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After River: A Novel
by Donna MilnerA family becomes estranged by secrets in a novel that for fans of “psychological, plot-driven fiction by writers such as Sue Miller or Anita Shreve” (School Library Journal).Growing up on a dairy farm in the mountains of British Columbia, fifteen-year-old Natalie Ward knows little of the outside world. But she knows family. A family so close and loving that they are the envy of the nearby town of Atwood. Natalie cherishes her position as the only daughter of the beautiful Nettie Ward and the town's beloved milkman, Gus Ward. She adores her three brothers, especially the eldest, Boyer, whom she idolizes. Like her mother, Natalie believes their lives are blessed, as rich and as sweet as the fresh milk that is their livelihood.Everything changes one hot July afternoon in 1966 when a stranger appears at their door. The arrival of this soft-spoken American, a Vietnam War resister, will test the morals and beliefs of the Ward family and their close-knit community. The catastrophic events that are set in motion will leave relationships shattered and Natalie separated from the family she loves.Thirty-five years later, Natalie receives a phone call from her now-estranged brother Boyer. Their mother is dying. Natalie returns to the town she has spent her adult life avoiding, steeling herself against the bittersweet memories of that summer day in 1966 and the tragedy that followed. But before Natalie can find redemption, she must confront the secrets and horrors of a past she has desperately tried to forget.“Solidly crafted settings and characters, blended with optimism . . . charming.” —Publishers Weekly“Expect to hear more from this talented newcomer.” —Booklist
After Tex (Whispering Wind #1)
by Sherryl WoodsFrom the bestselling author behind the hit Sweet Magnolias Netflix series#1 New York Times bestselling author Sherryl Woods sweeps readers away to the quiet plains of Whispering Wind ranch, where one woman&’s conflict between family, career, and the promise of rekindled love threatens to change her life forever.Megan O'Rourke's beloved grandfather, Tex, had always been determined to lure her out of New York and back to their ranch in Whispering Wind, Wyoming. Now his will makes it impossible for her to refuse. She's named guardian of Tex's eight-year-old daughter—a daughter Megan never knew about!Jake Landers has also come home to Whispering Wind. After leaving under a cloud of suspicion years before, he's returned to put down roots. When he comes face-to-face with the woman who shares his troubled past, he hardly recognizes the driven powerhouse Megan has become. Now she has big decisions to make—about life, love and where home really is. Jake's only too happy to help Megan rediscover their old dreams—and maybe this time, fulfill them forever.Books in the Whispering Wind duology:After TexAngel MinePreviously published.
After The Flood
by L.S. MatthewsSet in a future where the effects of climate change begin to take hold, the story follows Jack and Michael as they try to cope with a new existence.After a dramatic escape from the approaching floods, Jack and his family relocate to the country, where they meet Michael, ill and cared for by his sister. United by their love for horses, Jack and Michael hatch a plan to save a wild young horse from destruction. But they're in for a rough ride ...Warm and full of heart, this is a hugely enjoyable story with a thought-provoking twist in its tail.
After The Wall: Confessions From An East German Childhood And The Life That Came Next
by Jefferson Chase Jana HenselJana Hensel was thirteen on November 9, 1989, the night the Berlin Wall fell. In all the euphoria over German reunification, no one stopped to think what it would mean for Jana and her generation of East Germans. These were the kids of the seventies, who had grown up in the shadow of Communism with all its hokey comforts: the Young Pioneer youth groups, the cheerful Communist propaganda, and the comforting knowledge that they lived in a Germany unblemished by an ugly Nazi past and a callouscapitalist future. Suddenly everything was gone. East Germany disappeared, swallowed up by the West, and in its place was everything Jana and her friends had coveted for so long: designer clothes, pop CDs, Hollywood movies, supermarkets, magazines. They snapped up every possible Western product and mannerism. They changed the way they talked, the way they walked, what they read, where they went. They cut off from their parents. They took English lessons, and opened bank accounts. Fifteen years later, they allhave the right haircuts and drive the right cars, but who are they? Where are they going? InAfter the Wall, Jana Hensel tells the story of her confused generation of East Germans, who were forced to abandon their past and feel their way through a foreign landscape to an uncertain future. Now as they look back, they wonder whether the oppressive, yet comforting life of their childhood wasn't so bad after all.
