New Releases by Joyce Carol Thomas

I ease myself back in the window seat and breathe in as the train breathes out We''re on our way! On our way to the Land of Milk and Honey Lemons as big as oranges, the cool Pacific Ocean, mountains that rise up beyond the outstretched bay—California beckons as one girl makes her way west on a journey filled with excitement, hope, and the promise of a place where people from all paths come together and music fills the air. This is the true story of author Joyce Carol Thomas''s trip from Oklahoma to California in 1948, when she moved there as a girl. During that time, many people went west, drawn by warmth and possibility, reflected in the people of all cultures and ethnicities who started a new life there. Coretta Scott King honoree Joyce Carol Thomas and Coretta Scott King Award winner Floyd Cooper capture the anticipation of a bright adventure and a world filled with freedom and opportunity.

In these four acclaimed novels, National Book Award-winning author Joyce Carol Thomas evocatively captures the triumph and struggles of teens as they come of age, and break and bond with their families. BRIGHT SHADOW (1983) This Coretta Scott King Honor Book and Thomas'' sophomore effort continues the moving saga she began in her debut novel Marked By Fire. Abyssinia Jackson is back home from college where she''s studying to be a doctor. But she must learn to cope with tragedy when peace is shattered in her Oklahoma countryside and her boyfriend Carl Lee disappears./DIV "Just when a critic thinks he has an author tightly held, a sequel wriggles free of preconceptions and hops away. . . . Sophisticated."--The Purdue Exponent "Amazing."--Panache Post WATER GIRL (1986) In the third book of a compelling saga that began with Marked By Fire, 15-year old Amber makes a startling family discovery that shakes her to her core. "Fans of Marked By Fire will want to read this story of an adolescent search for identity." —School Library Journal "A panorama of human emotions . . . entertaining reading.—VOYA "Teens who liked the first two books won''t be disappointed."--BooklistDIV THE GOLDEN PASTURE (1987) In this ALA Pick of the List, 13-year old Carl''s relationship with a wild rodeo horse teaches more about connecting with his dad than about riding. "A spirited, lyrical tale with a memorable cast of characters. . . . Thomas is a weaver of words, combining just the right ones to create a loving picture of three generations." —Publishers Weekly "Thomas'' love for Oklahoma and empathy for her well-delineated characters emerge . . . a delight." —School Library Journal JOURNEY (1990) 16-year old Meggie is scared. One by one, her town''s teenagers are mysteriously disappearing. What Meggie doesn''t know is that her childhood holds the only key to save them. "Spellbinding."—VOYA "Appealing heroine, fast pace, and SF overtones will absorb readers."—Kirkus Reviews

Do you dare to cross paths with ... An enchantress who can slip in and out of her skin, A man more evil than the devil, A skull who talks back, A pair of creepy feet that can walk on their own? Spooky, chilling, and fantastical, this collection of six scary tales will send shivers up your spine! The stories in the skull talks back have been selected from Every Tongue Got To Confess, Zora Neale Hurston''s third volume of folklore. Through Joyce Carol Thomas''s carefully adapted text and Leonard Jenkins''s arresting illustrations, the soulful, fanciful imaginations of ordinary folk will reach readers of all ages.

A variation on the traditional Cinderella story set in a Southern swamp and with a Great Gospel Convention instead of a ball.

Thomas has skillfully adapted stories by acclaimed folklorist and novelist Zora Neale Hurston, who traveled the rural South and gathered tales from ordinary folk. Full color.

Now in paperback -- the wonderful first novel praised by Billie Letts: "Joyce Carol Thomas''s writing glows with the illumination of ''glory light.'' " In this joyful, moving novel, Joyce Carol Thomas tells the story of Dr. Abyssinia Jackson, a regal, nurturing woman possessed of remarkable healing powers who sings soul-soothing gospel to help cure her patients. From her office, she tends to the women of Ponca City chanting, "If you can be healed, I will be here morning, noon, and night. A beacon in the healing House of Light." There''s Pearline, who is beaten regularly by her husband; Vennie Walker, a "day girl" whose mistreatment by her employer has destroyed her feet and her spirit; and Zenobia, a talented musician who finds love and solace in the arms of a white man. Filled with memorable characters, peppered with humor, and marked by graceful, lyrical prose, House of Light is a story of a community bound by caring and love, about the pleasures of helping others and ourselves, and about the power to heal that lies deep within us all.

"For children discovering their individuality, this beautiful poem celebrates uniqueness, love, and self-awareness"-- Cover back.

I have heard of a land Where the imagination has no fences Where what is dreamed one night Is accomplished the next day In the late 1880s, signs went up all around America -- land was free in the Oklahoma territory. And it was free to everyone: Whites, Blacks, men and women alike. All one needed to stake a claim was hope and courage, strength and perseverance. Thousands of pioneers, many of them African-Americans newly freed from slavery, headed west to carve out a new life in the Oklahoma soil. Drawing upon her own family history, National Book Award winner Joyce Carol Thomas has crafted an unforgettable anthem to these brave and determined people from America''s past. Richly illustrated by Coretta Scott King Award honoree Floyd Cooper, I Have Heard of a Land is a glorious tribute to the Afrian-American pioneer spirit. National Book Award-winning author Joyce Carol Thomas draws on family history for this lyrical account of America''s little-known past. In the late 1880s, thousands of pioneers, many African Americans newly freed from slavery, raced to the Oklahoma Territory. Here all one needed to stake a claim was hope and courage and the determination to journey west. Richly illustrated by Coretta Scott King Award Honor -- recipient Floyd Cooper and complete with an author''s endnote, I Have Heard of a Land commemorates the strength of the African-American pioneers. It is a hymn to liberty and unity, an ode to a land where what can be dreamed can be accomplished. 00-01 Sequoyah Children''s Book Award Masterlist

‘A cycle of a dozen lyrical poems exploring issues of African-American identity through delicately interwoven images. . . . Laden with meaning, the poetry is significant and lovely. Cooper''s paintings, with vibrant, unsentimentalized characters in earth tone illumined with gold, are warm, contemplative''a beautiful complement to Thomas''s eloquence. A must.'' ''K. ‘Poems rooted in home, family, and the African-American experience…. Highly readable and attractive.'' ''BL. 1994 Coretta Scott King Award Honor Book for Nonfiction 1994 Coretta Scott King Award Honor Book for Illustration 1994 Teachers'' Choices (IRA) Notable 1994 Childrens'' Trade Books in Social Studies (NCSS/CBC) 1994 Notable Trade Books in the Language Arts (NCTE) 100 Books for Reading and Sharing (NY Public Library) 1993 "Pick of the Lists" (ABA)

Despite her mean-spirited foster mother''s attempts to demean her, fourteen-year-old orphan Marigold finds the song within her heart during the search for a new lead gospel singer for the Rose of Sharon Baptist Church.

Meggie spearheads an investigation into the mysterious disappearances and murders of young people in her town, discovering a plot to rob others of their youth in a horrifying way.

Four novels about African Americans growing up and facing problems.

The exquisite horse twelve-year-old Carl Lee finds on his grandfather''s farm one summer helps him to understand his difficult father better.

Abby, born in an Oklahoma cotton field in the wake of a tornado, learns the secrets of folk medicine from the healer Mother Barker as she grows up.