Rebel Mother

“Those who enjoyed Jeannette Walls’s The Glass Castle will find much to admire” (Booklist, starred review) in this “thoroughly engrossing” (The New York Times Book Review) memoir about a boy on the run with his mother, as she abducts him to Latin America in search of the revolution. Carol Andreas was a traditional 1950s housewife from a small Mennonite town in central Kansas who became a radical feminist and Marxist revolutionary. From the late sixties to the early eighties, she went through multiple husbands and countless lovers while living in three states and five countries. She took her youngest son, Peter, with her wherever she went, even kidnapping him and running off to South America after his straitlaced father won a long and bitter custody fight. They were chasing the revolution together, though the more they chased it the more distant it became. They battled the bad “isms” (sexism, imperialism, capitalism, fascism, consumerism), and fought for the good “isms” (feminism, socialism, communism, egalitarianism). Between the ages of five and eleven, Peter lived in more than a dozen homes, moving from the comfortably bland suburbs of Detroit to a hippie commune in Berkeley to a socialist collective farm in pre-military coup Chile to highland villages and coastal shantytowns in Peru. When they secretly returned to America they settled down clandestinely in Denver, where his mother changed her name to hide from his father. A “luminous memoir” (Publishers Marketplace, starred review) and “an illuminating portrait of a childhood of excitement, adventure, and love” (Kirkus Reviews) this is an extraordinary account of a deep mother-son bond and the joy and toll of growing up in a radical age. Peter Andreas is an insightful and candid narrator of “a profound and enlightening book that will open readers up to different ideas about love, acceptance, and the bond between mother and son” (Library Journal, starred review).

If you’re a mom (or mom-to-be) who wants to raise decent human beings, maintain your pre-baby identity, and not lose your sh*t along the way, congrats: you’ve just found the parenting book of your dreams. The Rebel Mama’s Handbook for (Cool) Moms is a girlfriend’s guide to early motherhood. It’s the Coles Notes for all those boring baby books you never read. It’s the instruction manual you wish your kid(s) came with - complete with cocktail list. Welcome to motherhood. Let’s do this.

Getting pregnant and having a baby was nothing like type-A Laura had planned. Tossed completely off balance, and in the midst of a global pandemic, she went from rule follower and spreadsheet organizer to rebel mama by the time her son, Jack, celebrated his first birthday. Join Laura in redefining motherhood norms through the milestones of getting pregnant, giving birth, circumcision, breastfeeding, sleeping, introducing solids, and all the phases in between. Her story shares what worked for her, and unlike many parenting books, is not meant to be a how to guide. Rather, it is meant to invite every fellow mama to awaken her rebellious side and storm the gates of any modern parenting practice that goes against her instinct! "With absolute honesty, exquisite perceptiveness, and a commitment to bury the concept of what is 'normal' for babies or parenting, Laura Rafferty (alias Rebel Mama) leaves absolutely nothing to the imagination and in so doing provides often a hilarious but remarkably comprehensive, edgy but always realistic and a warm-hearted picture of the magisterial highs and the inevitable challenges of becoming and being a mother. It is an intensely personal journey that she takes you on (no scientists needed here) an intensity that gives great vibrancy to the larger point she makes, and that is to trust yourself and your baby because there are as many ways to be that alleged elusive 'good mother' as there are mothers who strive to be one, that is, who strive and care to make their baby safe, secure and loved in whatever ways are possible, given her circumstances. I highly recommend the journey she will take you on." - Dr. James McKenna, Director of Mother Baby Behavioral Sleep Laboratory at University of Notre Dame and author of Safe Infant Sleep "Rebel Mama is a fun, relaxing read with a powerful underlying message. When you become a rebel mama, you realize you have the power to create your own birth experience. You don't need permission. You seek the support you need and you get it. Laura's personal style puts you at ease and delivers her message with authority and grace. Pregnant couples will enjoy every single page of this guide to creating the birth they want, navigating the system, and launching into parenthood whether you are having your first or your last baby. Birth professionals would benefit, also, from taking notice of what families want. Rebel Mama is a five star experience!" - Barbara Harper, RN, CLD, CCCE, Midwife, Founder/Director of Waterbirth International and Author of Gentle Birth ChoicesReaders' Favorite 5 Star Review: "Upon deciding to have a child, the author realizes that in order to succeed and thrive in her new role she will need to abandon her previous approach of meticulously planning out her life and become a 'rebel mama.' This book is not intended to be a guide for new parents, but rather it is an opportunity for one new parent to share what helped her through the trials and tribulations of first-time parenthood. This is a very candid sharing of a very personal experience in the author's life. The lockdowns around the globe that were initiated in response to the Covid-19 pandemic pushed people into situations that gave them a new perspective on their lives, and the idea of going through that experience whilst also becoming a parent for the first time boggles my mind with the emotional implications. Laura Rafferty, though, is a mother who learns to take life in her stride, and her skilled prose brings her journey alive with warmth and humor. Rebel Mama is a great read for first-time parents who are feeling overwhelmed. Not because it will provide them with step-by-step instructions on what to do but because it gives a feeling of solidarity for those parents who are overwhelmed by the process and are finding it hard to adapt to the new life with their child."

