distractions of a regular routine, Claire confronts the best and worst parts of herself: the generous, attentive part that visits her grandmother for tea and cooks special meals for her boyfriend, Luke, and the part that she feels will never measure up and makes regrettable comments after too many glasses of wine. What emerges is a candid, moving portrait of a clear-eyed heroine trying to forge her own way, a wholly relatable character whose imperfections and uncanny observations highlight what makes us all different and yet inescapably linked. Praise for Not Working "Lots of people say they laugh out loud when they read a book they love. But in the case of Not Working, I really did laugh out loud, often and raucously. Claire Flannery is quite simply the most charming lost soul I've ever met. If you've ever felt like an impostor in your own life, been driven crazy by your mother, or worried that you were out of step with your friends, Not Working is your next great read."--Elisabeth Egan, author of A Window Opens "Lisa Owens's eye for life's mundane details makes for a novel that is hilarious, sharp, and true. Not Working is simply delicious."--Kaui Hart Hemmings, author of The Descendants and The Possibilities "Not Working is as close to the tenderness and funniness and uniqueness of real life as books get. It makes me feel like I did when I found Adrian Mole decades ago--like I know this person on the page or, in a way, am them. It's really very rare, and very special."--David Whitehouse, author of Mobile Library "Not Working is absolutely brilliant, insanely funny, but also moving and true. Lisa Owens is one of those writers on whom nothing is lost."--Nathan Filer, Costa Award-winning author of The Shock of the Fall "I loved Lisa Owens's Not Working, a bright, funny novel of daily life suffused with real melancholy."--Marie Phillips, author of Gods Behaving Badly and The Table of Less Valued Knights "Lisa Owens is a comedy genius and a serious, skillful, and beautiful writer. Not Working is so clever and original, pithy and poignant, capturing the voice of a bright, lost generation. It's not often you find a kindred spirit in a book, but I found one here."--Emma Jane Unsworth, author of Animals "Owens has a natural warmth and wit that leap off the pages. . . . Sharp, incisive and laugh-out-loud funny."--The Observer"Owens deploys a deft sense of humor to help us laugh at the incongruities of contemporary upper-middle-class crisis."--Kirkus ReviewsFrom the Hardcover edition.
Not Yet Drown'd: A Novel
by Peg Kingman"A swashbuckler of a story…Kingman's flashes of wit enliven an engaging yarn." —Boston GlobeCatherine MacDonald is astonished to receive from her twin brother—who had apparently drowned a year earlier—a kashmiri shawl, a caddy of unusual tea, and a sheaf of traditional bagpipe music in his handwriting. When had he sent it? And why had he retitled a certain tune "Not Yet Drown'd"?Irresistibly, she is drawn to India to search for answers. With her stepdaughter and their two maids she follows an obscure trail of clues, and in the course of their journey they meet botanists, smugglers, engineers, soldiers, and artists—as well as love and betrayal. As they grow to understand certain Scottish and Indian paintings and music, they discover unsuspected truths about the man they are seeking.
Not Your Parents' Marriage: Bold Partnership for a New Generation
by Jerome Daley Kellie DaleyFind God’s Unique Shape for Your Marriage It’s not just the two of you and God. The truth is, you bring your family into your relationship in more ways than you realize. Yet God has plans for your marriage that differ from the expectations of your parents’ generation. Looking at the past, how do you know what to jettison and what to keep as your own? Jerome and Kellie Daley have wrestled with the tough questions about which spouse is responsible for what and why, how last night’s fight could help you love each other more, and what itreallymeans to leave your parents and become full partners in marriage. As you practice the freeing biblical truths about marriage, you discover that many of the practicalities that worked for previous generations are a poor fit in your relationship. Not Your Parents’ Marriageexamines God’s dreams for marriage today, based on the scriptures and including honest dialog, fun questionnaires, and space for journaling. It’s time to honor what God has done in the past while unlocking the creativity and passion that are unique to your relationship. Whether you are engaged, married, or somewhere on the way, God wants to do a new thing inyourrelationship. Are you ready to experience it? Includes discussion questions for couples or groups.
