Stepping Up: the joyful and emotional Sunday Times bestseller and Richard and Judy Book Club pick 2023. Adored by readers

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Without going into too much, the tragic event was dealt with so brilliantly, it really showed the feelings across all characters in a sensitive and realistic way. The whole storyline was just written perfectly. I greatly respect Family Life, it was a great resource for me in my role as a single father and still is for distributing articles on fatherhood to my students.

The focus of this book is a worthy one. The author provides many real life examples of people stepping up and doing the right thing and how it has helped their lives and businesses. Overall it weaves love, family, romance and friendship with a heartwarming deftness that makes the book almost unputdownable. I could have easily devoured it in one sitting but had to settle for three, even taking my kindle with me to supervise my lunchtime duty! Your lungs with smoke from the front lines, and finish strong. Be prepared to shine when presented with your finest hour. An unspeakable tragedy turns Beth's life upside down, and she finds herself guardian to her teenage niece and toddler nephew, catapulted into an unfamiliar world of bedtime stories, parents' evenings and cuddly elephants. Having never been responsible for anyone - or anything - it's not long before she feels seriously out of her depth.Then there is Jory. Beth's best friend of over twenty years. A connection so strong, that ends up fraying, through a difficult time, as they both find it hard to talk about the crux of the matter. Leadership is not a position. If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader – John Quincy Adams.

Providing for your family is more than meeting physical needs. It also means taking responsibility to provide for emotional and spiritual needs. Somehow, in her debut novel Sarah Turner manages to do both with a deftness of touch that makes for a memorable and lovely read. Self-help and motivational books are only as good as the intentions of the reader to follow the advice they present. But having said that, there is still a wide range of usefulness in such works. I read Stepping Up because my department chair in the high school where I teach bought copies for the whole department (all four of us) and we are reading it as part of our periodic staff development. I mention this because I don't usually read motivational books. But even though I generally steer clear of books like this (Jordan Peterson's 12 Rules for Life and The Book of Mormon being huge exceptions), I found Dr. Izzo's treatise interesting and useful, mainly because it identifies principles of which I am already aware and try to practice in my daily life. These principles include: take responsibility for improving the world around you, lift where you stand, believe that you can indeed affect the world positively, and do something rather than do nothing. If one tries to live these principles, one will not only be acting in a moral and positive way, but will influence others to do the same.

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Written with such love and heart. Sarah has done an exceptional job of marrying her trademark comedy with deep and raw emotion. I loved it!' GIOVANNA FLETCHER

I would have liked to have known what happens to Emmy, and how their lives continued. I want to know more of Albert and Mavis when they were younger (I loved him!). Every child needs teaching training, modeling in the areas of character, relationships, identity, mission One of the book's strengths is its emphasis on the interconnectedness of different areas of life, including relationships, finances, and personal growth. Izzo argues that taking responsibility in one area of life can lead to positive changes in other areas. He provides examples of individuals who have transformed their lives through this approach. There is not power on earth that can neutralize the influence of a high, simple and useful life." Booker T. Washington An incredible debut novel, warm, uplifting and full of so much love. I couldn’t put it down. The pacing was perfect. I feel like everyone needs to read this! It’s definitely one of those books that will stay with me for a long long time.With each new generation, we have lowered our expectations for teenagers -- reject this mindset of our culture p76/78 I am only one person. Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has – Margaret Mead, noted anthropologist. With a little help from her best friend Jory (purely platonic, of course ...) and her lovely, lonely next-door neighbour, Albert, Beth is determined that this time she's not giving up. It's time to step up. STEPPING UP is a heart-blasting triumph of a novel - wise, witty and wonderfully human.' Isabelle Broom