Of all the figurative flavors of Kool-Aid to keep you from facing reality, perhaps the most popular is the belief that falling in love quickly leads to a life lived happily ever after. Sorry, Cinderella, it takes a little more than... Read More

Buddha smiles serenely from snowy mountain peaks, through summer monsoon rains and deep ocean waters, reassuring children of his calm, surrounding presence in every season. Vibrant artwork and rhythmic verses add an element of fun as the... Read More

A young girl admires a stylish variety of headscarves and the hairstyles beneath them worn by the Muslim friends and family in her life, in this warmhearted tribute to beauty in diversity and self-expression. Cheerful, rhyming verses... Read More

Lucy is not allowed to have a pet, but that doesn’t stop her from embarking on a surreal adventure with a smoky, swirling, translucent shadow cat that appears one night through her bedroom wall. Translated from its original Swedish,... Read More

People live as singles in mounting numbers, even in tradition-oriented countries. In "Happy Singlehood", Elyakim Kislev brings a researcher’s eye to bear on this world-shifting trend. Defining happiness as the degree to which people... Read More

Bryan Walsh is a marine corps deserter, former IRA bagman, and all around hard case. Back stateside after a stint in Ireland, he’s currently employed by a local gangster and barely scraping by, spending his days rubbing out low-lifes... Read More

Set at the dawn of the 1980s, Norma Elia Cantú’s lovely novel "Cabañuelas" occupies a culturally liminal space. Nena is from a family in Laredo, Texas, that keeps its Mexican culture alive, even while sending its sons to fight for... Read More

To be ten in America is to be mystified—the world is so complicated, tension-filled, callous, and distressing that the allure of a virtual life on a screen is nearly impossible to resist. What can we do for that child? What tools can... Read More