Vera B Williams

A child, her waitress mother, and her grandmother save dimes to buy a comfortable armchair after all their furniture is lost in a fire.

"After Lester is adopted from his foster home by Daddy Albert and Daddy Rich, he can't fall asleep in his new bed. What will it take to make Lester feel home at last?"--

A series of poems tells how two sisters help each other deal with life while their mother is working and their father has been sent to jail.

A funny book that makes you cry. A sad book that makes you laugh. A book about two sisters and their family that makes you wish you were part of it--and grateful that you are not. In short, this book is one surprise after another. The only thing that is not a surprise is that Vera B. Williams has created a wholly unforgettable, absolutely wonderful portrait of Amber, Essie, and their world. Open the book. You will never be the same again.

Follow the red canoe from page to page as it journeys down river carrying the family on a camping tour. It's the next best thing to paddling it yourself.

Rosa's grandma is sick and must stay upstairs in bed. And so the big chair in the living room is often empty. And the money jar--in which the family saved their change to buy the big red chair and Rosa's accordion--is empty too. All extra money must be used to take care of Grandma. After school Rosa and her friends Leora, Mae, and Jenny often make music for Grandma. She says their playing makes her feel like a girl again, dancing at a party. And that...