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Best Sibling Relationships

Etched in Sand: A True Story of Five Siblings Who Survived an Unspeakable Childhood on Long Island
Regina’s Calcaterra memoir, Etched in Sand , is an inspiring and triumphant coming-of-age story of tenacity and hope. In this story of perseverance in the face of adversity, Regina Calcaterra recounts her childhood in foster care and on the streets—and how she and her savvy crew of homeless siblings managed to survive years of homelessness, abandonment, and abuse. Regina Calcaterra's emotionally powerful memoir reveals how she endured a series of foster homes and intermittent homelessness in the shadow of the Hamptons, and how she rose above her past while fighting to keep her brother and three sisters together.
Reviews
"I've read other memoirs along these lines as well, but this is by far the most incredible abuse I've ever read about. As a book, the writing is amazing. There's a time toward the end where it slows down a little, but that's a welcome change after the intensity throughout the rest of the book."
"This was a great book and I was so impressed by how these kids were able to make something of their lives even with how hard their childhood was."
"I chose five stars because the author adeptly wrote a story of her family with openness and honesty."
"This book was riveting."
"A true story that opens your eyes to the horrors of life that children in our own society must deal with."
"I've heard from foster parents about the difficulty of raising children from dysfunctional homes and commend the good foster parent's their patience and understanding."
"The author receives the harshest abuse as the mother was hurt the most by her bio father."
"In addition, the story reminds us that there are "helpers" along the way."
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Sisters First: Stories from Our Wild and Wonderful Life
#1 New York Times Bestseller Former first daughters and #1 bestselling authors Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush share intimate stories and reflections from the Texas countryside to the storied halls of the White House and beyond. "Deeply personal, emotional and often funny...― People "In this funny and heartfelt memoir, the twin daughters of President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush offer their perspective on growing up in the public eye...Readers will be entertained by this charming, wild, and wonderful pair of life stories. "The two first daughters emerge as surprisingly well-adjusted, intelligent young women with strong family bonds in this insightful look at life inside the White House.
Reviews
"This is a heart warming book that made me laugh and cry and gives this senior citizen hope for then future."
"This book is SO funny and so hopeful and so full of love!"
"Incredible memoir by the bush sisters, gives you insight into their lives and they really didn't hold back whereas I think there are parts they could have excluded to sound better in terms of partisanship."
"I've read half of this book and not sure if I will continue with the remainder."
"It was very heartwarming to learn more about the Bush twins, especially Barbara, who is not necessarily in the limelight but is a leader in solving today's health crisis."
"Pretty good story."
"I loved reading this book."
"LOVED this book!"
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Siblings Without Rivalry: How to Help Your Children Live Together So You Can Live Too
This wise, groundbreaking book gives parents the practical tools they need to cope with conflict, encourage cooperation, reduce competition, and make it possible for children to experience the joys of their special relationship. The title, Siblings Without Rivalry promises a lot, and Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish (coauthors of How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk ) deliver the goods: a positive approach and specific techniques to help bring peace and cooperation into your home. Disciples of the late Haim Ginott, a child psychologist, Faber and Mazlish have conducted workshops on family relationships and co-authored Liberated Parents, Liberated Children (Avon, 1975) and How To Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk (Rawson Wade, 1980).
Reviews
"It really helped me see things from my kids' perspective and begin to understand how my standard statements to them are heard."
"Not my favorite book , but Informative."
"I highly recommend this book to any family with more than one child."
"Great book!"
"I would recommend this book to any and every parent with multiple children."
"It is tough to implement these ideas with the other parent sending a different message."
"I can use the strategies presented in this book right away!"
"This book is a complement to the How to talk so your kids will listen and listen so your kids will talk so I recommend them together."
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Best Dysfunctional Relationships

