rehabilitation

Contains color photographs by Richard Ross of young women in juvenile detention, including staements from the girls about how they came to be in the detention facility.

Nine-year-old George, the author's son, was severely autistic, but when a small, black-and-white stray cat appeared in the garden, the family adopted the cat which helped George make remarkable progress.

The author describes her battle with alcohol, and how she used it to mask her insecurities until she started experiencing frequent blackouts. Details how she became sober, and what she learned from the process.

Journalist John Hubner reveals the aggressive methods used by the Giddings State School in Texas to rehabilitate criminal youths.

"Often it is difficult for parents to recognize when their child is abusing alcohol, using illegal drugs, or in trouble with other substances that are hazardous to their health, safety, and wellbeing. Clearing the Haze is a guide designed to help parents determine whether their child may have a substance problem and, if so, how to begin to address it. ... The book moves readers through an overview of adolescent brain development, the warning signs of drug use and addiction, treatment options, what families should expect of therapy, the basics of productive communication, and the difficulties of dealing lovingly with addicted teens"--Amazon.com.

Examines the life of Grace Akallo, a young woman from Uganda who dreamed of attending college only to be kidnapped by the Lord's Resistance Army and forced to become a child soldier. Explores how Grace has left the life of violence and searches for a better future for herself and all former child soldiers.

Service and therapy dogs have a profound impact on the lives of military personnel injured in action. Veterans who have physical injuries often return with psychological issues as well and these can be treated with help, companionship, and love from working canines.

Bethany Haley Williams shares her story of healing and how she built Exile International, a non-profit foundation that nurtures child soldiers rescued from the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army). Once the children escape or are rescued, they have to find a way to live again. Exile International uses art and expression therapy to help with the healing process. Once these children learn to face their pasts, they are given hope for a future and a vision for making a difference in their country as peace-makers.

In 1983, twenty-seven-year old Earl Smith walked through the menacing gates of San Quentin State Prison just as everyone thought he would. As a gang member and criminal from a young age, Smith expected to do some time. But when he walked in it was not as an inmate but as the Chaplain of Death Row. A year earlier six bullets were fired into his body in a botched drug deal. Those bullets saved his soul and changed his life path forever. Twenty-three years later, Smith had played chess with Charles Manson, negotiated truces between rival gangs, and bore witness to the final thoughts and prayers of dozens of Death Row inmates.