Home and Family Books

Walking One Another Home is a book not only for people dealing with Alzheimers in their family, but for everyone who has to walk a loved one home. Rita's openness in sharing her feelings on this pilgrimage, are not only touching but so very honest. It is in sharing her frustrations, and consequent revelations gained, that the author helps the reader learn how to let go of past and be present and aware of the gifts offered, often unknowingly, by their loved one. This book is a must for those who are caring for dying loved ones, for those whose loved ones have already passed and are struggling to make sense out of their loss, and for all of us whose parents are aging and soon will find ourselves walking this journey.

I cannot tell you how much this book has helped me. My own mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's four months ago. It's almost eerie how some of the author's own experiences mirror mine as well. I gave the book to my sister and brother who are with me "waking mother home." My sister read it all the first night I gave it to her. She cried through most of it, but it helped her and us so much. Thank you, Rita Bresnahan!

We often listen to audiobooks on long trips and it's rare to find one that entertains the whole family - Preschoolers, school-age and Mom and Dad! This one did just that. It's an interesting story with great characters. The narrator was OUTSTANDING; one of the best I've ever listened to. As soon as we got to the last disk, my son was asking me if there were other books by the same author. We just finished the Chaos King as well and are hoping Ms. Ruby continues the story.

We got this audio book to listen to during a family trip from Fort Worth, Texas to Michigan and it was great for our elementary school children as well as for us adults. A great story by Laura Ruby and an excellent reading by Renee Raudman. I always thought Jim Dale was great doing the narration for the Harry Potter books, but I would say that Raudman even surpasses him. Like Dale she shows the wide range of her acting ability, giving a distinctive voice to each character so that it seemed like it was being performed by a whole cast. The funny chapters were hilarious and the dramatic ones were very moving. A great book. I hope that Ruby writes a sequel and I hope that Raudman narrates it for the audio book.

As a genuine antique mom, grandmom, teacher, and writer for children, I am one picky reader. Feinberg's book is outstanding. Outstanding on every page, for every thoughtful adult who realizes that our children are our future. We need to be exceedingly careful what we are "doing to them," to use scare quotes. I don't use them lightly. We should be very scared about many books being touted for young people. Why do so many-- especially the big medallion winners--feature death, divorce, child abuse, and the Holocaust? Why are so many characters seemingly alone in a terrifying position? Feinberg wonders, and so do I.
When is it mandatory for the REAL world to trample upon childhood? Age 6, or maybe 8? Should we have ripped off our optimistic, rose-colored glasses by age 9 and expect every strange man to rape us? To what purpose? I cry.
I expect that life will show us all sorrows aplenty, and I'd prefer to have young readers well grounded in hope, positive truths, and the knowledge that MOST adults are there to protect them, not betray them. For ages I have found the "problem novels" offered to mid-grade and young adult readers to be major problems themselves. They have efficiently robbed many of our readers of all joy in reading. Assigned reading is universally dreaded.
As you can tell, I am passionate about this topic, and grateful to Barbara Feinberg for tackling it so eloquently. If you are a parent, read the books your kids are reading. If you are a teacher or a librarian, watch out for me, because when we meet I will ask you to defend what you are teaching.
Joan Carris, [...]

What a remarkable book, one with a fresh perspective toward the young adult novels that are assigned in middle school English classes. Barbara Feinberg's central question is, when and why did books for preteens get so grim? In an extended essay mixed with personal reflection, Feinberg examines the YA "problem novel," the books that more or less began with Paul Zindel's "The Pigman" and which some librarians call "Doom and Gloom" books. The "child" protagonists in these novels face abuse, abandonment, incest, trauma, loss, and lots of death, as if the child needs to suffer and someone needs to die to make the child grow up, accept reality, and be a resilient, self-reliant survivor. In the meantime, most adults in these books are useless for helping the kids to cope, and imagination and play are completely sacrificed, as the kids in these books are expected to grow out of such hindrances.

As the founder of a long-running children's program in New York called Story Shop, Feinberg knows and talks to real children and gives them places for play and imagination. In the book she also writes extensively about her children, 12-year-old Alex (the victim of this dismal school summer reading) and Clair, age 7. This gal knows and loves kids, and her book is an impassioned defense of childhood from an adult who has worked through her own issues.

