LEANNE ITALIE

Associated Press Writer
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Sara Ruhl sets Broadway buzzing in two rooms

"How extraordinary," Catherine Givings observes. "It looks like a farming tool. Where do you put it?"

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Halloween costumes include bite-size gore fest

Halloween has morphed into a gore fest that has kids as young as 6 unleashing their inner monsters in ultra-violent costumes — blood-smeared chain saws and spiked killing gloves sold separately.

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Jobless and homeless, blogger scores Elle job

Six months ago, Brianna Karp found herself living in an old truck and camper she inherited after the suicide of a father she barely knew.

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Teen lit alive with positive characters of size

Like never before, teen lit is alive with plus-size characters who take on their school tormenters and get the guy, soaking up self-esteem as football heroes and big-girl models.

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The trouble with Harry: He's nearly all grown up

It's a little-kid rite of passage: lugging Harry Potter to and fro, begging for toy wands and Hogwarts birthday parties. But the boy wizard is nearly grown, and the love of magic he inspires in the very young is now tinged with pure evil, dripping with teen hormones.

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Today's celebrities sometimes rounded up for money

By day, Lori Levine's all girl from Long Island, her head full of Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, Kim Kardashian and the Shiny Toy Guns as she holes up in her office with a smart young staff and a pooch named Sukie.

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Mother's Day tinged with sadness for birthmoms

At church each Mother's Day, Eileen McQuade used to watch forlornly as flowers were handed out to beaming women surrounded by their loving children. Though she was raising two daughters, her special day was filled with grief and shame.

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New e-book captures kids' hopes, dreams for Obama

End war, forever. Make the planet greener. Please help my dad find work. Make it rain candy!

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Classic holiday stories inspire during tough times

Hard times have you down this holiday season? Take a trip to the library for some inspiration from treasured stories of Christmas past.

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Parents of teens watch Nebraska safe haven law

Yes, you have to clean your room. No, you can't go to the party. Yes, you have to ride the school bus. GET UP!

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Grandson of Ludwig Bemelmans revives `Madeline'

From the nibs of his ink pen to the spirit of his rhyme on the very first page, John Bemelmans Marciano has tried to stay true to a grandfather he never met in putting out the first all new "Madeline" adventure in nearly 50 years.

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From Beijing to barnstorm, US gymnasts on the road

Bringing home gold and silver from Beijing has certainly earned Shawn Johnson a rest, but this 16-year-old's not quite ready.

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Little `Barbie Brat' bullies become concern

Recess was Allie Long's favorite part of the day until the second grade, when some of her friends on the playground pressured her to join their whisper campaign against a classmate.

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Parents fret as even toddlers love 'High School'

Talya Appelbaum recently had a "High School Musical" birthday party. She got special balloons and a slice of cake decorated with the spoiled Sharpay, her favorite character because "she's with Ryan."

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Animal whisperers help you communicate with your pets

Ears twitching wildly, Nikki and Lucy hovered near the telephone, aroused by the caller on the other end. He was their "whisperer," and the girls had something to tell me: "Their food tastes like sawdust."

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Kids adopted from China raise cash for quake

A small body frozen in a moment, surrounded by rubble. A terrified, bleeding young girl carried on a stretcher. Sobbing mothers clutching photos of children lost to the earthquake in China.

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New children's book takes on mommy's plastic surgery

Divorce. Bullies. Foster care. There are books for children on just about every tough subject these days. But mommy's plastic surgery?

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Jenna Bush wedding is part of lively, varied history

Tricia Nixon was risque in a sleeveless gown at her Rose Garden wedding. Luci Baines Johnson, at age 19 a fresh convert to Catholicism, opted for a church ceremony but had a White House reception with a 13-tier cake.

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