Spilled Milk: Based On A True Story
Brooke Nolan is a battered child who makes an anonymous phone call about the escalating brutality in her home. When social services jeopardize her safety condemning her to keep her father’s secret, it’s a glass of spilled milk at the dinner table that forces her to speak about the cruelty she’s been hiding. When jury members and a love interest congregate to inspire her to fight, she risks losing the support of family and comes to the realization that some people simply do not want to be saved. Several colleges and high schools have incorporated the novel into their lesson plans and I've received tons of feedback from my voracious fans- I knew I needed to come out with a more polished and professional edition that was appropriate for the education system, my fans, and in general. Randis, author of bestselling novel Spilled Milk and thePillbillies series, started journaling at the age of six and had shortstories and poetry published by the time she was thirteen.She is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University and a certifiedexpert in the field of domestic violence. Randis engages audiences on a local and national level to raise awareness about child abuse, serving as a frequent commentator to media outlets.
Reviews
"I learned about several cases of incest in Pennsylvania when I was younger and I often wondered about the victims and how they were able to process what happened to them."
"If you don’t like sad books, you may not enjoy it however, if you want a huge realization of life then DIG IN!"
"This book, for me, was one I couldn't put down.."
"What a FANTASTIC book! If you don't, I highly recommend that you read it anyway."
"This was a sad, heart wrenching tale, yet written in such a way that the reader was filled with hope."
"I felt I was reading what I would rate as a 3 to 4 star book but my whole perception changed when I got up a 3 a.m. so I could finish it."
"A lot of us close our eyes and turn our backs to frightening things that were written about in this book."
"Sometimes bad things happen to good people and that thought breaks my heart."
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Best Parent & Adult Child Relationships

The Color of Water
James McBride, journalist, musician, and son, explores his mother's past, as well as his own upbringing and heritage, in a poignant and powerful debut, The Color Of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother . "Mommy," a fiercely protective woman with "dark eyes full of pep and fire," herded her brood to Manhattan's free cultural events, sent them off on buses to the best (and mainly Jewish) schools, demanded good grades, and commanded respect. The Color of Water touches readers of all colors as a vivid portrait of growing up, a haunting meditation on race and identity, and a lyrical valentine to a mother from her son. Order this book ... and please don't be put off by its pallid subtitle, A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother , which doesn't begin to do justice to the utterly unique and moving story contained within. Jordan, born Rachel Shilsky, a Polish Jew, immigrated to America soon after birth; as an adult she moved to New York City, leaving her family and faith behind in Virginia. Her grim upbringing in an abusive environment is left behind when she moves to Harlem, marries a black man, converts to Christianity, and cofounds a Baptist congregation with her husband.
Reviews
"highschooler had to read for class."
"A great story of a remarkable girl who overcomes early setbacks to become a fabulous wife and mother who raises 12 children who all became very successful in life."
"Well written and powerful."
"Love, love, love this memoir!"
"I like this book it really shows you how another person's point of view is different from your."
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Best Stepparenting & Blended Families

Stepmonster: A New Look at Why Real Stepmothers Think, Feel, and Act the Way We Do
An honest and groundbreaking guide to understanding the complicated emotions that develop between stepmothers and children. The author of Stepmonster and the instant #1 New York Times bestseller Primates of Park Avenue, she has appeared as a step/parenting expert on CNN, NPR, BBC, Today, and GMA and has written for the New York Times and Psychology Today.
Reviews
"This book is VALIDATION."
"You absolutely must read this book immediately if you are a stepmom or going to be a stepmom. But really, it is absolutely THE text book for stepmom everything."
"I love this book."
"Even though I have a good relationship with my stepson, the transition of all of a sudden having an adolescent in my home was a bit of an adjustment."
"If the father does right by you and supports your relationship first with respect, love and understanding that this relationship needs to be the core and foundation o your family, doesn't fall into the Disney Dad role and demonstrates true love and how a marriage should be first and foremost, so many other issues disappear."
"Hey stepmom's feel like you are going crazy, guess what you are not alone. Being a stepmother is the most difficult position to be in, especially if your spouse has their head in the sand regarding their "angelic" children."
"I think we create an idea of how things should be and we bang our heads against the wall, and ruin our own health and happiness to make it so."
"I could have been spared several years of mental and emotional suffering if I had read this first and been able to better prepare for his kids' negative effects on my life."
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Best Grandparenting

Don't let Your Kids Kill You: A Guide for Parents of Drug and Alcohol Addicted Children
Drawing on interviews with parents who've survived the heartbreak of kids on drugs, combined with his own experience, Charles Rubin provides practical advice on how parents can help themselves and their families by first attending to their own needs. "Offers parents the means to attain a healthy balance in their lives despite their children's choices," ---Publishers Weekly Charles Rubin, a Clio Award-winning writer and producer, has been the subject of many television interviews on CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX, and the BBC.
Reviews
"This book is great for anyone who has an issue with a teen who is involved with the drug scene."
"This book has very practical advice and there are actually coping tools in it that have helped me tremendously."
"i love this book."
"Excellent resource books for patients as well as my own family members."
"Finally a book that is about how to help parents."
"I would recommend this book to any mother or father who has a child addicted to drugs or alcohol."
"This book is wonderful and has helped give me back my life."
"You have mirrored my experiences with my children and I hope they achieve sobriety."
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Best Fatherhood

Be Prepared: A Practical Handbook for New Dads
An indispensable survival manual for guys entering the trenches of fatherhood, Be Prepared is loaded with one-of-a-kind insights, MacGyver-esque tips and tricks, and no-nonsense advice for mastering the first year as a dad. The basics (childproofing, bathing, feeding, entertaining) intermix with nifty sidebars (homemade bath toys, foods to never give your baby, exercises for dads) in easy-to-peruse chapters organized according to the age of the offspring up to age 1. (A hunger cry, for example, is "a pattern of low-pitched, rhythmic moans, growing more and more insistent," whereas a boredom pattern is "a low-volume whimper which stops and starts irregularly."). Along with the conventional chapters on baby-proofing your house and taking a baby's temperature are more obscure—and amusing—topics, such as how to videotape your baby and how to conduct a "Mirror Puppet Sing Along" to sooth a crying baby while driving (the technique requires two mirrors, a hand-puppet and an indifference to looking silly).
Reviews
"I bought it for my hubby but I wound up reading the entire thing myself."
"Most importantly, its not of the "you're a guy so you must be an idiot stereotypical clueless dad to be" type."
"I wanted something that would help him prepare for our first child, but worried that a normal baby book would bore him (he's not much one for self-help books in general)."
"My husband has very much enjoyed learning the essentials of first time daddyhood from this book."
"I've never wanted children, but I will make lifestyle sacrifices to make my wife’s lifestyle dreams come true."
"Not only did I buy this book for my husband when we were expecting, but TWO friends gave it to us as gifts (we've regifted to other expectant parents :) )."
"There are ideas in the book that every dad should know, especially those becoming a dad for the first time."
"I bought this for my son for the birth of his first baby, kinda sorta as a joke."
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Best Divorce

A Year by the Sea: Thoughts of an Unfinished Woman
During the years Joan Anderson was a loving wife and supportive mother, she had slowly and unconsciously replaced her own dreams with the needs of her family. With her sons grown, however, she realized that the family no longer centered on the home she provided, and her relationship with her husband had become stagnant. Through vivid and meticulous observations about the natural world, Anderson makes clear her strong affinity for the ocean, with its changing tides, subtle colors and burgeoning life. She swam with seals, ran a marathon, worked in a fish market, and earned extra income clammingAactivities that gave her the opportunity to shed her image as family nurturer and allowed her to grow as an independent woman. This is a good choice for discussion and a companion piece to Anne Morrow Lindbergh's classic Gift from the Sea.AJoyce Sparrow, St. Petersburg P.L., FL. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Reviews
"I completely related to Joan and her life’s story."
"I found Joan's travels through her past, present and future to be very captivating."
"An insightful look into the author's life, prompting the reader to look into their own with fresh eyes and a renewed spirit."
"I thoroughly enjoyed this book; didn't want it to end, and wished she was My friend!"
"I liked the discriptions of the oceans and all that it encompases ."
"For myself, it was a time to reset the clock and let go of long held expectations."
"From the first chapter I found myself wishing I was Joan.... learning and living."
"I liked the idea of getting away from a stale marriage and getting back together in the end."
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Best Motherhood

