Our Last Best Shot presents the personal stories of twelve girls and boys from across America. Their stories, and Laura Sessions Stepp's extensive research, provide real insight for parents trying to raise well-adjusted children in this difficult age. Filled with wisdom and common sense, based on cutting-edge research, and featuring an invaluable resource list, this is a book that parents and educators cannot afford to be without.

is a history-breaking book. This important book contains autobiographies of seven Korean youth in the United States, with differing immigration experiences. This book provides important primary source documentation for Korean history, Immigration history, US history, Ethnic history, and Asian-American studies. No serious college library can go without this important book. Furthermore, this book will be a valuable addition to local and regional libraries with patrons interested in the American immigration experience and Asian-American studies. The editor of the book is Francis Won, who is currently at Hackensack Christian School in Bergen County, New Jersey. His father is the only Korean Episcopalian priest in the whole state of New Jersey. Contributors to this book have been identified as future leaders of the Korean people. Many of the contributing authors are intricately connected to Korean leadership in politics, business, banking, academics, and foreign policy. Praise for the book: "I highly recommend this book and hope that this story along with other stories in this monumentally important book of Korean youth voices would inspire many to find hope and courage in their struggles in life." Rev. Joseph S. Pae, Canon Pastor, Cathedral of the Incarnation, New York "I am pleased to celebrate the publication of this important book, which is monumentally important for Korean Studies at the university level as well as for understanding Koreans at the popular level." President Bae-Yong Lee of Ehwa Women's University in South Korea "I highly recommend." Jung-Ho Chang, President, Korea Daily Sports Newspaper, South Korea "Congratulations " President Soo-Sung Lee of Seoul National University, South Korea

" ...I've tried my best and it's not good enough. We can't afford the school that you appear to not give a damn about... So...it leaves me with no other alternative." My mom paused waiting for her comments to sink in. What did that mean? I finally had the courage to look up at her. "You are going to go live with your Aunt Sydney." "What? In Las Vegas?" People make mistakes and Kris is learning the hard way when one mistake leads to her life being upturned. She is forced to move with her aunt in Las Vegas right when things with her best friend Jimmy were starting to get interesting. She finds that making friends in Vegas might be easier than she thought especially when they're attractive. Throughout the story Kris struggles with family crises. She thought she knew enough about family and love but life is full of surprises.

Every teenager rebels against authority at some point--talks back, breaks curfew, or disobeys. But literally millions of teens take their rebellion to a point where it disrupts their families and endangers their own futures or even their lives. If one of these teens is yours, you've probably lived through years of conflicting advice and pat solutions that don't last. Finally, this breakthrough guide from a master therapist will show you the seven steps to positive, permanent change for you and your teenager:

1. Learn the real reasons for teen misbehavior.
2. Make an ironclad contract to stop that behavior.
3. Troubleshoot future problems.
4. End button-pushing.
5. Stop the "seven aces" -- from disrespect to threats of violence.
6. Mobilize outside help.
7. Reclaim lost love within the family.

Clear, compassionate, and packed with real-life solutions to real-life problems, this book gives parents the tools they need to turn their families' lives around for good.

A reassuring, fact-packed book for boys on what to expect when growing up. From Dr Emily MacDonagh, practising NHS doctor and OK! magazine's popular Health and Parenting Columnist. Dr Emily talks about the physical and emotional changes of puberty in a simple and friendly way. Topics include: When and why will your body start to change? How will you feel different and why? What's happening to the girls? Plus expert tips on healthy eating, positive body image, self-esteem, and lots more. With colourful illustrations and useful diagrams. Written in collaboration with a Consultant Pediatrician and School Nurse. Mother of two and step-mother to teenagers, Dr Emily lives with her husband Peter Andre and children in Surrey. Growing Up for Girls: Everything You Need to Know is also available.

Outstanding and original, this book by Dr. Anvita Madan-Bahel (PhD, Columbia University) integrates the current theory and literature on South Asians and engages the reader in meaningful ways. There are few studies in Asian/Asian American studies and in psychology (as well as other fields such as cultural studies, film, etc) that address the spectrum of topics included in this creative, thoroughly researched and well-written book. This book will be a valuable reference for those in many disciplines, including Psychology, Asian Studies and Women's Studies. "In this seminal piece, Dr. Madan-Bahel uses Bollywood film clips to foster thinking and discussion on critical topics in sexual health for South Asian female youth. This work is unique and innovative in many key ways. ... Dr. Madan-Bahel offers a variety of recommendations for practice, research, and policy that will continue to influence the field for years to come. This is impressive, inspirational, and groundbreaking work " - Christine J. Yeh, Associate Professor of Counseling Psychology, University of San Francisco

