Health
A Caterpillar at the Dentist
illustrated by Kelly O'Neill
She’s never had a filling before! When Ira meets Zack, a talking caterpillar, in the dentist’s waiting room, Zack knows just how to make her feel better. Zack will explain that the dentist’s tools are simple, harmless objects used in everyday life. Through their imagination, Ira will learn to understand the nature and importance of getting a filling.
PRAISE FOR A CATERPILLAR AT THE DENTIST:
“A Caterpillar at the Dentist is a must-read for parents who want to help their child prepare for their first dental visit. It is a positive story that provides child-friendly language for the different parts of a dental visit and a positive reflection of the dental team, along with the office setting and tools they use to keep kids’ mouths healthy! A great example of caring and collaboration with dental providers and families to maintain a healthy smile, which keeps kids healthy and ready to learn!”
—Tegwyn H. Brickhouse, DDS, PhD; Interim Chair, Department of Oral Health Promotion and Community Outreach; Director, Oral Health Services Research Core, Phillips Institute for Oral Health Research, VCU School of Dentistry; Director, Oral Health in Childhood and Adolescence; Institute for Inclusion, Inquiry, and Innovation
“Children almost always dread visiting dentists due to anxiety and fear that may stem from parents, peers, or other sources. This book will definitely help in eradicating such fears. It will not only boost the child’s confidence in visiting a dentist, but also make the child look forward to visiting one. I also congratulate Dr. Shweta Ujaoney immensely for coming up with this wonderful caterpillar story, which I believe is so beautiful and colorful that any child will read with keen interest.”
—Dr. Paul Chalakkal, Pediatric Dentist, India; Prestigious Young Pedodontist Award Recipient, Proactive Academician Award Recipient for Pediatric Dentistry
“Extremely well-written and well-illustrated! Very novel way to prepare kids and parents for a visit to the dentist.”
—Manju Mamtani, MD
“Little Ira has a cavity in her tooth, and she’s worried about seeing the dentist. But when she visits Dr. U’s office, she makes a friend who gives her the inside scoop. Join Ira and Zack as they take a special tour of the dentist’s office and meet all the fun characters who help Dr. U every day. Packed with information about tools and procedures, this bright book will be handy for any child visiting the dentist.”
—Pavi Raman, MD
“Informative, educational, and colorful are just some of the words that come to mind when describing A Caterpillar at the Dentist. Join Ira on a fun-filled adventure that thoroughly explains what a cavity is, how it is fixed, and what tools are used to fix it. As a registered dental hygienist, I truly feel this book will familiarize children with the dental office and ease dental anxiety because it is informative and explains things in such a vibrant and calming manner. It is a must-read for all young children.”
— Amanda Hann, RDH
“Informative, innovative, and inspirational!”
— Hemant Kulkarni, MD
Impressions Beyond the Terminal Cancer Diagnosis
written by Norma Woody
In this collection, as in her first book, Impressions Behind the Pink Ribbon, Norma explores a range of emotions and trials only a woman facing her own death can experience. A true and rich testament that only the examined life is worth living, she probes the depths and meaning of honesty, hope, friendship, and faith, as well as her own fear, isolation, heartache, and failures. For Norma, life was a kaleidoscope of miracles and experiences she felt compelled to capture in her writing, and had she lived, she would have penned many more books. We regret that this is her final manifesto of life, love, and hope.
PRAISE FOR IMPRESSIONS BEYOND THE TERMINAL CANCER DIAGNOSIS and IMPRESSIONS BEHIND THE PINK RIBBON
“As a Community Manager for the American Cancer Society, I work with people who have and have not been diagnosed with cancer. Because I work in the field of cancer and experience loss so often, I find myself wondering how many people live their lives with life itself going unnoticed until the moment of diagnosis. I am deeply moved by and profoundly grateful for Norma Woody’s honest and enlightening account of what it is to face a Stage 4 cancer diagnosis and try to live in the dying, make sense of the senseless, and yet acknowledge all the good things there are in the midst of the daily struggle. These very sentiments are what inspire the human spirit to find the hope and faith that are necessary to sustain life. Impressions Behind the Pink Ribbon is a gift for everyone who is searching to express the inexpressible about what cancer steals from us. Truly, we are all terminal from the day we are born, but cancer brings fear and starts the life clock ticking, which steals peace from those who are diagnosed and from those
around them. This book faces the tough emotional issues head on and will make you cry, make you laugh, but most of all it will allow you to see the beauty of the human spirit in the midst of the storm.”
