Banished: Surviving My Tears in the Westboro Baptist Church by Lauren Drain
Lauren
spent her early years enjoying a normal life with her family in Florida, but
when her liberal-minded father set out to produce a documentary about the WBC,
his detached interest gradually evolved into fascination, and he moved the
entire family to Kansas to join the church and live on their compound. Over the
next seven years, Lauren fully assimilated their extreme beliefs, and became a
member of the church and an active and vocal picketer. But as she matured and
began to challenge some of the church's tenets, she was unceremoniously cast
out from the church and permanently cut off from her family and from everyone
else she knew and loved. Banished is
the story of Lauren's journey into and out of a world of extremists. –Summary.
Breaking the Silence by Casey Watson
Looking after two 9-year-old boys was never going to be easy, especially two boys with such different needs. But it's not long before Casey realizes that, with Jenson and Georgie, she is facing her toughest challenge yet.
–Summary .
I Am Malala: A Girl Who Stood Up For Education and Was Shot By the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai
"When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive. Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she has become a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize. I Am Malala is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls' education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons." –Publisher.
Mummy’s Little Helper by Casey Watson
A recent census shows that there are at least 175,000 child carers in the UK, 13,000 of whom care for more than 50 hours a week. Many remain invisible to a system that would otherwise help them. Abigail is one of those children. This is her story. –Summary
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Orange IsThe New Black by Piper Kerman
“With a career, a boyfriend, and a loving family, Piper Kerman barely resembles the reckless young woman who delivered a suitcase of drug money ten years before. But that past has caught up with her. Convicted and sentenced to fifteen months at the infamous federal correctional facility in Danbury, Connecticut, the well-heeled Smith College alumna is now inmate #11187-424—one of the millions of people who disappear “down the rabbit hole” of the American penal system. From her first strip search to her final release, Kerman learns to navigate this strange world with its strictly enforced codes of behavior and arbitrary rules. She meets women from all walks of life, who surprise her with small tokens of generosity, hard words of wisdom, and simple acts of acceptance. Heartbreaking, hilarious, and at times enraging, Kerman’s story offers a rare look into the lives of women in prison—why it is we lock so many away and what happens to them when they’re there.” –Cover.