Winner of the Prairie Schooner Book Prize in Fiction, the stories in Better Times focus on what’s happening in places people don’t think to look. Women, sometimes displaced, often lonely, are at the heart of these stories. In Better Times Sara Batkie focuses on the moments in women’s lives when the wider world is wrapped up in other matters: a father and daughter, separated by time and an ocean, dreaming of each other; a girl in a home for “troubled women” imagining the journey of the first dog in space; a phantom breast returning to haunt a woman after her mastectomy; a young woman giving birth to a litter of eggs. Such are the ordinary women weathering extraordinary circumstances in Better Times. Divided into three sections covering the recent past, our current era, and the world to come, the stories gathered here—with characters stymied by loneliness, motherhood, illness, even cataclysmic climate change—interrogate the idea that so-called better times ever existed, particularly for women.

Frank Holden and other soldiers from varying backgrounds find their lives radically changed in Vietnam by a war that they find difficult to understand or support.

Winner of the Prairie Schooner Book Prize in Fiction, the stories in Better Times focus on what's happening in places people don't think to look. Women, sometimes displaced, often lonely, are at the heart of these stories. In Better Times Sara Batkie focuses on the moments in women's lives when the wider world is wrapped up in other matters: a father and daughter, separated by time and an ocean, dreaming of each other; a girl in a home for "troubled women" imagining the journey of the first dog in space; a phantom breast returning to haunt a woman after her mastectomy; a young woman giving birth to a litter of eggs. Such are the ordinary women weathering extraordinary circumstances in Better Times. Divided into three sections covering the recent past, our current era, and the world to come, the stories gathered here--with characters stymied by loneliness, motherhood, illness, even cataclysmic climate change--interrogate the idea that so-called better times ever existed, particularly for women.

In this rhyming story, Kiara learns how to keep going even when things get too hard. Through colorful illustrations and rhythmic rhymes, Kiara reflects on her mistakes and realizes that mistakes help her grow. Instead of avoiding them, she learns from them so she can improve. Do you want your child to learn about perseverance and diligence? Your child will learn how easy it is to get back up after failing. "I Choose to Try Again" is a story with social emotional learning (SEL) in mind. It has been praised by teachers and therapists worldwide. This story told from Kiara's point of view will help open your child's mind to what it feels like to fail, and then try again. Kiara will teach your child how to be mentally strong. With Kiara in real life examples, your child will learn to develop their understanding of their own emotions. Throughout the story, Kiara will show you what perseverance looks like. Teacher and Therapist Toolbox: I Choose is an empowering series curated to empower young children to become aware of big emotions. A new book series developed in tandem with teachers and therapists to help children cope with a range of emotions and teach them that they indeed hold the power to choose their actions and reactions. Try not to say 'never.'. That brainwashes you to fail. It means that you won't have the chance To raise the victory sail. "I Choose to Try Again" was developed alongside counselors and parents to be used as a resource in a social emotional curriculum.

Snappsy the alligator is having a normal day when a pesky narrator steps in to spice up the story. Is Snappsy reading a book ... or is he making CRAFTY plans? Is Snappsy on his way to the grocery store ... or is he PROWLING the forest for defenseless birds and fuzzy bunnies? Is Snappsy innocently shopping for a party ... or is he OBSESSED with snack foods that start with the letter P? What's the truth? Snappsy the Alligator (Did Not Ask to Be in This Book) is an irreverent look at storytelling, friendship, and creative differences, perfect for fans of Mo Willems.

A thoughtful picture book illustrating the power of small acts of kindness, from the award-winning author of Sophie's Squash.

Spavin Lawson kept his promise to the united human population of 32nd Century Texas City. He and his wife, Clarissa, had gathered the brightest minds they could find and put together the Technology Development Plan. The Plan was a template to build a civilization based upon ecologically sound principles. Unfortunately, the completion of The Plan required a population density that did not exist in the 32nd Century. Cataclysmic events a millennium earlier had reduced humans to uncivilized tribes totaling fewer than ten thousand people in what was once North America. Unknown to the citizens of the new city, long lost humans who were struggling to survive on Mars and Luna also assisted in the development of The Plan. A secret node on the Technology Development Plan was dedicated to the eventual reunification of all Humankind. Spavin could not entrust the future of his progeny and the human race to chance. He knew that the two-hundred year plan would need a boost at the critical point of Reunification. With his family and Shadow Warrior Nevlyn Bydman, he used his time dilator so he could guide the completion of The Plan and ensure Humankind would find better times.

From 32nd Century Wyoming, Spavin Lawson led a group of one-thousand refugees from the bunker that housed Resurgent City in a search for better times. The 22nd Century Government bunker had exceeded the design specifications of its creators thanks to the leadership of its first elected Mayor. A small city had expanded and prospered inside the mountain. The original population of less than two hundred souls had grown into nearly five-thousand. Unfortunately, the ancient nuclear power plant that provided the people the power to survive had leaked radiation for generations. The net effect of the radiation and the cave environment had altered the population. The people had developed genetic albinism with eyes well suited to the dimly lit cave city. Small in stature yet curious and adaptive, the Tribe followed the tall, dark-haired man and his wife without question. The outside world was foreign and frightening but within days, the people realized that The Judges of Resurgent City had held them in a grasp of religious fervor not based on factuality or reality. The journey they embarked upon was destined to lead them to the coast of Texas. Spavin Lawson, physicist by training, believed the coast would provide better opportunities for the otherwise doomed population. He reckoned that South Texas? coast would allow the petite, pale people to re-establish the human race on Earth. That location was further from the immediate geological and environmental effects of the Yellowstone super volcano eruption that had induced a global deep freeze ten centuries earlier. His greatest concerns for Humankind were the long term effects of the high radiation exposures and the lack of genetic diversity.

Selected by Today as a book "to ease kids’ anxiety about coronavirus.” We all need hope. Humans have an extraordinary capacity to battle through adversity, but only if they have something to cling onto: a belief or hope that maybe, one day, things will be better. This idea sparked The Great Realization. Sharing the truths we may find hard to tell but also celebrating the things—from simple acts of kindness and finding joy in everyday activities, to the creativity within us all—that have brought us together during lockdown, it gives us hope in this time of global crisis. Written for his younger brother and sister in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Tomos Roberts’s heartfelt poem is as timely as it is timeless. Its message of hope and resilience, of rebirth and renewal, has captured the hearts of children and adults all over the globe—and the glimpse it offers of a fairer, kinder, more sustainable world continues to inspire thousands every day. With Tomos Roberts’s heartfelt poem and beautiful illustrations by award-winning artist Nomoco, The Great Realization is a profound work, at once striking and reassuring, reminding readers young and old that in the face of adversity there are still dreams to be dreamt and kindnesses to be shared and hope. There is still hope. We now call it The Great Realization and, yes, since then there have been many. But that’s the story of how it started . . . and why hindsight’s 2020.