"There's
more to me than
most people
see."
Twelve-year-old Willow would rather blend in than stick out. But she still wants to be seen for who she is. She wants her parents to notice that she is growing up. She wants her best friend to like her better than she likes a certain boy. She wants, more than anything, to mush the dogs out to her grandparents' house, by herself, with Roxy in the lead. But sometimes when it's just you, one mistake can have frightening consequences . . . And when Willow stumbles, it takes a surprising group of friends to help her make things right again. Using diamond-shaped poems inspired by forms found in polished diamond willow sticks, Helen Frost tells the moving story of Willow and her family. Hidden messages within each diamond carry the reader further, into feelings Willow doesn't reveal even to herself.

An unforgettable narrative collage told in poems Keesha has found a safe place to live, and other kids gravitate to her house when they just can't make it on their own. They are Stephie--pregnant, trying to make the right decisions for herself and those she cares about; Jason--Stephie's boyfriend, torn between his responsibility to Stephie and the baby and the promise of a college basketball career; Dontay-- in foster care while his parents are in prison, feeling unwanted both inside and outside the system; Carmen--arrested on a DUI charge, waiting in a juvenile detention center for a judge to hear her case; Harris--disowned by his father after disclosing that he's gay, living in his car, and taking care of himself; Katie--angry at her mother's loyalty to an abusive stepfather, losing herself in long hours of work and school. Stretching the boundaries of traditional poetic forms--sestinas and sonnets--Helen Frost's extraordinary debut novel for young adults weaves together the stories of these seven teenagers as they courageously struggle to hold their lives together and overcome their difficulties.

One of nature's most perfect relationships

Every spring the monarch butterfly migrates thousands of miles in search of the ideal milkweed plant. When she finds it, she lays her eggs on the plant, so when each egg hatches, the baby caterpillar can feed on the milkweed leaves. The milkweed plant then provides the perfect protection as the caterpillar turns into one of nature's wonders, a chrysalis, before transforming into an even greater wonder: a monarch butterfly. And once the newborn butterfly soars away, the milkweed seeds fly away on the wind and start this cycle over again.

The exacting prose and jewel-toned illustrations echo the harmony of monarch and milkweed in this carefully researched book, explaining one of nature's most spectacular displays in a refreshingly simple manner.

When Wren Abbott and Darra Monson are eight years old, Darra's father steals a minivan. He doesn't know that Wren is hiding in the back. The hours and days that follow change the lives of both girls. Darra is left with a question that only Wren can answer. Wren has questions, too.

Years later, in a chance encounter at camp, the girls face each other for the first time. They can finally learn the truth--that is, if they're willing to reveal to each other the stories that they've hidden for so long. Told from alternating viewpoints, this novel-in-poems reveals the complexities of memory and the strength of a friendship that can overcome pain.

Eighteen-year-old Muriel Jorgensen lives on one side of Crabapple Creek. Her family's closest friends, the Normans, live on the other. For as long as Muriel can remember, the families lives have been intertwined, connected by the crossing stones that span the water. But now that Frank Norman - who Muriel is just beginning to think might be more than a friend - has enlisted to fight in World War I and her brother, Ollie, has lied about his age to join him, the future is uncertain. As Muriel tends to things at home with the help of Frank's sister, Emma, she becomes more and more fascinated by the women's suffrage movement, but she is surrounded by people who advise her to keep her opinions to herself. How can she find a way to care for those she loves while still remaining true to who she is?

True life experiences from inside the four walls of a domestic abusive relationship. Written from the heart to help others in similar or worse situations. Life is hard enough, find your hidden strength and live the life you want not the life someone else wants you to live....

This is a new release of the original 1931 edition.

Engrossing tales from the fifth grade
"Every child is like "
"A little world with ever-changing weather, "
"Nights and mornings. And somehow, here we are, "
"Spinning through the universe together."
""
Unforgettable students in this fifth-grade classroom reveal their private feelings about birth and death, a missing bicycle and a first kiss, as well as their thoughts about recess, report cards, fitting in, and family.
Using a rich array of traditional poetic forms, such as sonnets, sestinas, and acrostics, Helen Frost interweaves the stories of the kids in Room 214 and their teacher. A final section giving detailed analyses of the twenty-two forms will be of special interest.

1931. From the Foreword: Clog and character dancing has its place in education as a wholesome means of expression. The clog dance is as old, if not older, than the folk dance; its development has been unrecorded, but reference to it is made in all complete historic studies of dancing. Through pantomime, tapping, and lilting step, the clog dance develops a response to music that is joyous and satisfying. It appeals to all ages, and since relaxation and perfected balance are the basis of its practice, physical well-being is assured. The book includes musical scores of clogging songs and photographs that are illustrative of the dance and time.

Based on the 8-pointed LeMoyne star, these quilt projects use the tried-and-true strip-piecing method that Blanche originally developed in 1979. Blanche and her daughter Helen have been exploring this historical star ever since, playing with different configurations and sizes, to captivate generations of quilters to come. The ten quilt projects include Lone Star, Touching Stars, Rolling Star, Broken Star, Star of Bethlehem, Double Star, and Blazing Star. A gallery of 25 additional quilts is included, together with lots of author tips for accurate results.

1931. From the Foreword: Clog and character dancing has its place in education as a wholesome means of expression. The clog dance is as old, if not older, than the folk dance; its development has been unrecorded, but reference to it is made in all complete historic studies of dancing. Through pantomime, tapping, and lilting step, the clog dance develops a response to music that is joyous and satisfying. It appeals to all ages, and since relaxation and perfected balance are the basis of its practice, physical well-being is assured. The book includes musical scores of clogging songs and photographs that are illustrative of the dance and time.

1931. From the Foreword: Clog and character dancing has its place in education as a wholesome means of expression. The clog dance is as old, if not older, than the folk dance; its development has been unrecorded, but reference to it is made in all complete historic studies of dancing. Through pantomime, tapping, and lilting step, the clog dance develops a response to music that is joyous and satisfying. It appeals to all ages, and since relaxation and perfected balance are the basis of its practice, physical well-being is assured. The book includes musical scores of clogging songs and photographs that are illustrative of the dance and time.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

With step-by-step instructions, this book teaches how to create dazzling and dramatic quilts based on traditional sunshine and shadow designs using quick and simple strip-piecing, 9-patch, and square block techniques.

Two sisters, Jeannie and Sarah, tell their separate yet tightly interwoven stories in alternating narrative poems. Each sister - Jeannie, who leaves Scotland during the Highland Clearances with her father, mother, and the younger children, and Sarah, who hides so she can stay behind with her grandmother - carries a length of the other's hair braided with her own. The braid binds them together when they are worlds apart and reminds them of who they used to be before they were evicted from the Western Isles, where their family had lived for many generations.
The award-winning poet Helen Frost eloquently twists strand over strand of language, braiding the words at the edges of the poems to bring new poetic forms to life while intertwining the destinies of two young girls and the people who cross their paths in this unforgettable novel. An author's note describes the inventive poetic form in detail. "The Braid" is a 2007 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.