Child Marriage

Twelve-year-old Alba doesn't want to live with her estranged grandmother in Barcelona. But her mother needs her to be far, far away from their home in New York City. Because this is the year that her mother is going to leave Alba's abusive father. Hopefully. If she's strong enough to finally, finally do it. Alba is surprised to find that she loves Barcelona, forming a close relationship with her grandmother, meeting a supportive father figure, and making new friends. Most of all, she discovers a passion and talent for bread baking.

Low-wage workers make up the largest group of employed parents in the United States, yet scant attention has been given to their experiences as new mothers and fathers. Work Matters brings the unique stories of these diverse individuals to light. Drawing on years of research and more than fifteen hundred family interviews, Maureen Perry-Jenkins describes how new parents cope with the demands of infant care while holding down low-wage, full-time jobs, and she considers how managing all of these responsibilities have long-term implications for child development.

Stevie’s life is fluctuating rapidly. She's starting over in a brand-new middle school. Quiet and observant, it's hard for her to make friends. Plus, her mind is too occupied. The tension in her home is building as her parents' arguments are becoming more frequent. To top it all off, Stevie's older cousin Naomi is coming to live with the family in an attempt to keep her from a "bad" crowd—The Black Panthers.

This is the story of Sunny Park, a seventh-grade student at Ranchito Mesa Middle who loves the K-pop band Supreme Beat, hanging out with her cool grandma, dancing when no one is watching, snacking on shrimp chips, and being there for Bailey, her best friend since third grade. When Bailey decides that she and Sunny should audition for the school dance team in a ploy to parent-trap Bailey’s divorced mom and dad, Sunny agrees even though the thought of performing in public makes her pits sweat. After all, she’d do anything for Bailey.

With the discovery of her birth father, 12-year-old River has definite thoughts about how her life should turn out - and that certainly does not include any of the challenges that keep popping up! It's not easy to decide if she should live with Gram, who has been her family for the past 10 years, or with her father, who she's over-the-moon to have just met but knows little about. When River gets diagnosed with scoliosis, she fears it will impact her hopes and dreams. River decides to ask God for help.

Amber Brown is in deep trouble. Lately, no matter what she does, it isn't enough. She straightens up her room - sort of. She does her homework - well, most of it. And she agrees to meet Max, her mother's new boyfriend - but she doesn't agree to like him. Now her mother is angry, her teacher wants all of her homework, and Max keeps trying to make her laugh.

Autistic seventh-grader Maggie Weir loves spacecraft, but aerospace engineering isn’t the only thing that gives her butterflies: she’s got a secret crush on an eighth grader—the amazing, baton-twirling Tatum Jones. And they’ve just teamed up for an engineering contest! It might be the perfect chance for Maggie to tell Tatum how she feels, except …

A Forbidden Love Ignites the Tundra... In the frozen heart of Alaska, two kindred souls find solace in each other's arms. Meet Logan, a rugged and enigmatic fisherman, and Willow, a young and ambitious college student on break from school who is staying with him for the summer. Their paths collide one fateful night under the Northern Lights, setting ablaze a desire neither could have anticipated. As their connection deepens, so does their attraction for one another. They embark on a passionate affair that defies the frigid temperatures and societal expectations. But their love is far from ...

There are 3 simple questions that determine whether you should read this book. Have you ever wanted to know why some people make you feel inferior? Have you ever had the slight suspicion of being manipulated by your family members, friends or even partner? Have you ever wondered if your relationships need a bit of "cleaning up" but don't know where to start? If you answered YES to any of those questions then you need to read this book. Human beings are created for relationships. All of us long for connection with others. Toxic means deadly, poisonous or damaging and when you are in a toxic ...

You know how in Bollywood when people are in love, they sing and dance from the mountaintops? Eleven-year-old Sonali wonders if they do the same when they’re breaking up. The truth is, Sonali’s parents don’t get along, and it looks like they might be separating. Sonali’s little brother, Ronak, is not taking the news well, constantly crying. Sonali would never do that. It’s embarrassing to let out so many feelings, to show the world how not okay you are. But then something strange happens, something magical, maybe.

