Download or read book Laurinda written by Alice Pung and published by Black Incorporated. This book was released on 2014 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Laurinda is an exclusive school for girls. At its secret core is the Cabinet, a trio of girls who wield power over their classmates - and some of their teachers. Entering this world of wealth and secrets is Lucy Lam, a scholarship girl with sharp eyes and a shaky sense of self. As she watches the Cabinet at work, and is courted by them, Lucy finds herself in a battle for her identity and integrity.

Download or read book Lucy and Linh written by Alice Pung and published by Knopf Books for Young Readers. This book was released on 2016-09-06 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From an author Amy Tan calls “a gem,” this is a witty, highly acclaimed novel that’s “part Mean Girls, part Lord of the Flies” (The Bulletin, Starred review) about navigating life in private school while remaining true to yourself. Lucy is a bit of a pushover, but she’s ambitious and smart, and she has just received the opportunity of a lifetime: a scholarship to a prestigious school, and a ticket out of her broken-down suburb. Though she’s worried she will stick out like badly cut bangs among the razor-straight students, she is soon welcomed into the Cabinet, the supremely popular trio who wield influence over classmates and teachers alike. Linh is blunt, strong-willed, and fearless—everything Lucy once loved about herself. She is also Lucy’s last solid link to her life before private school, but she is growing tired of being eclipsed by the glamour of the Cabinet. As Lucy floats further away from the world she once knew, her connection to Linh—and to her old life—threatens to snap. Sharp and honest, Alice Pung’s novel examines what it means to grow into the person you want to be without leaving yourself behind. An NPR Best Book of the Year A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year A YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection A Texas Tayhas Reading List Selection A Bank Street College of Education and Children’s Book Committee Best Children’s Books of the Year with Distinguished Outstanding Merit "A bracing, enthralling gut-punch and an essential read for teens, teachers, and parents alike." —Kirkus Reviews, Starred review "This daring work with an authentic protagonist teaches important lessons about being yourself while navigating through life."—School Library Journal, Starred review "Lucy’s struggle to find her place and sense of self will have a wide appeal for teen readers and is a welcome addition to the prep-school canon."—Booklist, Starred review "Lyrical, enchanting prose from a narrator with perception so acute she cannot help but share it immerses readers into the very heart of every scene. This is highly recommended for classrooms and libraries [and] a superb choice for book discussion groups and world young adult literature survey courses."--VOYA, Starred review "Part Mean Girls, part Lord of the Flies, and part Special Topics in Calamity Physics, this well-observed and unsentimental novel taps into what is primal within privileged adolescent girls."—The Bulletin, Starred review "Lucy’s narration pulls readers alongside her uncertain navigation of two worlds, and we can’t help but cheer in solidarity as Lucy recognizes assimilation masquerading as inclusion, refuses to back down, and instead embraces who she is."—Horn Book Magazine "In a novel filled with strong visual images, Pung draws a sharp contrast between authenticity and deception, integrity and manipulation. Against the vividly painted backdrops of two very different communities, she traces Lucy’s struggle to form a new identity without compromising the values she holds closest to her heart."—Publishers Weekly

Download or read book Unpolished Gem written by Alice Pung and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2009-01-27 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Poignant, provocative, sometimes laugh-out-loud funny, Pung’s rollicking tale of two worlds is not to be missed.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review) After Alice Pung’s family fled to Australia from the killing fields of Cambodia, her father chose Alice as her name because he thought their new country was a Wonderland. In this lyrical, bittersweet debut memoir—already an award-winning bestseller when it was published in Australia—Alice grows up straddling two worlds, East and West, her insular family and the Australia outside. With wisdom beyond her years and a keen eye for comedy in everyday life, she writes of the trials of assimilation and cultural misunderstanding, and of the tender but fraught relationships between three generations of women trying to live the Australian dream without losing themselves. Unpolished Gem is a moving, vivid journey about identity and the ultimate search for acceptance and healing, delivered by a writer possessed of rare empathy, penetrating insight, and undeniable narrative gifts.

