At the greatest moments and in the cruelest times, black women have been a crucial part of America's history. Now, the inspiring history of black women in America is explored in vivid detail by two leaders in the fields of African American and women's history. A Shining Thread of Hope chronicles the lives of black women from indentured servitude in the early American colonies to the cruelty of antebellum plantations, from the reign of lynch law in the Jim Crow South to the triumphs of the Civil Rights era, and it illustrates how the story of black women in America is as much a tale of courage and hope as it is a history of struggle. On both an individual and a collective level, A Shining Thread of Hope reveals the strength and spirit of black women and brings their stories from the fringes of American history to a central position in our understanding of the forces and events that have shaped this country.

Can they find a way to stitch their suffering into hope and embrace an uncertain future? Tally Smucker's quiet life of reading and quilting hides her sorrow over her mother's declining health and the lack of a fulfilling future for herself. When her daily life is shaken by her free-spirited neighbor Danielle--who grew up Plain but joined the Army at eighteen--Tally's instinct is to distance herself. Yet she finds she can't turn away when Danielle's brother, Kenan, specifically asks for her help. She invites Danielle to visit Plain Patterns quilt shop with her, where the story of the plight of a WWI soldier and the girl he left behind resonates with both Tally and Danielle, but for different reasons. When Tally's mother suffers a setback at the same time Danielle's PTSD becomes unmanageable, it seems Tally's efforts to aid them only make things worse. Can the soldier's story, along with the care of Kenan, help Tally accept the hope that waits just around the corner? From the talented pen of Leslie Gould comes a moving tale of restoration and renewed hope within the Amish community.

DescriptionThread of Hope is more than a word salad. It reads like a zine exploring the boundaries of the mental illness system. This chapbook of semi-autobiographical poetry, prose and artistry demonstrates the healing power of creativity and spirituality in the life of the psychiatrized. About the AuthorDenise Fletcher holds a degree in recreational therapy from Minnesota State University, Mankato and a massage practitioner certificate from the Minneapolis School of Massage. She struggles with bipolar disorder. Denise finds healing in the arts and writing is her passion. Her work has been published through On Edge, Kaleidoscope, Many Voices, Home Health Aide Digest, Hopekeeper's Magazine, Open Minds Quarterly, Bloomington Art Center and other various venues.

A near-death experience in a car with her Mother; running from tear gas at a Vietnam War rally hand-in-hand with her Pop; a year in India learning side-by-side the country's 'untouchables;' the highs and lows of living on a rural Pennsylvania commune...and all before Fiona Sprechelbach's thirteenth birthday. Set during one of the most politically divisive eras in American history, Thread for Pearls is a coming of age tale that takes us on a young heroine's journey to faith and freedom amidst a turbulent family dynamic. It's a story of resilient hope that questions whether it's the events of our lives that define us, or the thread on which we choose to string them.

While other kids enjoyed the social aspects of school in the 1960s, Jacqui DeLorenzo experienced the torment of bullying. From the moment she stepped onto the bus, walked through the schoolyard, and stepped into the classroom, lunchroom, and even her own neighborhood, she was a target. Unfortunately, Jacqui's adulthood proved to be as challenging as her adolescence and childhood but her unwavering faith always sustained her. A Thread of Hope chronicles Jacqui's journey through her parents' devastating breakup, the death of her thirteen-year-old brother, her own struggle to survive cancer, and her battle with an eating disorder. From the depths of depression, Jacqui has worked to completely accept the person she's become, always leaving room for growth. Jacqui's belief in the miracle of God's love guided her to improved self-worth and the realization that she could accomplish anything. She continues to grow daily and appreciates all that life has to offer, especially the love of her family and friends, her health, and most of all, her personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Jacqui's inspiring memoir, A Thread of Hope, will touch your heart and give you hope for the future.

Who are these homeless teens wandering the streets of America, backpacks slung over their shoulders, cigarettes dangling from their hands? Why are they on the streets instead of safely harbored at home? A Fragile Thread of Hope answers these questions in the words of four young women rescued from the streets by the author, Andi Buerger. Her own childhood abuse made her keenly aware of three homeless teenaged mothers when she volunteered at a shelter on Thanksgiving of 2008. That day she decided to do something to help. A Fragile Thread of Hope is the story of Andi's redemption from the abuse that sought to define her intertwined with the eventual birth of Beulah's Place, a refuge for lost and wandering teens caught up in drugs, alcohol and even sex trafficking. The women speak their hearts, not just their experiences. The reader will see young street people in a whole new light.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “A powerfully imagined novel . . . [a] profoundly moving book that engages the heights and depths of human experience.”—Los Angeles Times It is September 8, 1943, and fourteen-year-old Claudette Blum and her father are among the thousands of Jewish refugees scrambling over the Alps toward Italy, where they hope to find safety now that the Italians have broken from Germany and made a separate peace with the Allies. The Blums will soon discover that Italy is anything but peaceful, as it quickly becomes an open battleground for the Nazis, the Allies, Resistance fighters, Jews in hiding, and ordinary Italian civilians trying to survive. Tracing the lives of a handful of fascinating characters—a charismatic Italian Resistance leader, a priest, an Italian rabbi’s family, a disillusioned German doctor—Mary Doria Russell tells the little-known story of the vast underground effort by Italian citizens who saved the lives of 43,000 Jews during the final phase of World War II. A Thread of Grace puts a human face on history. Praise for A Thread of Grace “An addictive page-turner . . . [Mary Doria] Russell has an astonishing story to tell—full of action, paced like a rapid-fire thriller, in tense, vivid scenes that move with cinematic verve.”—The Washington Post Book World “Hauntingly beautiful, utterly unforgettable.”—San Francisco Chronicle “Rich . . . Based on the heroism of ordinary people, [A Thread of Grace] packs an emotional punch.”—People “[A] deeply felt and compellingly written book . . . The progress of each character’s life is marked or measured by acts of grace. . . . Russell is a smart, passionate and imaginative writer.”—Cleveland Plain Dealer “A feat of storytelling . . . an important book [that] needs to be widely read.”—Portland Oregonian “Mary Doria Russell’s fans (and aren’t we all?) will rejoice to see her new novel on the shelves. A Thread of Grace is as ambitious, beautiful, tense, and transforming as any of us could have hoped.”—Karen Joy Fowler, author of The Jane Austen Book Club “A story of love and war, A Thread of Grace speaks to the resilience and beauty of the human spirit in the midst of unimaginable horror. It is, unquestionably, a literary triumph.”—David Morrell, author of The Brotherhood of the Rose and First Blood