Jerusha Abbott at 18 years is the eldest orphan at John Grier Home orphanage. All petty responsibilities of the kids at the orphanage rest on her tender shoulders. One fine day, her mundane life undergoes a surprising change when an unknown trustee of the orphanage offers to pay for her college education as he is very impressed by one of her essays! He promises her a liberal monthly allowance and insists on being anonymous. His only condition is that Jerusha should send him monthly letters and keep him posted about her life in college, but not to expect any replies from him. What follows is an insight into Jerusha’s unexplored, fascinating world of college life through the letters that she writes to her unknown benefactor. She addresses him adoringly as “Daddy-Long-Legs” as she had seen his long shadow once while he was leaving the asylum. She shares a love–hate–anger–gratitude relationship with him. Finally, at the end of the story, the identity of Daddy-Long-Legs is revealed. Is her godfather someone familiar or a total stranger?

The first Wednesday in every month was a Perfectly Awful Day-a day to be awaited with dread, endured with courage and forgotten with haste. Every floor must be spotless, every chair dustless, and every bed without a wrinkle. Ninety-seven squirming little orphans must be scrubbed and combed and buttoned into freshly starched ginghams; and all ninety-seven reminded of their manners, and told to say, "Yes, sir," "No, sir," whenever a Trustee spoke.

Dear Enemy is the sequel to novel Daddy-Long-Legs and follows the story of Sallie McBride, Judy Abbott's classmate and best friend in Daddy-Long-Legs. Dear Enemy shows how Sallie McBride grows from a frivolous socialite to a mature woman and an able executive. It also follows the development of Sallie's relationships with Gordon Hallock, a wealthy politician, and Dr. Robin MacRae, the orphanage's physician, (to whom Sallie addresses her letters: "Dear Enemy"). Both relationships are affected by Sallie's initial reluctance to commit herself to her job, and by her gradual realization of how happy the work makes her and how incomplete she'd feel without it.

Daddy drives Matthew to kindergarten in his old green car. ?See you this afternoon,? says Daddy, as he kisses him goodbye. But Matthew stops him from leaving and asks, ?What if, this afternoon, the old green car doesn't start?? Thus begins a series of what-ifs that Matthew poses in response to every one of Daddy's ideas about how he will manage to return and fetch him, each one more fantastic than the last: he'll come by tractor, by teddy bear, by the wings of birds, by a tiny boat, even by dragon! Finally, Daddy says he'll use his own two long legs, the ultimate reassurance that he'll come back for Matthew, no matter what! Author Nadine Brun-Cosme's endearing picture book offers warm comfort to young children that their parent can always be counted on. With gentle and imaginative humor, the father's increasingly wilder ideas about how he will make his way to his son prove the steady and unwavering certainty of a parent's commitment to a child. The whimsical artwork by Aurélie Guillerey plays lightly with the father's flights of fancy, keeping the tone of the book just right for a storytime read-aloud. Filled with the love between the boy and his father, this is a perfect book choice to address separation issues common to kindergartners and preschoolers who have difficulty saying goodbye to their parents.

Samantha's only friends were characters in books, but her real life takes an extraordinary turn when a mysterious "Mr. Knightley" offers her a full journalism scholarship—on the condition that she write to him regularly. Will their long-distance friendship unlock her heart? Sam is, to say the least, bookish. An English major of the highest order, her diet has always been Austen, Dickens, and Shakespeare. The problem is that both her prose and conversation tend to be more Elizabeth Bennet than Samantha Moore. But life for the twenty-three-year-old orphan is about to get stranger than fiction. An anonymous, Dickensian benefactor calling himself Mr. Knightley offers to put Sam through Northwestern University’s prestigious Medill School of Journalism. There is only one catch: Sam must write frequent letters to the mysterious donor, detailing her progress. Sam’s letters to Mr. Knightley become increasingly confessional as she begins to share everything from her painful childhood memories to her growing feelings for eligible novelist Alex Powell. While Alex draws Sam into a world of warmth and literature that feels like it’s straight out of a book, old secrets are drawn to light. And as Sam learns to love and trust Alex and herself, she learns once again how quickly trust can be broken. Reminding us all that our own true character is not meant to be hidden, Katherine Reay’s debut novel follows a young woman’s journey as she sheds her protective persona and embraces the person she was meant to become. Praise for Dear Mr. Knightley: “Katherine Reay’s Dear Mr. Knightley kept me up until 2:00 a.m.; I simply couldn’t put it down.”—Eloisa James, New York Times bestselling author of Once Upon a Tower “Sprinkled with classic literary references and filled with poignant characterizations, Katherine Reay’s modern retelling of Jean Webster’s Daddy-Long-Legs is both reverently crafted and delightfully surprising.”—Lauren Ann Nattress, Austenprose.com “Katherine Reay’s touching debut novel made me cry in all the right places. For joy.”—Laurie Viera Rigler, author of Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict Sweet, stand-alone contemporary romance Includes discussion questions for book clubs, a Q&A with the author, and Sam’s reading list