miracle (n.) An extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs. This is a word that gets tossed around a lot. The thing is, miracles do occur and occur often, if you are willing to look for them. God never turns away from us, even when it seems like our world is falling apart. He is always right there, helping us back up to our feet. God’s love and faithfulness is what gave me the strength to move forward when I awoke in an ICU and was told my husband and oldest son had been killed. Miracles are what kept me treading water when I was briefed on the very slim chances my other two children would make a full recovery. The chances of my son’s mere survival were nonexistent. I was unwilling to accept anything the doctors told me. I knew in my heart that God had us and my babies would be okay. I steadied my heart, set my jaw; I prayed, and I asked others to pray. God has taken care of us every single step of our journey and continues to today. Our story is not over. We survived, we are healing, we are pushing forward, we are living. We are waiting on the next miracle.

One doctor’s journey of faith to save her two terminally ill baby girls. Cyndi Peterson was a successful physician, wife and mother who had everything she ever dreamed of—yet true peace continued to elude her. Her quest leads her to Medjugorje, where Mary the Mother of God is reported to appear daily. After returning home newly committed to her faith, she faces every mother’s deepest fear. Her newborn baby Kelly is terminally ill. Upon learning her next baby, Sarah, has the same diagnosis, Cyndi struggles to understand why God has asked this of her. How God moves in her life and answers her prayers will both surprise you and deepen your faith.

miracle (n.) An extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs. This is a word that gets tossed around a lot. The thing is, miracles do occur and occur often, if you are willing to look for them. God never turns away from us, even when it seems like our world is falling apart. He is always right there, helping us back up to our feet. God's love and faithfulness is what gave me the strength to move forward when I awoke in an ICU and was told my husband and oldest son had been killed. Miracles are what kept me treading water when I was briefed on the very slim chances my other two children would make a full recovery. The chances of my son's mere survival were nonexistent. I was unwilling to accept anything the doctors told me. I knew in my heart that God had us and my babies would be okay. I steadied my heart, set my jaw; I prayed, and I asked others to pray. God has taken care of us every single step of our journey and continues to today. Our story is not over. We survived, we are healing, we are pushing forward, we are living. We are waiting on the next miracle.

It is the thesis of this provocative book that the deteriorating state of America's public school system is actually a reflection of the problems in our culture and society. In "Waiting For A Miracle," James P. Comer M.D., Maurice Falk Professor of Child Psychiatry at the Yale University Child Study Center and the author of Maggie's American Dream, and co-author of Raising Black Children, outlines the cause of these afflictions and presents an inspiring paradigm for a new way of thinking and acting with regard to children and family.At the root of the problem, he states, is a social failure to make a commitment to families, and to community and child development.Using many examples from his personal experience of growing up poor, and from more than thirty years of community involvement, Comer argues that schools can be the most important instrument of change in a society. He spells out how private, public and non-profit sectors can collaborate to enable children, families, and communities to survive and thrive.

'I laughed. I cried. I laughed again' Sinéad Moriarty 'An enthralling read with . . . so many laughs along the way' Liz Nugent 'A funny, poignant and moving read' My Weekly From bestselling Irish writer Anna McPartlin, Waiting for the Miracle is an uplifting novel about how good friends can help you see the funny side of life, even in the darkest of days. Perfect for fans of Sheila O'Flanagan and Marian Keyes. 2010 Caroline can't get pregnant, Janet can't hold a pregnancy, Natalie's sperm donor is a stoner with a bad attitude and Ronnie is, well, no one knows Ronnie's story. When the women meet in an infertility group, they quickly form a firm - if slightly odd - friendship and their lives begin to change. 1976 When 16-year-old Catherine's pregnancy is revealed, she's sent to a convent to give birth. Her baby is taken from her, and she re-emerges into the world, down but not out, determined to fight back. She finds work, a home and acceptance with gay hairdresser and fellow outsider and her life begins again. Waiting for the Miracle is story about finding your tribe, at any age. It's about love, loss, friendship and laughing at yourself. It's about life. 'Takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions...you'll be laughing through your tears at the sharp and funny dialogue' NFOP magazine Praise for Anna McPartlin: 'Anna McPartlin's novel is brilliant, funny and immensely moving' Catherine Isaac, author of You, Me, Everything 'It's such a gorgeous examination of grief while also being honest, hilarious and totally relatable. I LOVED this book!' Fionnuala Kearney, author of The Book of Love 'When I wasn't reaching for the Kleenex to wipe away a little tear, I was guffawing with laughter - Anna has the gift of being able to make you laugh and sob, and all on a single page.' Claudia Carroll, author of The Women of Primrose Square Readers love Waiting for the Miracle: 'Who will have the happy ever after dream and who will settle for the dream never happening? I raced though it in 2 days to find out. I particularly loved the flitting between current day and the character Catherine's story from the past and was eager to see how the 2 would come together. Wrap yourself up in a duvet and start reading. You won't be disappointed.' 'You will be gripped by both stories and wonder where the book is going ... but it gets better and better.' 'Loved loved loved it! As always an amazing story with real life issues, read it in 3 days couldn't put it down going to work was a bit of inconvenience lol can't wait for the next one, thanks Anna' 'Another emotional rollercoaster read about loss, hope, courage & friendship, I was hooked right from the very start, I loved how the story changed between current day and the past with Catherine's story, have your tissues ready.' 'Didn't want it to end.' 'McPartlin excels in the one-liner, and finding something to laugh about in the darkest of times.' 'I do not hesitate to recommend this magnificent book to everyone. Sure to be in my top books of this year.' 'A story of hope over heartbreak told with Irish humour and charm.' 'Anna McPartlin has done it again! Another stunning read that ends with me in tears yet also smiling.'

