New short novel for teenagers, teachers, mentors, parents and many more

It's been a long time coming, but finally I plucked up the courage to do something with a novel I had begun writing many years ago. How do we cope, as teenagers, with the peer pressure that confronts us day in and day out, in our relationships, via social media etc.? How do we, as educators, move alongside students who are at the most confusing time in their lives and speak to the gifts and talents they are unable to see because of all the other stuff going on in their lives, around them etc.? How do we as parents come to understand these children of ours as they journey through adolescence, not making the mistake of trying to be their best friend - how can a parent be a best friend? How do we build our lives on strong foundations and develop lifelong skills to cope with all that life will throw at us, to become positive, resilient change-agents who actually empathise and care about those less privileged than we are and try and do something about it? These are some of the questions I have asked myself throughout my teaching career and decided to tell a story, set in a fictitious school in Auckland, new Zealand, where I lived for eight years. I remain strongly of the opinion, that young people can change the world in which we live - my teachers told me that and I can't say my generation covers themselves in glory in that area. However, many are 'Making a Difference' and that's why I chose that title. The sub-title is: The Teacher-Mentor, The Kids and the M.A.D. Project and it's available on Amazon, so please check it out: http://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B00K08SYLE/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_ask_1RsLH.0S6PKM5 It's deliberately a short, approximately 60,000 word, read, looking at life through the eyes of 16-year old Lisa Court. The school I work at has an outreach program to the disadvantaged communities on the Island of Santo, Vanuatu. I visited there a few weeks ago (perhaps another Blog post on that will be forthcoming) and I returned determined to try and do something to contribute to those communities. So, initially, I will donate 20% of proceeds from the sale of this eBook to those projects.