All of Gemma's dreams come true when she's asked to step into the role of Puddleducks Playgroup leader. She knows the place better than anyone and is determined to prove she's the right person for the job. Nothing is going to spoil this opportunity for her... Until she meets Joe Balls, the newly appointed head of reception at the neighbouring infant school. An ex-banker more comfortable with numbers than nursery rhymes, Joe has this annoying habit of interfering with Gemma and her plans for the playgroup.

She's a small town girl... Lissa Winters has her life all figured out. She wants a happy marriage and a house full of kids, right down to the white picket fence. The only thing that doesn't figure neatly into her plans is Jesse Kincade. She's been in love with him as long as she can remember, but after a fateful kiss under the stars he made it clear they weren't meant to be. Jesse is struggling to keep his farm supply store in the black and has no time for a distraction like Lissa. Especially when he knows they have no future. He comes from a dark past and he's just not marriage material. ...

When an arrogant young man challenges a mature “tween-or” to a race, with much humor and great abilities, the mature man demonstrates to the youngster the value of humility and the reality that age is just a number.

Anytime Josie Shilling’s large family gets too chaotic, volunteering at the local animal clinic is the one place she can escape - and she loves working with the animals. But when a box mysteriously appears on the clinic’s front steps, Josie suddenly becomes responsible for seven adorable puppies! Taking care of her pig, Hamlet, last fall was a bit harder than she thought. So how is she ever going to handle a whole litter of mischievous pups and find the right homes for them all?

Sometimes forgiveness of the past is the only way forward. At age 46 and after raising three boys, Julia Harper has just learned her husband no longer loves her and he's just been waiting for the children to become adults so he could leave. Hopeful, Julia applies for the job of caretaker at The Lighthouse Inn on the island of Nantucket. What she doesn't know is that her half-sister lives just across the sand from the inn. Janey Forsythe recently found out her biological father is Ryan Harper—who is also Julia's father. When she sees the brunette unpacking and introduces herself, Janey ...

When the crying stops, her world falls apart… Vivian Walker’s life is perfect. A loving husband, two beautiful children, and extensive family wealth. Until a peaceful nature walk turns her carefully crafted world into madness. Plunged into temporary darkness, Vivian recognizes the results of her seizure the moment she returns from the fog. What she doesn’t recognize is the silence. A silence that’s louder than her worst nightmare. Her baby carriage is empty. Only the sounds of crashing waves against the nearby cliff and her clingy toddler remain. Desperate to find her daughter, ...

Daddy's girl Rebecca Muir has long known exactly what she wants to do after high school: attend the prestigious architecture program at Columbia University, 3,000 miles away from her home. But as the end of school nears, things are no longer so clear cut - she's just fallen in love with the perfect guy, Jackson; her dad has gotten a new job in New York, so her whole family is following her to the East Coast; and she's having trouble ignoring her premonition that something terrible is coming. And it soon becomes clear why: Shortly after the move, her father reveals that he's leaving them....

I'm Tracy Beaker, the Great Inventor of Extremely Outrageous Dares – and I dare YOU not to say this is the most brilliant story ever! I've bought a big fat purple notebook for writing down all my mega-manic ultra-scary stories in. But especially for my own story. Of how my foster-mum, Cam, has turned out to be a real meanie. No designer clothes, when I really need them. A pokey flat, and a horrible new school. No wonder I keep bunking off ... Still, it will have to do until my real mum comes and gets me. And until then, no-one is going to be better at the Dare Game than me!

Since as far back as Ben can remember, it’s been him, his devoted dad, and Sunshine - Ben’s little dog, who rarely leaves Ben’s side. It was Mom who did the leaving, and Ben’s about to spend a whole week with his suddenly present mother in the wilds of northern Minnesota. On the remote island she calls home, Ben will learn to camp, canoe, weather the elements, and weigh a burning question: When will she come back to where she belongs?

For TV-obsessed Jake Lightman, his parents’ divorce is like his favorite show getting canceled: The worst. Now he’s stuck between playing the role of “Yaakov” for his mother and “Jacob” for his father. On Jake’s first day at a new school, Caleb and Tehilla barrel into his life. Suddenly, he has two friends who seem to like the real Jake. And when they invite him to Camp Gershoni for the summer, Jake knows he has to go—even if his parents won’t let him.