The Walls Between Us

Childhood friends Reita Kikuchi and Makoto Sakurai were never able to bring their relationship to the next level … until finally Reita eases Makoto's misgivings by confessing his eternal feelings for her. They finally start a romantic relationship, but discover their past has built some walls between them… Follow them into the next phase of their relationship in Volume 5 of this adorable romantic comedy filled with exciting developments, the "wall thing," and lots of flirting!

From an author of the best-selling women’s health classic Our Bodies, Ourselves comes a bracingly forthright memoir about a life-long friendship across racial and class divides. A white woman’s necessary learning, and a Black woman’s complex evolution, make These Walls Between Us a “tender, honest, cringeworthy and powerful read.” (Debby Irving, author, Waking Up White.) In the mid-1950s, a fifteen-year-old African American teenager named Mary White (now Mary Norman) traveled north from Virginia to work for twelve-year-old Wendy Sanford’s family as a live-in domestic for their summer vacation by a remote New England beach. Over the years, Wendy's family came to depend on Mary’s skilled service—and each summer, Mary endured the extreme loneliness of their elite white beachside retreat in order to support her family. As the Black “help” and the privileged white daughter, Mary and Wendy were not slated for friendship. But years later—each divorced, each a single parent, Mary now a rising officer in corrections and Wendy a feminist health activist—they began to walk the beach together after dark, talking about their children and their work, and a friendship began to grow. Based on decades’ worth of visits, phone calls, letters, and texts between Mary and Wendy, These Walls Between Us chronicles the two women’s friendship, with a focus on what Wendy characterizes as her “oft-stumbling efforts, as a white woman, to see Mary more fully and to become a more dependable friend.” The book examines obstacles created by Wendy’s upbringing in a narrow, white, upper-class world; reveals realities of domestic service rarely acknowledged by white employers; and draws on classic works by the African American writers whose work informed and challenged Wendy along the way. Though Wendy is the work’s primary author, Mary read and commented on every draft—and together, the two friends hope their story will incite and support white readers to become more informed and accountable friends across the racial divides created by white supremacy and to become active in the ongoing movement for racial justice.

Makoto Sakurai finally starts dating her childhood friend, Reita Kikuchi. As the two inch towards a real romantic relationship, a distant cousin of Makoto's shows up unexpectedly and starts making waves… Follow their adventure in the sixth installment of this hilarious love story full of Reita's egoism, the "wall thing," and heart-pounding, butterfly-inducing romance!

SPECIAL PREVIEW! “Ori’s dead because of what happened out behind the theater, in the tunnel made out of trees. She’s dead because she got sent to that place upstate, locked up with those monsters. And she got sent there because of me.” The Walls Around Us is a ghostly story of suspense told in two voices--one still living and one long dead. On the outside, there’s Violet, an eighteen-year-old dancer days away from the life of her dreams when something threatens to expose the shocking truth of her achievement. On the inside, within the walls of a girls’ juvenile detention center, there’s Amber, locked up for so long she can’t imagine freedom. Tying these two worlds together is Orianna, who holds the key to unlocking all the girls’ darkest mysteries. We hear Amber’s story and Violet’s, and through them Orianna’s, first from one angle, then from another, until gradually we begin to get the whole picture--which is not necessarily the one that either Amber or Violet wants us to see. Nova Ren Suma tells a supernatural tale of guilt and innocence, and what happens when one is mistaken for the other. Praise for Imaginary Girls: “A surreal and dreamy world where magical thinking is carried to a chilling extreme.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review Praise for 17 & Gone: “Suma’s exquisite sentence-level writing and fine eye for creepy detail are in abundant evidence.” —Kirkus Reviews

"Why did you have to say that…?" As chance would have it, Makoto Sakurai finds herself pretending to date her childhood friend Reita Kikuchi. While he exasperates her with his narcissism and stupidity, she begins to take more notice of his clumsy attempts at kindness — but can't bring herself to admit to her feelings. Follow Makoto's adventure as she navigates the ups and downs of dating her egotistical childhood friend in the second installment of this romantic comedy!

"If you want a boyfriend that bad, I'll go out with you." Growing up next-door neighbors, Reita Kikuchi and Makoto Sakurai's parents are friends, and the two of them have known each other forever. But one day Makoto is suddenly thrown into a relationship with that narcissistic and self-absorbed playboy, Reita—her old childhood friend! Follow Makoto's adventures as she navigates the ups and downs of dating the egotistical boy-next-door in the first installment of this romantic comedy!

“The biology of Israel/Palestine simply and beautifully revealed,” from the author of Down and Out Today: Notes from the Gutter (Jon Snow, journalist and presenter). Writer Matthew Small traveled to the Holy Land to further his understanding of the enduring conflict between Israel and Palestine. While there, he discovered beauty, fear and suffering like nowhere else in the world. In these honest and evocative reflections, Small retells his experiences of crossing into the West Bank to work the olive harvest with Palestinian farmers. He relates his encounters with organizations that are determinedly working to sow the seeds of peace in soils that are deeply scarred by suffering and war. While reliving these unforgettable experiences, through his writing he struggles to find why the wall between these two groups of people exists. Deciding to join a group of international and Israeli volunteers, Small attempts to show that, despite the ongoing occupation, peace is not lost, but still to be discovered. “Matthew Small, despite the horror of both the war, and the wall, works and travels both sides of the divide, and brings us to an understanding of where the seeds of peace can yet be found.”—Jon Snow, journalist and presenter “What is really refreshing about this book is the way Small writes from a very personal perspective, often admitting in his diary entries that he’s unsure what to write or how he feels about the situation. His emotion surrounding his visit and the people living amongst the occupation every day is portrayed in a gritty, raw way.”—The Bookbag

There are two sides to a border. In this story one side is American, one side is Mexican. Threats from illicit activities permeate both sides with issues of illegal immigration and drug and human trafficking. There are two faces of the Arizona desert. Sarah sees it as a heaven, he sees it as a hell. She is a budding attorney from New York; he is a photojournalist fleeing the Mexican drug cartel. Destiny brings the two together in the Mexico Arizona borderlands of the Sonoran Desert. Follow the lives of soulmates Sarah and Benito as they learn from their striking similarities and discover their diverse cultural differences. Learn the true meaning of family. Witness the humble Mexican woman who inspires change in a Vietnam veteran vigilante through the power of unconditional love. Listen to the retired professor from New York who finds a unique way to help the underprivileged on the south side of the border. All paths and stories of these people intersect and destiny rules the direction that their lives take. The people in this story live on the edge of a political, manmade border line. A line that crosses through cities and homelands. A line that divides those who are prejudiced from one another but also a line that divides those who love. We discover that a border wall is just one kind of wall. There are political walls of injustice, emotional walls of defensiveness and social walls of discrimination. Join us as we watch the walls of Fate come tumbling down when one prioritizes the power of love, compassion and acceptance. We may not be able to open our Borders, but we can open our hearts. Based on a true story."Every day since I've been writing this book I grieve for people I never met, people I never knew. They will sell everything short of their soul to make the border crossing. And a few will sell their soul..." Kate McGahan "You don't build walls, you build bridges between people." Andrew Cuomo"The little wall will fall away so quietly beneath the wings of peace." A Course in Miracles"Men will find that they can avoid far more easily the perils, which beset them...by uniting forces." Benedict Spinoza