Books published by publisher Second ACT Press

The true story of nineteen-year-old Jordana Lebowitz's time at the trial of Oskar Groening, known as the bookkeeper of Auschwitz, a man charged with being complicit in the death of more than 300,000 Jews. A granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, Jordana attended the trail. She realized that by witnessing history she gained the knowledge and legitimacy to be able to stand in the footsteps of the survivors.

Sam, Otter, Atim, and Chickadee are four inseparable cousins growing up on the Windy Lake First Nation. Nicknamed the Mighty Muskrats for their habit of laughing, fighting, and exploring together, the cousins find that each new adventure adds to their reputation. When a visiting archeologist goes missing, the cousins decide to solve the mystery of his disappearance. In the midst of community conflict, family concerns, and environmental protests, the four get busy following every lead. From their base of operations in a fort made out of an old school bus, the Mighty Muskrats won’t let anything stop them from solving their case!

Seventeen-year-old Maddy has always felt a hole in her life, but she has finally found a way to fill it with her quest to mold her body into her ideal, thinnest shape. When she comes across the world of "pro-ana" websites, where young people encourage each other in their mission to lose ever more weight, she realizes she is no longer alone. Finally, she has found a place where she is understood. Maddy quickly becomes addicted to the support and camaraderie she finds on thinandbeautiful.com. Now in a rehab facility where they are trying to "fix" a problem she doesn't think she has, Maddy's diary entries trace how she arrived at this point. Angry that she is barred from accessing her online friends, only the tragic consequences that come to one of her comrades in arms is enough to shock her into admitting that she does need help. Liane Shaw has worked in education for twenty-five years, with much of that time spent as a teacher of students who face academic, behavioral, physical or emotional challenges. Her own battle with anorexia inspired her to write this story.

In 1492, Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain signed the Edict of Expulsion, giving all Jews three months to leave the country. In the aftermath, twelve-year-old Joseph escapes to Lisbon, Portugal with his parents and younger sister, Gracia. After only eight months of safety, Joseph and Gracia, along with hundreds of other Jewish children, are kidnapped from the port in Lisbon and put on a ship. They then make a dangerous journey to the island of São Tomé, off the coast of West Africa. Now slaves, they are forced to work on a sugarcane plantation. Joseph must work in the fields, his life repeatedly saved by a combination of luck, strength, and quick wits. While Gracia tries to accept their circumstances, Joseph holds on to the hope that, one day, they will be free.

Baseball, soccer, basketball or hockey, Ben needs to pick one. His parents don't understand that he's terrible. Ben would rather cheer on his big brother, the high school star athlete than let the entire world find out he stinks at all sports.Video games are more fun. But could Ben's parents be right? Is he spending too much time alone and indoors? What's so bad about that? Why does he need to try out for sports? His parents are determined Ben must try out for a team. But Ben fears his summer will end in humiliation.Is it possible he could find success and make new friends? An engaging and entertaining story for young readers, between the ages of 6-9 years old who are bridging the gap from early readers to chapter books. Teachwell wrote, "Just when you thought there were no more "funny, poignant, good-for-kids-and-adult books," Jean Cogdell gives us "Tryouts for Ben." Think "Wimpy Kid" with the perspective of Hank Zipzer."

A history of the persecution of gay men by the Nazi regime during the Holocaust. When the Nazis came to power in Europe, the lives of homosexuals came to be ruled by fear as raids, arrests, prison sentences and expulsions became the daily reality. When the concentration camps were built, homosexuals were imprisoned along with Jews. The pink triangle, sewn onto prison uniforms, became the symbol of their persecution. This book combines historical research with first-person accounts and individual stories to bring this time to life for readers. From the first chapter, with its story of a young Jewish girl who was rescued from the depths of despair and starvation in the camps by a fellow prisoner who wore the pink triangle, to the last, entitled It Gets Better, which outlines the strides forward in gay rights made in the decades since the war, the feeling of bravery and perseverance in the face of inhuman cruelty shines through.

Six girls just out of high school live together during the summer of 1943 on a farm as part of the Farm Service Force, doing the work of the men who are off fighting the war in Europe. We follow the stories of Helene, who sends her wages home to support her single mother; Peggy, a flirt who spends her time writing to her soldier beaux; Binxie, whose rich family doesn't approve of her; Isabel, who pines over her fiancé, who is off fighting; Jean, whose family farm has been taken over by the “farmerettes,” as they became known; and the mysterious X, who of all the girls feels the most out of place. Friendship, romance, hardship and heartbreak shape their summer, all against the backdrop of the World War II.

An adventure story based on true events, real characters and legends. This historical-fiction novel features two girls, separated in time by thousands of years, who are forced to leave their homes and make a dangerous journey to an unknown land. The story starts with Aleesha in 961 BCE as she and her family, descendants from the House of Israel, are sent from Jerusalem to join the Queen of Sheba in Ethiopia. Aleesha's story is connected to that of Debritu’s, her distant descendant, by the tale of an emerald stolen from the ancient Holy Ark in King Solomon’s Temple and brought to Ethiopia. Passed on from generation to generation the precious stone comes under the care of Debritu. Debritu's story takes place in 1984, as she journeys with her two brothers through the treacherous mountains of Ethiopia and the deserts of the Sudan. They must deal with bandits and famine before they reach Jerusalem, their new as well as ancestral home. Daughters of the Ark weaves these tales together to create a suspenseful and meaningful novel.

A unique and much-needed collection, The Smart Princess takes readers inside the fantasies, dreams and disappointments of young people who are deaf. This book is written and illustrated by winners of the Ladder Awards, organized by the Canadian Cultural Society of the Deaf. In one tale a princess runs away when her intolerant aunt forbids her to sign. Another story looks at the experience of being a deaf child at a hearing school. Two strangers, one giant and one tiny, become friends despite their difficulties in seeing each other. In another, a spaceship lands on a planet of the Deaf, forcing hearing astronauts to reconsider their ways. And in a poetic adventure, an imaginary tiger wreaks havoc.

Lisa and Sol board the luxury ship St. Louis in Hamburg, Germany, on May 13, 1939. Lisa and her family are in first class; Sol and his parents are below in tourist class. The children have mixed feelings―they're excited to be beginning this voyage to a better life and sad to be leaving their old lives behind. They are Jewish, as are almost all of the 937 passengers on board, and although war has not been officially declared in Europe, the Nazis have been persecuting Jews for years. As they set sail for Cuba, the atmosphere on the ship is optimistic, led by the German captain Gustave Shröder, who is determined to see his passengers to safety. But as they learn that Hitler's propaganda has turned the country against them, the mood changes to despair. They are turned away―first from Cuba, then the United States, and then Canada. The story of Lisa and Sol is set against the tragic true history of the St. Louis. Denied entry from port after port, the captain was forced to return his Jewish passengers to Europe, where many died in the Holocaust. Through the eyes of Sol and Lisa, we see the injustice and heartbreak that were caused by the prejudice and hatred of so many.

This true story follows the Gold family and the oldest daughter, Shoshana. The book begins with the Jewish family’s idyllic prewar life in Poland. It then follows their journey during the war years, when they were forced to hide in a cramped, secret enclosure for twenty-six months, facing appalling conditions, starvation and fear of imminent betrayal and capture. A heart-stopping testament to the human spirit.