A Tiny White Light by Linda Bass

 From an author with a psychology background, a candid memoir about the interior of her own psychotic episode and its origins in guilt, lost purpose, conflict between mothering and career, and the ambiguity in her relationship with her therapist.

After the culture shock of moving from a small Wisconsin town to the tumult of Los Angeles in 1967, Linda’s family disintegrates: her parents decide to divorce, and she and her younger brother, Brian, suddenly must fend for themselves. While she finds a foothold in academic pursuits, Brian spirals downward into schizophrenia and, finally, commits an irrevocable act. Plagued with guilt, Linda loses her sense of purpose, abandons a promising career in psychology, and finds herself in a life she never envisioned—poor, alcoholic, an accidental parent in an unhappy marriage, feeling invisible and alone.

When Linda sees a psychologist, Sam, he helps her recover what she has lost: her sense of self. Feeling truly seen, she falls in love with him and suspects her feelings might be reciprocated. This ambiguity, mingled with other overwhelming stresses, triggers her descent into a

psychotic episode—one that echoes her dreams, Brian’s experience, and Sam’s own phobia.

Will Linda follow in her brother’s footsteps, or is this the wake-up call she needed to correct her course?

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A Tiny White Light: A Memoir of a Mind in Crisis: Bass, Linda: 9798896360445: Amazon.com: Books

Linda Bass holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from UCLA and a master’s degree in psychology from UC Berkeley. She worked in the workforce development field for thirty years, most recently as the executive director of a regional workforce board in Cambridge, MA. Now retired, she devotes her time to writing, painting, solving puzzles, reading, singing (to herself), enjoying friends and family, and feeling grateful for the life she has now. She currently lives in South Hadley, MA, and is working on a second book.

Sleep Habits Journal

 A bedside journal for better sleep from a board-certified doctor, featuring proven, faith-informed tactics and soothing devotions for those who struggle with falling asleep

Sleep Habits is a comforting companion from someone who understands your sleep frustrations and invites you on a journey toward better sleep and overall well-being. Board-certified sleep doctor Benjamin Long offers hope for anyone who needs help falling asleep or quieting the anxieties of the day while longing for rest. In addition to brief biblical devotions, this guided journal also features

• tips and simple exercises for getting a good night’s sleep
• soothing and encouraging verses
• prayers for sleep
• habit trackers
• questions and reflection prompts

Organized according to the Sleepless Night Rules, Sleep Habits Journal will equip you with practical tools inspired by CBT-I to improve your sleep quality. Whatever your nights look like, may this guided journal invite you into experiencing more peace, rest, and comfort.

Pick up your copy here...

Sleep Habits Journal: Practices, Prayers, and Devotions to Ease Your Sleepless Nights: Long MD, Benjamin: 9780593602522: Amazon.com: Books

Benjamin Long is a sleep medicine physician with dual board-certification in sleep medicine and pediatrics. He is an assistant professor of pediatrics with expertise in sleep disorders for all ages. As a seminary student, Ben enjoys writing at the intersection of medicine and Christian theology. He lives with his wife and son in San Antonio, Texas.

Days at the Torunka Cafe' by Satoshi Yagisawa

 From the internationally bestselling author of the Morisaki Bookshop novels comes a charming and poignant story set at a quiet Tokyo café where customers find unexpected connection and experience everyday miracles.

Tucked away on a narrow side street in Tokyo is the Torunka Café, a neighborhood nook where the passersby are as likely to be local cats as tourists. Its regulars include Chinatsu Yukimura, a mysterious young woman who always leaves behind a napkin folded into the shape of a ballerina; Hiroyuki Numata, a middle-aged man who’s returned to the neighborhood searching for the happy life he once gave up; and Shizuku, the café owner’s teenage daughter, who is still coming to terms with her sister’s death as she falls in love for the first time.

While Café Torunka serves up a perfect cup of coffee, it provides these sundry souls with nourishment far more lasting. Satoshi Yagisawa brilliantly illuminates the periods in our lives where we feel lost—and how we find our way again.

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Amazon.com: Days at the Torunka Café: A Novel: 9780063445857: Yagisawa, Satoshi, Ozawa, Eric: Books

Eric Ozawa is a writer and translator. His translation of Satoshi Yagisawa’s novel Days at the Morisaki Bookshop was an international bestseller that was short-listed for the British Book Award for Debut Book of the Year. His translation of the sequel, More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, was published this summer by HarperCollins. His other writing includes fiction in Granta, Electric Literature and Columbia, and coverage of the nuclear crisis in Fukushima for The Nation where he interviewed and translated authors including Banana Yoshimoto and Koji Suzuki. He lives in New York, where he is a professor at New York University.

What Medicine Can Do by Gabrielle Balkan

 An accessible, informative, and humorous introduction to the power of medicine for young readers.

Uh-oh—Raccoon feels blerg and ick. Read along as he and his friends do symptoms checks, get examined, get diagnoses, and each, in turn, get the medicine they need. Readers will learn that medicine can make you feel more comfortable, help you heal, help prevent you from getting sick, and more. Written by nonfiction maven Gabrielle Balkan, and vetted by both a pediatrician and a nurse practitioner, this conversationally informative text incorporates comfort and humor, in partnership with Alberto Lot’s emotive, comical character art. A truly enjoyable read that will leave readers better equipped for their next germy experience!

