Unwrapped: Real Questions by Real Girls

Title: "Unwrapped: Real Questions by Real Girls" Author: Guddat, Gina ISBN: 978-1577363880   As the father of daughters, I was curious about what types of questions girls were asking about relationships and boundry issues. Unwrapped is the book every parent of girls should read to help better understand what their daughters are going through. The book takes a conservative, but pragmatic, approach towards an unavoidable and sometimes uncomfortable topic. It's a well-organized, fast-read that is highly recommended.

Crossing 13: Memoir of a Father’s Suicide Title: Crossing 13: Memoir of a Father's Suicide Author: Carrie Stark Hugus LCCCN: 2008901380 ISBN 978-0-9815938-0-7 Size: 5.5 X 8.5 Pages: 120 Price: $12.95 Crossing 13: Memoir of a Father’s Suicide is a captivating coming of age story about a thirteen-year-old girl whose life is instantly altered upon finding her father dead from suicide.  As she rides the emotional waves of, shock, guilt, confusion, shame and the obsession with WHY, she begins to embrace her new normal life. Through each struggle you share her journey of complicated grief in the aftermath of a sudden loss.  This story will give you insight to what it takes for a teenager to survive the self inflicted death of a parent and the compassion to understand and support them. Having been devastated by the unexpected death of my father when I was only 19 and never seeking grief counseling, at age 41 I continue to grieve and experience deep heartache.  All of these years, I have felt alone in my struggle to heal and to understand the reasoning behind my father's death.  After reading Crossing 13: Memoir of a Father’s Suicide, the healing process finally began to materialize.  I was shocked by the many similarities between the circumstances surrounding the death of the author's father and the death of my father.   However, my father's demise was not as clearly defined as the author's; specifically, mine was an accident that could have been interpreted as suicide.  Regardless, the emotions that the author describes before, during, and after the death of her father are strikingly similar to what I have been experiencing all of these years.  From the initial shock, confusion, guilt, and trying to understand why something like this could have happened, the author eloquently shares her experience in such a way that people of all ages can relate and not feel so alone.  Crossing 13 offered immediate help and I am deeply grateful that the author had the courage to write about such a personal experience.   She turned an extremely sad and difficult experience into something good that would facilitate healing in others.  Her work is valuable and comes highly recommended to anyone that has lost a loved one. Lauren Eldon, Dexter, Michigan Carrie Stark Hugus Author, Crossing 13: Memoir of a Father's Suicide www.affirmpublications.com 720-289-6068