"The story’s message, that people should choose joy even (and especially) in difficult and painful times, seems tailor-made for this moment. A timely, uplifting read about finding joy in the midst of tragedy, filled with quirky characters and comforting warmth."—Kirkus (starred review) From the New York Times bestselling author of How to Walk Away comes a stunning new novel full of heart and hope. Samantha Casey is a school librarian who loves her job, the kids, and her school family with passion and joy for living. But she wasn’t always that way. Duncan Carpenter is the new school principal who lives by rules and regulations, guided by the knowledge that bad things can happen. But he wasn’t always that way. And Sam knows it. Because she knew him before—at another school, in a different life. Back then, she loved him—but she was invisible. To him. To everyone. Even to herself. She escaped to a new school, a new job, a new chance at living. But when Duncan, of all people, gets hired as the new principal there, it feels like the best thing that could possibly happen to the school—and the worst thing that could possibly happen to Sam. Until the opposite turns out to be true. The lovable Duncan she’d known is now a suit-and-tie wearing, rule-enforcing tough guy so hell-bent on protecting the school that he’s willing to destroy it. As the school community spirals into chaos, and danger from all corners looms large, Sam and Duncan must find their way to who they really are, what it means to be brave, and how to take a chance on love—which is the riskiest move of all. With Katherine Center’s sparkling dialogue, unforgettable characters, heart, hope, and humanity, What You Wish For is the author at her most compelling best.

In her new novel, Linda Lappin (author of THE ETRUSCAN) explores the final years in the life of short story writer and literary figure, Katherine Mansfield, focusing on her relationships with Ida Baker and John Middleton Murry against the backdrop of her ceaseless journeys and changes of residence -- the South of France, London, Italy, Switzerland, and finally, Fontainebleau. The narrative incorporates modernist techniques used by Mansfield, Virginia Wolff, and D.H. Lawrence in their fiction. Though the book deals with tragic issues, it celebrates Mansfield's deep love of life, which never abandoned her, and its final message is a life-affirming one of joy and of wholeness achieved. "KATHERINE'S WISH is a beautifully observed novel [that] reveals a core truth: that Mansfield's was not so much a creative life cut short as one that flourished so long against all odds." -- Alexandra Johnson, author of THE HIDDEN WRITER "KATHERINE'S WISH, fifteen years in the making, is a dazzling bit of fictional sorcery, conjuring to life the bright and talented swirl of modern society in the 1920s... This novel is a must read, whether you have historical interests per se or only enjoy a story so compelling and moving that there's no putting it down. I certainly couldn't!" -- David Lynn, editor, the KENYON REVIEW Linda Lappin is the author of THE ETRUSCAN (Wynkin de Worde, Galway, 2004) hailed by critics as a new classic in American writing about Italy. Semi-Finalist for the 2000 Three Oaks First Novel Prize awarded by Story-Line Press in Oregon, THE ETRUSCAN was selected as a Book of the Week by BOOK VIEW IRELAND and praised by the LITERARY REVIEW as "compelling, haunting, intriguing," and by PRAIRIE SCHOONER as "gorgeously detailed, wickedly fun." She is also the author of PRISONER OF PALMARY, an experimental historical novel set in 18th century Italy, short-listed for the Mid-List First Novel Award in 1999. Her essays, poetry, reviews and fiction have appeared in a wide variety of US publications, from the KENYON REVIEW to the KANSAS CITY STAR. She has twice been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. The last chapter of KATHERINE'S WISH was short-listed for the Eric Hoffer short fiction award in 2007 and was published in BEST NEW WRITING 2007. She teaches Creative Writing for the U.S.A.C. Study Abroad program in Viterbo. She also directs the Writing Center of Centro Pokkoli www.pokkoli.org Her websites are www.lindalappin.net and www.theetruscan.com

An oak tree and a crow help their neighbors embrace their differences in this beautiful, nuanced, New York Times-bestselling middle-grade novel from Newbery Medalist author Katherine Applegate. Trees can't tell jokes, but they can certainly tell stories. . . . Red is an oak tree who is many rings old. Red is the neighborhood "wishtree"—people write their wishes on pieces of cloth and tie them to Red's branches. Along with a crow named Bongo and other animals who seek refuge in Red's hollows, this wishtree watches over the neighborhood. You might say Red has seen it all. Until a new family moves in. Not everyone is welcoming, and Red's experience as a wishtree is more important than ever. Funny, deep, warm, and nuanced, this is Katherine Applegate at her very best—writing from the heart, and from a completely unexpected point of view. This book has Common Core connections.