reading list

Reading for Celiac Disease Awareness

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May is Celiac Disease Awareness month. You may have heard of Celiac Disease and not know what it means. It has also been called Celiac Sprue and a couple of other names. While those with Celiac Disease react to the glutens (proteins) in grains, it is not an allergy like a peanut allergy.
One of the things that I have had people ask me is which is worse, allergies or intolerance (Celiac Disease is an intolerance to glutens.) But it is very individual. Either one can be mild or severe. And with an intolerance like Celiac Disease, you may not realize that you have it, may not have any recognizable symptoms, but it can still cause damage that can result in serious illness such as colon cancer or the inability to absorb nutrients.

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Reading List: Books with Racially Diverse Main Characters

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There are an increasing number of books out there featuring BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, Person of Colour) main characters. The “default” is still white main characters, but the call for more diverse characters is louder and more insistent, and authors are stepping up to fill the gap. BIPOC authors writing characters from their own cultures (#ownvoices) are particularly sought after.

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Fiction about Human Trafficking

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Did you know that January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness Month, and January 11 is Human Trafficking Awareness Day?

Human Trafficking is a huge industry, in both North America and around the world. With an estimated 40 million victims and generating $150 billion annually, it is not limited to third world countries, and affects people in all classes and industries. Children are particularly vulnerable, especially runaways and those in foster care.

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Fiction about Sexual Abuse of Boys/Men

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I have had discussions in a couple of writers’ communities lately about the topic of the sexual abuse of men and boys, some of the myths that surround it, and giving men/boys “permission” to speak about sexual abuse on an equal footing with women/girls. We’ve discussed male authors writing about sexual abuse and whether women want to hear from them.

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Reading List: Young Adult Fiction About Sexual Abuse

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In the past three months, I have written the first draft of the next two books in the Between the Cracks series, and I am poised to write two more books in a yet-unpublished series over the next six weeks. All researched and outlined and ready to start on Monday, February 1st. I wrote the first book last February, so it’s only fitting!

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Reading List: Young Adult Fiction About Abuse

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It has been a while since I posted a reading list! Abuse is one of the topics that I write a lot about. Looking over my list and some other young adult novels, I think I am going to break it down into four separate lists.

Physical Abuse
Sexual Abuse
Neglect
Mental/Psychological Abuse
I will start today with physical abuse. There are lot of memoirs about physical abuse, but there are not a lot of popular young adult books that revolve primarily around physical abuse.

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