foster parents

Twelve-year-old Winifred is being fostered by the eccentric but kind Margery Dawson while her mother is dealing with addiction problems, and mostly Fred is determined not to form any attachments to anybody--until the condition of Toby, the abused dog next door, captures first her attention and then her heart, and somehow it becomes increasingly difficult to stay detached from the people who are helping her.

As the battles continue, Sophie must uncover the truth about the Lost Cities' past.

At age twelve, Sophie learns that the remarkable abilities that have always caused her to stand out identify her as an elf, and after being brought to Eternalia to hone her skills, discovers that she has secrets buried in her memory for which some would kill.

Sophie's talents are getting stronger and, with the elusive Black Swan group ignoring her calls for help, she is determined to find her kidnappers but a daring mistake pushes her world to the edge of war, and soon she has exposed a a major conspiracy that could threaten all she loves.

"Jules never knew her father, and her ex-addict mother has always been more interested in artistic endeavors than in bonding with her only daughter. Her life and future look as flat and unchanging as her small Illinois town. A simple quest to find a baby picture for the senior yearbook leads to the discovery that for most of the first two years of her life, Jules lived in foster care. As Jules sets out to learn the truth about her past, what she finds is a family who loved her as their own and hoped to adopt her. Even a now-adult foster brother is overjoyed to see his sister again. When the divide between Jules and her biological mother widens, Jules finds herself on the brink of losing everything."--Provided by publisher.

"Born in the backseat of a moving car, Carmel Fishkill wasunceremoniously pushed into a world that refuses to offer her security, stability, love. At age thirteen, she begins to fight back. Carmel Fishkill becomes Fishkill Carmel, who deflects her tormenters with a strong left hook and conceals her secrets from teachers and social workers. But Fishkill'sfierce defenses falter when she meets eccentric optimist Duck-Duck Farina, and soon they, along with Duck-Duck's mother, Molly, form a tentative family, even as Fishkill struggles to understand her place in it. This fragile new beginning is threatened by the reappearance of Fishkill's unstable mother--and by unfathomable tragedy"--Amazon.com.

Pablo, nearly ten, has many questions about his origins and how he arrived at Isla as a baby, but finding the answers may mean losing his lifetime companion, Birdy the parrot.

"Sometimes things happen to parents that make it impossible for them to care for their kids. It could be illness, incarceration, job loss, or other reasons. Fortunately, there are loving parents who are willing to take in, or foster, kids who need someone to look after them. This book looks at how foster families are made and how they might thrive"--Amazon.com.

Jessie tells her story of being placed in a foster home, and falling in love with her new home and foster parents.

The author describes her experiences being a foster parent, discussing home visits, intervention evaluation, parenting training sessions, transracial placement, and other related topics.