The Silver Unicorn Bookstore

YA Author Event: Rebecca Kim Wells in Conversation with Sara Farizan

Friday September 27 | 7:00PM - 9:00PM

You do not want to miss this fantastic opportunity to sit in on a conversation between Rebecca Kim Wells, author of the new novel Shatter the Sky, and Sara Farizan, award-winning novelist of three novels, including Here to Stay. They will be discussing Rebecca's novel, which has been described as one of the best reads of the year.

Massachusetts author Rebecca Kim Wells is the author of debut novel Shatter the Sky, which was recently short-listed for a New England Book Award. The high-fantasy tale has been praised as "a wondrous adventure... filled with high stakes, sweeping romance, and fascinating dragon-lore." The YA adventure follows Maren. Raised among the ruins of a conquered mountain nation, Maren dreams only of sharing a quiet life with her girlfriend Kaia—until the day Kaia is abducted by the Aurati, prophetic agents of the emperor, and forced to join their ranks. Desperate to save her, Maren hatches a plan to steal one of the emperor’s coveted dragons and storm the Aurati stronghold.

Sara Fraizan is also a Massachusetts-based writer. Her debut novel, If You Could Be Mine, won multiple awards. Her newest book, Here to Stay, offers a humorous and heart-filled story about Bijan Majidi, who is pulled off the bench during a high school varsity basketball game to score the winning basket. Exclusive parties and high-fives in the hallway quickly turns into something more serious when an anonymous photo sent by a school cyberbully that makes Bijan look like a terrorist. The administration says they’ll find and punish the culprit. Bijan wants to pretend it never happened. He’s not ashamed of his Middle Eastern heritage; he just doesn’t want to be a poster child for Islamophobia. Lots of classmates rally around Bijan. Others make it clear they don’t want him or anybody who looks like him at their school. But it’s not always easy to tell your enemies from your friends.

This is sure to be a fantastic discussion, perfect for an autumn evening!

Author Event at The Fenn School, Concord: Dr. Anthony Rao and Dr. Paul Napper

Thursday October 17 | 7:00PM - 9:00PM

The Silver Unicorn is partnering with The Fenn School to present local authors and clinical psychologists Dr. Anthony Rao and Dr. Paul Napper. Their new book, The Power of Agency, provides readers actionable steps to create more agency and empowerment in their lives. Join us at The Fenn School for this informative event.

More about The Power of Agency

From two eminent clinical psychologists, how to access your personal agency—your ability to create a meaningful life on your own terms—and adapt to living in “the age of overwhelm”

Described by the World Health Organization as the most anxious nation on earth, the United States finds itself living amidst a national epidemic. We struggle to keep clear minds and to think for ourselves, limiting our ability to make optimal decisions in our lives. Nonstop technology and an increasing focus on metrics and performance are part of everyday, and all of these things leave us feeling, in a word, overwhelmed.

Agency is the ability to act as an effective agent for oneself—thinking, reflecting, and making creative choices, and acting in ways that direct us toward the lives we want. Agency is what humans use to feel in command of their lives. For decades, agency has been a central concern of psychologists, sociologists, and philosophers seeking to
help generations of people live in greater accord with their interests, values, and inner motivations.

Renowned clinical psychologists Paul Napper and Anthony Rao offer seven practices using mind and body to help you locate and develop your own agency. Based on years of research and real-world application, their methods equip you to succeed in a world requiring constant adaptation. Illustrated through the stories of people who have developed higher levels of agency, The Power of Agency gives you the skills and insights to do less and reflect more before making life choices—and plot the steps to create a life on your own terms.

Dr. Paul Napper leads a management psychology practice. His client list includes Fortune 500 companies, non-profits, universities, and start-ups. He held an advanced fellowship during a three-year academic appointment at Harvard Medical School (HMS).

Dr. Anthony Rao is a cognitive-behavioral therapist. For over 20 years he was a pediatric psychologist at Boston Children’s Hospital and an instructor at HMS. In 1998 he opened a specialized private practice. He appears regularly as an expert commentator.

