Books by Jill Ammon Vanderwood

Jill Vanderwood is a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and author who loves kids and wants to make a difference for the next generation, through writing and speaking to kids.

She has written about the effects of drug addiction on kids, an Earth Day and environmental book for children, gun danger for Y/A, how teens can overcome the effects of bullying and live a full and happy life. Jill also enjoys seeing the light in children's eyes when they read her urban fantasy, Through the Rug series for children and her magical children's Christmas, picture books.

As the night goes on, many secrets are revealed,

including a parent’s divorce; sexual abuse; drug addiction; being a witness to a crime; suicidal thoughts and many more. While you, the reader, can’t think of anything to reveal other than that you must bring your grades up before the midterm.

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Keeping Secrets: The Path You Choose – #4

This story begins with a slumber party at your house. You introduce a game where you and your guests take turns telling your deepest secrets. Each person in the room swears to keep it private.

You are going to a cheer practice with an older girl,

and after practice, she offers the girls a glass of wine. She tells you to take a glass for a toast, and then you can put it back if you don’t want to drink it. Your choices begin with that glass of wine. Should you drink it, or should you leave along with your friend Keesha?

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Cheers: The Path You Choose – #3

Your parents are going out for the evening. Your sister is planning to hang out with her boyfriend and some friends. Your parents have told you that you can have a friend over, or spend the night with a friend, but you cannot go out with your sister.

Your brother does not plan to keep the rules

He shows you that he has the key to the liquor cabinet; he has a group of friends over; he has spent most of the money your parents have left, and he is planning a party along with a friend down the street.

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On The Rocks: The Path You Choose – #2

Your parents are going out of town on a business trip. They are considering letting you, a middle school age boy, stay home with your nineteen-year-old, college age brother. They set down many rules for both of you to follow, including not having any friends over.

What would you do if your friend showed you a gun?

When you go to Eric’s house with your new group of friends, he shows the group a fully loaded handgun that is left in his mother’s nightstand.

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Off Target: The Path You Choose – #1

You are new in town and it’s your first day at a new school. Your neighbor, Trevor introduces you to a new group of three boys and two girls. Right away you notice that Eric, one of the guys in the group, is being bullied at school.

The one fans have been waiting for!

Grandma, along with four other senior ladies, are taken up into a whirlwind and no one knows where they went! And, if that weren’t bad enough, Alyssa’s cousin, Autumn, and the dogs are accidentally transported to Wishville in a beautiful new car.

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Through the Rug 3: Charm Forest

Grandma Emma, Domino, and Alyssa return home from Wishville and everything slowly goes back to normal. That is, until Grandma Emma accidentally summons a tornado during a neighborhood event.

How will Santa get gifts to everyone without his list?

Santa still had gifts to deliver, but without his list, he had no idea which gift to deliver to which child.

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The Year Santa Lost His List

With list in hand, Santa boarded his sleigh on Christmas Eve. Things were going well until a huge gush of wind blew the list right out of Santa’s hand.

Federal prisoner Cedric Dean learned at a young age to bully others to get what he wanted,

but now works to educate troubled youth. Their stories, along with many others, offer insight into bullying from the perspective of both the victim and the bully.

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Erase the Problem of Bullying

Bullying, discrimination, teasing, and abuse are harmful. Some violate your civil rights, as well. And all of them are wrong.

Bullies nearly kept NBA All Star James Donaldson from a successful basketball career. Abby was bullied by her friends’ parents because of her mom’s occupation.

Finding the True Spirit of Christmas

There are buttons along the side of the boot that not only make snow. One button plays Christmas music, one spays a mist to help children have gingerbread dreams, and the other button makes the boot turbo charged to help Santa get up the chimney.

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Santa’s Mysterious Boot

Santa is trying out a special boot this year to make snow in places like New Zealand where it’s summer in December.

Overcoming the Fear of Public Speaking

You will read about others who struggle with this common fear and those who had a choice to either learn public speaking or risk losing their job. Learn tips from experts; read about kids who learned public speaking at an early age, and stories from performers who tell others how to perform without fear.

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Shaking Behind the Microphone

Do you suffer from the fear of public speaking? You are not alone. In the book, Shaking Behind the Microphone: Overcoming the Fear of Public Speaking, Jill Vanderwood shares her story of being terrified to speak in public. She now speaks to groups and teaches workshops without fear.

What do you do when almost your whole family are doing drugs or drinking?

You are also expected to do drugs, right? You will read about other kids who took the hard road to drug abuse and found their way back. Learn about drugs and the myths and lies behind them, and hear about goal oriented kids…

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Drugs Make You Un-Smarter

Fifteen-year-old Savanna Peterson went beyond the expectations of others and took a stand against drugs; even though her older brother has parties while her mom is at work, the cops are watching her house, and her dad spent most of her life in prison, for drugs.

These days, there’s a lot of talk about going green, but does anyone actually do it?

Learn clean energy ideas as simple as putting on a sweater rather than turning up the heat. You’ll see how kids like you can save the earth. Meet a teenage girl who learned to drive with a car fueled by used cooking grease.

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What’s it Like, Living Green? Kids Teaching Kids, by the Way They Live

In What’s It Like Living Green? You’ll learn how other kids live green, along with tips on recycling, reusing and environmental awareness.

Domino outsmarts the dogcatcher!

Domino makes sure things don’t turn out well for a bank robber with a bag full of money. Alyssa falls into the nest of a strange bird and Grandma’s most embarrassing moment is broadcast on national television. Rub your return token and come to Wishville, for more fun adventures and magical mishaps.

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Through the Rug 2: Follow That Dog

The dogcatcher returns for Grandma Emma’s dog Domino, or is it the rug he’s after? Grandma and Alyssa follow Domino through the rug, back to Wishville, where all wishes are granted.

Your adventure will take you to Wishville where all wishes are granted.

Swim with the fishes, meet up with pirates, and spend the night at the zoo. Discover the magic of more hours in the day, and enjoy every adventure you fall into. You will leave Wishville knowing you can return at any time.

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Through the Rug

Come along with ten-year-old Alyssa, a colorful dog named Domino an absent minded grandmother and a persistent dogcatcher as they fall through the rug.