Books with author MJ AUCH

In 1815 Remembrance "Mem" Nye and her family pack up their covered wagon and head for the Genesee Country in western New York for a better life. But their first summer in their new home proves more difficult than they ever imagined. Papa's crops are ruined by the severe frosts, so food is scarce. And since the birth of baby Lily, Mama has been having terrible spells. Now Papa must rely on young Mem to take care of her sister and brother, and especially her sick mother. Mem's struggles go from bad to worse when Mama and Lily disappear in the woods on a cold and stormy night. It's up to Mem to find Mama and Lily and bring them safely home. In a powerful companion novel to the highly acclaimed Journey to Nowhere, twelve-year-old Mem comes face-to-face with the hardships that befell many early settlers. Mary Jane Auch writes about mental illness during pioneer times with compassion and hope in this gripping historical novel.

It is the spring of 1815, and eleven-year-old Remembrance "Mem" Nye is leaving the comforts of her farm in Hartland, Connecticut, to settle in the wilderness of western New York. Lured by the promise of a better life in the Genesee Country, Mem and her family set off in a covered wagon.Here is the story of Mem's unforgettable journey as she becomes separated from her family and then, after being reunited, almost loses them in a flood. The book illustrates the hardships of travel in the early pioneer days, when the wilderness was more thickly populated with bears, wolves, and mountain lions than with human beings. As Mem helps her family establish a foothold in the new land, she learns the importance of community and strong family connections.One of Bank Street College of Education's Best Children's Books of the Year

"Grady, can you pick up that wing nut for me?" "The what?" "The wing nut I just dropped. It has two little projections on it that look like wings. It fell into that patch of grass." Grady dropped to his knees and felt through the grass until he found it. He couldn't help smiling about the name--wing nut. That was the perfect description of Charlie Fernwald and his crazy attraction to birds.Sometimes "home" is found where you least expect itGrady Flood and his mom, Lila, have been on the road ever since Grady's dad died seven years ago. When their old car breaks down, they find themselves stranded in rural Pennsylvania where Lila gets work as a cook and caretaker. There's nothing out of the ordinary in that, unless you factor in her new employer. Eighty-five-year-old Charlie Fernwald, a skilled mechanic and bird enthusiast, is definitely out of the ordinary. In fact, if Grady's not mistaken, Charlie is a certifiable "wing nut." Grady and Lila plan to leave as soon as they have enough money to repair their car. For the time being, Grady figures, he can help Charlie with his birds and maybe even learn how to fix a car engine. But before he can do either, something goes terribly wrong.In her warm and engaging style, MJ Auch crafts a compelling novel about family, forgiveness, and the true meaning of home.

Not even losing his hand can keep Norm from trying out for the baseball team What would life be like with only one hand? That's exactly what eleven-year-old Norm finds out when he loses his left hand in an accident at his family's store. It's July 4, 1946. World War II has ended, and life is getting back to normal. But for Norm, the pressing question now is whether he will ever be able to play baseball again, or be an artist. It's up to Norm to find the strength to get beyond this roadblock and move on with his life.Set against the quickening pace of life after wartime constraints, this inspiring novel is about an optimist who overcomes his misfortune with discipline and humor--and fulfills his dreams in ways no one could have expected.

Travis Tacey doesn't have it easy: his mom's in the hospital suffering from brain trauma after a terrible car accident, and his father has lost his good sense in the aftermath and kicked him out. Homeless, penniless, and only fourteen years old, Travis tries to make money off of his singing and guitar playing skills. But when his beloved guitar―a family heirloom―is stolen, Travis grows desperate. By a stroke of luck, he gets a job helping a guitar maker. Through Travis's love of music, his devotion to his family, and the kindness of strangers, he begins to find his way in the world. But how will he keep his family together?

"I m not a stray, I m a free and independent dog!" At least, that s what K-10 likes to tell himself. But as his adventures bring him into contact with a range of dogs--tiny but big-hearted (and hilarious) Peppy, wise old Tucker, and most of all tart-tongued Pearl, he begins to wonder if he might want to have a home after all. Then K-10 meets Adolf and Rotter, and his troubles really begin. Can a dog on his own survive a pair of ferocious bullies to find his way back to a home he never had? Filled with loveable canine characters, this dog s eye view of the world is both laugh-out-loud funny and deeply touching. Audie-Award winning narrator William Dufris brings his unique blend of sensitivity and wacky humor to a charming novel that Booklist called "A compelling, affectionate story of opening not just one s home, but also one s heart."