Download or read book Shadow Girl written by Liana Liu and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2017-12-19 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Memory Key author Liana Liu delivers a thrilling story of one girl struggling to claim her own identity while becoming an unwitting participant in the strange fate of a wealthy dynasty. The house on Arrow Island is full of mystery. Yet, when Mei arrives, she can’t help feeling relieved. She’s happy to spend the summer in an actual mansion tutoring a rich man’s daughter if it means a break from her normal life—her needy mother, her delinquent brother, their tiny apartment in the city. And Ella Morison seems like an easy charge, sweet and well behaved. What she doesn’t know is that something is very wrong in the Morison household. Though Mei tries to focus on her duties, she becomes increasingly distracted by the family’s problems and her own complicated feelings for Ella’s brother, Henry. But most disturbing of all are the unexplained noises she hears at night—the howling and thumping and cries. Mei is a sensible girl. She isn’t superstitious; she doesn’t believe in ghosts. Yet she can’t shake her fear that there is danger lurking in the shadows of this beautiful house, a darkness that could destroy the family inside and out...and Mei along with them.

Download or read book A Pho Love Story written by Loan Le and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2021-02-09 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Will leave readers swooning.” —PopSugar ​When Dimple Met Rishi meets Ugly Delicious in this funny, smart romantic comedy, in which two Vietnamese American teens fall in love and must navigate their newfound relationship amid their families’ age-old feud about their competing, neighboring restaurants. If Bao Nguyen had to describe himself, he’d say he was a rock. Steady and strong, but not particularly interesting. His grades are average, his social status unremarkable. He works at his parents’ pho restaurant, and even there, he is his parents’ fifth favorite employee. Not ideal. If Linh Mai had to describe herself, she’d say she was a firecracker. Stable when unlit, but full of potential for joy and fire. She loves art and dreams pursuing a career in it. The only problem? Her parents rely on her in ways they’re not willing to admit, including working practically full-time at her family’s pho restaurant. For years, the Mais and the Nguyens have been at odds, having owned competing, neighboring pho restaurants. Bao and Linh, who’ve avoided each other for most of their lives, both suspect that the feud stems from feelings much deeper than friendly competition. But then a chance encounter brings Linh and Bao in the same vicinity despite their best efforts and sparks fly, leading them both to wonder what took so long for them to connect. But then, of course, they immediately remember. Can Linh and Bao find love in the midst of feuding families and complicated histories?

Download or read book Lucy written by Jamaica Kincaid and published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. This book was released on 2002-09-04 with total page 180 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The coming-of-age story of one of Jamaica Kincaid's most admired creations--available now in an e-book edition. Lucy, a teenage girl from the West Indies, comes to America to work as an au pair for a wealthy couple. She begins to notice cracks in their beautiful façade at the same time that the mysteries of own sexuality begin to unravel. Jamaica Kincaid has created a startling new heroine who is destined to win a place of honor in contemporary fiction.

Download or read book The Gifts of Reading written by Robert Macfarlane and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2017-06-01 with total page 25 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the bestselling author of UNDERLAND, THE OLD WAYS and THE LOST WORDS - an essay on the joy of reading, for anyone who has ever loved a book Every book is a kind of gift to its reader, and the act of giving books is charged with a special emotional resonance. It is a meeting of three minds (the giver, the author, the recipient), an exchange of intellectual and psychological currency, that leaves each participant enriched. Here Robert Macfarlane recounts the story of a book he was given as a young man, and how he managed eventually to return the favour, though never repay the debt. From one of the most lyrical writers of our time comes a perfectly formed gem, a lyrical celebration of the transcendent power and humanity of the given book.

Download or read book Hit and Run written by Lurlene McDaniel and published by Laurel Leaf. This book was released on 2009-03-10 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If no one meant for it to happen, should someone be guilty?Analise: She knows the roads and feels secure riding her bike.Laurie: When asked out by Quin, Laurie is happy. Then his car hits something. Later, Laurie realizes there is a way to get Quin to date her.Quin: Because Quin is athletically gifted, his father expects him to get a scholarship. Nothing is to get in his way of college, athletics, money, and success. When he realizes what has happened, he decides he must not let it ruin his future.Jeremy: It's been the perfect relationship with Analise. Little does Jeremy realize that the beautiful wood he carves will be used for something for Analise.As the lives of people who never wanted to hurt others intersect, harsh realities of choices that cannot be changed are explored.