After Tupac and D Foster
by Jacqueline WoodsonD Foster showed up a few months before Tupac got shot that first time and left us the summer before he died. <P><P> The day D Foster enters Neeka and her best friend's lives, the world opens up for them. D comes from a world vastly different from their safe Queens neighborhood, and through her, the girls see another side of life that includes loss, foster families and an amount of freedom that makes the girls envious. Although all of them are crazy about Tupac Shakur's rap music, D is the one who truly understands the place where he's coming from, and through knowing D, Tupac's lyrics become more personal for all of them. The girls are thirteen when D's mom swoops in to reclaim D--and as magically as she appeared, she now disappears from their lives. Tupac is gone, too, after another shooting; this time fatal. As the narrator looks back, she sees lives suspended in time, and realizes that even all-too-brief connections can touch deeply. <P> A Discussion Guide to After Tupac and D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson .<P> Newbery Honor book
After We Were Stolen: A Novel
by Brooke Beyfuss"Not a typical cult novel...Despite Avery's clear trauma and struggle for closure, her voice is strong and clear." – Booklist "Avery's voice resonates...Powerful and moving." – New York Journal of BooksAn emotionally wrought, psychologically twisty coming-of-age story perfect for book clubs about a girl who escapes from a cult after a deadly fire destroys her family's compound, only to be haunted by That Night as she tries to build a new life for herself.A fire. Her escape. And the realization her entire life has been a lie.When nineteen-year-old Avery awakens to flames consuming her family's remote compound, she knows it's her only chance to escape her father's grueling survival training, bizarre rules, and gruesome punishments. She and her brother Cole flee the grounds for the first time in their lives, suddenly homeless in a world they know nothing about. After months of hiding out, they are arrested for shoplifting and a shocking discovery is made, resulting in the pair being separated.Avery is alone and desperate. She is uncertain if her "parents" survived the fire and is terrified to find out. But when the police investigation reveals there may be more survivors, Avery must uncover the truth about the fire to truly be free.Suspenseful, emotionally charged, and deeply thought-provoking, After We Were Stolen delves into the idea of family—those we're born into and those we make—resilience, and the lengths a cult survivor will go to finally be free of her painful past. Praise for After We Were Stolen:"Brooke Beyfuss's After We Were Stolen kept me feverishly turning pages, anxious and eager to find out what happened to Avery and Cole as they emerge from a life they never asked for and into one they're totally unprepared to navigate." —Melanie Abrams, author of Meadowlark"After We Were Stolen is an intelligent and heartrending story of vulnerability, power, resistance, and redemption. An excellent read that is sure to be a favorite book club pick." —Rebecca Taylor, author of The Secret Next Door
After You Drop Them Off: A Parent's Guide to Student Ministry
by Jeramy Clark Jerusha ClarkMaximize Your Student's Church ExperienceMore and more children and teenagers are becoming involved in church. They find that youth ministries are a safe place to make friends and have fun-and a wonderful way to find spiritual support and insight in a confusing world. But if you're a parent of a student in a youth ministry, you may have some questions: ·What actually goes on in group meetings? ·How trustworthy are the leaders?·How can I be more informed, or more involved? ·What if I disagree with a leader? ·How can I support the leaders more effectively? ·How can I help make my student's experience with church as powerful and positive as possible?In After You Drop Them Off, youth leader and author Jeramy Clark provides trustworthy answers to your questions, along with practical suggestions, biblical support, and "real-life" parents' comments and stories.From the Trade Paperback edition.
After You'd Gone
by Maggie O'FarrellAFTER YOU'D GONE is the groundbreaking debut novel from the Costa Award winning Maggie O'Farrell, author of THIS MUST BE THE PLACE and THE HAND THAT FIRST HELD MINE. It is a stunning, best-selling novel of wrenching love and grief.A distraught young woman boards a train at King's Cross to return to her family in Scotland. Six hours later, she catches sight of something so terrible in a mirror at Waverley Station that she gets on the next train back to London.AFTER YOU'D GONE follows Alice's mental journey through her own past, after a traffic accident has left her in a coma. A love story that is also a story of absence, and of how our choices can reverberate through the generations, it slowly draws us closer to a dark secret at a family's heart.(P)2012 Headline Publishing Group Ltd
After You'd Gone: A Novel
by Maggie O'FarrellThe stunning, groundbreaking debut novel of wrenching love and grief from the New York Times bestselling author of The Marriage Portrait and National Book Circle Award Winner HamnetAlice Raikes takes a train from London to Scotland to visit her family, but when she gets there she witnesses something so shocking that she insists on returning to London immediately. A few hours later, Alice is lying in a coma after an accident that may or may not have been a suicide attempt. Alice's family gathers at her bedside and as they wait, argue, and remember, long-buried tensions emerge. The more they talk, the more they seem to conceal. Alice, meanwhile, slides between varying levels of consciousness, recalling her past and a love affair that recently ended. A riveting story that skips through time and interweaves multiple points of view, After You'd Gone is a novel of stunning psychological depth, marking the debut of a major literary talent.
