"Invisible Child follows eight dramatic years in the life of Dasani Coates, a child with an imagination as soaring as the skyscrapers near her Brooklyn homeless shelter. Born at the turn of a new century, Dasani is named for the bottled water that comes to symbolize Brooklyn's gentrification and the shared aspirations of a divided city. As Dasani grows up, moving with her tight knit family from shelter to shelter, her story reaches back to trace the...

A gorgeous memoir about the 17 year estrangement of the author and her homeless schizophrenic mother, and their reunion.

Gile's childhood had been spent in doctor's offices; she spent nearly every waking moment at her mother's side. As Nyna grew up, her mother became more and more distant. Carolyn Scott Reybold had been a model in 1947, a friend of Grace Kelly, and even a bridesmaid at her wedding. How had that confident, glamorous woman become the mother Giles knew growing up--the mother who was now living in a shelter? In her journey to uncover her mother's past,...

"An unforgettable memoir about a girl who escapes her childhood as a preschool drug dealer to earn a divinity degree from Duke University-and then realizes she must confront her past to truly find her way home. "Home, it turns out, is where the war is. It's also where the healing begins." Born to drug-dealing parents in rural Indiana, Dana Trent is a preschooler the first time she uses a razor blade to cut up weed and fill dime bags for her schizophrenic...

"Jacob Riis was familiar with poverty. He did his best to combat it in his hometown of Ribe, Denmark, and he experienced it when he immigrated to the United States in 1870. Jobs for immigrants were hard to get and keep, and Jacob often found himself penniless, sleeping on the streets or in filthy homeless shelters. When he became a journalist, Jacob couldn't stop seeing the poverty in the city around him. He began to photograph overcrowded tenement...

"After two years of waiting to adopt--slogging through paperwork and bouncing between hope and despair--a miracle finally happened for Vanessa McGrady. Her sweet baby, Grace, was a dream come true. Then Vanessa made a highly uncommon gesture: when Grace's biological parents became homeless, Vanessa invited them to stay. Without a blueprint for navigating the practical basics of an open adoption or any discussion of expectations or boundaries, the...

"In 1947, a family in Milwaukee, WIsconsin was thrown into turmoil when their alcoholic, schizophrenic father spun out of control. This heartwarming story explores the complexity of family dynamics as they try to hold it together. Seven-year-old Kady must confront the harsh reality of life but still finds joy in the simple things. She is a reminder to us all of hope and how a family overcomes adversity. The story is told with heart and honesty of...

"Un divertido y conmovedor libro de memorias en ensayo de la comediante Aida Rodríguez sobre el poder de superar las dificultades y transformar el dolor en risa. Aida Rodríguez ha vivido, por decir poco, una vida de torbellino. La historia de cómo pasó de la pobreza a la opulencia es cuando era niña, su madre la secuestró y se la llevó de la República Dominicana a los Estados Unidos. Más tarde, un nuevo secuestro, esta vez a manos de su abuela...