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Biography and Memoir September 2019
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| If: The Untold Story of Kipling's American Years by Christopher BenfeyWhat it's about: British author Rudyard Kipling's decade spent living in the U.S., and how the "lawless jungle" surrounding his Brattleboro, Vermont home inspired him to write his 1894 classic The Jungle Book.
Is it for you? Author Christopher Benfey doesn't shy away from his subject's racist and imperialistic views while discussing Kipling's impact on American culture -- and its impact on him.
Don't miss: Kipling's trips to the National Zoo with Teddy Roosevelt, which offered him further inspiration for The Jungle Book. |
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Point of view : a fresh look at work, faith, and freedom
by Elisabeth Hasselbeck
The Emmy Award-winning broadcaster and best-selling author of The G-Free Diet traces her intimate journey of faith as reflected by key life moments that taught her the importance of seeing herself from God's perspective.
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After life : my journey from incarceration to freedom
by Alice Marie Johnson
The convicted drug trafficker whose controversial life sentence was commuted by Donald Trump after serving 21 years in prison shares the story of her life, her faith and the advocacy work of Kim Kardashian West.
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| When I Was White by Sarah ValentineWhat it's about: Raised as the white daughter of Italian and Irish-descended parents, Sarah Valentine often fielded awkward questions about her dark skin and hair. It wasn't until she was 27 that she learned the truth -- that her biological father was African American.
What happened: Shaken by her family's betrayal, Valentine set off on a journey to discover both her biological father and herself.
Try this next: For another affecting memoir exploring issues of paternity fraud and racial identity, check out Sil Lai Abrams' Black Lotus. |
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| The Art of Waiting: On Fertility, Medicine, and Motherhood by Belle BoggsWhat it is: a reflective and empathetic exploration of The Gulf novelist Belle Boggs' struggles with infertility prior to her daughter's birth through IVF, peppered with detailed medical research, pop culture depictions of infertility, and interviews with others trying to conceive.
Why you might like it: Featuring a diverse list of resources that prospective parents from all walks of life will appreciate, The Art of Waiting's thoughtful tone and theme of hope in the face of adversity will resonate with many readers, parent or not. |
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| Juniper: The Girl Who Was Born Too Soon by Kelley and Thomas FrenchWhat it's about: After their "micro-preemie" Juniper was born at 23 weeks, parents Kelley and Thomas French spent a frantic seven months at the hospital as she struggled to survive.
Is it for you? Don't worry -- this heartwarming memoir has a "healthily-ever-after" ending, though the French family encounters several speed bumps along the way.
What sets it apart: the Frenches are Pulitzer-lauded journalists, sharing incisive prose in alternating chapters. |
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Being a dad is weird : lessons in fatherhood from my family to yours
by Ben Falcone
A lighthearted and intimate look at fatherhood from the director, writer and actor from The Boss and Tammy combines stories about his own larger-than-life dad and how his experiences raising two daughters with wife Melissa McCarthy have been shaped by his childhood.
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A slant of sun : one child's courage
by Beth Kephart
The author shares her personal experience of loving a child with special needs in an intimate, poignant account that describes life with an autistic child, her and her husband's quest to help their son, and his struggle to become a part of the world and to build relationships with others.
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| Raising Ryland: Our Story of Parenting a Transgender Child with No Strings Attached by Hillary Whittington with Kristine GasbarreWhat it is: Hillary Whittington's emotional account of parenting her transgender son Ryland, whose transition was famously chronicled in a 2014 viral YouTube video and a 2015 CNN documentary short.
For fans of: Amy Ellis Nutt's Becoming Nicole and Lori Duron's Raising My Rainbow.
Reviewers say: "An uplifting testimonial to the power of unconditional familial love and acceptance" (Kirkus Reviews). |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Newmarket Public Library 438 Park Ave. Newmarket, Ontario L3Y1W1 905-953-5110www.newmarketpl.ca |
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