—Amy Swartz, community manager, American Cancer Society
“Wow. Norma Woody has written a grace-filled, unflinching, and even, at times, whimsical book about her battle with Stage IV, Grade 3 cancer. Norma writes, “If we trust in God’s love, no matter where we are in life and no matter how difficult it can be at times, He will still bring beautiful people and beautiful things into our lives when we need them the most.” Norma and her book will be the beautiful person and beautiful thing many will find when they need them the most in the midst of their own life struggles.”
—Lynne B. Einhaus, Ph.D., licensed clinical psychologist and collaborative coach
“Anyone who writes a book while living with a diagnosis of terminal cancer deserves to be read. Few get the chance to have the last word about their life. In this book, Norma Woody does just that. She has insured that her experience will survive as her legacy to all who are on the same journey.”
—Betty Booker, Boomer magazine columnist and former Richmond Times-Dispatch columnist
“Norma Woody takes an unflinching look at her life after she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Her book is filled with poetry, pain, reminiscences good and bad, apologies for being sick, an assessment that her life by her own standards has been ‘mediocre,’ and a hard look at cancer and ‘all the stigma and negativity and needing that comes with it.’ I recommend it highly to anyone interested in how one should confront his or her own life and death or the life and death of a family member or friend.”
—Randy Fitzgerald, Boomer magazine columnist, former college educator and newspaper columnist
My Turn on the Couch: Our Cancer Journey
By Carol, Tony, Christopher, and Darcy Alimenti
My Turn on the Couch covers the span of nine years in the Alimenti family, during which three family members each face a shattering cancer diagnosis. This is a true story of how that family confronted these challenges, drew closer as a family, and remained resilient despite the hardships. The primary author, Carol Alimenti, tells the story of her mother’s struggle with cancer, coping, caring, and fighting for her son, Chris, who was diagnosed with leukemia, then having to face her own terminal diagnosis. While caring for her son, she must come to accept the finality of her own life. The book began as a journal and as therapy, but transformed into a collaborative project among the family members as they united to help Carol finish this book and cross the final goal off her bucket list. All the family members who ultimately contributed to this story learned what it meant to be “on the couch.”
This compelling story is a testimony to the power of love, family, hope, and an unbridled faith in God. These key ingredients have allowed the Alimentis to defy the odds in the hope that one day they will reunite again in a land without suffering, tears, and pain—and most of all—without cancer.
Kindle ebook available here ($4.99)
Nick, the No Good, Icky Tick
written by Karen Gloyer
illustrated by Maryana Kachmar
Abby and her favorite four-footed friend Chowser discover all kinds of creatures while walking in the wild, wild woods one day. What they don’t expect to find is Nick, a no-good, icky, black-legged tick. Find out what happens when Nick the icky tick finds them...and the lessons they learn about how to stay safe on future outdoor adventures!
Author Karen Gloyer, a Lyme disease survivor, created Nick, the No Good, Icky Tick as a simple way to teach children and families the importance of tick prevention and awareness. Gloyer knows firsthand the hardships that come with this debilitating ailment—and that prevention and awareness are key. Let Abby, Chowser, and Nick the icky tick help teach the children in your life to “Look carefully!” as they learn to keep safe outdoors. Helpful tips and an afterword by Kenneth B. Singleton, M.D., M.P.H., a leading U.S. authority on Lyme disease treatment and prevention, round out this important book.
A Young Life of Light
written by Harry Hathaway Warner
iIllustrated by Patrick Gorman
What constitutes a life well lived? It’s a question often pondered in the wake of loss, and it’s one that catalyzed Harry Warner to write this book following the death of his seventeen-year-old grandson, Patrick. Patrick’s life was brief and far from easy. Born with Marfan’s syndrome and severe respiratory complications, he was given a fifty-fifty chance of survival; at eleven months, he contracted a virus that would leave him deaf in both ears. His early years consisted of a string of hospital visits and struggling to communicate in a hearing world. Yet, through it all, a remarkable young man was formed—a talented artist and sportsman with a love for the outdoors and an ability to inspire his peers in ways that would only be fully revealed upon his passing. In A Young Life of Light, Warner memorializes Patrick’s life, person, and achievements, and proclaims a simple, valuable truth: the good life is measured by the impression it leaves in the hearts of others.