I heard a sermon several years ago by the Rev. Mary Harrington, a Unitarian Universalist minister and mother at the time of similar-aged children to Feinberg's, talking about environmental education programs for young children. In standard environmental education programs, children were given the message that the world was going to hell in a handbasket and they needed to save it. Interestingly, these children did NOT grow up into environmentalist adults. Instead, they became environmentally apathetic adults. The children who became environmentalists as adults were taken into nature and allowed to enjoy it, look at bugs, take hikes, NOT scared to death and given adult responsibilities to shoulder. As Rev. Harrington pointed out, children can't even make their parents recycle, much less can they save the world, and it is our duty as adults to take those actions, not foist it onto vulnerable, helpless children.

Feinberg makes a similar point about the spate of young adult problem novels currently on schools' required reading lists. By and large, 12-year-olds hate them when they are required to read and analyze them in school. These books -- the same books they could love if they found them on their own at age 15 -- are depressing and demoralizing. Who are they trying to teach with these fake "child" narrators, who have an adult perspective in the guise of a child? Is it the adult's "inner child," a wish to protect our lost child selves by giving our own "past" selves a context for the suffering of life, and also trying to toughen ourselves by toughening up the kids? If so, do the books they are required to read help the actual children, right now, or are they taking childhood away to reassure overwhelmed adults? I remember hating "The Red Pony" in 8th grade. They assigned this Steinbeck novel because it has a young protagonist and the pony dies. So it wasn't until years later that I tried Steinbeck again and was surprised to find that it wasn't all just Faulknerian trauma; why didn't they give us the fun Steinbeck novels to read, like "Cannery Row"?

Feinberg's sacred cows include the whole list of Newbery winners. I work in an independent bookstore, and when a 12-year-old comes in asking for a good book, I would never recommend "Bridge to Terabithia," although author Katherine Paterson writes so beautifully; the book is just too stark and depressing, with a bleak and devastating surprise ending that gives only one chapter for resolution.

The writing in "Lizard Motel" is lovely as well. Memoir is certainly more popular right now than educational theory for preteen readers, so I understand why she wrote the book this way. Teachers, librarians, booksellers, YA authors and readers, and parents should all consider Feinberg's perspective. Memoir writers can also take inspiration from her skillful weaving of personal history and essay.

I'm rather sorry I've given 5-star book reviews so often, because when a book like this comes along, one wants to put in extra-credit stars!

As a retired special needs teacher, I worked with many families with children with disabilities and was able to observe how siblings interacted. "What About Me?" hits the nail right on the head. Siegel describes several patterns siblings may fall into, including the 'parentified child,' the 'overachieving child,' the 'acting-out child,' and the 'withdrawn child,' among others. She points out characteristics parents can watch for, and ways to help children in each classification to better cope with the stresses of growing up with a sibling with a disability. Adult siblings will gain insights into their 'growing-up years' from reading this book, too.

At my local bookstore, this book literally fell off the shelf at my feet and I knelt down and picked it up. I knew instantly that I had to buy it. I cried when I read it because it reminded me of what it was like being a younger sister of a disabled sibling. Although it brought back a lot of memories and misplaced guilt that I have tried to overcome, the book gives good explanations as to some of the outcomes of growing up in this type of family and the dysfunctions that can occur. I would highly recommend this book and thank the authors for their contribution.

This book brings to light the latest research in how kids learn best. It gives parents an idea of how to encourage teachers to incorporate the newest strategies without being confrontational. It shows teachers how to implement the findings into their curriculum and gives lists of possible questions parents may (should) ask. It also gives parents a checklist of what the classroom should look like, how the teacher should be with the children, etc. Finally a book on every child's side. Years of research have proven that children have different learning styles and teachers need to address that. As a mother and teacher, I will be using this book constantly as one of my greatest sources.

