Book

Choosing Survival: How I Endured a Brutal Attack and a Lifetime of Trauma throughout the Power of Action, Choice, and Self Expression by Lynn Forney

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CHOOSING SURVIVAL BY Lynn Forney

At 21, Lynn Forney had already had her fair share of struggles. Clinicial depression often hid behind her smile, but deep down, she never lost hope. Not really. As she began to heal and find her place in the world, something unthinkable happened. Lynn awoke to a man, a stranger, in her bed. Then he stabbed her. Seven times. She lost 21 pints of blood. Statistically, she should not have survived.

And if that wasn’t enough, she was treated unfairly by the investigating police, the hospital staff, family and friends, and even strangers with comments and questions like:

  • “What did you do to piss him off?’
  • “You must have known him.”
  • You don’t need that handicap sticker!”

Now, she’s telling her amazing story of survival: candidly, honestly, courageously and in doing so Lynn Forney hope that she to help others do the same.

About the Author: Lynn Forney loved to dance and perform. At just 3 years old, she wasn’t shy cheerleading in front of the crowd. She began taking formal dance classes at 8. Years later, she would attend a performing arts high school, and go on to receive a BFA with highest honors from the University of Florida. She has written, produced, directed, and starred in two short films, one of which is getting ready to enter the film festival circuit.

Book

From Junkie To Judge: One Women’s Triumph Over Trauma And Addiction by Mary Beth O’Connor

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From Junkie To Judge: One Woman’s Triumph Over Trauma And Addiction

From a junkie addicted to methamphetamines to a federal judge, Mary Beth O’Connor’s memoir shares her inspiring journey from rock bottom to resilience as she forged a personal path to recovery from trauma and addiction.

Clean and sober for nearly three decades, Mary Beth O’Connor is living proof that anyone can find their sober self, their best self, no matter how far they have fallen. Along with her inspiring story, she offers a comprehensive checklist of questions for readers to ask themselves as they take the brave steps toward recovery, offering a powerful blueprint for personal change.

About The Author: Mary Beth O’Connor has been sober since 1994. She has also been in recovery from abuse, trauma, and anxiety. Six years into her recovery, Mary Beth attended Berkeley Law. She worked at a large firm, then litigated class actions for the federal government. In 2014, she was appointed a federal administrative law judge, which position she held until 2020.

product review

Giving Gal and the Christmas Cookie Extravaganza by Stephanie L Jones

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As the holiday season quickly approaches, it is important for children to remember that Christmas is about more than presents and material things. A meaningful gift can cost little time or money and can even be free, such as the gift of friendship or the gift of working together.

Author and giving expert Stephanie L. Jones aims to illustrate this sentiment in her book, Giving Gal and the Christmas Cookie Extravaganza. Based on Jones’s own annual Christmas cookie tradition with her best friend, Giving Gal and the Christmas Cookie Extravaganza follows main character Gabi as she works to put together her annual Christmas Cookie Extravaganza. Excited to have her new friend Tianna joining in on the fun, both girls are disappointed when the day doesn’t start out as planned. But Giving Gal persists in giving encouragement, showing kindness, and making sure her friend feels included.

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When Dinosaurs Conquered The Skies: The incredible story of bird evolution by Jingmai O’Connor

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When Dinosaurs Conquered The Skies: The Incredible Story of Bird Evolution by Jingmai O’Connor

Birds are incredible! They fly, they run, they swim, and they climb. How did this wonderful group of animals first evolve? Step back in time to discover how the unearthing of an Archaeopteryx fossil changed the way we thing about dinosaurs like no there fossil has ever done before. Explore the fascinating story of how birds became birds and how we humans finally figured it out...

  • How the oldest bird fossils are about 150 million years old. 
  • That birds evolved from a group of meat-eating dinosaurs called theropods. That’s the same group that Tyrannosaurus Rex belonged to, although birds evolved from small theropods.  
  • How these ancient birds looked quite a lot like small, feathered dinosaurs and they had much in common. Their mouths still contained sharp teeth. 
  • That over time, birds lost their teeth and evolved beaks. 
  • And being called a Bird Brain is a compliment

The story of bird evolution is fascinating, and When Dinosaurs Conquered The Skies: The incredible story of bird evolution by Jingmai O’Connor   explores this incredible history in a digestible, accessible way. This book from the successful Incredible Evolution series proves that fact can definitely be stranger and more exciting than fiction!

About the Author – Jingmai O’Connor is second generation Chines and third generation Irish. Grew up in Pasadena, CA, just outside of Los Angeles, and is currently the Associate Curator of Fossil Reptiles (aka the “dinosaur curator’) at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.

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product review

Sweet Dreams, Lil Paw by Bruce Dierking Illustrated by Penny Weber

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It is hard being the youngest and smallest one in the family. Especially when your bedtime comes first, and you are feeling sad and afraid. Lil is just a pup, but she’s got big dreams, and nothing is going to hold her back! Sweet Dreams, Lil Paw is the first book in the Power Paws series, a collection of children’s stories designed to grow with its readers from birth to age 10 by evolving in complexity and maturity to track with a child’s intellectual and emotional growth and reading abilities.

for more information click here