Lucy In The Sky

A diary by an unnamed 16-year-old drug addict from an upper middle-class neighborhood in Santa Monica documents the ruination of her life after experimenting with drugs and alcohol at a party, after which she rejects everything she once cared about. By the author of O. Simultaneous.

From the bestselling author of The Longest Holiday comes a heart-warming novel about a woman contemplating her life: Is the grass really greener on the other side of the world? Settling down for a twenty-four-hour flight to Australia, Lucy finds a text message on her phone—not from her boyfriend James, as she fondly hopes, but from a woman claiming to have slept with him four times in the past month. Trapped on the plane, she questions everything about her relationship with James. She finally calls him and he reassures her: it was only his mates playing a silly joke. James is a lawyer, persuasive and gorgeous, and Lucy adores him. So why, at her best friend’s wedding, does she have niggling doubts, and find herself attracted to the bride’s brother-in-law Nathan? The sooner she gets back to her regular life in London, the flat she shares with James, her job in PR, the better. Nathan is just a happy-go-lucky surfer boy, with no prospects, no place to live, an almost-girlfriend in tow. Suddenly Lucy finds herself caught between two distant continents and two very different men…

In this contemporary graphic novel, twelve-year-old Lucy discovers her father's collection of Beatles records and is inspired to form an all-girl rock band. It’s the first day of seventh grade, and everything is going downhill for Lucy Sutcliffe. At school, she has the feeling her friends are all leaving her behind. At home, her single father is in a rut, and her perpetually traveling photojournalist mother is more absent than ever. Worst of all, Lucy’s grandmother is undergoing chemotherapy and is no longer the warm, vibrant presence that her family has come to depend on. But everything changes the day Lucy discovers a box of her father’s Beatles records. Inspired by their music, she gets a drum set and forms an all-girl rock band with her friends. But can she keep the band together when petty rivalries, unrequited crushes, and outside pressures threaten to tear it apart?

Many have speculated about the meaning of John Lennon's Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. Psychologist Tim Kasser applies innovative methods to the song's lyrics and music, weaving his findings together with the musician's past to provide an integrative perspective on the place of Lucy in Lennon's life.

A young raccoon who gets separated from her family one night and has to find her way home. Faced with the challenge of being on her own, Lucy tunes in to her surroundings for the first time and discovers that she can re-trace her steps using smells, sights, and sounds. At its heart, the story focuses on developing spatial thinking, understanding the world around us, and using concepts of space for problem-solving. Includes a “Note to Parents and Caregivers.”

Originally published: New York: Times Books, 1979.

This haunting dystopian novel thrillingly and realistically looks at a nuclear winter from an Australian perspective.For Fin it's just like any other day—racing for the school bus, bluffing his way through class, and trying to remain cool in front of the most sophisticated girl in his universe. Only it's not like any other day because, on the other side of the world, nuclear missiles are being detonated. When Fin wakes up the next morning, it's dark, bitterly cold, and snow is falling. There's no internet, no phone, no TV, no power, and no parents. Nothing Fin's learned in school could have prepared him for this. With his parents missing and dwindling food and water supplies, Fin and his younger brother Max must find a way to survive all on their own. When things are at their most desperate, where can you go for help?

Loosely based on real-life events, this suspenseful story, by a debut novelist, is also funny and touching and will have readers riveted from start to finish. Lucy's mother is the U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia, so Lucy's life must be one big adventure, right? Wrong. Lucy's worrywart mother keeps her locked up inside the ambassador's residence. All Lucy can do is read about the exotic and exciting world that lies beyond the compound walls and imagine what it would be like to be a part of it. That is, until one day Lucy decides she has had enough and she and a friend sneak off for some fun. But to their horror, Lucy gets kidnapped! With only herself to rely upon, Lucy must use her knowledge of African animals, inventiveness, will, and courage to escape, and in the process embarks on an adventure beyond her wildest imagination. Includes bonus material! - Book Club Discussion Guide