This book brings to light the latest research in how kids learn best. It gives parents an idea of how to encourage teachers to incorporate the newest strategies without being confrontational. It shows teachers how to implement the findings into their curriculum and gives lists of possible questions parents may (should) ask. It also gives parents a checklist of what the classroom should look like, how the teacher should be with the children, etc. Finally a book on every child's side. Years of research have proven that children have different learning styles and teachers need to address that. As a mother and teacher, I will be using this book constantly as one of my greatest sources.

As a wanna-be homeschooler/unschooler with children in a fairly traditional school, I find myself continually returning to this book to re-center myself and to put my role in my sons' education back into the right perspective. It's very accessible and a wonderful compilation of ideas set forth by homeschooling advocates from John Holt on. The suggestions for enhancing school curriculum at home are excellent and have served our family well.

What the Rest of Us Can Learn from Homeschooling is a book every parent can benefit from reading. It offers heartfelt advice and valuable tips from a number of highly experienced homeschooling parents who have put a lot of thought (as well as trial and error) into supporting their children in learning and growing. There are many misconceptions about how homeschooling, but this book provides clarity on the subject, offering tried and true, practical ideas on how a parent can similarly support a child who is in a school setting. It's amazing how fun and easy it is to provide a wonderfully rich educational environment for a child, but it involves putting aside preconceived ideas about how learning works--this book is a great help in that regard. A very thought provoking book!

Dr. Hagag has written an important and timely book. Recently the options for cancer treatments have become so vast and diversified that it can be overwhelming for the family and the lay person and aggravate an already stressful situation. This book helps the reader sift through their emotions and feelings and helps them know that they are not alone and that there is help and guidance out there for them. It also provides a valuable tool in understanding the disease and its stages in a thoughtful and simplistic manner that is easily understood. Dr. Hagag carefully guides the reader through the various phases of stress related issues and presents a comprehensive list of information and resources. His material is based on his extesnive experience dealing with cancer patients and their caregivers. All of us in the medical community who diagnose and treat oncology patients appreciate the task that Dr. Hagag took on himself to write this book. This is a great achievement. I recommend the book highly and have alrady recommended it to our medical community and suggested that they acquire several copies of this book so that they are available for the families of patients. I hope that Dr. Hagag continues his research and updates this book, of very important information, that is so relevant to our times, every couple of years.

When I first read this book I was so happy to have something that answered many questions on what it is like to be faced with a loved one with cancer and how to navigate these rough waters. This book gave me the meaning to new words, what is oncology? (study of tumors) and where do I get help i.e., drugs I can't afford. It was like reading a Dr. Spock handbook for me in dealing with cancer in my family. I felt relieved that such a wonderful book arrived on the market. Dr. Hagag comes across as a compassionate person who understands the guilt, insecurity and bewilderment of families faced with this grim disease.

I got this for my family who lives in Florida. After seeing what has just happened down there I hope that they were prepared since this book gave them all of the information they needed. I can't tell you how much this book is worth, I've given it to my friends who are expecting so they can have safe families.

"When Disaster Strikes Home" covers EVERY imaginable disaster circumstance an individual or family might encounter. A must-have for every home's library, especially since 9/11.

I think the book is warm and shows some interesting aspects of real life and how much Jesus can change our hearts through love. I specially like the picture of Jesus being the spring of water that changes everything where it flows into green.

I read this book over and over as a child and I think it influenced my involvement in foster care now. St. John writes with a real knowledge of what a children who find themselves in trouble are like. It is realistic, and yet extremely hopeful.

This 64-page book packs a punch! I've read a lot of books of Biblical Womanhood, and Dorothy presents a point of view and uses Scripture for her examples in a way that I've never read before. It's very convicting and she calls sin, sin. I loved it! A perfect addition to my library.

Where's Mom? The High Calling Of Wives & Mothers by Dorothy Kelley Patterson directly confronts the dilemma Christian women face between the lure of a professional career and the demands that being a full-time wife, mother, and homemaker put upon one. Interpreting the choice from a Biblical perspective, Where's Mom? draws on God's word to show the fulfillment to be found within raising the next generation, above and beyond the endless rote demands of ordinary jobs. A thoughtful and devout look at scripture, woman's role, and the path to happiness and spiritual well-being, Where's Mom is highly recommended and inspiring reading.