Burning with desire to share the value of freedom, Antonina takes you from her plight in communist Bulgaria to the free shores of America. Following unfortunate events of life in a totalitarian regime in Bulgaria, Antonina bids goodbye to her homeland and flees to the Western world. She provides true experiences and observations of what life is in a communist society-her family's lands and cattle being confiscated by the agricultural labor cooperatives; the censorship of the press and any literal, artistic, and scientific works from the West; religion being prohibited; and any deviation from the norm leading to detention in a labor camp. Her last crossing of the Bulgarian-Yugoslavian border almost costs Antonina her life and makes up her mind to never go back. She describes her life as an immigrant at the refugee camp in Traiskirchen, Austria, while waiting for an American visa. Antonina is ecstatic when the plane cruises over the Statue of Liberty and lands in the most amazing city in the world-New York. She describes how she could taste, smell, feel, and touch freedom as she gets off the plane, ready to embark on new adventures. Antonina gets educated and becomes a good specialist in taxation, working for the United States Treasury Department. Ultimately, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, she is invited to go back to Bulgaria and fix a broken tax system as a representative of the United States government. Her work in the newly democratic society of Bulgaria paved the way for the country to become a member of NATO, escaping Soviet influence, and later being accepted in the family of the European Union. 20

When a young boy's beloved plum tree falls in a storm, he feels like he's lost both a friend and a connection to his old home. A young boy, recently arrived from Korea, finds a glorious plum tree in his new backyard. It reminds him of a tree his family had back home, and he names it "Plumee" for the deep purple plums on its branches. Whenever the boy is homesick, he knows he can take shelter in Plumee's tall branches. And when a storm brings the old tree down, he and his friends have all kinds of adventures on its branches, as it becomes a dragon, a treehouse, and a ship in their imaginations. But soon it's time to say goodbye when the remains of the tree are taken away. Before long, a new plum tree is planted, new blossoms bloom, and a new friendship takes root. A South Korean immigrant herself, Hope Lim brings her perspective on the struggle for child immigrants to feel at home to bear through spare, poetic text, perfectly matched by soft, lyrical illustrations by Korean artist Il Sung Na. A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

When life goes sideways, embracing the adventure is the fastest way to set things right.One day I was just a widow facing the prospect of an empty nest, living a life that was anything but enchanted. The next, I had discovered my magical roots, and my rightful place as the Guardian of the portal between the Faery and Earth. There was shock. And there was fear. After all, no one plans to start over at forty-five. I intended to grow old with my husband. I thought we'd live an ordinary life. So I'll be damned if I'm going to waste this opportunity to live in a world I always thought was imaginary. I'm half-witch, half-faery, and facing dangers as real as the ache in my bad knee. Ibuprofen and caffeine keep me going, and I could do this for the rest of my life. Whoever thinks my family home is an easy mark better take notice: the new Guardian in town isn't going down without a fight.After all, she's already learned to let go of her simple existence and believe in the extraordinary power inside of her. What could possibly stop her now?

Provides an account of the first permanent English settlement in North America, from the harrowing journey across the Atlantic to attacks from Native Americans, the spread of disease, and starvation.

A sociohistorical analysis of the construction of Jewish life and national identity in post-Holocaust Germany.

Life is beyond our control. It can bring joy, laughter and happiness, then turn around and rip your heart out of your chest without warning.Abel Matheson received a cold dose of life's reality six months ago when the man he loved most lost his fight against cancer.Free-spirited, easy-going Abel doesn't know how to cope with the rotting, festering grief growing inside him. What was once an easy life, has become a struggle to put one foot in front of the other.His grades are slipping, his job is suffering, money is tight, and the nightmares plaguing his sleep are relentless. Something has to give. He can't keep going like this.Desperate to end his suffering, Abel falls back on old habits. Self-destructive habits he knows are wrong.Every time he tries to stand, he ends up face-first in the mud.On the advice of a counselor, Abel makes attempts to find a support system to help him handle his grief. Unexpectedly, during his quest toward healing, Abel makes a connection with the most unlikely of people.His mind wants to rebel against the man who stands before him. Run far and fast in the other direction. But his heart forms a bond that annihilates his fear.Why this man of all people?Sometimes you find help and love where you least expect it.This book has been written as a follow-up to No Regrets.TRIGGER WARNING- self-harm, substance abuse, grief and loss, anxiety, depression

Gideon, a caterpillar grub, is transformed when the leaf which he is eating falls from the tree, giving him a sensation of flying, and suddenly all he can think, talk, or dream about is flight.