An unforgettable true story that will touch your heart and make you believe in love’s enduring legacy, and in the power of prayer. In 1928, 16-year-old Minka was on a picnic in the woods when she was assaulted and raped. And suddenly this innocent farm girl—who still thought the stork brought babies—was pregnant. The baby was secretly born, named Betty Jane, and given up for adoption. For decades, Minka wrote letters trying to get news of her daughter; she kept loving and praying for her, even though she never dared believe they would meet again. Until nearly eighty years later, when Minka whispered her secret, impossible prayer for the first time: Lord, I’d like to see Betty Jane before I die. I promise I won’t bother her or interrupt her life. I just want to lay eyes on her. Unbeknownst to Minka, that very same day, a judge was releasing the sealed adoption records to her 77-year-old daughter. And soon, Minka’s phone would ring. Written by Cathy LaGrow (Minka’s granddaughter), The Waiting brings three generations of this most unusual family together over the course of a century to tell a story of faith that triumphs, forgiveness that sets us free, and love that never forgets.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Read with Jenna Book Club Pick as Featured on Today • As a young mother facing a terminal diagnosis, Julie Yip-Williams began to write her story, a story like no other. What began as the chronicle of an imminent and early death became something much more—a powerful exhortation to the living. “An exquisitely moving portrait of the daily stuff of life.”—The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice) NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review • Time • Real Simple • Good Housekeeping That Julie Yip-Williams survived infancy was a miracle. Born blind in Vietnam, she narrowly escaped euthanasia at the hands of her grandmother, only to flee with her family the political upheaval of her country in the late 1970s. Loaded into a rickety boat with three hundred other refugees, Julie made it to Hong Kong and, ultimately, America, where a surgeon at UCLA gave her partial sight. She would go on to become a Harvard-educated lawyer, with a husband, a family, and a life she had once assumed would be impossible. Then, at age thirty-seven, with two little girls at home, Julie was diagnosed with terminal metastatic colon cancer, and a different journey began. The Unwinding of the Miracle is the story of a vigorous life refracted through the prism of imminent death. When she was first diagnosed, Julie Yip-Williams sought clarity and guidance through the experience and, finding none, began to write her way through it—a chronicle that grew beyond her imagining. Motherhood, marriage, the immigrant experience, ambition, love, wanderlust, tennis, fortune-tellers, grief, reincarnation, jealousy, comfort, pain, the marvel of the body in full rebellion—this book is as sprawling and majestic as the life it records. It is inspiring and instructive, delightful and shattering. It is a book of indelible moments, seared deep—an incomparable guide to living vividly by facing hard truths consciously. With humor, bracing honesty, and the cleansing power of well-deployed anger, Julie Yip-Williams set the stage for her lasting legacy and one final miracle: the story of her life. Praise for The Unwinding of the Miracle “Everything worth understanding and holding on to is in this book. . . . A miracle indeed.”—Kelly Corrigan, New York Times bestselling author “A beautifully written, moving, and compassionate chronicle that deserves to be read and absorbed widely.”—Siddhartha Mukherjee, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies