Short Family

When it happens to you, you will be surprised. That thing they say about how you knew all the time, but just weren't facing it? That might be the case, but nevertheless, there you will be. Molly Ringwald mines the complexities of modern relationships in this gripping and nuanced collection of interlinked stories. Writing with a deep compassion for human imperfection, Ringwald follows a Los Angeles family and their friends and neighbors while they negotiate the hazardous terrain of everyday life - revealing the deceptions, heartbreak, and vulnerability familiar to us all.

A trip to the library prompts one woman to question her fate in this galvanizing short story. For a woman like Hadley, deemed not acceptable to procreate, there’s only one recourse. Unlicensed for motherhood, she can alleviate her grief and frustration at a “baby library,” where a curiously endless supply of infants is available for a two-week loan. But the borrowed life that serves as a temporary balm leads to a journey of self-discovery that will forever change the direction of Hadley’s future.

always wondered, How does she do it? Defying gravity is no easy trick. Neither is motherhood. Now that her mother is leaving New York for bigger skies in New Mexico, it’s a new stage in life for both of them in an ever-evolving relationship that reveals the true magic of being a mother.

Junichuro Matsumato is a handsome 42-year-old man: dark-haired, wealthy, and devastated. He stares forlornly at the small glass buddha statue illuminated by the blue LED light behind it. There are thousands of the buddhas behind the glowing panes of glass, five hundred per wall. For easy identification, the light behind his wife’s buddha glows a different hue as he swipes his card to enter.

Eva Gray has a secret. Eight years ago her sister entered the Brothers of Sin Motorcycle Club and never came back. Seven years ago she vowed revenge, even if she had to change everything about her life to do it - her look, her name, her face. Now she's stalking the Brothers and looking for weakness. She's close to achieving her goal, so close she can taste it. But a prominent federal judge is now in ICU, and Eva's the only one who can prove the club hired the hit.

Families come in all shapes and sizes, and our loved ones are the greatest gift of all. This collection of short stories explores the importance of family, and some of the many ways brothers, sisters, parents, and grandparents show unconditional love to each other every day.

When a giant panda named Stillwater moves into Michael, Addy, and Karl's neighborhood, he tells them the most amazing stories! To Addy, he tells a tale of a poor man who gives gifts to a robber. To Michael, he tells of a farmer who learns not to judge luck. And to Karl, he tells the tale of a monk who continues to carry the weight of a burden long past.

A Guide to Being Born is organized around the stages of life - love, conception, gestation, birth - and the transformations that happen as people experience deeply altering life events, falling in love, becoming parents, looking toward the end of life. In each of these eleven stories Ausubel's stunning imagination and humor are moving, entertaining, and provocative, leading readers to see the familiar world in a new way.

There is so much blood that I can't think. The night goes from bliss to chaos in a matter of moments. As the truth begins to unravel, it's clear that I can't trust anyone, except Sean Ferro. The same man that threatens to destroy me could also be my salvation - and I could be his.

The most magical time of the year. Never a better time has come. What better a day to enjoy with your little one? In this book, you will find lots of magical stories to put your kids to sleep. And perhaps put you to sleep as well? Stories of joy, stories of splendor. Christmas is the time of year where everyone gathers together around a fire, singing songs and laughing. And after a long day of celebration, nothing puts someone to sleep like a good bedtime story.

When Avery learns Sean's dark secret, everything changes. His confession blindsides her. Sean has a shady past, she knew that from the beginning, but this is so much worse than she thought. There's a dangerous side to Sean. It's alluring and frightening at the same time. Avery has to decide if love can overcome anything or if she should protect her heart.

One night four lives entered the world by the hands of an Amish midwife just outside North Star, Pennsylvania. Rebekah's babies, as they are called, are now grown adults, and in four heartwarming novellas each young person experiences a journey of discovery, love, and the wonder of Christmas.

Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery is best known for her series of coming-of-age novels featuring the feisty orphan, Anne Shirley. However, Montgomery was also a prolific producer of short stories, which are notable for their wholesome presentations of romance and family life. This collection includes 27 stories that were published between 1909 and 1922.

What goes better with mistletoe and merriment than the sweet beginnings of romance?

After the death of her father, El moves into his home just outside Tavistock in Devon. Fresh out of university and dangling on the precipice of adulthood, she questions what it is she really wants from life. Although her childhood friend, Will, is there to help her through her grief she soon realises there were things her father was hiding from her.

Nothing ever goes the way it should. Marty is barely a friend any more, and the roommate from hell is doing Naked Guy on my couch again. It's bad enough that it feels like my life is coming apart at the seams. There's one man that has held it together for the past few weeks, but things change. All it takes is a few words and everything shatters.

When Avery finds out that the cowboy who requested her services for the night is Marty, things take an unexpected turn. If Avery declines her friend, she'll be in trouble with Miss Black, but if she accepts, it could mean a new, normal relationship and saying farewell to Sean forever.

In this warm and moving anthology, a group of best-selling authors and writers pay tribute to legendary, larger-than-life New York Times best-selling author Dorothea Benton Frank and her literary legacy, capturing her unforgettable spirit, joy, and humor in stories of reunions and love. Infused with Dorothea Benton Frank’s remarkable spirit, Reunion Beach is a literary homage and beautiful keepsake that keeps this dearly missed writer’s flame burning bright.

I was pretty happy with my life until the hot shot, all-state baller from my teen years moved back in next door. (I babysat him, yes, but I never changed his diapers. Just wanted to be clear about that.) Guess who’s now the assistant b-ball coach? Logic would say me–especially since I coached my entire first year holding the playbook upside down (it turned out to be an old football playbook from the ‘80s, so it’s not like it mattered which way I held it) but the accurate answer is Trey Haywood, my all-star neighbor.

Just as Avery thinks she finds balance with her position as a call girl and her relationship with Sean, everything changes. The relationships that she has depended on are suddenly gone. After years of friendship, Avery is forced to face the cold hard truth - there is no place for feelings in this kind of business