Join James Stephens as he shares original short stories inspired by his interaction with children. A talking worm, a bullfrog bully, and a friendly duck family are just a few of the many characters that spring to life on these pages. Let your imagination run wild as you ride a bull with DooDad the Clown and fly into outer space with Santa Claus. As each adventure ends, the main character has learned a valuable lesson--about friendship, manners, obedience, and other Christian values. Each of the seventeen short stories includes a timeless black-and-white illustration to intrigue you. And the final story has a twist: a place on each page where you can tap into your own creative side and draw pictures to go with the story. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I cannot thank you enough for sharing your stories with my class. Your ability to turn a simple lesson into a fun story that keeps children engaged is powerful. I enjoyed watching my students connect with the characters and explain why they loved them. --Shaunda Douglas Kindergarten Teacher, Allen ISD When I was little, I would go to James and Kathy Stephens' house a lot. He would read his stories to me. They always made me smile. I thought of all sorts of names to name Charlie's horse in "Charlie Goes to the Farm." I was the first small child that he read his stories to. I loved them. --Natalee Hooper, 13 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From television producer Jack Gray comes a generational account of finding one’s way at work, at home, and even across the street. There are a lot of unforgettable characters in these pages: a loveable if possibly alcoholic dog; a set of grandparents who crush on Alex Trebek and obsess about death; Golden Girls and blue bloods, anchormen and Supreme Court justices; divas and wags—but the best character of all is the author himself. To read Jack Gray’s musings is to enter the company of a young man of titanic wit and talent. As he observes and echoes the fixations and neuroses of his generation and our times, he will make you squirm, guffaw, and ultimately marvel.

Boston, 2015 Two years after nearly losing her life in the Boston Marathon bombing, Annie David is still far from “Boston strong.” Instead she remains isolated and defeated—plagued by guilt over her niece, crippled in the blast, and by an antique ring alongside a hazy hero’s face. But when she learns the identity of her rescuer, will he be the hero she’s imagined? And can the long-past history of the woman behind the ring set her free from the guilt and fears of the present? Boston, 1770 As a woman alone in a rebellious town, Liberty Caldwell finds herself in a dangerous predicament. When a British lieutenant, Alexander Smythe, comes to her rescue and offers her employment, Liberty accepts. As months go by, Alexander not only begins to share his love of poetry with her, but protects Liberty from the advances of a lecherous captain living in the officers’ house where she works. Mounting tensions explode in the Boston Massacre, and Liberty’s world is shattered as her brother, with whom she has just reunited, is killed in the fray. Desperate and alone, she returns home, only to be assaulted by the captain. Afraid and furious toward redcoats, Liberty leaves the officers’ home, taking with her a ring that belonged to Alexander. Two women, separated by centuries, must learn to face their fears. And when they feel they must be strong, they learn that sometimes true strength is found in surrender. A 2018 Christy Award finalist!

On October 2nd, 2010, while walking to the mailbox with a cup of coffee in one hand and a letter in the other, I was hit by a vehicle in a crosswalk. Mind, body, and spirit were forever shattered. Years of doctors, procedures, and at its zenith, 14 different medications that at times separated me from reality in every sense of the word. The story is of a man who barely recognized his own writing. My battle with a mind and body who was not his own. This was my battle to defeat myself.

The face of the pedestrian safety crisis looks a lot like Ignacio Duarte-Rodriguez. The 77-year old grandfather was struck in a hit-and-run crash while trying to cross a high-speed, six-lane road without crosswalks near his son’s home in Phoenix, Arizona. He was one of the more than 6,000 people killed while walking in America in 2018. In the last ten years, there has been a 50 percent increase in pedestrian deaths. The tragedy of traffic violence has barely registered with the media and wider culture. Disproportionately the victims are like Duarte-Rodriguez—immigrants, the poor, and people of color. They have largely been blamed and forgotten. In Right of Way, journalist Angie Schmitt shows us that deaths like Duarte-Rodriguez’s are not unavoidable “accidents.” They don’t happen because of jaywalking or distracted walking. They are predictable, occurring in stark geographic patterns that tell a story about systemic inequality. These deaths are the forgotten faces of an increasingly urgent public-health crisis that we have the tools, but not the will, to solve. Schmitt examines the possible causes of the increase in pedestrian deaths as well as programs and movements that are beginning to respond to the epidemic. Her investigation unveils why pedestrians are dying—and she demands action. Right of Way is a call to reframe the problem, acknowledge the role of racism and classism in the public response to these deaths, and energize advocacy around road safety. Ultimately, Schmitt argues that we need improvements in infrastructure and changes to policy to save lives. Right of Way unveils a crisis that is rooted in both inequality and the undeterred reign of the automobile in our cities. It challenges us to imagine and demand safer and more equitable cities, where no one is expendable.

This is a story of faith and obedience. Carol Cruise lost a leg to amputation, but was determined to complete a walk around the entire perimeter of the continental United States. She placed crosses on her path at mile intervals to serve as milestones of her journey. Her adventure makes a compelling story.