Just Right Jillian

In this heartfelt middle grade novel from debut author Nicole D. Collier, fifth grader Jillian must learn to speak and break free of her shell to enter her school's academic competition and keep her promise to her grandmother. Fifth grader Jillian will do just about anything to blend in, including staying quiet even when she has the right answer. After she loses a classroom competition because she won't speak up, she sets her mind on winning her school's biggest competition. But breaking out of her shell is easier said than done, and Jillian has only a month to keep her promise to her grandmother and prove to herself that she can speak up and show everyone her true self. A warm and relatable middle grade debut novel about family, friendship, and finding the confidence to break free from the crowd and be who you truly are.

A coming-of-age story about transgender tween Obie, who didn't think being himself would cause such a splash. For fans of Alex Gino's George and Lisa Bunker's Felix Yz. Obie knew his transition would have ripple effects. He has to leave his swim coach, his pool, and his best friends. But it’s time for Obie to find where he truly belongs. As Obie dives into a new team, though, things are strange. Obie always felt at home in the water, but now he can’t get his old coach out of his head. Even worse are the bullies that wait in the locker room and on the pool deck. Luckily, Obie has family behind him. And maybe some new friends too, including Charlie, his first crush. Obie is ready to prove he can be one of the fastest boys in the water—to his coach, his critics, and his biggest competition: himself.

The "sublimely awkward and hilarious" (Chicago Tribune), National Book Award "5 Under 35"-garnering first novel from the acclaimed author of The New Me--now in a new edition Twenty-four-year-old Megan may have her whole life ahead of her, but it already feels like a dead end, thanks to her dreadful job as a gastroenterologist's receptionist and her heart-clogging resentment of the success and happiness of everyone around her. But no one stokes Megan's bitterness quite like her coworker, Jillian, a grotesquely optimistic, thirty-five-year-old single mother whose chirpy positivity obscures her mounting struggles. Megan and Jillian's lives become increasingly precarious as their faulty coping mechanisms--denial, self-help books, alcohol, religion, prescription painkillers, obsessive criticism, alienated boyfriends, and, in Jillian's case, the misguided purchase of a dog--send them spiraling toward their downfalls. Wickedly authentic and brutally funny, Jillian is a subversive portrait of two women trapped in cycles of self-delusion and self-destruction, each more like the other than they would care to admit.

River means everything to Sky. They have lived alone together on Island for as long as they can remember. The two of them hunt for food, wash in Falls and curl up together in Shelter. Their life is simple and safe. Until River sees a boat . . . Across Ocean is California, a place where nothing makes sense to Sky. She is separated from River and taken to live with a grandmother she doesn't know. Lost and heartbroken, Sky searches for him so they can return to Island, only to find out that their paradise wasn't as perfect as she thought, and everything she's ever known and loved may have been a lie. A gripping and beautifully told story of love and survival in a hostile world ? ours.

She is a wallflower with a pet squirrel. He is a scoundrel who stands accused of murdering his mistress. They're not exactly a match made in High Society heaven. But sometimes when two souls are hurting, they turn in a most unexpected direction... Sterling Nottingham, Duke of Hanover, didn't plan on kissing Rosemary Stanhope. It was a complete accident, spurred on by too much gin and a temporary loss of sanity. Unfortunately, now that he knows what she tastes like, kissing her again-this time on purpose-is all he can think about. Rosemary was as surprised as the Duke of Hanover when he kissed her. The sinfully handsome rakehell isn't exactly known for paying much attention to wallflowers. Yet for some reason, their paths keep crossing...and before long she finds herself falling for the one man who loves her for who she is, squirrel and all. But just when happily-ever-after is within their reach, an old foe returns...forcing Sterling to choose between the demons of his past or the wallflower that he can't live without. The Perks of Being an Heiress Bewitched by the Bluestocking Entranced by the Earl Seduced by the Scot Wooed by the Wallflower

Do you wonder if humans are the only beings who wonder if they are alone in the universe? Our sun is a star. In the night sky are all kinds of stars, and orbiting those stars are planets like the ones in our own solar system. Could those planets have life like we do on Earth? Planet Earth is not too big, not too small, not too hot, and not too cold. It’s just right. Our very own Goldilocks planet . . . . Follow a young girl as she explores these questions in this gorgeous book about the wondrous search for another Goldilocks planet.

Blood in the Low Country, the first of the Atkins Family Low Country Sagas, tells the story of a southern family living in Charleston, South Carolina in 1973. The book follows the lives of Monty Atkins, his wife Rose, and their sons Eli and Walker. Rose’s childhood is plagued by poverty, abuse, and tragedy. Determined to prove she’s better than her past, she relentlessly pushes her sons to succeed in proper Charleston society. When Rose’s oldest son Eli, the product of her first, failed marriage, is accused of murdering his girlfriend Kimberly, Rose fears losing everything. Monty believes his son is innocent and hires a detective to find the killer. But when the murderer is revealed, Monty’s marriage and everything he holds true are tested. Can Monty and Rose save their family and confront Rose’s demons? Only time will tell. A story of love, faith, and redemption, Blood in the Low Country is a must-read for fans of Southern family sagas.

When we need help, we count on doctors to put us back together. But what happens when doctors fall apart? Funny, fresh, and deeply affecting, We Are All Perfectly Fine is the story of a married mother of three on the brink of personal and professional collapse who attends rehab with a twist: a meditation retreat for burned-out doctors. Jillian Horton, a general internist, has no idea what to expect during her five-day retreat at Chapin Mill, a Zen centre in upstate New York. She just knows she desperately needs a break. At first she is deeply uncomfortable with the spartan accommodations, silent meals and scheduled bonding sessions. But as the group struggles through awkward first encounters and guided meditations, something remarkable happens: world-class surgeons, psychiatrists, pediatricians and general practitioners open up and share stories about their secret guilt and grief, as well as their deep-seated fear of falling short of the expectations that define them. Jillian realizes that her struggle with burnout is not so much personal as it is the result of a larger system failure, and that compartmentalizing your most difficult emotions—a coping strategy that is drilled into doctors—is not useful unless you face these emotions too. Jillian Horton throws open a window onto the flawed system that shapes medical professionals, revealing the rarely acknowledged stresses that lead doctors to depression and suicide, and emphasizing the crucial role of compassion not only in treating others, but also in taking care of ourselves.