Memoir Event: Maureen Stanton and Sharon Lamb

Monday October 28 | 7:00PM - 9:00PM

We are so lucky to have two fantastic memorists list living in our area! If you're looking for engrossing reads about the intersections of womanhood, motherhood, expectations, and the opioid crisis that is sweeping the nation, look no future than these two books. We are proud to have Maureen Stanton, author of Body Leaping Backward: Memoir of Deliquent Girlhood and Sharon Lamb, author of The Not Good Enough Mother in our store to talk about their books and the stories behind them.

Described as "sharp, candid, and deeply felt" by the Boston Globe, Body Leaping Backward is a haunting and beautifully drawn story of a self-destructive girlhood, of a town and a nation overwhelmed in a time of change, and of how life-altering a glimpse of a world bigger than the one we come from can be. Set in 1970s Walpole in the shadow of the maximum security prison, the book follows Maureen's life through her parent's divorce, her mother's significant changes as she attempts to raise seven children on her own, and the emergence of Angel Dust, a homemade form of PCP sweeping through her town. A professor at UMass Lowell, Maureen has been awarded the Iowa Review prize, a Pushcart Prize, the American Literary Review award in nonfiction, and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Not Good Enough Mother brings a modern story, clinical perspective, yet empathetic voice to the opiod crisis. A psychologist and expert witness, Sharon evaluates parents, particularly in high-stakes cases concerning the termination of parental rights. The conclusions she reaches can mean that some children are returned home from foster homes. Others are freed for adoption. Well-trained, Lamb generally can decide what’s in the best interests of the child. But when her son’s struggle with opioid addiction comes to light, she starts to doubt her right to make judgments about other mothers. In its starred review, Booklist says of the memoir, "this honest look at how society judges parents, mothers in particular, deserves a wide audience." Alongside her credentials and duties as a therapist to children and families, Sharon is a professor of counseling psychology at UMass Boston.

We look forward to this important discussion and these two intersecting viewpoints on this significant concern that is impacting families and communities across our state and country. We hope you'll join us!

Middle-Grade Author Event: Elly Swartz in Conversation with Barbara Dee

Sunday November 17 | 2:00PM - 4:00PM

We are delighted to offer another discussion between two fantastic middle-grade authors at our store! Massachusetts author Elly Swartz will be discussing her newest work, Give and Take, alongside author Barbara Dee, author of Maybe He Just Likes You.

Give and Take is a touching middle grade novel about family, friendship, and learning when to let go. Family has always been important to twelve-year-old Maggie: a trapshooter, she is coached by her dad and cheered on by her mom. But her grandmother's recent death leaves a giant hole in Maggie's life, one which she begins to fill with an assortment of things: candy wrappers, pieces of tassel from Nana's favorite scarf, milk cartons, sticks . . . all stuffed in cardboard boxes under her bed. Then her parents decide to take in a foster infant. But anxiety over the new baby's departure only worsens Maggie's hoarding, and soon she finds herself taking and taking until she spirals out of control. Ultimately, with some help from family, friends, and experts, Maggie learns that sometimes love means letting go.

Maybe He Just Likes You is a novel that explores #MeToo in a thoughtful, age-appropriate way. For seventh-grader Mila, it starts with some boys giving her an unwanted hug on the school blacktop. A few days later, at recess, one of the boys (and fellow trumpet player) Callum tells Mila it’s his birthday, and asks her for a “birthday hug.” He’s just being friendly, isn’t he? And how can she say no? But Callum’s hug lasts a few seconds too long, and feels…weird. According to her friend, Zara, Mila is being immature and overreacting. Doesn’t she know what flirting looks like?

But the boys don’t leave Mila alone. On the bus. In the halls. During band practice—the one place Mila could always escape.

It doesn’t feel like flirting—so what is it? Thanks to a chance meeting, Mila begins to find solace in a new place: karate class. Slowly, with the help of a fellow classmate, Mila learns how to stand her ground and how to respect others—and herself.

Both books inspire young readers to dig deep in themselves and find answers to the questions they may be asking themselves. They also illuminate hard truths about the world we live in and how to cope in the face of difficulties. This is going to be a deep discussion that you and your middle-grade reader won't want to miss!