Colin is a young fox who isn't sure that he is loved. He throws a tantrum to see if his bad behavior will make his mother turn away from him. The mother fox responds patiently and lovingly. The Continue reading »

No Matter What . . . We All Belong – Becky Davies – Heath Books No Matter What . . . We All Belong – Becky Davies – Heath Books

Sir Martin Narey, Government Advisor on Children's Social Care and Visiting Professor, Durham and Sheffield Hallam Universities Am I any happier after reading this book? Eh. About the same. Therefore, I cannot give 4 or 5 stars. Not any worse though! The Princess Podkin finds palace life a bore until an ostensibly dashing Pirate-King turns up at her doorstep, and informs her, ""I want to make a MESS, I want NOISE, and I want to CRASH and Continue reading » I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in personal growth and experiencing more wellbeing. As I was reading, I kept thinking of people I would love to gift a copy to.As she showed in previous books such as Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep and No Matter What, Gliori excels at conveying a warm and supportive family. Here she knowledgeably explores a Continue reading »

Happier, No Matter What: Cultivating Hope, Resilience, Happier, No Matter What: Cultivating Hope, Resilience,

PreS-Gr 2-Gliori and her work are well known to the English-speaking markets. This very smooth translation of Polar Bolero will introduce a new population of readers to this author/illustrator. Continue reading » For those who already know the author through her adoption blog the brilliance of this book will come as no surprise... Sally Donovan seems to write as naturally as the rest of us breathe, with an eloquence and honesty that makes "No Matter What" totally absorbing. She has a fantastic story to tell that not only speaks to those who have their own adoption experiencer but to any reader who has an interest in rich, articulate personal stories and wants an insight into the life of a normal adoptive family... Much of what Sally writes will be all too familiar to other adoptive parents by the humanity, intelligence and humor of the writing captures the reality of adoptive family life in a truly enthralling way.

A lot of authors use their own stories as a means of example and this one is no different. Ms. Nichols has gone through her share of difficulties and bad experiences on the road to becoming who she is today. What stood out for me is that she grew up in southern Los Angeles (formerly known as South Central) and her difficulties and bad experiences are similar to ones that I and people I have known have also gone through. Pioneering positive psychologist and New York Times–bestselling author Tal Ben-Shahar shows us how in Happier, No Matter What. Tal Ben-Shahar taught at Harvard, where his classes on Positive Psychology and The Psychology of Leadership were among the most popular courses in the University's history. Today Tal teaches at the Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya. Debi started writing children's books in 1976, then attended art school in Edinburgh from 1979 to 1984. She received a travelling scholarship award to go to Milan, and worked as a freelance from 1984 onwards. She lives and works in Scotland, and her studio is situated in a thirteenth-century herb garden. She now has four children and her book No Matter Whatis dedicated to them. Debi Gliori is the author/illustrator of many books for children including Mr Bear, the winner of a Children's Book Award.

No Matter What by Debi Gliori: Bedtime Stories Read Aloud by No Matter What by Debi Gliori: Bedtime Stories Read Aloud by

Milo is a dubious sibling-to-be in a family of penguin postal workers. Given the choice between keeping the egg warm and delivering the mail, he eagerly chooses the latter—not knowing that Continue reading » Large held Small snug as they looked out at the night, at the moon in the dark and the stars shining bright. I found this book almost unbearably moving and, ultimately, uniquely uplifting. I have never before read, in a single book, such a compelling portrait of the horrors of child neglect and its consequences, alongside a portrait of the historical inadequacies of adoption assessment and post adoption support. This is a staggeringly vivid account of a heroic struggle by heroic adopters to heal the deep scars of neglect and abuse. I cannot recommend it warmly enough. Tal Ben-Shahar (Hebrew: טל בן-שחר‎, also known as Tal David Ben-Shachar) is an Israeli teacher and writer in the areas of positive psychology and leadership. Not a big fan of self-help book myself but this one is exceptional. Found out about Lisa from her powerful speeches available online and from thereon I knew she'd be my go-to reference in the subject of "dream big".

Everyone should read this funny and deeply moving account of modern adoption: the highs, the lows, the risks and the rewards. Sally's writing is honest, insightful and beautiful to read. In America, not having a college education is a curse. One big curse that could not be fixed by attending some inferior programme at a community college, that serves, more or less as a half-way house to gangsterism, prison and sure death or some lay job with a welfare eventuality. Lisa’s lay job needed some heartless attitude – they were collecting money from defaulters, and Lisa was too sweet to her clients. That was bad for this business.

Beautiful funeral readings and poems for the non-religious

Ben-Shahar busts the all-too-common ideas that success brings happiness and that we can seek happiness itself. When hard times thwart our success and steal our joy, these ideas actually invite despair by leaving us with nothing to do. Timid and “very, very little,” Pip the rabbit keeps a running list of everything he’s afraid of—and he can barely keep up. As raindrops fall, he imagines “a gobbler blowing bubbles at the bottom of Continue reading »

Nichols' books is divided into 9 steps, or "muscles". These are muscles that when developed can help to to navigate life's ups and downs more effectively. Having read a lot of books like this, I really like the muscle concept. When you work out your physical muscles, you don't get results right away. But through diligent work they get more developed and therefore more effective. The same can be said of the 9 muscles that Lisa Nichols outlines: Understanding, Faith-in-Myself, Take-Action, I-Know-Like-I-Know, Honesty, Say-Yes, Determination, Forgiveness, and Highest Choice. In No Matter What Sally has written about her adoption journey in a way which enables us to walk in her shoes and those of her children and which is informative and humbling. Anyone associated with children in the care system in any capacity could only benefit from reading this outstanding book. Father Bear doesn't know best when it comes to baby-sitting in this unconvincing and visually confusing domestic sitcom. While Mr. Bear fumbles through bathing and feeding the neighbor's baby, he's Continue reading » Nothing goes quite as planned when Mr. Bear offers to take the baby on a picnic while Mrs. Bear sleeps in. The two Grizzly-Bear boys also join the party, but complain about Mr. B.'s choice of Continue reading » I read this book over 4 months and following is my takeaway: Wellbeing is multidimensional. Spiritual wellbeing can be achieved through mindfullness. Physical wellbeing through yoga and exercise. Intellectual through staying curious and open minded. Relational through listening and giving. Emotional through acceptance of joy and pain alike.