Download or read book The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling written by Wai Chim and published by Scholastic Inc.. This book was released on 2020-11-10 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An authentic novel about growing up in an Asian immigrant family with a mother who is suffering from a debilitating mental illness. Anna Chiu has her hands full. When she's not looking after her brother and sister or helping out at her father's restaurant, she's taking care of her mother, whose debilitating mental illness keeps her in bed most days. Her father's new delivery boy, Rory, is a welcome distraction and even though she knows that things aren't right at home, she's starting to feel like she could be a normal teen.But when her mother finally gets out of bed, things go from bad to worse. And as her mother's condition worsens, Anna and her family question everything they understand about themselves and each other.The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling is a heart-wrenching, true-to-life exploration through the often neglected crevices of culture, mental illness, and family. Its strong themes are balanced by a beautiful romance making it a feel-good, yet important read.

Download or read book Growing Up Asian in Australia written by Alice Pung and published by ReadHowYouWant.com. This book was released on 2015-01-29 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Asian - Australians have often been written about by outsiders, as outsiders. In this collection, compiled by award - winning author Alice Pung, they tell their own stories with verve, courage and a large dose of humour. These are not predictable tales of food, festivals and traditional dress. The food is here in all its steaming glory - but listen more closely to the dinner - table chatter and you might be surprised by what you hear. Here are tales of leaving home, falling in love, coming out and finding one's feet. A young Cindy Pan vows to win every single category of Nobel Prize. Tony Ayres blows a kiss to a skinhead and lives to tell the tale. Benjamin Law has a close encounter with some angry Australian fauna, and Kylie Kwong makes a moving pilgrimage to her great - grandfather's Chinese village. Here are well - known authors and exciting new voices, spanning several generations and drawn from all over Australia. In sharing their stories, they show us what it is really like to grow up Asian, and Australian. Contributors include: Shaun Tan, Jason Yat - Sen Li, John So, Annette Shun Wah, Quan Yeomans, Jenny Kee, Anh Do, Khoa Do, Caroline Tran and many more.

Download or read book Monsieur Linh and His Child written by Philippe Claudel and published by Hachette UK. This book was released on 2011-03-31 with total page 118 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Traumatized by memories of his war-ravaged country, his son and daughter-in-law dead, Monsieur Linh travels to a foreign land to bring the child in his arms to safety. To begin with, he is too afraid to leave the refugee centre, but the first time he braves the freezing cold to walk the streets of this strange, fast-moving town, he encounters Monsieur Bark, a widower whose dignified sorrow mirrors his own. Though they have no shared language, an instinctive friendship is forged; but Monsieur Linh's stay in the dormitory is only temporary. Sooner or later he and his child must find a permanent home. Delicate and restrained, but with an extraordinary twist, Monsieur Linh and His Child is an immensely moving novel of perfect simplicity, by the author of Brodeck's Report.

Download or read book Scandalosa written by Michele Serros and published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. This book was released on 2008-09-02 with total page 324 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evie Gomez finally has it all: a sweet boyfriend, two mejor amigas, and an upcoming sixteeñera that's the talk of the school. Qué cool, no? Too bad reality has a way of ruining things. When her grades start to slip, Evie's parents threaten to cancel her party. The good news? All she has to do is volunteer in the community to raise her grades. The bad news? Since it's the middle of the semester, the best remaining option is working at the Southern California Horse Reserve. Then again...ranchero life? Charros? Maybe things will work out after all. Or maybe not. Things with boyfriend Alex start to fizzle, party-girl pal Raquel slides down a spiral of boys and booze, Dee Dee -- who only recently re-entered Evie's life -- considers moving back to Mexico City, and to top it all off, Evie's flirting with someone she never expected to like -- ranch hand Arturo (even with his que fugly cowboy boots). Things can't get más complicated...can they?

Download or read book Lucy Steps Through the Wardrobe written by C. S. Lewis and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 1998-09-25 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now you can experience the exciting adventures of Narnia in these new World of Narnia Picture Book paperback editions. In Lucy Steps Through the Wardrobe, Lucy wanders into a magical wardrobe and finds herself in the mysterious land know as Narnia. There, she meets Mr. Tumnus the Faun, who invites her to tea in his cave and tells her all about Narnia and the wicked White Witch, who has cast spell over the land making it always winter but never Christmas.

Download or read book Freedom Swimmer written by Wai Chim and published by Scholastic Press. This book was released on 2021-10-19 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A powerful story of friendship, bravery, and a desperate bid for freedom, inspired by true events. Ming survived the famine that killed his parents during China's Great Leap Forward, and lives a hard but adequate life, working in the fields. When a group of city boys comes to the village as part of a Communist Party re-education program, Ming and his friends aren't sure what to make of the new arrivals. They're not used to hard labor and village life. But despite his reservations, Ming befriends a charming city boy called Li. The two couldn't be more different, but slowly they form a bond over evening swims and shared dreams. But as the bitterness of life under the Party begins to take its toll on both boys, they begin to imagine the impossible: freedom.

