Key Selling Points A young girl befriends a boy who hasn’t spoken since his parents were killed in a car accident. Sorry For Your Loss examines themes of grieving, friendship and the nature of family. This book shows a behind-the-scenes view of what happens after someone dies. The author's father runs a Jewish funeral home, which served as inspiration for the setting of the novel. The author has written several other middle-grade novels and has been nominated for the Red Maple Award and the Manitoba Young Readers’ Choice Awards. This book has all the elements of an excellent middle-grade story: an unusual setting; diverse, relatable characters; and the perfect blend of humor and pathos. Free Discussion Guide available for download at orcabook.com.

From Printz Honor winner and Morris Award finalist Jessie Ann Foley comes a comitragic YA novel that will appeal to fans of Jandy Nelson and Jeff Zentner. As the youngest of eight, painfully average Pup Flanagan is used to flying under the radar. He’s barely passing his classes. He lets his longtime crush walk all over him. And he’s in no hurry to decide on a college path. The only person who ever made him think he could be more was his older brother Patrick. But that was before Patrick died suddenly, leaving Pup with a family who won’t talk about it and acquaintances who just keep saying, “sorry for your loss.” When Pup excels at a photography assignment he thought he’d bomb, things start to come into focus. His dream girl shows her true colors. An unexpected friend exposes Pup to a whole new world, right under his nose. And the photograph that was supposed to show Pup a way out of his grief ultimately reveals someone else who is still stuck in their own. Someone with a secret regret Pup never could have imagined. Winner of the 2020-2020 North Star YA Award Named to YALSA's Best Fiction for Young Adults list

A must-read investigation of reproductive health under fire in Post-Roe America. More than a million people lose a pregnancy each year, whether through miscarriage, stillbirth, or termination for medical reasons. For most, the experience often casts a shadow of isolation, shame, and blame. In the aftermath of the 2022 decision to overturn Roe v Wade, 25 million people of childbearing age live in states with laws that restrict access to abortion, including for those who never wanted to end their pregnancies. How did we get here? Rebecca Little and Colleen Long, childhood friends who grew up to be journalists, both experienced late-term loss, and together they take an incisive, deeply reported look at the issue, working to shatter taboos that have made so many pregnant people feel ashamed and alone. They trace the experience of pregnancy loss and reproductive care from America's founding to the present day, exposing the deep impact made by a dangerous tangle of laws, politics, medicine, racism, and misogyny. Combining powerful personal narratives with exhaustive research, I'm Sorry for My Loss is a comprehensive examination on how pregnancy loss came to be so stigmatized and politicized, and why a system of more compassionate care is critical for everyone.

Key Selling Points A boy planning his bar mitzvah project is frustrated that he’s not allowed to pursue his interests. This book examines gender stereotyping in a safe and humorous way. Fish Out of Water explores theissue of toxic masculinity, which is very much in the news right now as traditional gender roles and assumptions are being challenged. The author has written numerous books for middle-grade audiences and balances funny and sweet well. The author is Jewish and includes Jewish content in all her stories. New, enhanced features (dyslexia-friendly font, cream paper, larger trim size) to increase reading accessibility for dyslexic and other striving readers.

A moving memoir about NPR host Scott Simon's connection to his mother—inspired by the popular tweets he shared during her death.

Key Selling Points A sweet summer camp story about a painfully shy girl who meets a boy with a rare genetic condition. The book explores themes of facing your fears and the nature of true friendship. One of the main characters has progeria, a genetic condition that causes premature aging. Most children who have this don’t live past age 14. This story had its genesis in a terrible summer camp experience for the author. The book has a happy ending. Bea and her new friends stay in touch after summer is over.

Inspired by the website that the New York Times hailed as "redefining mourning," this book is a fresh and irreverent examination into navigating grief and resilience in the age of social media, offering comfort and community for coping with the mess of loss through candid original essays from a variety of voices, accompanied by gorgeous two-color illustrations and wry infographics. At a time when we mourn public figures and national tragedies with hashtags, where intimate posts about loss go viral and we receive automated birthday reminders for dead friends, it’s clear we are navigating new terrain without a road map. Let’s face it: most of us have always had a difficult time talking about death and sharing our grief. We’re awkward and uncertain; we avoid, ignore, or even deny feelings of sadness; we offer platitudes; we send sympathy bouquets whittled out of fruit. Enter Rebecca Soffer and Gabrielle Birkner, who can help us do better. Each having lost parents as young adults, they co-founded Modern Loss, responding to a need to change the dialogue around the messy experience of grief. Now, in this wise and often funny book, they offer the insights of the Modern Loss community to help us cry, laugh, grieve, identify, and—above all—empathize. Soffer and Birkner, along with forty guest contributors including Lucy Kalanithi, singer Amanda Palmer, and CNN’s Brian Stelter, reveal their own stories on a wide range of topics including triggers, sex, secrets, and inheritance. Accompanied by beautiful hand-drawn illustrations and witty "how to" cartoons, each contribution provides a unique perspective on loss as well as a remarkable life-affirming message. Brutally honest and inspiring, Modern Loss invites us to talk intimately and humorously about grief, helping us confront the humanity (and mortality) we all share. Beginners welcome.