On Becoming Baby Wise: Giving Your Infant the Gift of Nighttime Sleep
For over 20 years, On Becoming Babywise has been the de facto newborn parenting manual for naturally synchronizing your baby’s feeding time, waketime and nighttime sleep cycles, so the whole family can sleep through the night. Practical discussions then focus on broad and niche topics including feeding philosophies, baby sleep problems, baby scheduling challenges, nap routines, sleep training multiples, baby sleeping props, Colic and Reflux and many other dimensions which impact breast feeding schedules, bottle feeding tips and baby sleep training. 1) Taking care of baby and mom. 2) A timeline of what to expect and when. 3) Baby Sleep Training Problems and Solutions. 4) Monitoring Your Baby’s Growth. 5) Healthy Baby Growth Charts. My residents report a positive difference in the confidence of new mothers who work with this plan compared to those who do not. They consistently produce babies who are healthy, content, and who sleep through the night at an early age. "Since being introduced to the principles of Babywise, I have been convinced of its effectiveness in establishing sleep patterns and in decreasing the frequency of problems associated with infant feeding." This is the current and completely revised & updated version of On Becoming Babywise (the 5th edition, February 2012). It has a new chapter, several important revisions, the latest in medical updates, and is 19% longer than the former version. In becoming one of America's leading infant management guides, On Becoming Babywise has continued to improve its methods and practices throughout its 30 years and this latest version is the result of all the best over the last three decades. The Babywise method continues to gain global recognition for its common-sense approach to parenting a newborn. and co-author Gary Ezzo which helps parents successfully and naturally synchronize their baby's feeding time, waketime and nighttime cycles. Rather, our larger objective is to help prepare minds for the incredible task of raising a child. Your baby will not care if his head rests on designer sheets or beside Disney characters, nor is your success tied to his wardrobe or bedroom accessories, but rather to the beliefs and convictions that will eventually shape your parenting experience. It is our opinion that the achievements of healthy growth, contented babies, good naps, and playful wake times, as well as the gift of nighttime sleep, are too valuable to be left to chance. We realize there are a number of parenting theories being marketed today, most of which come gift-wrapped with unrealistic promises and unnecessary burdens. Spend time with relatives and friends who follow the Attachment Parenting style of infant care. The Appendices section in On Becoming Babywise contains charts, worksheets, and additional information relating to infant care. And while 70% of our mothers are still breast-feeding after six months, the national average encourage to follow demand feeding without any guidelines is only 20%. The authors demonstrate how order and stability are mutual allies of every newborn's metabolism and how parents can take advantage of these biological propensities. In particular, we note how an infant's body responds to the influences of parental routine or the lack thereof. Examine carefully the alternative theories and approaches, and specifically observe the end results. The best evaluation of any parenting philosophy, including Babywise, is not found in the reasoning or the logic of the hypothesis. " As family physicians and a husband-wife team, we are often asked questions related to parenting and the general care of children.
Reviews
"On Becoming Babywise taught me to tap into my God-given parental instincts while providing me medically-sound advice to equip me in teaching my infant to sleep through the night."
"Good book and easy read."
"Some of the information is good, but there are better sleep books out there."
"I didn't get it until my daughter was six months old, and you are supposed to start it when your baby is a newborn, but I was still able to implement the recommendations."
"We really like the advice and it's very sound advice, but it's particularly preachy."
"Very helpful in helping daughter get my granddaughter on a sleeping and eating schedule as a newborn."
"I read through this book and there are a lot of things I don't like about it...however...I followed it somewhat loosely and our baby slept through the night the second day of following the feed, wake, sleep schedule...I do believe there is some truth to this book."
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