Friendship Development

Kelly Wilder becomes recently widowed from a much older wealthy man with whom she spent her married life, as she says, 'pretending to be a whole lot more conservative and stupid and nicer than I really am.' Now, with too much time and money on her hands, Kelly has absolutely no idea what happens next. So, on a whim, she signs up for a ballroom dancing class, and begins to rebuild her life with the help of friends old and new.

Pat Conroy was America's poet laureate of family dysfunction. A larger-than-life character and the author of such classics as The Prince of Tides and The Great Santini, Conroy was remembered by everybody for his energy, his exuberance, and his self-lacerating humor. Michael Mewshaw's The Lost Prince is an intimate memoir of his friendship with Pat Conroy, one that involves their families and those days in Rome when they were both young - when Conroy went from being a popular regional writer to an internationally best-selling author.

Jack London’s White Fang is an impactful examination of the harsh realities of nature and the damage humans can cause, but also of the will to survive that is common between humans and wild animals alike. The story follows White Fang, a feisty wolf pup that becomes a vicious wolf due to his interactions with harsh human masters. He is shuffled between masters throughout his life and taught to be destructive but is eventually shown love and compassion by a human and learns gentleness as an adult wolf.

When a rattlesnake almost kills his best friend Caesar “Cwiz” (pronounced Quiz) Ruiz, author Jeremy Rhyne can’t help but recall all of the wild times they shared growing up in Southern California - and the profound impression Cwiz has made on his life. Starting with a covert one-man band in a high school health class that had the entire room laughing, Cwiz always kept Jeremy on his toes.

A ruthless and illuminating exploration of the friendships that dominated, influenced, nourished, inspired, haunted - and sometimes tore her apart - Susanna Sonnenberg has written a book as searing and superb as her first book about her mother, Her Last Death. Childhood friendships, friendships with older women, friendships that play out with the passion and intensity of love affairs, the friendships between new mothers - each has its own subtleties, its own lessons that Sonnenberg examines and understands with astounding acuity.

They can’t all be your best friend. But they can all be part of your rich circle of friendships. Sometimes we feel disappointment over a relationship that means something different to us than to the other person. This can lead to a lack of appreciation for the friendship in its current state, misplaced expectations, or other conflicts. Because relationships can be challenging, it is helpful to step back and do a little defining of our circles of friendship.

Vivimos la vida que queremos? ¿Hasta dónde estamos dispuestos a llegar para mantener la amistad y la lealtad? Imaginemos por un momento que nuestro mejor amigo nos pide que abandonemos todo lo que tenemos y le acompañemos en un viaje, que no deja de ser también una huida hacia adelante. Es lo que le pide Guzmán a su mejor amigo, Rodri, tras recibir la fatídica noticia de una enfermedad sin cura, que lo deje todo durante un año para acompañarle en el que será su último viaje.

In this beautifully crafted memoir, best-selling author and business leader Joe Sweeney weaves a remarkable tale of friendship, spirituality, and even some of the mischief that characterizes the unlikely 32-year relationship he enjoyed with a modern-day saint. She had a way about her, he said, and it was unlike anything he had encountered as a lifelong Catholic with honest questions about his faith, spirituality, and the meaning of life. A Light Shines Through Us guides listeners of all faiths, and those claiming no faith, on a journey of spiritual exploration and discovery.

Iris Aguila’s To Love in Spite of It All puts aside the typical Hollywood notion of “love” and relationships, to instead embroil readers in a tale rooted in new age fable and medieval myth. Through a journey that will have listeners redefining their own lives, Iris leaves her audience wondering where the other half of their soul may be, if they’ve already found it - and what it means to truly love someone. As anyone who has met “the one” knows, the moment is so perfect, they usually can’t even put it into words.

Nearly 50 percent of Americans checked the "single" box in the 2010 census. Because we equate touch with sex, many of us suffer alone when we crave physical comfort and tenderness. Somebody Hold Me takes a simple, radical approach to health and relationships by teaching you how to get more platonic touch. Somebody Hold Me walks you through the increasingly fraught physical space between humans and allows for more connection and closeness through giving and receiving structured touch in your existing relationships.

In The Lost Art of Relationship, Dan Chrystal tackles the heart of relationship based on the time-honored instruction to “love your neighbor as you love yourself”. How do we live out this odd instruction? What makes relationships healthy, and what makes them fail? Through Dan’s personal stories and difficult life lessons, listeners will come away encouraged, inspired, and motivated to love the people in their life more fully. If you desire deep and meaningful connections, now is the time to discover the lost art of relationship.

Mary and Me: A Lasting Link through Ink explores a 30-year friendship between two women: one who had never learned to cultivate female friendships, and the other who had managed to gather and maintain a large group of friends throughout her adult life. The fact that thousands of handwritten letters between them linked these two together is just part of the intriguing story.

From the writers of acclaimed blog Pen & Palate, a humorous coming-of-age (and mastering-the-art-of-home-cooking) memoir of friendship, told through stories, recipes, and beautiful illustrations. Getting through life in your 20s isn't easy - especially if you're broke, awkward, and prone to starting small grease fires in your studio apartment. For best friends Lucy Madison and Tram Nguyen, cooking was an escape from the daily humiliation that is being a 20-something woman in a big city.

When Jonell McLain saw the diamond necklace in the store window, it aroused first desire, then a provocative question: Why are personal luxuries so plentiful, yet accessible to so few? What if we shared what we desired? A dozen phone calls and a leap of faith later, Jonell bought the necklace with 12 other women, with the goal of sharing it.

Being a mom is hard, but it doesn't have to be lonely. Are you trying to do this mothering thing alone? So focused on the kids that you're hungry for friendships of your own? Have good friendships, but you want to enjoy them more? Jill Savage, mother of five, knows those challenges well, and she's here to help.

Success can be a tricky proposition, intoxicating one moment and toxic the next. Vanessa Roth, CEO of her own advertising firm, is about to get the shock of her life; her husband of eight years has left her for another woman. As a result, Anna, her niece and only friend provides her with a healthy distraction. However, six weeks of Burlesque lessons is the last thing Vanessa saw coming as a gift for her fortieth birthday. Ultimately, she accepts the challenge against her better judgment and gets a lot more than she ever bargained for.

In what was to become the deadliest attack on American soil since Pearl Harbor, the Oklahoma City bombing was one in a long line of violent attacks that have left communities across the nation searching for healing and hope. With the soaring message of the power of love to conquer evil, Grace from the Rubble tells the intertwining stories of four captivating individuals

In Girl Talk, New York Times science reporter Jacqueline Mroz takes on the science of female friendship - a phenomenon that's as culturally powerful as it is individually mysterious. She examines friendship from a range of angles, from the historical to the experiential, with a scientific analysis that reveals new truths about what leads us to connect and build alliances, and then "break up" when a friendship no longer serves us.

What could an abortion worker and a pro-life advocate possibly have in common? Love is always the best choice. Connection at the Fence is the gripping and insightful true-life story of an unlikely relationship formed by two brave women and their amazing journey to friendship outside an abortion clinic fence. This fascinating pro-life book is a unique exploration of two opposing sides revealed, with relevant, thought-provoking issues respectfully investigated and discussed.

Lady and the Tribe is a blueprint for building deep connections. As you listen, you’ll be swept away on a journey of friendship as the author shares her own personal stories and those of other women. In the process, you’ll discover how to find, nurture, and deepen friendships and create a tribe culture that is unique to you.