“Grace Orenstein’s book points to the power of interaction between childcare staff members to enhance or destroy the emotional climate of a child care center. The childcare community will value this important resource which gives directors and caregivers a blueprint for improving adult dynamics within their centers, supporting retention and continuity, and building stable, nurturing environments for both children and adults.” —Leslie Koplow, author of Unsmiling Faces: How Preschools Can Heal and director of Emotionally Responsive Practice at Bank Street There are more than 11 million children in the United States who spend part of each day in professional care. With more than 64 percent of all new mothers heading back to work only a few months after giving birth, 1 in 4 children will be cared for by others. Building Blocks for Reflective Communication is for those “others”—the caring but underpaid, devoted yet unevenly skilled workers who go to work each day to face executives who stand less than three feet tall and occasionally resolve conflicts with their teeth. The emotionally charged nature of the environment in which these early care and education professionals work affects all involved: the children, of course, but also parents, fellow teachers, colleagues, bosses, and the worker herself. Communication skills are key to the mental and physical health of staff relationships. Straightforward and accessible, Building Blocks for Reflective Communication raises the bar towards greater professionalism and workplace quality for those who have chosen to dedicate their lives to the health and well-being of children. Author: Dr. Grace Manning-Orenstein Publication Date: October 7, 2014  

Living in the Long Shadow is a poignant memoir told in dual timelines: the formative years of Suzanne’s childhood and the two weeks following her mother’s suicide when Suzanne is eighteen. With honesty and grace, Suzanne traces what it means to grow up in the shadow of mental illness—navigating her need for guidance and belonging, the fear of inheriting her mother’s illness, and the journey of loving a mother unable to live with or without her medication. Ten years after her mother’s passing, an extraordinary sign affirms the enduring presence of her love—and Suzanne’s grief begins to make room for acceptance. This is a story of resilience: the difficult choices that lead toward healing, the friendships and family bonds that sustain us, and the way love can reach us even after death. Author: Suzanne Sherman (nonfiction subgroup leader) Publication Date: September 29, 2026

Born to Holocaust survivors and trained in the black-and-white world of law, veteran gang prosecutor Karen McKinney believed in justice, punishment, and moral certainty—so when she was asked to oppose the parole of a man she sent away for life twenty years earlier, she expected to confirm his ongoing danger. Instead, she was confronted with something she had never encountered: true transformation. Misjudged chronicles McKinney’s radical rethinking of justice through her evolving friendship with Joseph Herrera—a man she once believed to be irredeemable. Woven with personal reckonings, family trauma, and courtroom tension, this powerful memoir of healing and self-discovery reveals how the silent burdens of inherited trauma, family shame, and generational judgment shaped McKinney’s worldview—and how, through great effort, she began to break free and learned that the stories that shape us don’t have to define us. For anyone who has ever felt stuck, spiritually hungry, or disconnected from their true self, Misjudged is a compelling and hope-filled exploration of what it means to understand another person’s capacity for change and how to drop our fear-forged narratives in order to find true connection and humanity in this polarized world. Author: Karen McKinney Publication Date: December 15, 2026