After You'd Gone: A Novel
by Maggie O'FarrellAfter You&’d Gone is the groundbreaking debut novel from National Book Critics Circle Award winner Maggie O&’Farrell, author of Hamnet and The Marriage Portrait. A stunning, bestselling novel of wrenching love and grief.Alice Raikes takes a train from London to Scotland to visit her family, but when she gets there she witnesses something so shocking that she insists on returning to London immediately. A few hours later, Alice is lying in a coma after an accident that may or may not have been a suicide attempt. Alice's family gathers at her bedside and as they wait, argue, and remember, long-buried tensions emerge. The more they talk, the more they seem to conceal. Alice, meanwhile, slides between varying levels of consciousness, recalling her past and a love affair that recently ended. A riveting story that skips through time and interweaves multiple points of view, After You'd Gone is a novel of stunning psychological depth, marking the debut of a major literary talent.
After You'd Gone: From the author of Hamnet - one of the most unforgettable love stories you'll ever read
by Maggie O'FarrellThe groundbreaking debut novel from the bestselling author of HAMNET and THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT, now with an introduction by Ali Smith*Over 480,000 copies sold*'This devastatingly skilful love story will break your heart!' Alice Winn'Gripping. Superbly moving' Ali SmithA distraught young woman boards a train at King's Cross to return to her family in Scotland. Six hours later, she catches sight of something so terrible in a mirror at Waverley Station that she gets on the next train back to London.AFTER YOU'D GONE follows Alice's mental journey through her own past, after a traffic accident has left her in a coma. A love story that is also a story of absence, and of how our choices can reverberate through the generations, it slowly draws us closer to a dark secret at a family's heart.'Remarkable. Luminous' Observer'Deeply moving' The Times'An amazing study of love and grief as it poses the wrenching question: What do you do with all the love you have for someone when they're gone?' Glamour
After You've Gone
by Jeffrey LentA widower finds healing and the surprise of new love in 1920s Amsterdam in this “intricate and rewarding” historical novel (Publishers Weekly).College professor Henry Dorn has spent years building a family in Nova Scotia, but it only takes a single afternoon for it to fall apart. Abruptly widowed of the love of his life, Henry buys a steamer ticket for Amsterdam, the city of his heritage, hoping to start life anew.Nothing could have prepared Henry for the woman he meets on the ship: the fiery Lydia Pearce—one of a new generation of self-sufficient women. Before long the two have fallen into an affair of a depth and significance for which neither was prepared. But the memory of his wife and the vexed relationship he had with their son haunt Henry in the midst of his new beginning.After You’ve Gone beautifully charts the sweep of a life, the grim reach of Word War I, and the discovery—and loss—of life-defining love.
After You: A Novel
by Julie BuxbaumBONUS: This edition contains an After You discussion guide.When tragedy strikes across the ocean, Ellie Lerner drops everything—her marriage, her job, her life in the Boston suburbs—to travel to London and pick up the pieces of her best friend Lucy’s life. While Lucy’s husband, Greg, retreats into himself, his and Lucy’s eight-year-old daughter, Sophie, has simply stopped speaking. Desperate to help Sophie, Ellie turns to a book that gave her comfort as a child, The Secret Garden. As its story of hurt, magic, and healing blooms around them, so, too, do Lucy’s secrets—some big, some small. Peeling back the layers of her friend’s life, Ellie is forced to confront her own as well: the marriage she left behind, the loss she’d hoped to escape. And suddenly Ellie’s carefully constructed existence is spinning out of control in a chain of events that will transform her life—and the lives of those around her—forever.