The Notations of Cooper Cameron (No Series)
by Jane O'ReillyEleven-year-old Cooper Cameron likes things to be in order. When he eats, he chews every bite three times on each side. Sometimes he washes his hands in the air with invisible water. He invented these rituals after the death of his beloved grandfather to protect others he loves from terrible harm. But when Cooper's behavior drives a wedge between his parents, and his relationship with his older sister, Caddie, begins to fray, his mother's only solution is to take Cooper and Caddie to the family cabin for the summer. Armed with a collection of rocks, his pet frog, and his notebook, Cooper vows to cure himself and bring his damaged family back together.
The Note
by Angela Elwell HuntEn route from New York's LaGuardia Airport to Tampa International, Flight 848 bursts into flames and crashes into Tampa Bay. All 261 passengers and crew are killed. For one week, newspaper columnist Peyton MacGruder and her fellow reporters cover one of the nation's worst air disasters in years with overwhelming and numbed emotions. Then a woman Peyton's never met gives her a plastic bag that has washed up behind her house. The bag contains a note, almost certainly from the doomed flight, with a simple yet wrenching message: T- I love you. All is forgiven. -Dad. Combing through the passenger list to find the victims whose children's names begin with T, Peyton is determined to deliver the note to its proper owner. A quest which will prove as important to Peyton's own life as to the mysterious T.
A Note In Music: A Novel (Virago Modern Classics #243)
by Rosamond LehmannGrace Fairfax lives with her dull, conventional husband Tom in a grey manufacturing town in the north of England. At thirty-four she finds that her external life of dreary routine fails to match up to her lush, wistful and dreamy internal life. Norah, her energetic and chaotic friend, is equally settled in her own marriage to an irritable university professor.Then Hugh Miller and his sister Claire descend upon the quiet town. On all four, the hypnotic charm of these two visitors exerts an enchanting spell. And after their departure, life - having been violently disrupted - will never be quite the same again . . .
The Notebook Girls
by Julia Baskin Lindsey NewmanJulia, Lindsey, Sophie, and Courtney enter Stuyvesant, New York Citys most prestigious public high school, in September of 2001, just days before they watch the Twin Towers crumble outside their classroom window. A bond of friendship is struck, and yet demanding class schedules, extracurricular activities, and busy social lives make it hard for them to stay in touch. This prompts the four girls to start The Notebook, a collective journaling project that allows them to express their frustrations, triumphs, and everyday encounters inside an ordinary composition book. Their experiences are not unusual: They get cut from teams, get bad grades, win debates, get rebuffed by boyfriends, plan surprise parties, smoke, drink, experiment with sex, and argue with their parents. But it is the raw honesty of these page-turning exchanges that will captivate readers, involving them in both their individual and group stories, and laying bare what it is really like to be a teenager today.
Notes for the Everlost: A Field Guide to Grief
by Kate InglisPart memoir, part handbook for the heartbroken, this powerful, unsparing account of losing a premature baby will speak to all who have been bereaved and are grieving, and offers inspiration on moving forward, gently integrating the loss into life.Inglis’s story is a springboard that can help other bereaved parents—and anyone who has experienced wrenching loss—reflect on emotional survival in the first year; dealing with family, friends, and bystanders post-loss; the unique survivors’ guilt, feelings of failure, and isolation of bereavement; and the fortitude of like-minded community and small kindnesses. Inglis’s unique voice—at once brash, irreverent, and achingly beautiful—creates a nuanced picture of the landscape of grief, encompassing the trauma, the waves of disbelief and emptiness, the moments of unexpected affinity and lightness, and the compassion that grows from our most intense chapters of the human experience.
