Family Life Nonfiction

Temika and her family are big on recycling paper. Temika and her brother Tyler are ready to argue about where paper comes from–trees or recycled paper. Mom says they’re both right! Dad suggests they make their own paper so that Temika can use it for her Grandma’s birthday card. Mom teaches them how to make homemade paper from scraps of white paper, colored construction paper, and even flowers!

Almost 10 years before Brown vs. Board of Education, Sylvia Mendez and her parents helped end school segregation in California. An American citizen of Mexican and Puerto Rican heritage who spoke and wrote perfect English, Mendez was denied enrollment to a whites-only school. Her parents took action by organizing the Hispanic community and filing a lawsuit in federal district court. Their success eventually brought an end to the era of segregated education in California.

Guy Stuff Feelings: Everything You Need to Know About Your Emotions is full of advice on dealing with the new feelings and emotions that are a part of puberty. Boys will find helpful tips from a pediatrician on identifying, managing, and expressing emotions—from anger to sadness to embarrassment to happiness—in positive ways.

Passing on our faith does not happen passively—it’s something we intentionally pursue with prayer and joy. Yet many of us struggle to know what it looks like to live out a contagious faith in today’s world. We long for spiritual wisdom on how to ignite faith in our children, grandchildren, and others we encounter.

Your words have power! Your words have the power to warm someone's heart, to make someone's spirits soar with confidence, to comfort and heal someone's broken heart. Your words have the power to make someone laugh with delight or cry for joy. You can make a significant difference with your words today - and in future generations. Your expressions of love, care, humor, and life lessons can guide and inspire others. Your quotes, words of wisdom, poems, and stories can outlive you and impact generations to come. In the "Gift of Writing," you will find ideas, tips, and encouragement to share ...

When his father was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, Richard Lui made a tough decision. The award-winning news anchor decided to set aside his growing career to care for his family. At first, this new caregiving lifestyle did not come easily for Lui, and what followed was a seven-year exercise in what it really means to be selfless.

Based on a true story originally written by one of the survivors, Neta Lohnes Frazier's account of seven children traveling westward still has the power to astonish. In the 1840s, the Sager family set off on the Oregon Trail, a dangerous and adventure-filled journey. Tragedy struck when both the mother and father succumbed to fever, orphaning the youngsters - one just a newborn. The entire wagon train adopted them, until they arrived at the Whitman Mission in Oregon.

Lizzie and Charles Peterson love puppies. Even though they finally have their very own puppy, Buddy, Lizzie still can't get enough time with dogs. She helps her Aunt Amanda at her doggie day care center as often as she can. At the doggie day care, Lizzie meets a pesky but lovable pug named Pugsley. Pugsley is adorable, but he didn't earn the nickname Mr. Pest for nothing and his owners decide he's too much of a handful to keep!

How did Jon Scieszka get so funny, anyway? Growing up as one of six brothers was a good start, but that was just the beginning. Throw in Catholic school, lots of comic books, lazy summers at the lake with time to kill, babysitting misadventures, TV shows, jokes told at family dinner, and the result is Knucklehead. Part memoir, part scrapbook, this hilarious trip down memory lane provides a unique glimpse into the formation of a creative mind and a free spirit.

Sonia Sotomayor, the first Hispanic and third woman appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States, was a young girl when she dared to dream big. Her dream? To become a lawyer and a judge. Sonia did not let the hardships of her background - which included growing up in the rough housing projects of New York City's South Bronx, dealing with juvenile diabetes, coping with parents who argued and fought personal demons, and worrying about money - stand in her way. Always, she believed in herself. Her determination propelled her ever forward.

Meet Marley, a yellow furball of a puppy who quickly grows into a large, rowdy Labrador retriever. With an appetite for nearly anything he can get his mouth around, including couches and fine jewelry, Marley is always getting into trouble. Some may say he's the world's worst dog.

Born in the picturesque town of Taxco, Mexico, Julissa Arce was left behind for months at a time with her two sisters, a nanny, and her grandma while her parents worked tirelessly in America in hopes of building a home and providing a better life for their children. That is, until her parents brought Julissa to Texas to live with them. From then on, Julissa secretly lived as an undocumented immigrant, went on to become a scholarship winner and an honors college graduate, and climbed the ladder to become a vice president at Goldman Sachs.

Three years after giving birth to twin daughters, Kate and Jon Gosselin became pregnant again - with sextuplets. Kate's candid and emotionally-charged book chronicles the exhausting challenges she and Jon faced from the time the babies were conceived through the first two years of their lives, and the faith it took to get through each day.

In the zoo there are all kinds of animal families. But Tango's family is not like any of the others.

“MORE THAN ONE LIFE is a memoir about one woman's incredible drive to always be curious and engaged. Although her life was filled with a loving, supportive family, it wasn't always perfect. Gail writes with intelligence sprinkled with humor and wit. Gail Ingis provides a well written memoir with lessons on how to create a rich and rewarding life.” ~ Blake Schnirring, Executive Director Westport Writers' Workshop “A riveting and moving journey from start to finish!” ~ Susan Gilgore, PhD, Executive Director Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum Who says you can’t have more than one life? ...

**Awards:** New Mexico-Arizona Book Award Finalist, 2024; Royal Dragonfly First Place in Letters, Diaries, and Journals, 2024; Global Book Awards Silver Medalist in Biography and Memoir, 2024. Do you want to get away from it all? Meet Kent. Overwhelmed by the indifference of his South Dakota undergraduate students and fed up with American politics of the 1980s, he yearns for a life of adventure. Then, he discovers sailboats. While retirement seems financially out of reach, living on a sailboat opens up a world of exhilarating possibilities. Imagine letting the wind guide your family ...

In a heartwarming first-person account, dePaola retells his experiences at home and in school when he was a boy. 26 Fairmount Avenue is full of humor, drama, suspense and just the day-to-day ups and downs of a little boy's life.

Students explore and understand the meaning of family relationships. Great books from prompting value-oriented discussions on caring, sharing, and loving.

Hazel Kaplansky and new student Samuel Butler investigate rumors that a Russian spy has infiltrated their small Vermont town, amidst the fervor of Cold War era McCarthyism, but more is revealed than they could ever have imagined.

Walking through life, I have experienced the high of highs and the low of lows. I have fallen in love and I have been heartbroken, I have experienced life and grief has knocked at my door. I am happy but there are days I am sad. I love life but there are days I just don’t. Negative thoughts are monsters I slay each day. We all go through the same emotions as humans. I took to writing just to cope and I hope as you read, these words will help you cope too. I am learning to live each day as it comes. These are just my thoughts into words.