LITTLE WING by Joanne Horniman

Little Wing is about a teenage mother, Emily, who tries to find herself after having her child. Emily runs away from her family to her grandmother to try to find herself. While staying at her grandmother's she befriends a househusband and his son. Through spending time with them Emily gradually becomes happier and stable. She was afraid that she couldn't love her daughter but she gradually wants to see her and touch her. In the end she goes back to her, after finding her way back to her original self.

Sometimes to find yourself you need to get away from other people and have new experiences. But sometimes when you're trying to find yourself you might cause other people to be sad and unhappy. Also, every mother loves her child even though she may not know that, just like Emily.

Little Wing is very interesting and realistic. It shows you how a teenage mother copes with herself after having a child whom she thinks she cannot love. It's a good read that I am sure everyone will enjoy.

Recommended for all teens.


JN in Howland

HANGING ON TO MAX by Margaret Bechard

17-year-old Sam takes full custody of his infant son, Max, shortly before beginning his senior year at an alternative school. The pressures from his father and his teachers, plus the added responsibility of caring for a baby, make his life extremely stressful. Through the ups and downs of this novel, the question for Sam is whether it is best for both Max and himself to keep Max.

Hanging on to Max showed the flip-side of teenage parenting, one that is not often written or told about. I found it interesting to enter Sam's world and hear about his daily struggles in being a teenage father. This novel does an excellent job at showing the male side of teenage parenting, and is a very interesting, as well as entertaining, read.

Recommended for grades 9 - 12.


RVK in Esopus

KEYS TO DEVELOPING YOUR CHILD'S SELF-ESTEEM by Carl Pickhardt

This is a good book for parents to understand how to help their child's self-esteem, and if their child has a self-esteem problem how to deal with your child so that they don't hurt themselves. It discusses moods, successes, failures and many other things that are a key part of a child's self-esteem.

It's a good read for parents and shows the link between self-esteem and depression, and how self-esteem can rise and fall with a child's moods.

Outstanding.
Musfera in Esopus