Notes from a Coma
by Mike MccormackRescued from the squalor of a Romanian orphanage, and adopted by the rural community of west Mayo, J. J. O'Malley should have grown up happy. The boy has no gift for it, though, and his new life has a brutal way of giving him plenty to be unhappy about. After a sudden tragedy, J. J. suffers a catastrophic mental breakdown. Unable to live with himself, he volunteers for an improbable government project which has been set up to explore the possibility of using deep coma as a future option within the EU penal system. When his coma goes online the nation turns to watch, and J. J. is quickly elevated to the status of cultural icon. Sex symbol, existential hero, T-shirt philosopher his public profile now threatens to obscure the man himself behind a swirl of media profiles, online polls, and EEG tracings. Five narrators his father, neighbour, teacher, public representative, and sweetheart tell us the true story of his life and try to give some clue as to why he is the way he is now: floating in a maintained coma on a prison ship off the west coast of Ireland. Brilliantly imagined and artfully constructed merging science fiction with an affectionate portrait of small town Ireland Notes from a Coma is both the story of a man cursed with guilt and genius and a compassionate examination of how our identities are safeguarded and held in trust by those who love us.
Notes from a Liar and Her Dog
by Gennifer CholdenkoLiving in a family with two perfect sisters and parents who just don't get her, Ant MacPherson finds it easier to lie. After all, the only one who appreciates her is her dog, Pistachio. But when a concerned teacher sees the truth behind Ant's lies, it seems as though she might be in for a change . . .
Notes From An Accidental Band Geek
by Erin DionneFrom the author of Models Don’t Eat Chocolate Cookies comes a middle grade novel hailed by Linda Urban as "A perfect blend of laugh out loud funny and real-world heart. ” Elsie Wyatt wants to be an orchestra superstar, like her dad and grandfather. The first step? Get into a super-selective summer music camp. In order to qualify, Elsie must "expand her musical horizons” by joining her high school’s marching band. Not only does this mean wearing a plumed hat and polyester pants, but it also means she can’t play her own instrument, can’t sit down, and can’t seem to say the right thing to anyone...let alone Jake, the cute trumpet player she meets on the first day. Plus, everything she does seems to cause a disaster. Surviving marching band is going to be way harder than Elsie thought. For fans of funny, realistic, every-girl novels like Wendy Mass’s 13 Gifts and Lisa Greenwald’s My Life in Pink & Green. "It has humor, heart, and a touch of romance that will provide ample fodder for booktalks. ”-School Library Journal "Marching-band kids everywhere will enjoy this believable celebration of a life-changing, musical rite of passage. ”-Kirkus .
Notes from an Exhibition
by Patrick GaleSet in Penzance, Cornwall, NOTES FROM AN EXHIBITION is an intuitive, heart-breaking and unputdownable novel of artistic compulsion, marriage, and the secrets left behind. It was a Richard & Judy bestseller.'Poised and pitch-perfect throughout' Mail on SundayCelebrated artist Rachel Kelly dies alone in her Penzance studio, after decades of struggling with the creative highs and devastating lows that have coloured her life. Her family gathers, each of them searching for answers. They reflect on lives shaped by the enigmatic Rachel - as artist, wife and mother - and on the ambiguous legacies she leaves them, of talent, torment and transcendent love.'This book is complete perfection' Stephen Fry
Notes from an Exhibition
by Patrick GaleA bestselling 'Cornish' novel, NOTES FROM AN EXHIBITION is a moving, intuitive novel of artistic compulsion, marriage, and the secrets left behind. It was a Richard & Judy bestseller.'Poised and pitch-perfect throughout' Mail on SundayCelebrated artist Rachel Kelly dies alone in her Penzance studio, after decades of struggling with the creative highs and devastating lows that have coloured her life. Her family gathers, each of them searching for answers. They reflect on lives shaped by the enigmatic Rachel - as artist, wife and mother - and on the ambiguous legacies she leaves them, of talent, torment and transcendent love.
