A humorous and joyful celebration of love and sharing by the award-winning and bestselling duo, Angela Johnson and Dav Pilkey. When Maya's grandfather comes to visit from Alaska, he brings a surprise in a crate -- something, he says, to teach her "fun and sharing." Maya hopes it's a horse or a big brother. But instead, it's a huge, pink pig named Julius! Maya's parents see Julius as a slob, but Maya feels differently. She sees a playmate, a protector, and a sharer in all that's magical and wild. This brand-new edition of the classic picture book by award-winning author Angela Johnson and illustrator Dav Pilkey will teach a new generation of readers about friendship, affection, and sharing, with lots of laughs along the way.

The Crossover: An Instructional Guide for Literature provides lesson plans and activities for this award-winning literary work. This valuable resource helps teachers add more rigor to their instruction with complex literature. Text-dependent questions help students analyze the text with higher-order thinking skills, with lessons focused on story elements, vocabulary, and more. Close reading activities throughout the literature units encourage students to use textual evidence as they revisit passages to respond more critically about the text. With various methods of assessing comprehension, this instructional guide offers strategies for cross-curricular activities as students build a greater understanding of this great literary work.

"All he ever wanted to do was fly."
Three-time Coretta Scott King Award-winning author Angela Johnson and "New York Times" bestselling illustrator Loren Long invite readers to ponder a band of undercelebrated World War II heroes -- the Tuskegee Airmen. With fleeting prose and transcendent imagery, this book by the masterful author/artist duo reveals how a boy's love of flight takes him on a journey from the dusty dirt roads of Alabama to the war-torn skies of Europe and into the hearts of those who are only now beginning to understand the part these brave souls played in the history of America.

"You never know what's gonna come down -- in Heaven."
At fourteen, Marley knows she has Momma's hands and Pops's love for ice cream, that her brother doesn't get on her nerves too much, and that Uncle Jack is a big mystery. But Marley doesn't know all she thinks she does, because she doesn't know the truth. And when the truth comes down with the rain one stormy summer afternoon, it changes everything. It turns Momma and Pops into liars. It makes her brother a stranger and Uncle Jack an even bigger mystery.
All of a sudden, Marley doesn't know who she is anymore and can only turn to the family she no longer trusts to find out.
Truth often brings change. Sometimes that change is for the good. Sometimes it isn't. Coretta Scott King award-winning author Angela Johnson writes a poignant novel of deception and self-discovery -- about finding the truth and knowing what to do when truth is at hand.

"A small child imagines a future when he will be old with his Grandaddy. . . . The African-American child and grandfather are distinct individuals, yet also universal figures, recognizable to anyone who has ever shared the bond of family love across generations".--School Library Journal, starred review. Full color.