My mother was one of the first women to do labor negotiations in the Steel Industry. My sisters and I were raised to believe we could do anything. I have one sister who does executive coaching, another who is a pilot, and I am a writer. I also have two girls of my own. One is an EMT and the other is getting her doctorate in Special Ed. They are both giving but strong-minded. I am proud of them both. I believe strongly that girls need role models in life to understand that with grit and hard work, they can make a world in which their dreams can be realized.
Willow’s life is anything but magical. Her brother, Wisp, is ill. Her parents’ arguments over Wisp’s treatments have escalated to the point where they have separated. And Willow has been the one left to pick up the pieces. But when a car accident lands Willow in the tiny town of Kismet, Maine, she finds her life taking an unexpected turn. The town is oddly isolated, and the longer Willow stays, the more she begins to see really strange things happening all around her.
Slowly, Willow begins to unravel the secret to Kismet—There is magic in this town! Can that magic save Willow’s sick brother and distant parents? Read The Root of Magic to find out!
Catherine is by far one of the spunkiest young protagonists I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in a book. I fell in love the moment I read the first page. The year is 1290 and Catherine’s father is determined to marry her off to the richest man he can—no matter how horrid that man may be! But her father hasn’t reckoned with the ingenuity of his young daughter. Catherine will match her wits with any of her father’s suitors and win the battle of her own independence. She will fight to the bitter end. I was championing her the whole way, laughing at her antics and delighting in her wit.
A funny coming-of-age novel about a fourteen-year-old girl's fight for freedom and right to self-determination in medieval England.
Catherine's in trouble. Caught between a mother who is determined to turn her into the perfect medieval lady and a father who wants her to marry her off to much older and utterly repulsive suitor.
Luckily, Catherine has a plan. She has experience outwitting suitors and is ready to take matters into her own hands . . .
Karen Cushman's Catherine, Called Birdy is the inspiration for Prime Video's medieval comedy film directed by…
What do you do when you have seven brothers, are the only girl for miles, and are being told you need to act like a proper lady? You say no. May Amelia does not want to be harnessed like a darn mule. The Washington wilderness of 1899 lays before her in all its glory. Her brothers are off exploring. Why can’t she too? And if that means breaking a few rules, well May Amelia Jackson is just the girl to do it. May Amelia’s tenacity and bravery made me want to stand up and cheer. She is my kind of girl—one who has the will and the determination to make a life lived on her terms.
The beloved Newbery Honor book by the author of The Fourteenth Goldfish, about a spirited heroine growing up with trying circumstances, a sense of adventure, and tremendous heart.
It isn't easy being a pioneer in the state of Washington in 1899. It's particularly hard when you are the only girl ever born in the new settlement.
With seven older brothers and a love of adventure, May Amelia Jackson just can't seem to abide her family's insistence that she behave like a Proper Young Lady. She's sure she could do better if only there were at least one other girl living…
Tough girls are my love, and Melody Brooks is one of the toughest. Life throws us all curves, but Melody has some of the toughest I’ve read about. She knows absolutely everything because she has a photographic memory. Yet no one knows how smart she is because Melody can’t walk or talk or write. Why? She has cerebral palsy. Now, that might break most people, but not Melody Brooks! She is determined to let everyone know that a bright light is hiding inside her, one that wants to be known and recognized. Her journey toward acceptance by her peers and the world literally took my breath away.
A New York Times bestseller for three years and counting!
"A gutsy, candid, and compelling story. It speaks volumes." -School Library Journal (starred review) "Unflinching and realistic." -KirkusReviews (starred review)
From award-winning author Sharon Draper comes a story that will forever change how we all look at anyone with a disability, perfect for fans of RJ Palacio's Wonder.
Eleven-year-old Melody is not like most people. She can't walk. She can't talk. She can't write. All because she has cerebral palsy. But she also has a photographic memory; she can remember every detail of everything she has ever experienced. She's the…
Being raised in foster care is tough. But Gilly Hopkins is tougher by far. Known to be completely unmanageable, brash, and bitter, Gilly has been shuttled from one family to the next. When she is sent to stay with the Trotters, she knows it won’t be for long. She can outlast them! She can outlast anyone! But the Trotters aren’t that easily thrown. So even with her angry blow-ups, her gum-chewing scowls, and her every attempt to get herself sent away once again, Gilly might have finally met her match. For girls who are having tough times, tough Gilly is an excellent protagonist who can model the benefits of learning to control your anger and finding alternative ways to express your frustration while keeping true to yourself.
The timeless Newbery Honor Book from bestselling author Katherine Paterson about a wisecracking, ornery, completely unforgettable young heroine.
Eleven-year-old Gilly has been stuck in more foster families than she can remember, and she's hated them all. She has a reputation for being brash, brilliant, and completely unmanageable, and that's the way she likes it. So when she's sent to live with the Trotters—by far the strangest family yet—she knows it's only a temporary problem.
Gilly decides to put her sharp mind to work and get out of there fast. She's determined to no longer be a foster kid. Before long…
Being abandoned and set adrift as an infant sure is tough. But Crow, now twelve, is ready to face the realities of who she is and where she came from. When a mysterious light appears on the island from which she was sent, Crow becomes involved in a trip of discovery with hidden treasure, shipwrecks and danger aplenty. Crow’s tenacious journey kept me on the edge of my seat, waiting breathlessly to find out what would happen next. But it was her courage and determination to discover who her family is and to ultimately discover what family is truly about that kept me turning the pages.
'Harper Lee has a worthy successor. Wolk is a big new talent' - The Times
Crow has lived her whole life on a tiny, starkly beautiful island. Her only companions are Osh, the man who rescued her from a washed-up skiff as a baby and raised her, and Miss Maggie, their neighbour across the sandbar. But it is only when a mysterious fire appears across the water that an unspoken question of her own history forms in Crow's heart, and an unstoppable chain of events is triggered. Crow sets out to find her lost identity - and, ultimately, to learn…
As a child, one of my favorite places was in the top branches of a tree. From up there I could watch the world pass by, remaining invisible. I could make up stories about the world below and no one would challenge me. The second best place for me was inside the story of a book, the kind that took you to magical places where children always found a way to win the day. I knew when I “grew up” I would write one of those empowering books. I became a middle school teacher and have since read many wonderful books for this age. Enjoy my list of favorites.
Where do you turn when the only adult who gets you, your grandpa, is gone, and the world seems to be in self-destruct mode?
On his 12th birthday, Thomas runs away to the forest he used to visit with Grandpa. It is dying. Will saving it from a deadly parasite bring him closer to Grandpa or make his world safer? Before he can find out, he is enticed into a magical world under an attack of a different kind.
Welcomed by a garden of talking plants, mind-reading creatures, tree-climbing, nature-loving beings, Thomas conquers the stinging, prickly hedge that guards the portal to this alternate world. At last, a place where he fits in. A place that needs him. But what about his and Grandpa’s forest?
“…a magical book...” John Perkins, New York Times best-selling author