Notes from an Exhibition: A Novel
by Patrick GaleFour siblings discover truths about their late mother, a troubled artist—and themselves—in this &“uplifting, immensely empathetic novel&” (The Guardian). Gifted painter Rachel Kelly lived a life of manic highs and suicidal lows. Her husband, a gentle, devout Quaker, gave her a safe haven where she could create and be herself, but her mental illness still took its toll on her family. Now, after a fatal heart attack, a retrospective of Rachel&’s work attracts art lovers who marvel at her skill, but her grown children are busy coping with the shattering effects of her death—and her life. Her eldest son has been bequeathed a letter that shakes him to his core. Another son reflects on the years he spent trying not to upset his mother&’s delicate equilibrium while negotiating his own relationship with his lover. The youngest son was much beloved by Rachel, for reasons not everyone knows. And Rachel&’s only daughter seems to have inherited her talent—but also her demons. Set against the wild and beautiful landscape of Cornwall, this novel by the acclaimed author of A Place Called Winter and A Perfectly Good Man shifts back and forth in time and place as it moves effortlessly between characters, offering a revealing window into the symbiotic relationship between genius and mental illness and the effects both have on maternal love and the creation of enduring art. In the words of Armistead Maupin, &“few writers have grasped the twisted dynamics of family the way Gale has. There&’s really no one he can&’t inhabit, understand, and forgive.&”
Notes from the Blender
by Brendan Halpin Trish CookDeclan loves death metal—particularly from Finland. And video games—violent ones. And internet porn—any kind, really. He goes to school with Neilly Foster and spends most of his classroom time wondering what it might be like to know her, to talk to her, maybe even to graze against her sweater in the hallway. Neilly is an accomplished gymnast, naturally beautiful, and a constant presence at all the best parties (to which Declan is never invited). She's the queen of cool, the princess of poker face, and her rule is uncontested—or it was until today, when she's dumped by her boyfriend, betrayed by her former BFF Lulu, and then informed she's getting a new brother—of the freaky fellow classmate variety. Declan's dad is marrying Neilly's mom. Soon. Which means they'll be moving in together.
Notes Left Behind
by Brooke Desserich Keith Desserich“Elena has left behind a story of resilience, hope and most of all, love. We can’t help but take her into our hearts, and carry the best of her into our own lives.”—Jeffrey Zaslow, coauthor of The Last LectureNotes Left Behind by Brooke and Keith Desserich began as a journal they kept after their five-year-old daughter Elena was diagnosed with brain cancer and given just 165 days to live. As poignant and inspiring as Randy Pausch’s The Last Lecture, it is the story of the courage of a truly remarkable little girl who accomplished so much in so little time—and of her parents’ love and dedication to their child and their family. New York Times bestselling author James Patterson was profoundly moved by Elena’s beautiful life and Notes Left Behind, calling it, “a stunning story that teaches us how precious children, family, and life are, and that the sacrifices we make are worth it. I won’t forget the Desserich family, and neither will you.”
Notes on a Marriage
by Marie LavoieFans of Marian Keyes, Elizabeth Gilbert and Helen Fielding will find themselves nodding along to this portrait of a middle-aged woman emerging from the ruins of one life, and starting over again. ___________'After twenty-five years my marriage just blew up in my face. On a good day, I take a sledgehammer to my house between swigs of white wine. I'm a total mess.' Diane's humiliation comes thick and fast. For starters, her husband is having an affair with a younger woman. Of course he is. But what's worse is that he's blaming her. 'You've become boring,' he says. And that's that. Or is it? With the help of her best friend, Claudine, Diane embarks on a journey to discover a new life.Witty, sharp and emotionally rich, this is a story about freedom and identity and how it's never too late to put yourself first. ___________Praise for Notes on a Marriage: 'Writing that makes us fall in love from the very first page' Huffington Post Quebec 'Fresh, funny, and a lot of fun to read' Consumed by Ink 'Wacky, scathing humour, good dialogue and assuredly lively' Le Devoir 'With great humour and tenderness, Marie Lavoie recounts Diane's journey to regain trust in both herself and the people around her . . . A piercing commentary on gender, marriage, and the nuances of self-love' Toronto Life 'Funny and absurd, but underlined with a tenderness and poignancy that will have you rooting for happily ever after after that' Pickle Me This'A great read. Relatable and a page turner, I'd recommend this book' Reader review