The Shame Game

What does it mean to be poor in Britain and America? For decades the primary narrative about poverty in both countries is that it has been caused by personal flaws or ‘bad life decisions’ rather than policy choices or economic inequality. This misleading account has become deeply embedded in the public consciousness with serious ramifications for how financially vulnerable people are seen, spoken about and treated. Drawing on a two-year multi-platform initiative, this book by award-winning journalist and author Mary O’Hara, asks how we can overturn this portrayal once and for all. Crucially, she turns to the real experts to try to find answers – the people who live it.

A licensed counselor shows how to stop saying you’re not good enough, let go of shame, and grab life by the horns. As you look at a newborn child, you become overwhelmed by his preciousness. Your heart is filled with love. Without doubt, you recognize that the child’s value was established at birth. The child’s value exists simply because he exists. You know with absolute certainty that this child—every child—can never be of lesser value. This child’s value simply is. This child is you. Abundant living is everyone’s birthright. Toxic shame can impede your ability to live abundantly, and The Shame Game offers you the tools to claim your inheritance. Although there have been books that address shame, healing shame, and abundant living, The Shame Game brings the three issues together in a more informative, readable, and concise manner than has ever been done. Janice gently guides you on a journey of self-awareness and healing, empowering you to rediscover your birth-created value. The Shame Game can set you free from the past, teach you to embrace the present, and open the door to an abundant future. Praise for The Shame Game “Janice Gaunt has highlighted the importance of acceptance and self-forgiveness in her first book, The Shame Game. This groundbreaking work will revolutionize how we look at shame and will help readers become the productive, self-accepting, balanced people they are meant to be.” —Jenna Bush Hager, Today correspondent and author of Ana’s Story and Read All About It “In simple, straightforward prose, Janice takes a subject none of us like to talk about and gently pushes us to open up, face the truth, and get our lives moving again—this time in the right direction. It’s a remarkable performance.” —Skip Hollandsworth, executive editor, Texas Monthly “Shame is at the heart of many healthcare issues for women. Understanding how shame-based issues dictate our behaviors and relationships is important for women in order to be mentally and physically well. Learning to accept one’s self is one of the biggest challenges we face. Janice Gaunt lays out a comprehensive program with real solutions to living a fulfilling life.” —Leesa B. Condry, MD, OB-GYN

FROM POPULAR ROMANCE AUTHOR HANNAH MURRAY Book one in the Perfect Taboo series A good marriage is built on love, trust and kink... James and Amanda have been together for fourteen happy, playful kinky years. That's the way they both like it, and neither feels there's anything missing, until one day, a typical scene morphs into something atypical—humiliation play. They've never played with this kink before, but it was shockingly hot, and satisfying in a way their more playful scenes aren't. They're both excited to try something new after so many years together, but James is leading his beloved wife and submissive into uncharted territory where their comfort zone will be stretched and their bond tested... It will take all the love and trust they've built over fourteen years to survive The Shame Game.

A 2017 Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, this witty and entertaining contemporary debut deftly combines high school drama with pitch-perfect flirty banter. Taylor Simmons is screwed. Things were hard enough when her dedication to her studies earned her the title of Ice Queen, but after she got drunk at a party and woke up next to bad boy surfer Evan McKinley, the entire school seems intent on tearing Taylor down with mockery and gossip. Desperate to salvage her reputation, Taylor persuades Evan to pretend they're in a serious romantic relationship. After all, it's better to be the girl who tames the wild surfer than just another notch on his surfboard. Readers will be ready to sign their own love contract after reading The Way to Game the Walk of Shame, a fun and addicting contemporary YA romance by Jenn P. Nguyen and chosen by readers like you for Macmillan's young adult imprint Swoon Reads. Praise for The Way to Game the Walk of Shame: "The Way to Game the Walk of Shame is the cutest heart-swelling romance to hit the shelves in ages." —Pooled Ink "A feel good romance with tons of laughs and flirty banter." —Young Adult Book Madness “I love that it's so funny, yet at the same time the characters have a lot of depth and emotional growth.” —Ashley Maker, reader on SwoonReads.com

"Powerful and poignant.... Newman's message is clear and timely." --The Philadelphia Inquirer In No Shame in My Game, Harvard anthropologist Katherine Newman gives voice to a population for whom work, family, and self-esteem are top priorities despite all the factors that make earning a living next to impossible--minimum wage, lack of child care and health care, and a desperate shortage of even low-paying jobs. By intimately following the lives of nearly 300 inner-city workers and job seekers for two yearsin Harlem, Newman explores a side of poverty often ignored by media and politicians--the working poor. The working poor find dignity in earning a paycheck and shunning the welfare system, arguing that even low-paying jobs give order to their lives. No Shame in My Game gives voice to a misrepresented segment of today's society, and is sure to spark dialogue over the issues surrounding poverty, working and welfare.

A monster keeps reminding James about past mistakes, so James seeks help from his parents.

Sophia is an insecure artist working in an office at her first job out of college. Despite being a romantic at heart, she has never allowed herself the chance to fall in love. But when she meets Evan, her cautious and careful co-worker, she finds herself in a fairytale romance that brings out her inner confidence. The relationship is jeopardized when Sophia makes a mistake that breaks Evan's heart. Forced to collaborate on a big project at work, Sophia is still feeling guilty about her mistake and Evan is too hurt and angry to act professional. In order to find their way back to each other, they will both need to stop shaming and start forgiving.

A "stunning" (Hanif Abdurraqib), "unputdownable" (Mary Karr) meditation on queerness, family, and desire. How do you know if you are transgender? How do you know if what you want and feel is real? How do you know whether to believe yourself? Cyrus Dunham’s life always felt like a series of imitations—lovable little girl, daughter, sister, young gay woman. But in a culture of relentless self-branding, and in a family subject to the intrusions and objectifications that attend fame, dissociation can come to feel normal. A Lambda Literary Award finalist, Dunham’s fearless, searching debut brings us inside the chrysalis of a transition inflected as much by whiteness and proximity to wealth as by gender, asking us to bear witness to an uncertain and exhilarating process that troubles our most basic assumptions about identity. Written with disarming emotional intensity in a voice uniquely his, A Year Without a Name is a potent, thrillingly unresolved meditation on queerness, family, and selfhood. Named a Most Anticipated Book of the season by: Time NYLON Vogue ELLE Buzzfeed Bustle O Magazine Harper's Bazaar