Download or read book The Near and the Far written by David Carlin and published by Scribe Us. This book was released on 2019-02 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From 21 of the best writers in the Asia-Pacific region comes a collection about finding connections where you least expect them. It's a sweltering night in Kuala Lumpur, and a journalist is protesting in a city on the edge of meltdown. It's post-9/11 San Francisco, and a woman meets her foster child, who provokes painful reminders of her past. It's contemporary Bangkok, and a writer's encounter with ladyboy culture prompts him to explore gender boundaries. And high in Queensland's Border Ranges, a boy prone to getting lost is having six tiny silver bells pinned to his chest ... The Near and The Far is what results when award-winning writers from Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, Myanmar, Malaysia, and Hong Kong share places, spaces, and ideas. Emerging from the Writers Immersion and Cultural Exchange program -- a unique series of residencies, workshops, and dialogues between writers -- this collection is a map of art and adventure, ideas and influences. Featuring fiction and nonfiction from Cate Kennedy, Melissa Lucashenko, Maxine Beneba Clarke, Omar Musa, and many more, this collection bridges the distances between Asia, Australia, and the world. Every day is a border crossing, every story a threshold. Grab your passport and step beyond.

Download or read book Laurinda written by Alice Pung and published by Black Inc.. This book was released on 2014-10-31 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When my dad dropped us off at the front gate, the first things I saw were the rose garden spreading out on either side of the main driveway and the enormous sign in iron cursive letters spelling out LAURINDA. No “Ladies College” after it, of course; the name was meant to speak for itself. Laurinda is an exclusive school for girls. At its secret core is the Cabinet, a trio of girls who wield power over their classmates - and some of their teachers. Entering this world of wealth and secrets is Lucy Lam, a scholarship girl with sharp eyes and a shaky sense of self. As she watches the Cabinet at work, and is courted by them, Lucy finds herself in a battle for her identity and integrity. Funny, feisty and moving, Laurinda explores Lucy’s struggle to stay true to herself as she finds her way in a new world of privilege and opportunity. Winner of the Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature: 2016 NSW Premier's Literary Awards Shortlisted in the 2015 Indie Awards, 2015 Inky Awards, 2015 Australian Book Industry Awards, 2016 Barbara Jefferis Award, and the 2017 Young Australians Best Book Awards (YABBA). Longlisted for the 2015 Stella Prize. Notable Book of the Year for Older Readers, Children's Book Council of Australia 2015 ‘Biting yet compassionate’ —Books of the Year, Australian Book Review ‘Alice Pung totally nails it with Laurinda. Funny, horrifying, and sharp as a serpent’s fangs.’ —John Marsden ‘Pung continues to impress with her nuanced storytelling; Laurinda will surely resonate with anyone who remembers the cliquey, hierarchical nature of the playground.’ —Sunday Age ‘A candid and powerful exploration of family, culture and class ... it is those of us who take our fortune and privilege for granted that I wish would read this powerful book.’ —Readings Monthly ‘In her debut novel [Pung] successfully dramatizes the high stakes when an impoverished Chinese girl is parachuted into the private system ... Pung’s forceful writing reveals the diverse and often difficult lives of her immigrant compatriots too often hidden away from us by masks of discretion.’ —The Age ‘Based loosely on Pung’s own experiences, the book has an unmissable ring of truth to it, making it all the more compelling and horrifying.’ —Sydney Morning Herald “Schoolgirl Lucy Lam was one of this year’s best characters – smart, hardworking and brave. Pung tackles big issues with a light touch.’ —Herald Sun

Download or read book An Authentic English Language Arts Curriculum written by Arthur T. Costigan and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-09-06 with total page 333 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides ways of thinking for preservice and new teachers to transition from the theory behind curricular design to engaged teaching and learning in the classroom. It offers a comprehensive framework for the creation and implementation of one’s own authentic and effective ELA curriculum. In addition to strategies for preservice teachers to develop their own pedagogies, lessons, and teaching techniques, Costigan also demonstrates how to design tools for teaching in the current testing- and standards-driven context of the educational reform movement. Containing real-life examples of reading and writing instruction, this book empowers preservice teachers to translate the concepts of curriculum design to actual ELA classroom practices that will engage students.