Raising A Rare Girl

“A remarkable book . . . I found myself thinking that all expectant and new parents should read it.” —Michelle Slater A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice In Raising a Rare Girl, Lanier explores how to defy the tyranny of normal and embrace parenthood as a spiritual practice that breaks us open in the best of ways. Like many women of her generation, when Heather Lanier was expecting her first child she did everything by the book in the hope that she could create a SuperBaby, a supremely healthy human destined for a high-achieving future. But her daughter Fiona challenged all of Lanier’s preconceptions. Born with an ultra-rare syndrome known as Wolf-Hirschhorn, Fiona received a daunting prognosis: she would experience significant developmental delays and might not reach her second birthday. The diagnosis obliterated Lanier’s perfectionist tendencies, along with her most closely held beliefs about certainty, vulnerability, God, and love. With tiny bits of mozzarella cheese, a walker rolled to library story time, a talking iPad app, and a whole lot of pop and reggae, mother and daughter spend their days doing whatever it takes to give Fiona nourishment, movement, and language. Loving Fiona opens Lanier up to new understandings of what it means to be human, what it takes to be a mother, and above all, the aching joy and wonder that come from embracing the unique life of her rare girl.

“May God grant me the serenity to accept the color pink, the courage to not let my house become a shrine to pink and princesses, and the wisdom to know that pink is just a color, not a decision to never attend college in the hopes of marrying wealthy.” - from The Feminist’s Guide to Raising a Little Princess Smart, funny, and thought-provoking, this book shows feminist parents how to navigate their daughters' princess-obsessed years by taking a non-judgmental and positive approach. Devorah Blachor, an ardent feminist, never expected to be the parent of a little girl who was totally obsessed with the color pink, princesses, and all things girly. When her three-year-old daughter fell down the Disney Princess rabbit hole, she wasn't sure how to reconcile the difference between her parental expectations and the reality of her daughter’s passion. In this book inspired by her viral New York Times Motherlode piece “Turn Your Princess-Obsessed Toddler Into a Feminist in Eight Easy Steps,” Blachor offers insight, advice, and plenty of humor and personal anecdotes for other mothers who cringe each morning when their daughter refuses to wear anything that isn’t pink. Her story of how she surrendered control and opened up—to her Princess Toddler, to pink, and to life—is a universal tale of modern parenting. She addresses important issues such as how to raise a daughter in a society that pressures girls and women to bury their own needs, conform to a beauty standard and sacrifice their own passions.

This is the gripping true story of how one devastating moment tears a family apart and how love and strength come together to rebuild what was lost. “Compelling... tinged with the rawness only real life can provide.” —Entertainment Weekly I am just like you. I get bored in school. I goof off with my friends. I fight with my family. I have big dreams. I am just like everyone else. And then, in a split second, I’m not. It's just another October day until Erin’s parents are hit by a speeding tow truck. Mom dies instantly. Dad dies one month later, after doctors assure Erin he’s going to make it. Now Erin and her sister are left to raise their baby brother—and each other. Grief Girl will break your heart and then fill you with hope, time and time again.

On a hot July night on Cape Cod, at the age of 14, Brodeur became a confidante to her mother's affair with her husband's closest friend. Malabar came to rely on her daughter to help, but when the affair had calamitous consequences for everyone involved, Brodeau was driven into a precarious marriage of her own, and then into a deep depression. In her memoir she examines how the people close to us can break our hearts simply because they have access to them, and the lies we tell in order to justify the choices we make. -- adapted from jacket

