On a May morning in 1939, eighteen-year-old Velma Demerson and her lover were having breakfast when two police officers arrived to take her away. Her crime was loving a Chinese man, a “crime” that was compounded by her pregnancy and subsequent mixed-race child. Sentenced to a home for wayward girls, Demerson was then transferred (along with forty-six other girls) to Torontos Mercer Reformatory for Females. The girls were locked in their cells for twelve hours a day and required to work in the on-site laundry and factory. They also endured suspect medical examinations. When Demerson was finally released after ten months’ incarceration weeks of solitary confinement, abusive medical treatments, and the state’s apprehension of her child, her marriage to her lover resulted in the loss of her citizenship status. This is the story of how Demerson, and so many other girls, were treated as criminals or mentally defective individuals, even though their worst crime might have been only their choice of lover. Incorrigible is a survivor’s narrative. In a period that saw the rise of psychiatry, legislation against interracial marriage, and a populist movement that believed in eradicating disease and sin by improving the purity of Anglo-Saxon stock, Velma Demerson, like many young women, found herself confronted by powerful social forces. This is a history of some of those who fell through the cracks of the criminal code, told in a powerful first-person voice.

Mirror Lake is the true story of Diane, a survivor of inexcusable childhood neglect. At fourteen years old she spent ten days in solitary confinement as punishment for trying to escape from the Minnesota Home School for Girls, where she was sent as a ward of the court. Years later, after an unsuccessful first marriage, she married her childhood sweetheart. After he developed paranoid schizophrenia and attempted suicide, Diane discovered he had become obsessed with murder - and he had a gun. Diane left him to protect her infant daughter. That decision changed her life and brought her to a chance encounter with me at Mirror Lake, in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California. I spent the next fifty years with this extraordinary woman, who overcame her early deprivation to lead a vibrant, exceptional life. A talented writer, Diane spent several years writing a frank and honest account of her life, with sensitive and thoughtful insights into her own and others' actions. She is no longer alive to speak for herself, but this book tells her story using her own writings and journals. Our life encompassed passionate commitment, money troubles, conflict, anger, disappointment, reconciliation, and joy. This is our story about our life together, our struggles and sins, and especially the loving, enthusiastic woman Diane was before dementia overwhelmed her. I cared for Diane at home until the end. Dementia ultimately destroyed her passion, drive, and personality, and finally ended her life. I kept a detailed caregiving journal, providing a narrative of those years. After her death I set out on a journey of resolution, healing, and regeneration together with my daughter Lauren, to rebuild my relationship to Lauren and reconnect with my own past, and to seek a new future.

Found running wild in the forest of Ashton Place, the Incorrigibles are no ordinary children: Alexander, age ten or thereabouts, keeps his siblings in line with gentle nips; Cassiopeia, perhaps four or five, has a bark that is (usually) worse than her bite; and Beowulf, age somewhere-in-the-middle, is alarmingly adept at chasing squirrels. Luckily, Miss Penelope Lumley is no ordinary governess. Only fifteen years old and a recent graduate of the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, Penelope embraces the challenge of her new position. Though she is eager to instruct the children in Latin verbs and the proper use of globes, first she must help them overcome their canine tendencies. But mysteries abound at Ashton Place: Who are these three wild creatures, and how did they come to live in the vast forests of the estate? Why does Old Timothy, the coachman, lurk around every corner? Will Penelope be able to teach the Incorrigibles table manners and socially useful phrases in time for Lady Constance's holiday ball? And what on earth is a schottische?

Since returning from London, the three Incorrigible children and their plucky governess, Miss Penelope Lumley, have been exceedingly busy. Despite their wolfish upbringing, the children have taken up bird watching, with no unfortunate consequences--yet. And a perplexing gift raises hard questions about how Penelope came to be left at the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, and why her parents never bothered to return for her. But theirs are not the only families with mysteries to solve. When Lord Fredrick’s long-absent mother arrives with the noted explorer, Admiral Faucet, gruesome secrets tumble out of the Ashton family tree. And when the Admiral’s prized racing ostrich gets loose in the forest, it will take all the Incorrigibles’ skills to find her. The hunt for the runaway ostrich is on. But Penelope is worried. Once back in the wild, will the children forget about books and poetry, and go back to their howling, wolfish ways? What if they never want to come back to Ashton Place at all?