After Zero
by Christina Collins<p>Elise carries a notebook full of tallies, each page marking a day spent at her new public school, each stroke of her pencil marking a word spoken. A word that can't be taken back. Five tally marks isn't so bad. Two is pretty good. But zero? Zero is perfect. Zero means no wrong answers called out in class, no secrets accidentally spilled, no conversations to agonize over at night when sleep is far away. <p>But now months have passed, and Elise isn't sure she could speak even if she wanted to—not to keep her only friend, Mel, from drifting further away—or to ask if anyone else has seen her English teacher's stuffed raven come to life. Then, the discovery of a shocking family secret helps Elise realize that her silence might just be the key to unlocking everything she's ever hoped for...</p>
After the Affair
by Janis A. SpringFor the 70 percent of couples who have been affected by extramarital affairs, this is the only book to offer proven strategies for surviving the crisis and rebuilding the relationship -- written by a nationally known therapist considered an expert on infidelity. When I was 15, I was raped. That was nothing compared to your affair. The rapist was a stranger; you, I thought, were my best friend. There is nothing quite like the pain and shock caused when a partner has been unfaithful. The hurt partner often experiences a profound loss of self-respect and falls into a depression that can last for years. For the relationship, infidelity is often a death blow. After the Affair is the first book to help readers survive this crisis. Written by a clinical psychologist who has been treating distressed couples for 22 years, it guides both hurt and unfaithful partners through the three stages of healing: Normalizing feelings, deciding whether to recommit and revitalizing the relationship. It provides proven, practical advice to help the couple change their behavior toward each other, cultivate trust and forgiveness and build a healthier, more conscious intimate partnership.
After the Affair
by Janis Abrahms Spring Michael SpringFor the 70 percent of couples who have been affected by extramarital affairs, this is the only book to offer proven strategies for surviving the crisis and rebuilding the relationship –– written by a nationally known therapist considered an expert on infidelity. When I was 15, I was raped. That was nothing compared to your affair. The rapist was a stranger; you, I thought, were my best friend. There is nothing quite like the pain and shock caused when a partner has been unfaithful. The hurt partner often experiences a profound loss of self–respect and falls into a depression that can last for years. For the relationship, infidelity is often a death blow. After the Affair is the first book to help readers survive this crisis. Written by a clinical psychologist who has been treating distressed couples for 22 years, it guides both hurt and unfaithful partners through the three stages of healing: Normalizing feelings, deciding whether to recommit and revitalizing the relationship. It provides proven, practical advice to help the couple change their behavior toward each other, cultivate trust and forgiveness and build a healthier, more conscious intimate partnership.
After the Affair, Third Edition: Healing the Pain and Rebuilding Trust When a Partner Has Been Unfaithful
by Janis A. Spring“Full of juicy, concrete advice to heal from an affair.” —Esther Perel, MA, LMFT, New York Times bestselling author of Mating in Captivity and The State of AffairsFrom a clinical psychologist who served as a clinical supervisor in the Department of Psychology at Yale University, received the CPA’s award for Distinguished Contribution to the Practice of Psychology, and has treated couples and trained therapists for over four decades, this newly updated, award-winning book provides concrete, proven strategies for those who seek to survive their partner’s infidelity and to rebuild the relationship after an affairThere is nothing quite like the devastation caused when a partner has been unfaithful. Hurt partners often experience a profound shattering of their familiar and valued sense of self and fall into a depression that can last for years. For the relationship, infidelity is often a death blow.This new third edition of After the Affair, with more than 600,000 copies sold, helps guide both hurt and unfaithful partners through three stages of healing: normalizing the crisis, deciding whether to recommit to their partner, and rekindling trust and sexual intimacy. It includes a new section in which patients ask questions not addressed in previous editions, and the author provides concrete strategies for earning trust and forgiveness.
After the Breakup: A Compassionate Road Map to Getting Over Your Ex (After the Breakup)
by Tamara ThompsonFind comfort and hope after a breakup with guided exercises in self-lovePicking up the pieces after a breakup can be difficult—but moving on is possible with a little self-love! This write-in workbook will help you process your feelings, develop healthier habits and patterns, and make yourself a priority as you move forward with confidence.Discover the meaning of self-love—Redefine what it means to feel complete by showing up for yourself with love and compassion.Begin to heal—Explore the root causes of your emotions with insightful prompts, practices, and exercises like role-play and visualization.Relatable stories—Get Inspired by real-life stories of others that have endured breakups and found happiness and healing through self-love.A supportive companion workbook—This book expands on the popular After the Breakup: A Self-Love Journal. Use both books together to get the full self-love experience!Build a better relationship with yourself with this uplifting breakup book.
