Penny Cagan, a longtime resident of New York City, catches the emotions and details of modern urban life. Walking through this collection of finely tuned poems are street-thug teenagers, immigrant grandparents, Isaac Singer, Herman Munster, a lecherous professor, a family, dear friends, and the millions of others working and living in New York. Seen through the quiet and sometimes lonely eye of the writer, the places and characters of New York come alive through her very personal experiences.

And Today I Am Happy

Literature & Fiction

Cagan, Penny

Poetry

Chatoyant

William Minor had been married (to the same woman!) for thirty-eight years when he started his collection of short pieces entitled Our Peasant Life. Minor spares neither wit nor compassion when he explores marriage, love, household, family, and neighbors in this charming work. In Moker, Minor turns his life around, imagining that he hadn't pursued the woman he would love the rest of his life, or the passion for music that has kept him focussed. His alter ego, Moker, pads about an empty apartment in bare feet, divorced (he didn't find the right woman!), imagines a daughter he never had, and finds peace through acceptance and humor. Minor's skillfully crafted poems weave a story of life, longing, and loving in the years beyond youth. Some Grand Dust is an extraordinary portrait of ordinary lives.

Some Grand Dust

Minor, William

Embellishments is Virginia Chase Sutton's first book. Full of raw, powerful reflections from her life, Sutton tackles the demons of her childhood and their continuing presence in her adult life. Yet this finely written verse avoids the heaviness of "issue" writing --- the magically realized experiences in these pages offer us a story worth reading.

Embellishments

Sutton, Virginia Chase

In this chapter book for young readers or readaloud, seven-year-old Hanna has just moved to a new town from her home in the mountains. Hanna struggles to make friends, first with two girls across the street who go to school, then with children in her new homeschooling cooperative. Hanna also has challenges at home, learning to live with her grandmother and adjust to her new life now that Dad is attending college. Over nine months, Hanna forms a bond with her grandmother, gains new friends, and feels like a true homeschooler.

Hanna, Homeschooler

Children's Books

Wessling, Suki

Growing Up & Facts of Life

Why a goal-setting book just for homeschoolers? Unlike traditional students, homeschoolers aren't part of a "herd." Our education isn't handed to us all set up and ready to go. Successful teen homeschoolers don't just do what they are supposed to--they do what they need to in order to achieve their own goals. 
When teens continue to depend on their parents to set and achieve homeschooling goals, tension can arise in the household. The teens feel--quite rightly--that it's their education and they should be involved in the decision-making. But unless teens learn to identify their goals, it's hard for them to work with their parents in making educational decisions. 
This book isn't for parents--it's for you, a homeschooled teen who wants to own your education and take responsibility for your future.

Homeschool with Confidence: a goal-setting guide for teens

Teen & Young Adult

Social Issues