The big story is the story that sits behind all our other stories. It is the story that provides the stable context for our lives. The author describes, in first-person perspective, what it means when the big story falls apart. He grew up in the 1960s, so there were plenty of socially based reasons for feeling that all the certainties were crumbling. And there were personal reasons too. An inability to even choose a career. Part 1 is The Disintegration. It finds the author leaving the city. Fleeing. But he finds a place to settle, in a valley that has walls of refuge., a place of retreat. It is good enough. He is telling this story as it happened, that memory returns to him after so long. He gives up books, he takes up gardening. He never stops thinking about the big story. But he ventures back in to a town, to a job, a tumultuous job that required him to learn the art of war. Books come back in, and music. Eventually there is a return to the city, wondering if it will be different. Part 2 is The Renewing. He says he is on a campaign to find the roots of the world tree. Writing about human resources and training in the day time, finding peace and joy in music. But he knows what he is finding in the stories, when his experiences turn into story. It is love, and morals. And some of the stories are in song. Part 3 is Onward. The author has to come back to the present, but he is called away by Mu, the chanter who has been here before. Mu's desire is to dance at the music festival, and we think he intends to stay, but he comes and is gone, with just a nod to the tawny frogmouth sitting in the tree. Part 4 is Reframing. The author is older. He is making principles. Now he knows that heaven and earth are working together. At the end, the story goes on. The energy flows in all directions.

Carve out family time for this clever and humorous picture book about a skeleton who is falling to pieces that needs help pulling himself together. Bonaparte is having a tough time. It’s hard for this young skeleton to just hang loose when he can’t keep hold of himself. When he plays catch, his throwing arm literally takes a flyer. Eating lunch can be a real jaw-dropping occasion. How can he start school when he has so many screws loose? Luckily, Bonaparte hit the bone-anza when it came to his friends. Franky Stein, Blacky Widow, and Mummicula all have some bonehead ideas to help pull him together. But will it be enough to boost his confidence and get him ready for the first day of school?

“A true classic of world literature . . . A masterpiece that has inspired generations of writers in Nigeria, across Africa, and around the world.” —Barack Obama “African literature is incomplete and unthinkable without the works of Chinua Achebe.” —Toni Morrison Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read Things Fall Apart is the first of three novels in Chinua Achebe's critically acclaimed African Trilogy. It is a classic narrative about Africa's cataclysmic encounter with Europe as it establishes a colonial presence on the continent. Told through the fictional experiences of Okonkwo, a wealthy and fearless Igbo warrior of Umuofia in the late 1800s, Things Fall Apart explores one man's futile resistance to the devaluing of his Igbo traditions by British political andreligious forces and his despair as his community capitulates to the powerful new order. With more than 20 million copies sold and translated into fifty-seven languages, Things Fall Apart provides one of the most illuminating and permanent monuments to African experience. Achebe does not only capture life in a pre-colonial African village, he conveys the tragedy of the loss of that world while broadening our understanding of our contemporary realities.

'I'm sorry, but I don't want to live any longer. It's nothing to do with what you said, Dad, I'd made up my mind to do this ages ago. Mum, maybe it will help to think of your twins together again. Jan, I'm leaving you my blue cashmere sweater and all my books, even though they mostly belonged to you in the first place. Louise, you can have my diamanté brooch and all my make up and any clothes you want. I'd like Carly to have my toy dog. Goodbye. Love from Tina.' Tina is fifteen and having a miserable time at home since her twin brother died. She falls in love for the first time. Simon is from a private school and not part of Tina's world. They don't have much in common, but Tina convinces herself she's in love. When Simon ends it with her, Tina's world falls apart. First published in 1989 and long out of print, Falling Apart is an honest and thought-provoking story written by one of the world's most popular writers. Jacqueline Wilson captures the voices of teenagers perfectly in this engrossing novel about couples and families, and what can happen when it all goes wrong.

Offers ten strategies for acknowledging, healing, and moving past pain and trauma caused by layoffs, foreclosures, retirement losses, and health insurance problems.

When your world is falling apart, where is God? Renowned pastor, teacher, and author David Jeremiah shares the comfort and hope of the Psalms, showing how these truths can guide you through life's greatest challenges. Bible teacher Dr. David Jeremiah welcomes all who are going through tough times to turn to the Psalms, which are full of inspiration and hope. Grounded in Scripture, Dr. Jeremiah includes true stories from people facing seemingly insurmountable suffering who found a way through the darkness, as well as his own fight for his life through his cancer diagnosis. An encouraging gift for those facing difficult circumstances, the book includes: Inspiring real-life stories of people who have struggled with terminal illness, the loss of a child, and the imprisonment of a spouse Dr. Jeremiah’s own journal entries, revealing how the Psalms sustained him during his battle with cancer Insightful and comforting passages of scripture for those facing major obstacles If you are struggling with anything in your life that is pulling you down or pulling you apart, this book will not only lift your spirits but remind you that God is walking with you. When Your World Falls Apart is an invaluable source of help and encouragement for people facing major obstacles in life.

With a moving account of her own story, Tims shows readers how to face life's most difficult problems and come through in victory. "When It All Falls Apart" is a valuable resource that provides specific and effective strategies to address life's difficult challenges by giving readers a road map to a better tomorrow.

"A Modest Quest" describes the beginning of my quest to find out about my family. It was, at the outset, intended to be a modest quest - simply to find out about my parents' parents and brothers and sisters. Growing up, I and my sister and brother thought that all our grandparents were already dead; nor did we know much about our uncles and aunts. But the quest was not easy; it took about two years and some deep digging just to settle the questions about some of these relatives. By then, of course, the quest had embedded itself in my life, because you don't understand a person until you know something about their parents, and so it goes on.

We all long for “friends forever”—but what happens when forever ends? They say friends are the family we choose. And that choosing—the joy of loving and being loved by someone who isn’t genetically obligated to share life with us—adds priceless worth to our days, but also great risk. Because hurt can happen even in the closest friendships, and sometimes friendships fall apart. The loss can be staggering. As we struggle to digest the pain and confusion, we wonder, How could this happen? And what do I do now? In When a Friendship Falls Apart, beloved author Elizabeth Laing Thompson comes alongside readers as they process their struggling friendships—the faltering, the fractured, and the failed. Blending personal story, biblical examples, and faith-filled wisdom, each page explores questions like the following: How do we guard against the poison of bitterness so we can process the hurt and move forward? When and how do we seek reconciliation? What does forgiveness look like? How do we know when it’s time to leave a friendship behind? How do we open up again and entrust our wounded hearts to new friendships? If you find yourself in the midst of a friendship that’s falling apart, or you’re grappling with past hurts and regrets, this book is for you. May it be a comfort and help, leading you closer to the Friend who will never leave.

Most Christians know they should be trying to tell their friends and family about Jesus. But in a post-Christendom world, personal evangelism is viewed negatively--it's offensive, inappropriate, and insensitive. Recent studies confirm that the majority of Christians rarely evangelize, worried they might offend their family or lose their friends. In How to Talk About Jesus (Without Being That Guy), author Sam Chan equips everyday Christians who are reluctant and nervous to tell their friends about Jesus with practical, tested ways of sharing their faith in the least awkward ways possible. Drawing from over two decades of experience as an evangelist, teacher, and pastor, Chan explains why personal evangelism feels so awkward today. And utilizing recent insights from communication theory, cross-cultural ministry, and apologetics, he helps you build confidence in sharing your faith, and teaches you how to evangelize your friends and family in socially appropriate ways.