Books with category 🧸 Childhood
Displaying 2 books

Happiness Falls

2023

by Angie Kim

Happiness Falls is a thrilling page-turner and a deeply moving portrait of a family in crisis. This riveting book about a biracial Korean American family in Virginia is upended when their beloved father and husband goes missing.

Mia, the irreverent, hyperanalytical twenty-year-old daughter, isn't initially concerned when her father and younger brother Eugene don't return from a walk in a nearby park. But as time progresses, it becomes clear that something is terribly wrong. Eugene returns home bloody and alone, with their father nowhere to be found. The only witness to the father's disappearance is Eugene, who has the rare genetic condition Angelman syndrome and cannot speak.

What follows is both a ticking-clock investigation into the father's whereabouts and an emotionally rich exploration of family dynamics. Angie Kim turns the missing-person story into something wholly original, creating an indelible tale of a family who must understand one another to uncover the truth.

Never Enough

Never Enough delves into the heart of the "toxic achievement culture" that has taken hold of students, parents, and educators across America. This compelling book offers a critical look at how the quest for success is driving unprecedented levels of pressure among today's youth, leading to alarming rates of anxiety, depression, and self-harm.

Award-winning reporter Jennifer Breheny Wallace takes us on a journey through the competitive landscape that demands ever more from our children, stretching family resources and time to their limits. Wallace's investigation reveals that this relentless drive for excellence is not simply a matter of personal choice but is deeply embedded in societal expectations, exacerbated by growing income inequality and shrinking opportunities.

Through extensive research, interviews, and a survey of nearly 6,000 parents, Never Enough uncovers the detrimental message being sent to children: that they are only as valuable as their achievements. Wallace highlights the necessity for a shift in adult attitudes towards children's success. By embracing the concept of 'mattering,' parents and educators can help children understand their intrinsic worth, independent of external accomplishments.

With a rich narrative and practical solutions, Never Enough provides a humane perspective on the crisis facing today's teens and lays out a framework for fostering resilience, self-confidence, and psychological security in our children, enabling them to thrive.

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