Five-year-old Joey Harrison's world is turned upside down when he and his seven-year-old sister, Beth, are placed in foster care in 1942. With the war in Europe underway and the attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan, the children's father joins the Army despite the pleadings of his young wife. From 1941 until 1947 Joey's mother will have five additional children fathered by another man. All of the children are subsequently placed in foster care where Joey and his siblings suffer unconscionable abuse at the hands of foster parents. They are shifted from foster care to foster care, including one stay in an orphanage for Joey. Joey's mother is age 40 when she dies due to cirrhosis of the liver and the children's father petitions the State of New York, requesting that Joey come and live with him. What follows for the boy, as well as his siblings, is a loveless path of more foster homes, formidable hurdles, and abuse until Joey ultimately triumphs and reaches the top of the stairs. It's an inspirational journey the reader will witness as they see Joey and his six siblings become reunited after overcoming multiple hardships and are finally reunited over twenty-five years later.

NOW AVAILABLE AS AN EBOOK! From New York Times bestselling author Shel Silverstein, the classic creator of Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, and Every Thing On It, comes a wondrous book of poems and drawings. Filled with unforgettable characters like Screamin’ Millie; Allison Beals and her twenty-five eels; Danny O'Dare, the dancin' bear; the Human Balloon; and Headphone Harold, this collection by the celebrated Shel Silverstein will charm young readers and make them want to trip on their shoelaces and fall up too! So come, wander through the Nose Garden, ride the Little Hoarse, eat in the Strange Restaurant, and let the magic of Shel Silverstein open your eyes and tickle your mind. And don't miss these other Shel Silverstein ebooks, The Giving Tree, Where the Sidewalk Ends, and A Light in the Attic!

Joy Fullerton was just an eleven year-old kid. That's all. Granted, her nose was too long, her face was too narrow, and her extremely tall body was almost stick-thin. And, if that weren't enough to doom her to merciless teasing by the kids on the school bus, she was painfully, painfully shy.On his first day at her school, Grant Cooper demanded to know what Joy's name was. Afraid not to answer, she got as far as "Joy Ful..." when he jumped in with a loud taunt. "Joyful, joyful, she's got a nose-ful. She don't look to me so joyful!" Day in and day out, she heard this from Grant, and all the other kids on board who took up the taunt, morning and afternoon.Now, over twenty years later, and a lot of life gone past, Grant shows up at her medical practice. He doesn't recognize Dr. Joy Fullerton at all, but before entering the exam room, she reads on the chart that the patient's name is Grant Cooper. She'd never forgotten that name. When she opens the exam room door... sure enough, it's him.She'd never forgiven him. So... what happens now?!

The staircase of life is supposed to be an upward path as you live your life, with some landings along the way. As you climb, some steps are easier than others. At times other people will put barriers in your way or try to push you back down the stairs. Sometimes you fall. But if you do fall, always try to make progress. Do not stay down. Remember that it is your staircase to climb. Look up, get up, and fall upwards!Falling Up A Down Staircase is the author's second and final book. It includes some history of the time before her birth, about the people she has met along the way up her staircase and includes some stories that were forgotten in her first book The Days in the Life of a Superklutz. However, this time she is naming names!

A practical, non-technical guide to minimizing the likelihood of falling. Includes taking stock of your health and physical abilities, medical conditions and medications, risk factors, exercises, fall-proofing a house and getting up after a fall.