"An unputdownable gothic novel following a young woman who is determined to make it as a singer in America-no matter the cost. Renowned for her singing across the English countryside, Emma is tired of performing only in pubs and at church services. She's determined to leave her misty hometown for the dazzling streets of New York City. She'll become a Broadway star, or die trying. Her father, stubborn and full of rage, disowns her on the spot. But...

In these 23 original stories, mothers and fathers from all walks of life - straight, gay, single, surrogate, biological, adoptive - explore the challenges and rewards of parenthood. Here, among other adventures, parents fall hopelessly in love with newborns, secretly fear having made huge mistakes, race to finish birthing at home before the paramedics arrive, struggle with the bureaucracy of international adoption, despair of ever getting a one-year-old...