This book unveils that "YOU ARE A GIFT, YOUR LIFE IS A GIFT" and "YOUR LIFE DESERVES TO BE CELEBRATED." The life of a Teenager is too beautiful and precious. And your life is meant to be filled with the joy and abundance of happiness. This is your birthright Your life has a divine purpose You're here to shine, to accomplish, celebrate life, and celebrate your sacred purpose Young adults will find techniques, in this book that can harness their mind, their body and their intellect. When these three aspects are in sync, they will realize the world is at their feet. Fear is no longer in their psyche and confidence becomes their second nature. A must read for teenagers, this book should be a guide on a daily basis. When life get bumpy, read the book. You will gain knowledge on why and how things work. It will energize you physically and enrich your thoughts with inspiring ideas, quotes, and timeless universal principles of joy, happiness and health.

This guy is tough, and so is his message.(By Ruben Rosario, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, MN August 2011. Edited for length)Like the U.S. Postal Service, apparently nothing keeps Larry Bauer-Scandin - foster dad to 125 - from his self-appointed rounds.Not the weather. Not the heart ailments or the genetic neurological disorder that robbed him of movement and rendered him legally blind. The 64-year-old Vadnais Heights resident just gets up and does it."My life was normal for the first nine years of my life until 1957 when my foot went to sleep, except that my foot never woke up," Bauer-Scandin told a group of inmates from the 3100 unit at the Dakota County Jail.But that's not the main message that Bauer-Scandin, a retired probation officer and jail counselor, wants to deliver on this day. "Whom do you blame for your problems?" he asks the group of 34 men, who are members of IMC, or Inmates Motivated to Change. Under the program, inmates with chemical dependency or mostly nonviolent offenses sign an agreement to take part in several programs and pledge not to make the same mistakes that keep landing them in lock-up."What people need to do is stand in front of a mirror and ask: 'How much of the problem is mine and how much is it somebody else?' "I first wrote about Bauer-Scandin five years ago. It was centered on his life as a foster parent. As he told the inmates, two of his former foster kids are cops, one in St. Paul. Two are soldiers deployed to Iraq. One's a millionaire. One's an author. Most are raising families or staying out of trouble in spite of hardships.But "15 are dead," said Bauer-Scandin, author of "Faces on the Clock," an engrossing memoir about his life. The dead include suicide victims, including an 11-year-old, others from AIDS and "my last one, they found in three or four pieces, as I understand."Bauer-Scandin's worth writing about again for what he continues to do at great pain and sacrifice without pay or fanfare. He didn't sugarcoat or pull punches with his audience."What I'm afraid is still happening is that the system is trying to figure out how to get tighter," he told them. "The sentences are getting tougher."And it's not the police, the sheriffs, the courts or even the folks in state and county-run corrections that are responsible for the race to incarcerate."It's the legislature," Bauer-Scandin said. "And legislatures have been known to do very stupid things."He also faults the media and a gullible public that forms opinions and dehumanizes people strictly on what they watch on TV and not on real-life experiences or knowledge."What do they see?" he said. "They see the Charlie Mansons. They see the unusual. They see the extreme. Most of you aren't that way. But that's what makes the news."Yet he doesn't divert from his main message: It's up to the inmate to take a positive step and choose the right way."Get yourself back into a position where you can influence those people, to be able to go to a school board or a city council or legislative meeting and have your voice heard."You can't fight the system from in here," he concluded. "You have to be out there."The inmates applauded and, one by one, stood in line to shake his hand on his way out the jail complex.His progressively debilitating disorder is taking more of a toll these days. But he steered the scooter inside the van and deftly wiggled his frail body into the driver's seat. He has no complaints, he told me. He will continue to go out and speak as long as God and his wife allow him."I hope something stuck," he tells me before he drives off.I hope so too, Larry.

Our kids are experiencing an unprecedented sense of isolation, interacting virtually in a world that seems ever more fearful with each news cycle. They absorb and internalize the stress and anxiety they see on their parents' faces and on the phone, laptop, tablet, and TV screens that are ever before their eyes. Not surprisingly, their mental and physical health are suffering. As parents, we want to know how we can help. Practical and encouraging, Raising Healthy Teenagers helps you understand the mental, physical, and social toll the past couple years have taken on your kids. Then it offers proven strategies to help your teen get back onto a healthy path by * reducing screen time and increasing green time * learning how to be a social being again * developing strategies to deal with disruptions in schooling * reclaiming a structured day * breaking the cycle of anxiety and depression * and much more