What do Beyoncé and Blue Ivy or Emmeline and Christabel Pankhurst have in common? What about Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton or Karen E. Laine and Mina Starsiak Hawk? They’re all incredible mother-daughter duos who have used their creativity, cleverness, and unique talents to do something remarkable—and they are all featured in Rebel Girls Powerful Pairs: 25 Tales of Mothers and Daughters. Celebrate the strength of family bonds through the inspiring fairytale-like stories of authors, activists, skiers, dancers, pilots, hikers, humanitarians, entrepreneurs, and more. Readers will join Beyoncé and Blue Ivy as they produce a Grammy-winning song. They’ll travel to the front lines of World War I to help wounded soldiers alongside Marie Curie and Irène Joliot-Curie. And they’ll climb aboard a tiny plane for a 1,200-mile-long journey with Laurie and Arianna Strand to save a pelican in need! Rebel Girls Powerful Pairs showcases many of the wonderful ways mothers and daughters work together to make the world a better, healthier, and more vibrant place. This collection of 25 stories follows in the footsteps of the best-selling series Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. It is illustrated by female and nonbinary artists from around the world. Unlock bonus audio stories of some of the extraordinary women and girls featured in this book on the Rebel Girls app. Whenever you come across a bookmark icon on the page, scan the QR code, and you’ll be whisked away on an audio adventure! You’ll also discover 100+ creative activities and stories of even more trailblazing women on the app.

Amber is trapped - by her family's rules and expectations, and by her own fears. But on the running track she feels free. As her body speeds up, the world slows down. And the tangled, mixed-up words in her head start to make sense... It's time to start a revolution: for her mother, for her sister, for herself. Run, Amber. Run. Manjeet Mann's multi-award-winning verse novel, Run, Rebel, about a young woman beginning to take control of her life, was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal 2021 and won the CILIP Carnegie Shadowers Choice Award, a UKLA Book Award, a Diverse Book Award and the Sheffield Children's Book Award. This fast-paced, mesmerising stage version, adapted by the author, was first produced in 2023 by Pilot Theatre, with Mercury Theatre, Colchester, Belgrade Theatre Coventry, Derby Theatre and York Theatre Royal.

"Historical romance devotees will enjoy Michels's adoring use of some of the classic tropes of the genre — the spare heir, the wrong brother as hero, the heroine in men's clothing — but what makes the book so enjoyable is the way Michels makes the familiar fresh." — Sarah MacLean, The Washington Post on The Infamous Heir The Spare Heirs Society Cordially Invites You to Meet Ash Claughbane: The Imposter Lady Evangeline Green is living a lie. To please her family, she masquerades as the perfect debutant...until she meets the wickedly charming Lord Crosby. With him, there are no rules. She's finally free to do as she desires-but freedom comes with a price, and Lord Crosby is not what he seems... Ash is not Lord Crosby. He's a con artist, a noble Spare Heir living off his silver tongue. When the Green family ruined his, he swore he'd make them pay, and he never doubted his devotion to revenge...until he met Evangeline. Now, caught in a web of lies, torn between duty and desire, what's a con to do but deceive all of London and steal the one lady who dared match wits with the devil himself? The Spare Heirs series: The Infamous Heir (Book 1) The Rebel Heir (Book 2) The Wicked Heir (Book 3) Praise for Elizabeth Michels: "Michels's latest is the complete package: a captivating romance with gripping suspense wrapped up in a novel to be savored."-Publishers Weekly STARRED for The Infamous Heir "Rich with wit and charm."-Publishers Weekly on How to Lose a Lord in 10 Days or Less "Michels' fresh and funny debut will delight readers with its endearing characters and infectious mix of sweet yet sexy romance and realistic yet wry wit."-Booklist Online STARRED on Must Love Dukes

New York Times bestselling author Beth Revis brings to life the early adventures and heartbreaks of the heroine of the smash hit movie Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. When Jyn Erso was five years old, her mother was murdered and her father taken from her to serve the Empire. But despite the loss of her parents she is not completely alone—Saw Gerrera, a man willing to go to any extremes necessary in order to resist Imperial tyranny, takes her in as his own, and gives her not only a home but all the abilities and resources she needs to become a rebel herself. Jyn dedicates herself to the cause—and the man. But fighting alongside Saw and his people brings with it danger and the question of just how far Jyn is willing to go as one of Saw's soldiers. When she faces an unthinkable betrayal that shatters her world, Jyn will have to pull the pieces of herself back together and figure out what she truly believes in...and who she can really trust.