"Grady, can you pick up that wing nut for me?" "The what?" "The wing nut I just dropped. It has two little projections on it that look like wings. It fell into that patch of grass." Grady dropped to his knees and felt through the grass until he found it. He couldn't help smiling about the name--wing nut. That was the perfect description of Charlie Fernwald and his crazy attraction to birds.Sometimes "home" is found where you least expect itGrady Flood and his mom, Lila, have been on the road ever since Grady's dad died seven years ago. When their old car breaks down, they find themselves stranded in rural Pennsylvania where Lila gets work as a cook and caretaker. There's nothing out of the ordinary in that, unless you factor in her new employer. Eighty-five-year-old Charlie Fernwald, a skilled mechanic and bird enthusiast, is definitely out of the ordinary. In fact, if Grady's not mistaken, Charlie is a certifiable "wing nut." Grady and Lila plan to leave as soon as they have enough money to repair their car. For the time being, Grady figures, he can help Charlie with his birds and maybe even learn how to fix a car engine. But before he can do either, something goes terribly wrong.In her warm and engaging style, MJ Auch crafts a compelling novel about family, forgiveness, and the true meaning of home.

Twelve-year-old Grady Flood and his mom, Lila, have been on the road ever since Grady’s dad died seven years ago. When their old car breaks down, they find themselves stranded in rural Pennsylvania where Lila gets work as a cook and caretaker. There’s nothing out of the ordinary in that, unless you factor in her new boss. Old Charlie Fernwald, a skilled mechanic and bird enthusiast, is definitely out of the ordinary. In fact, if Grady’s not mistaken, Charlie is a certifiable “wing nut.” For the time being, Grady figures, he can help Charlie with his birds and maybe even learn how to fix a car engine. But before he can do either, something goes terribly wrong.

The honest and compelling story of a young girl's newfound independence, from her entrance into a new country to her frightening involvement in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911.My heart filled with fear and hope at the same time. I had the feeling that I was brought to America for a purpose. Something important would happen to me here.I remembered the words of the poem, "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses . . .""Here we are, America," I whispered. "We're just exactly what you ordered."When she arrives on Ellis Island as a seventeen-year-old Irish immigrant, Rose Nolan is looking for a land of opportunities; what she finds is far from all she'd dreamed. Stubborn and tenacious, she refuses to give up. Left alone to fend for herself and her younger sister, Rose is thrust into a hard-knock life of tenements and factory work.When the devastating Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911 rushes into Rose's life, her confusions are brought to an all-too-painful head. To whom and to what can she turn when everything around her is in ashes?

Travis Tacey doesn’t have it easy: his mom’s in the hospital suffering from brain trauma after a terrible car accident, and his father has lost his good sense in the aftermath and kicked him out. Homeless, penniless, and only fourteen years old, Travis tries to make money off of his singing and guitar playing skills. But when his beloved guitar—a family heirloom—is stolen, Travis grows desperate. By a stroke of luck, he gets a job helping a guitar maker. Through Travis’s love of music, his devotion to his family, and the kindness of strangers, he begins to find his way in the world. But how will he keep his family together?

Travis s Tacey s mother has had an accident, a bad one, and the family is falling apart. His father, lost in a haze of grief, has focused his anger and guilt on his oldest son. Which is why, at age fourteen, Travis finds himself out of a home and on the road in New York State s Adirondack Mountains. With no more than a few dollars, a change of clothes, and his great-great-great grandfather s guitar, Travis wonders how he is going to survive. But the world is not always cruel, as Travis discovers when he is befriended by guitar-maker Scott McKissack and realizes that with luck, and music, he might even be able to reunite his shattered family. Richly populated with vivid and endearing characters, resonating with a love of music, this recording of MJ Auch s novel will speak (and sing) directly to the hearts of listeners of all ages.