2022 Readers' Favorite Gold Medal Winner in Non-Fiction - Memoir Genre Award-Winning Memoir “Courageously exploratory, making for a truly enlightening read." (Kirkus Reviews) Raising Jess is the powerful story of one family’s survival when faced with adversity. Written with compassion, honesty, and humor, it tells of a family changed forever by the birth of a child with a rare chromosome deletion and their courageous decision to choose hope. Facing the challenges of caring for her daughter, marriage struggles, and the question of having more children, Vickie Rubin gives a glimpse into the world of her family and transformation while Raising Jess. This beautiful, gripping memoir will delight and leave you wanting more. "This is an inspiring story of tragedy and triumph, brilliantly and powerfully told. I highly recommend it." - Ashley Adams, Author “This is a triumphant tale.” - Cathy Shields, Author" "A heartwarming, compassionate story. This story will bring tears to the eyes of readers as they are educated and enraptured by one family’s journey with a child with special needs.” (5-Star Review by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite) “Couldn’t put it down! Raising Jess is an amazing book! Vickie Rubin’s writing is masterful! Highly recommend.” - Mike Steklof, Ed. D. “Beautiful Insightful Narrative That Resonates Deeply. I feel enlightened, inspired, hopeful and transformed by Vickie's story.” - Janet G. “Beautifully written and a must-read for anyone that knows someone with disabilities or wants to know a family’s perspective.” - Jill G. “I couldn’t put it down. Get a copy of this book—so pure, raw, and beautiful.” - Ashleigh Bussinger “Vickie reveals her Soul to the reader. A Must-Read for All” - Lori N. Vickie Schlanger Rubin, M.S Ed., three-time award-winning author, contributes essays to Newsweek, Buffalo News Opinion, and blogs worldwide. Vickie is an experienced public speaker and passionate advocate for families of children with disabilities. Her blog, Vickie's Views (www.vickierubin.com), gives a heartwarming and humorous view of everyday life.

Raising Hope is a story of a mother’s unending love for her second child, named Hope, who was born with a rare genetic syndrome called Wolf-Hirschhorn, and came into this world to teach others about what unconditional love really means and how that needs to be protected in our world. It details the struggles Hope’s mother faces dealing with a governmental healthcare system that offers extensive financial support for foster families willing to take in children with disabilities, while leaving biological parents almost completely on their own to deal with nearly insurmountable financial pressures. Adding to her challenges, Hope’s mother has to deal with alcoholism and abuse in her failing marriage, her subsequent divorce, custody issues regarding Hope and her two siblings, and eventual parental alienation, and somehow come out the other side ... still fighting to ensure that her daughter is happy and supported, despite her disabilities. This is a story of perseverance, overcoming incredible challenges, and love. It is the story of Raising Hope.

When life-changing pain is coupled with the welcoming of a new story for yourself, the word bittersweet just doesn't do it justice. You are quite literally in the middle - anchored between where you thought you were headed and where you're going now. In that uncertain middle space is where this story takes place, and maybe where you find yourself, too. The life Kelsey Baldwin had imagined for herself, the one she was right in the middle of, quickly crumbled around her on a single day as she was faced with a looming divorce while staring at a positive pregnancy test. It wasn't the way it was supposed to go. With each uncertain transition she went through - divorce, pregnancy, giving birth, moving cities, dating, raising a child without a partner - she clung to what she knew for sure: she was a strong girl and a brave girl, and the middle was not the ending. (Spoiler: that's why it's called the middle.)My story might look really different than yours, but I'm willing to bet you find threads from my messy middle that are also woven into yours.

From her days of feeling like “a root beer among the Cokes”—Coca-Cola being a forbidden fruit for Mormon girls like her—Joanna Brooks always understood that being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints set her apart from others. But, in her eyes, that made her special; the devout LDS home she grew up in was filled with love, spirituality, and an emphasis on service. With Marie Osmond as her celebrity role model and plenty of Sunday School teachers to fill in the rest of the details, Joanna felt warmly embraced by the community that was such an integral part of her family. But as she grew older, Joanna began to wrestle with some tenets of her religion, including the Church’s stance on women’s rights and homosexuality. In 1993, when the Church excommunicated a group of feminists for speaking out about an LDS controversy, Joanna found herself searching for a way to live by the leadings of her heart and the faith she loved. The Book of Mormon Girl is a story about leaving behind the innocence of childhood belief and embracing the complications and heartbreaks that come to every adult life of faith. Joanna’s journey through her faith explores a side of the religion that is rarely put on display: its humanity, its tenderness, its humor, its internal struggles. In Joanna’s hands, the everyday experience of being a Mormon—without polygamy, without fundamentalism—unfolds in fascinating detail. With its revelations about a faith so often misunderstood and characterized by secrecy, The Book of Mormon Girl is a welcome advocate and necessary guide.