After the Dance is Over: A heart-warming saga of friendship and family (Molly and Nellie series, Book 5)
by Joan JonkerWith love on the horizon for their children, but sabotage just around the corner, two friends fight for those they love... while having a blast, of course. In After the Dance is Over, Joan Jonker brings us another instalment of her hugely popular Molly and Nellie series, as the two friends get up to more mischief in their beloved Liverpool. Perfect for fans of Dilly Court and Katie Flynn. 'There's something for everyone and all delivered up in that inimitable Jonker style which is guaranteed to delight her large number of fans' - Middlesborough Evening GazetteThere's never a dull moment when Nellie McDonough and Molly Bennett get together, and there's always something to keep them busy in their Liverpool street. First, Molly's son Tommy sets the date for his wedding to Rosie O'Grady, and everyone's saving hard to ensure their day is perfect. Then a new family arrive in the area and their daughter is determined to put a stop to the budding romance between Nellie's son Paul and Phoebe Corkhill. Meanwhile, Molly's daughter Doreen and her husband Phil make an announcement, and Nellie and Molly are determined to track down Phil's long lost family, so that they can share in the joyful news... What readers are saying about After the Dance is Over: 'Being an enthralled fan of Joan's books, I couldn't wait to read this book... this book is definitely the funniest yet! Molly and Nellie are hilarious, warm, honest and very touching''Enjoy a stroll down a Liverpool street in the early 40s, feel the warmth of the residents, laugh at the antics of two very humorous ladies, but also have a hanky ready to collect your tears of laughter'
After the Eclipse: A Mother's Murder, A Daughter's Search
by Sarah Perry"Stunning." —Entertainment Weekly | "Raw and perfect." —Laura Miller, Slate"Heartbreaking yet hopeful." —Samantha Irby, Marie Claire A fierce memoir of a mother’s murder, a daughter’s coming-of-age in the wake of immense loss, and her mission to know the woman who gave her life. When Sarah Perry was twelve, she saw a partial eclipse of the sun, an event she took as a sign of good fortune for her and her mother, Crystal. But that brief moment of darkness ultimately foreshadowed a much larger one: two days later, Crystal was murdered in their home in rural Maine, just a few feet from Sarah’s bedroom. The killer escaped unseen; it would take the police twelve years to find him, time in which Sarah grew into adulthood, struggling with abandonment, police interrogations, and the effort of rebuilding her life when so much had been lost. Through it all she would dream of the eventual trial, a conviction—all her questions finally answered. But after the trial, Sarah’s questions only grew. She wanted to understand her mother’s life, not just her final hours, and so she began a personal investigation, one that drew her back to Maine, taking her deep into the abiding darkness of a small American town. Told in searing prose, After the Eclipse is a luminous memoir of uncomfortable truth and terrible beauty, an exquisite memorial for a mother stolen from her daughter, and a blazingly successful attempt to cast light on her life once more.
After the End: The powerful, life-affirming novel from the Sunday Times Number One bestselling author
by Clare MackintoshHave you read the book that everyone's talking about?'If I could give this book 10 stars I would' (Reader review)'This book touched my soul' (Reader review)'I could not put it down. What a story. What a storyteller' (Reader review)'This is in my top five books of all time. Absolutely incredible' (Reader review)'I have never felt so emotionally wrapped up in characters in a book' (Reader review)No. 1 bestseller Clare Mackintosh brings you the most moving book you'll read this year. After the End is powerful, uplifting and full of hope.__________________________Max and Pip are the strongest couple you know. Only now they're facing the most important decision of their lives - and they don't agree.With the consequences of an impossible choice threatening to devastate them both, nothing will ever be the same again.But anything can happen after the end . . .Clare Mackintosh returns with an unmissable thriller this summer - Hostage is out now.***********'The most moving book you'll read this year' LISA JEWELL'Life-affirming . . . richly drawn' SUNDAY TIMES 'Compelling and clever, tender and true. I can't stop thinking about it' LIANE MORIARTY'Heart-wrenching . . . an absolute must-read' MIKE GAYLE'Put this on the top of your list. You won't regret it' JANE CORRY'One of the most moving stories I have ever read. It's perfect' JOANNA CANNON
After the End: The powerful, life-affirming novel from the Sunday Times Number One bestselling author