Pick up your copy here....

What Medicine Can Do: Balkan, Gabrielle, Lot, Alberto: 9798217051243: Amazon.com: Books

Hello! I am Gabrielle Balkan--it's true!

I absolutely adore and am inspired by books and children and education and so have spent some 20 years writing and editing and brainstorming books for readers ages 0 - 12.

I grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana and now live in Germantown, New York with my husband, twin girls, and orange cat.

I am also the author of The Dog Rules by CoCo LaRue.

You can visit me at www.GabrielleBalkan.com and www.facebook.com/gabrielle.balkan

Dolly Paron's Billy the Kid Dances His Heart Out

 Billy the Kid has done it all. He's moved to Nashville, he's formed a band, and he's rocked from coast to coast. But there's one thing Billy hasn't done...dance on stage. Dancing makes him nervous. And dancing in front of an audience? No way.

That all changes when Billy and his band nab an exciting gig as the opening act for Dolly Parton's Doggy Dance Pawty. Now, Billy is roping his friends into dance lessons. On the first day, he watches dogs whirl and twirl. But one dancer stands out: his dance teacher, Bella, who is as graceful as she is beautiful, with her auburn curls and a voice as sweet as pie.

Soon, Billy is trying to win Bella's attention. But that's difficult when he's stumbling through dance moves and tripping over his paws. Can Billy nail the dance routine and catch Bella's eye, all before the big dance pawty? 

Pick up your copy here...

Amazon.com: Dolly Parton's Billy the Kid Dances His Heart Out: 9780593755020: Parton, Dolly, Perl, Erica S., Haley, MacKenzie: Books

Dolly Parton is a singer, songwriter, actress, producer, businesswoman, and philanthropist. The composer of over 3,000 songs, she has sold over 100 million records worldwide, and given away millions of books to children through her nonprofit, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

Echoes of a Silent Song by Amanda Wen

 A split-time romance from an award-winning author

When a choral composer and conductor falls victim to creative block, he resorts to his fallback plan of teaching high school choir. Callum Knight's goal at Peterson High is simple: rediscover his muse, extract himself from teaching, and get back to Boston as quickly as possible.

As the long-suffering accompanist at the high school, Peterson-native Blair Emerson has watched the revolving door of choir directors and their negative impact on her choirs over the last few years. She is less than impressed when a disheveled Callum stumbles in on his first day.

But then they discover an unsigned, unfinished, and handwritten choral composition by a clear musical genius. Blair recalls rumors of Iris, a Peterson student from the 1970s who composed music but was found dead during her senior year. Blair and Callum work to determine if the piece is hers, and the truth they uncover shakes both of them to the core.

Pick up your copy here...

Echoes of a Silent Song - Kindle edition by Wen, Amanda. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Amanda Wen’s novels have released to both reader and critical acclaim, including a 2023 Selah Award for The Songs That Could Have Been and a Foreword Indies Gold Award and a Christy Award nomination for Roots of Wood and Stone. In addition to her writing, Amanda is an accomplished professional cellist and pianist who frequently performs with orchestras, chamber groups, and her church’s worship team, as well as serving as a choral accompanist. A lifelong denizen of the flatlands, Amanda currently lives in Kansas with her patient, loving, and hilarious husband, their three adorable Wenlets, and a snuggly Siamese cat.

Journey with a Giant By Lori G. Melton

 Take the next step in your spiritual formation and embark on a year-long journey alongside a “giant” of faith, inspired by the author’s year of studying the life of Mister Fred Rogers, America’s favorite neighbor.

So many of us want to go deeper in our faith. We long for a clearer sense of God’s calling in our lives, but knowing where to start can be more than half the battle. What if we could learn from a trusted guide who’s already walked the path? If you’re in leadership, what would you give to shadow someone like Queen Elizabeth II? Or if you’re an artist, what would you give to spend a year with Madeleine L’Engle or Michelangelo? What if you’re longing for courage and you could take notes from George Washington or Harriet Tubman? How might God shape you through the example of faithful believers and strengthen you to become who He created you to be?

Journey with a Giant introduces the transformative practice of walking with a spiritual giant. Based on the “cloud of witnesses” described in Hebrews 12 and illustrated through the author’s experience walking with Mister Fred Rogers—America’s favorite neighbor—spiritual director Lori Melton guides readers on a one-year adventure that offers a unique approach to spiritual formation.

This structured yet flexible guide includes:
• weekly reflections
• testimonials from fellow pilgrims
• monthly instructions and tasks
• prompts for recording your focus, goals, resources, and insights
• guided prayer to end each month
• reflection questions
• journaling space

Whether you choose to learn from Mister Rogers or select your own spiritual mentor, this journey will help you cultivate a closer relationship with God, uncover new insights about yourself, and take meaningful steps toward pursuing God’s unique calling for you.

Pick up your copy here...

Journey with a Giant: Choose Your Guide, Pursue Your Purpose, and Grow in Your Walk with God - Kindle edition by Melton, Lori G.. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

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