On a balmy August morning in 1846, a child was born to Ann and Alexander Swan in the couple's small wood cabin in Millbrook, Colchester County, Nova Scotia. This in itself was not odd, as home was where babies where most often born in the mid 19th century. What was surprising, however, was that Anna Swan weighed an amazing 6 kilograms (13 pounds) -almost twice the size of an average newborn. Anna Swan grew to an astonishing size -nearly 2.5 meters (almost 8 feet) tall. She was billed as "The Nova Scotia Giant Girl" at P.T. Barnum's American Museum in New York. But despite her unusual and challenging physical attributes, she rose above adversity and led the life of love, happiness and great accomplishments. This is her remarkable story.

Anna Swan dreamed of a life as big as she was. –When I was small, I was already big news,” begins this picture book biography of Anna Swan. –Because when I was small, I was already TREMENDOUS.” Anna was thirteen pounds at her birth in Nova Scotia in 1846. She grew steadily until she was nearly eight feet tall, and never felt that she fit into her small country life. Then, at age seventeen, Anna moved to New York City to be part of P. T. Barnumês Gallery of Wonders ã and her life changed forever. Fame, world travel, true love! This real-life giantess lived a real-life storybook adventure!

The world is big. Anna is small. The snow is everywhere and all around. But one night . . . One night, her mother takes her to the ballet, and everything is changed. Anna finds a beauty inside herself that she cannot contain. So begins the journey of a girl who will one day grow up to be the most famous prima ballerina of all time, inspiring legions of dancers after her: the brave, the generous, the transcendently gifted Anna Pavlova. Beautiful, inspirational, and triumphant, Anna Pavlova's life is masterfully captured in this exquisite picture book.

Erin Swan's YA fantasy debut, Bright Star, is an action-packed adventure tale of rebellion, romance, and finding one's voice in the heart of a storm. Paerolia has been at peace for two centuries, and all is well in the land—or so it seems. Beneath the surface, a tyrant is rising to power. A traumatic experience in Andra's childhood has left her mute and subdued, a servant in the Chief Judge’s manor. But when an assassination team, led by the secretive and alluring Kael, infiltrates the manor and makes a quick escape, she takes her chance and flees with them. Andra is thrust into the ranks of a secret rebellion—a group of outcasts and believers seeking to overthrow the Chief Judge and replace the corrupt government with new members, ones who will restore and preserve the land they love. Now, the girl who was once an outcast must somehow become the leader Paerolia needs. But she is stronger than she believes—and with the help of a fiercely loyal dragon, she may just be the one to lead them all to victory. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Haunting, poignant memoir of the author's quest to discover the shocking truth about her past, spanning three generations of a fascinating but flawed family. Anna grew up accepting that her parents were glamorous but mysterious figures, who had both died by the time she was seven. It was only when she was in her thirties that she discovered they had both committed suicide. As she began to search for the truth about her parents, she uncovered details about their fascinating and incredibly divergent backgrounds: her father's family can trace their ancestry to King James II. Her mother came from a Welsh mining family. They met in 1950s literary London and fell in love. But a year after Anna was born, her mother was dead. The book explores the nature of loss, exile, betrayal and Anna's own deep-rooted instinct to refuse the horrors of her past and transcend the legacy of her parents. This is a compelling, moving story of uncovering the past in order to reclaim the future.

Originally published: Australia: Giramondo, 2013.

Anna Quindlen offers deep truths from her life to motivate and inspire you to become your most authentic self. “Trying to be perfect may be inevitable for people who are smart and ambitious and interested in the world and its good opinion. . . . What is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself.” In Being Perfect, Anna Quindlen shares wisdom that, perhaps without knowing it, you have longed to hear: about “the perfection trap,” the price you pay when you become ensnared in it, and the key to setting yourself free. Quindlen believes that when your success looks good to the world but doesn’t feel good in your heart, it isn’t success at all. She asks you to set aside your friends’ advice, what your family and co-workers demand, and what society expects, and look at the choices you make every day. When you ask yourself why you are making them, Quindlen encourages you to give this answer: For me. “Because they are what I want, or wish for. Because they reflect who and what I am. . . . That way lies dancing to the melodies spun out by your own heart.” At the core of this beautiful book lies the secret of authentic success, the inspiration to embrace your own uniqueness and live the life that is undeniably your own, rich in fulfillment and meaning.