Outside Beauty

("My mother had four daughters by four different men." ...)

"My mother had four daughters by four different men." There's only one way Shelby and her sisters can describe their mother: She's a sexpot. Helen Kimura collects men (and loans, spending money, and gifts of all kinds) from all over the country. Sure, she's not your typical role model, but she's also not just a pretty face and nail polish. She is confident and brave; she lives life on her own terms, and her four daughters simply adore her. These girls have been raised outside the traditional boundaries. They know how to take the back exit. They know how to dodge crazed lovers in highway car chases. They do not, however, know how to function without one another. Then suddenly they must. A late-night phone call unexpectedly shreds the family apart, catapulting the girls across the country to live with their respective fathers. But these strong-willed sisters are, like their mother, determined to live life on their own terms, and what they do to pull their family back together is nothing short of beautiful. At turns wickedly funny and insistently thought-provoking, Outside Beauty showcases Cynthia Kadohata's unerring ability to explore the bonds that bind.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1416998187/?tag=2022091-20

The Floating World

(A NEW YORK TIMES Notable Book of the Year. "Magical...THE...)

A NEW YORK TIMES Notable Book of the Year. "Magical...THE FLOATING WORLD is about families, coming of age, guilt, memory...It is also about being Japanese-American in the United States in the 1950's." --NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345381629/?tag=2022091-20

Half a World Away by Cynthia Kadohata (2015-09-01)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LP2UJF2/?tag=2022091-20

(A Million Shades of Gray ) Author: Cynthia Kadohata Nov-2011

(Y'Tin is brave. No one in his village denies that--his mo...)

Y'Tin is brave. No one in his village denies that--his mother may wish that he'd spend more time on school work than on elephant training, but still she knows that it takes a great deal of courage and calm to deal with elephants the way that Y'Tin does. He is almost the best trainer in the village--and, at twelve-years old, he's certainly the youngest. Maybe he'll even open up his own school some day to teach other Montagnards how to train wild elephants? That was the plan anyway--back before American troops pulled out of the Vietnam War, back before his village became occupied by Viet Cong forces seeking revenge, back before Y'Tin watched his life change in a million terrible ways. Now, his bravery is truly put to the test: he can stay in his village, held captive by the Viet Cong or he can risk his life (and save his elephant's) by fleeing into the jungle. The Montagnards know their surroundings well. After all, this is why Y'Tin's village had become loyal US allies during the war, having been tapped by Special Forces for their tracking skills and familiarity with the jungle. But that also means that Y'Tin knows how unsafe it can be--and how much danger he is in if he chooses to head out with no destination in mind. At once heartbreaking and full of hope, Newbery Medal-winning author Cynthia Kadohata's exploration into the depth of the jungle and the not-so-distant past brings us close to a world few people know about--and none will ever forget. Y'Tin's story is one of lasting friendships, desperate choices and all that we lose when we are forced to change.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B010BACNXA/?tag=2022091-20

Half A World Away (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition)

(FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. Believing himself ...)

FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. Believing himself to be an ""epic fail"" when his family travels to Kazakhstan to adopt a new baby he thinks will replace him in his parents' affections, 11-year-old Jaden witnesses their wrenching choice when they are offered six children to adopt, one of whom captures Jaden's heart.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0606378456/?tag=2022091-20

A Million Shades of Gray

(Y'Tin is brave. No one in his village denies that—his m...)

Y'Tin is brave. No one in his village denies that—his mother may wish that he’d spend more time on school work than on elephant training, but still she knows that it takes a great deal of courage and calm to deal with elephants the way that Y'Tin does. He is almost the best trainer in the village—and, at twelve-years old, he’s certainly the youngest. Maybe he’ll even open up his own school some day to teach other Montagnards how to train wild elephants? That was the plan anyway—back before American troops pulled out of the Vietnam War, back before his village became occupied by Viet Cong forces seeking revenge, back before Y'Tin watched his life change in a million terrible ways. Now, his bravery is truly put to the test: he can stay in his village, held captive by the Viet Cong or he can risk his life (and save his elephant’s) by fleeing into the jungle. The Montagnards know their surroundings well. After all, this is why Y'Tin’s village had become loyal US allies during the war, having been tapped by Special Forces for their tracking skills and familiarity with the jungle. But that also means that Y'Tin knows how unsafe it can be—and how much danger he is in if he chooses to head out with no destination in mind. At once heartbreaking and full of hope, Newbery Medal-winning author Cynthia Kadohata’s exploration into the depth of the jungle and the not-so-distant past brings us close to a world few people know about—and none will ever forget. Y'Tin’s story is one of lasting friendships, desperate choices and all that we lose when we are forced to change.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1442429194/?tag=2022091-20

Half a World Away

(A kid who considers himself an epic fail discovers the tr...)

A kid who considers himself an epic fail discovers the transformative power of love when he deals with adoption in this novel from Cynthia Kadohata, winner of the Newbery Medal (Kira-Kira) and the National Book Award (The Thing About Luck). Eleven-year-old Jaden is adopted, and he knows he’s an “epic fail.” That’s why his family is traveling to Kazakhstan to adopt a new baby—to replace him, he’s sure. And he gets it. He is incapable of stopping his stealing, hoarding, lighting fires, aggressive running, and obsession with electricity. He knows his parents love him, but he feels...nothing. When they get to Kazakhstan, it turns out the infant they’ve traveled for has already been adopted, and literally within minutes are faced with having to choose from six other babies. While his parents agonize, Jaden is more interested in the toddlers. One, a little guy named Dimash, spies Jaden and barrels over to him every time he sees him. Jaden finds himself increasingly intrigued by and worried about Dimash. Already three years old and barely able to speak, Dimash will soon age out of the orphanage, and then his life will be as hopeless as Jaden feels now. For the first time in his life, Jaden actually feels something that isn’t pure blinding fury, and there’s no way to control it, or its power. From camels rooting through garbage like raccoons, to eagles being trained like hunting dogs, to streets that are more pothole than pavement, the vivid depictions in Half a World Away create “an inspiring story that celebrates hope and second chances” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1442412763/?tag=2022091-20

In the Heart of the Valley of Love (California Fiction)

( Cynthia Kadohata explores human relationships in a Los ...)

Cynthia Kadohata explores human relationships in a Los Angeles of the future, where rich and poor are deeply polarized and where water, food, and gas, not to mention education, cannot be taken for granted. There is an intimate, understated, even gentle quality to Kadohata's writing—this is not an apocalyptic dystopia—that makes it difficult to shrug off the version of the future embodied in her book.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0520207289/?tag=2022091-20

A Million Shades of Gray by Cynthia Kadohata (2011-11-01)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6L1SVW/?tag=2022091-20