by Clare MackintoshHave you read the book that everyone's talking about?'If I could give this book 10 stars I would' (Reader review)'This book touched my soul' (Reader review)'I could not put it down. What a story. What a storyteller' (Reader review)'This is in my top five books of all time. Absolutely incredible' (Reader review)'I have never felt so emotionally wrapped up in characters in a book' (Reader review)Powerful, uplifting and full of hope, AFTER THE END is the most moving book you'll read this year - from number one bestseller Clare Mackintosh__________________________Max and Pip are the strongest couple you know. Only now they're facing the most important decision of their lives - and they don't agree.With the consequences of an impossible choice threatening to devastate them both, nothing will ever be the same again.But anything can happen after the end . . .***********'The most moving book you'll read this year' LISA JEWELL'Life-affirming . . . richly drawn' SUNDAY TIMES 'Compelling and clever, tender and true. I can't stop thinking about it' LIANE MORIARTY'Heart-wrenching . . . an absolute must-read' MIKE GAYLE'Put this on the top of your list. You won't regret it' JANE CORRY'One of the most moving stories I have ever read. It's perfect' JOANNA CANNON
After the Fall: A Novel
by Julie Cohen"Give this perfect blend of laugh-out-loud and heart-tugging moments to readers who like complicated, realistic relationships joyously rendered, like those from Jojo Moyes or Jill Mansell." -Booklist (Starred Review)From the author who brought you Dear Thing, Julie Cohen, comes After the Fall--a poignant, beautifully heartbreaking novel about what it means to be family, the ties that bind us, and the secrets that threaten to tear us apart.When an unfortunate accident forces Honor back into the lives of her widowed daughter-in-law, Jo, and her only granddaughter, Lydia, she cannot wait to be well enough to get back to her own home. However, the longer she stays with Jo and Lydia, the more they start to feel like a real family. But each of the three women is keeping secrets from the others that threaten to destroy the lives they’ve come to know. Honor’s secret threatens to rob her of the independence she’s guarded ferociously for eighty years. Jo’s secret could destroy the “normal” family life she’s fought so hard to build and maintain. Lydia’s secret could bring her love—or the loss of everything that matters most to her. One summer’s day, grandmother, mother and daughter’s secrets will be forced out in the open in a single dramatic moment that leaves them all asking: is there such a thing as second chances?
After the Fall: A Novel
by Victoria Roberts"This is a wonderful, forever book." —George Booth, cartoonist for The New YorkerAfter the Fall introduces us to a brilliantly eccentric family from New York’s Upper East Side. Pops, a self-made millionaire, is a mad inventor who gleans his inspiration from popovers and Raquel Welsh. Mother is a fabulously dressed but mercurial socialite from Buenos Aires whose weapon of choice is a croquet mallet. Young Alan, our earnest and studious narrator, and his drama-queen little sister, Alex, love their parents but must turn to their good-natured housekeeper and cook for a better sense of reality.One fateful day, Alan returns home to find that the family has gone bust, not even a penny to be found. The next morning, to the children’s surprise, the family wakes up in Central Park along with the entire contents of their penthouse arranged just as before—art, furniture, pugs, and all. Aided by their two loyal housekeepers and fed by the maitre d’ from their favorite restaurant, the family makes Central Park into a comfortable and creative home.But soon the strains of life—and the weather, which is getting chilly—threaten to tear apart the parents’ marriage. As the holiday season approaches, the children rise to the challenge of bringing their family back together.With more than two hundred drawings and featuring kimono-clad squirrels and a visit by a Yeti, this delicious tale is a love letter to family, creativity, and New York.
After the Fire
by Becky CitraMelissa is waiting for the "new life" that her mother Sharlene has promised her since a fire devastated their family. But nothing ever seems to change. Melissa has difficulty making friends at school, they never have enough money and her little brother Cody is a brat. When Sharlene announces that they will be spending the month of August at a remote cabin on a wilderness lake, Melissa is less than thrilled. But there is more to do at the lake than she expected, and she is surprised to learn that her mother knows how to paddle a canoe, fish and make bannock and s'mores. On an island in the middle of the lake, Melissa meets Alice, a strange girl who is writing a fantasy novel. Alice shares her tree fort on the island with Melissa, and while at first Melissa is attracted to Alice's strong personality and her stories of her "perfect family," she becomes increasingly uneasy around Alice. As Melissa's relationship with her mother improves and her confidence increases, she is able to hold her own with Alice and start to appreciate her own imperfect family.