It begins with Lily navigating boys who are striving for her attention. Lily, however, doesn't show them any interest because unlike some of the other ninth-grade girls, including her best friend, Hadley, Lily isn't allowed to date until she turns sixteen.
During her sophomore year, things get a little more complicated for Lily. She gets invited to the senior prom by J.R., her other best friend and football star. But she is fifteen and the dating rule still applies. How does Lily feel about accepting the invitation? Will the Patriarch of her close-knit family allow her to attend?
“I never cut class. I loved getting A’s, I liked being smart. I liked being on time. I thought being smart is cooler than anything in the world.” – Michelle Obama, former First Lady of the United States."
"Before you act, listen. Before you react, think. Before you spend, earn. Before you criticize, wait. Before you pray, forgive. Before you quit, try.” – Ernest Hemingway, author
“If you really want to do something, you will find a way. If you don’t, you’ll find an excuse.” – Jim Rohn, philosopher
“If you can dream it, you can do it.” – Walt Disney, entrepreneur and founder of The Walt Disney Company
“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” – Thomas A. Edison, inventor
EDEN'S TOYS
Eden doesn’t care about his toys. He never plays with them or even picks them up, but he steps on them or kicks them aside. He doesn’t take care of the toys because he is bored with them and knows he can always get new toys. Although, his toys don’t feel the same way!
Whenever Eden steps on Boba Bear or tosses her across the room for no reason, Boba cries out, but Eden and his parents can’t hear her. She’s just a toy. One day, though, Eden goes too far, and Jeff Choo, the train set conductor, can’t take it anymore, and he assembles all of the toys. When the toys realize they can speak up for each other, they come together to plot their revenge on Eden. They decide to teach him a lesson.
“This isn’t right,” Jeff said. “Another kid wouldn’t treat us like this.”
“Boba has been taken away from us.”
“Of course I will go,” Pauline said. “I will do anything for Boba.”
Lily is a heartwarming story about a twelve-year-old girl having a difficult time. She gets harassed and threatened at school. Her hair is unruly, her clothes are old fashioned, and the kids don’t understand her. But, her teacher sees her for what she really is, a great piano player and a talented student, and she tries to help Lily overcome her fears and bullies.
In this uplifting story about overcoming hardship, shaming, bullying, and emotional abuse, the author shows how Lily, with the help of her teacher, realizes that she is so much more than the clothes and hair that other kids define her by and that she, too, is important and can be successful, no matter what anyone else says. Lily becomes an inspiration to us all.
“It’s not what happens to you, but how you
react to it that matters.” — Epictetus
“A journey of a thousand miles begins
with a single step.” — Lao Tzu
“To be yourself in a world that is trying
to make you something else is the greatest
accomplishment.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
The Magic Shoes is a fantastical adventure about a 12-year-old girl that discovers a magical pair of shoes. In them, she's transported to other worlds and goes on wild adventures.
The Magic Shoes is not only fun for kids' imaginations; it is simple enough for children to easily understand, but complex enough to teach them new vocabulary.