The second book in the Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place—the acclaimed and hilarious Victorian mystery series by Maryrose Wood, perfect for fans of Lemony Snicket and Trenton Lee Stewart—has a brand-new look. Thanks to their plucky governess, Miss Penelope Lumley, Alexander, Beowulf, and Cassiopeia are much more like children than wolf cubs now. They are accustomed to wearing clothes. They hardly ever howl at the moon. And for the most part, they resist the urge to chase squirrels up trees. Yet the Incorrigibles are not entirely civilized, and still managed to ruin Lady Constance's Christmas ball, nearly destroying the grand house. So while Ashton Place is being restored, Penelope, the Ashtons, and the children take up residence in London. As they explore the city, Penelope and the Incorrigibles discover more about themselves as clues about the children's—and Penelope's own—mysterious past crop up in the most unexpected ways....

A colourful and central figure in Australian politics for two decades—described by Bob Hawke as having ‘the most acute mind’ of any of his ministers—Gareth Evans has also been applauded worldwide for his contributions, both as Foreign Minister and in later international roles, to conflict resolution, genocide prevention and curbing weapons of mass destruction. In this sometimes moving, often entertaining, and always lucid memoir Evans looks back over the highs and lows of his public life as a student activist, civil libertarian, law reformer, industry minister, international policymaker, educator and politician. He explains why it is that, despite multiple disappointments, he continues to believe that a safer, saner and more decent world is achievable, and why, for all its frustrations, politics remains an indispensable profession not only for megalomaniacs but idealists.

For fans of Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events and Trenton Lee Stewart's Mysterious Benedict Society, here comes the final book in the Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, the acclaimed and hilarious Victorian mystery series by Maryrose Wood. Unhappy Penelope Lumley is trapped in unhappy Plinkst! Even the beets for which Plinkst is inexplicably famous fail to grow in this utterly miserable Russian village. Penelope anxiously counts the days and wonders how she will ever get back to England in time to save all the Ashtons—who, she now knows, include herself and the Incorrigible children, although their precise location on the family tree is still a mystery—from their accursèd fate. Her daring scheme to escape sends her on a wildly unexpected journey. But time is running out, and the not-really-dead Edward Ashton is still on the loose. His mad obsession with the wolfish curse on the Ashtons puts Penelope and the Incorrigibles in dire peril. As Penelope fights her way back to her beloved pupils, the three brave Incorrigibles endure their gloomy new tutor and worriedly prepare for the arrival of Lady Constance’s baby. Little do they know the danger they’re in! In this action-packed conclusion to the acclaimed series, mysteries are solved and long-lost answers are found. Only one question remains: Will Penelope and the Incorrigibles find a way to undo the family curse in time, or will the next full moon be their last?

For fans of Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events and Trenton Lee Stewart's Mysterious Benedict Society, here comes the fifth book in the Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, the acclaimed and hilarious Victorian mystery series by Maryrose Wood. Lord Fredrick Ashton may not feel ready to be a father, but with a little Ashton on the way, he's sure about one thing: the wolfish curse on his family must end soon, before the child is born. Penelope willingly takes on the challenge; when Lady Constance's doctor prescribes a seaside holiday, Penelope jumps at the chance to take the three Incorrigible children to Brighton, where she hopes to persuade the old sailor Pudge to reveal what he knows about the Ashton curse. But the Ashtons are not the only ones at the beach in January. The passionately temperamental Babushkinov family is also taking the winter waters. The Incorrigible children may have been raised by wolves, but the Babushkinov children are the wildest creatures they've ever seen. Is it more than mere coincidence that these untamed children have turned up in Brighton just as Penelope and the Incorrigibles arrive?

The incorrigible children of Ashton Place are especially naughty, but they can't help it: They were raised by wolves. Now that they've been adopted by an English lord and lady, adjusting to a genteel life won't be easy, even with a mysterious young governess to teach them about everything from French to forks. Perfect for fans of Lemony Snicket, The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place books have been named a Kirkus Best Book for Children, placed on the Kids' Indie Next List, and chosen as Chicago Public Library Best of the Best. Together for the first time, this collection includes: The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book I: The Mysterious Howling The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book II: The Hidden Gallery The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book III: The Unseen Guest

Gráinne?s search for survivors begins in earnest, but she doesn?t even make it to the first stop before her freedom is jeopardized. To make matters worse, she?s landed in a place filled with corruption, subterfuge, and danger, but none of the survivors she?d hoped to find. Despite her best laid plans, she isn?t prepared for what she does find. Her journey will take her underground in more ways than one, and Gráinne will have to decide between the only security she has and someone else?s freedom. Seeking is Part 2 of 4 in Incorrigible: Secrets Past & Present, Book One of an epic science fantasy set in the Shifting Worlds Universe.