A boy discovers his Native American heritage in this Depression-era tale of identity and friendship by the author of Code Talker It's 1932, and twelve-year-old Cal Black and his Pop have been riding the rails for years after losing their farm in the Great Depression. Cal likes being a "knight of the road" with Pop, even if they're broke. But then Pop has to go to Washington, DC--some of his fellow veterans are marching for their government checks, and Pop wants to make sure he gets his due--and Cal can't go with him. So Pop tells Cal something he never knew before: Pop is actually a Creek Indian, which means Cal is too. And Pop has decided to send Cal to a government boarding school for Native Americans in Oklahoma called the Challagi School. At school, the other Creek boys quickly take Cal under their wings. Even in the harsh, miserable conditions of the Bureau of Indian Affairs boarding school, he begins to learn about his people's history and heritage. He learns their language and customs. And most of all, he learns how to find strength in a group of friends who have nothing beyond each other.

A cultural “biography” of Robert Frost’s beloved poem, arguably the most popular piece of literature written by an American “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood . . .” One hundred years after its first publication in August 1915, Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken” is so ubiquitous that it’s easy to forget that it is, in fact, a poem. Yet poetry it is, and Frost’s immortal lines remain unbelievably popular. And yet in spite of this devotion, almost everyone gets the poem hopelessly wrong. David Orr’s The Road Not Taken dives directly into the controversy, illuminating the poem’s enduring greatness while revealing its mystifying contradictions. Widely admired as the poetry columnist for The New York Times Book Review, Orr is the perfect guide for lay readers and experts alike. Orr offers a lively look at the poem’s cultural influence, its artistic complexity, and its historical journey from the margins of the First World War all the way to its canonical place today as a true masterpiece of American literature. “The Road Not Taken” seems straightforward: a nameless traveler is faced with a choice: two paths forward, with only one to walk. And everyone remembers the traveler taking “the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference.” But for a century readers and critics have fought bitterly over what the poem really says. Is it a paean to triumphant self-assertion, where an individual boldly chooses to live outside conformity? Or a biting commentary on human self-deception, where a person chooses between identical roads and yet later romanticizes the decision as life altering? What Orr artfully reveals is that the poem speaks to both of these impulses, and all the possibilities that lie between them. The poem gives us a portrait of choice without making a decision itself. And in this, “The Road Not Taken” is distinctively American, for the United States is the country of choice in all its ambiguous splendor. Published for the poem’s centennial—along with a new Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition of Frost’s poems, edited and introduced by Orr himself—The Road Not Taken is a treasure for all readers, a triumph of artistic exploration and cultural investigation that sings with its own unforgettably poetic voice.

Five high school seniors. Two different roads. One life-changing decision. For fans of Tommy Wallach and Patrick Ness comes a “must-have coming-of-age story” (School Library Journal) that explores what happens to five teens when they choose the road…and the road not taken. Should Brian play in Friday’s football game, even though his head really hurts? Should Allegra commit to college now that her mother’s illness has returned? Should Cole cheat on the SATs for a chance to get into his dream school? Should Nikki go all the way with her boyfriend? Should Wiley tell his best friend that he loves her and risk losing her completely? These five seniors are about to have an opportunity people only dream about: to experience two potential outcomes of a life-altering decision. When it’s all over, will they still recognize their futures?

"Readers who choose the book for the attraction of Navajo code talking and the heat of battle will come away with more than they ever expected to find."—Booklist, starred review Throughout World War II, in the conflict fought against Japan, Navajo code talkers were a crucial part of the U.S. effort, sending messages back and forth in an unbreakable code that used their native language. They braved some of the heaviest fighting of the war, and with their code, they saved countless American lives. Yet their story remained classified for more than twenty years. But now Joseph Bruchac brings their stories to life for young adults through the riveting fictional tale of Ned Begay, a sixteen-year-old Navajo boy who becomes a code talker. His grueling journey is eye-opening and inspiring. This deeply affecting novel honors all of those young men, like Ned, who dared to serve, and it honors the culture and language of the Navajo Indians. An ALA Best Book for Young Adults "Nonsensational and accurate, Bruchac's tale is quietly inspiring..."—School Library Journal

No stranger to second chances, former governor and congressman Mark Sanford admits to twice having a “dead man walking,” politically. First in 2009, when an extramarital affair went public and lost him his marriage and the South Carolina governorship, and then again in 2018 when his criticism of Donald Trump resulted in the loss of his seat in Congress. In this revealing and brutally honest memoir and political analysis, Sanford first tells the story of his two very different falls and how the hard lessons he learned from the first led him to inevitably choosing the second by maintaining his integrity and opposing Trump. In TWO ROADS DIVERGED Sanford analyzes the immense harm he believes Trump's presidency of lies, cronyism, shady dealings, and bullying caused to our country, and especially to the Republican party. Within four years, the GOP was synonymous with fake news, extreme divisiveness, and brazen lies. Rather than becoming great again, the party had degenerated into a personality cult centered around Donald Trump.But Sanford strongly believes that the Republican party has a choice at its current crossroads. TWO ROADS DIVERGED is also a serious examination of what what fellow conservatives can do to help calm today's political waters and build a better future for both the party and the country. As he was, the GOP has been given a second chance...if those in the party are wise enough to recognize it, and brave enough to take it.

"DESCRIPTIONS OF NATURE AND THE SHENANDOAH MADE ME WANT TO STRAP ON MY HIKING BOOTS." -Charles Covington In 1965, life on the morning side of the Blue Ridge Mountains feels far away from world events. Jerry Fletcher and David Williams are seniors at Rappahannock High School, ready to graduate and get on with their lives. They are more concerned with the baggage they have inherited from their parents than Civil Rights or the Gulf of Tonkin.Jerry is the only son of a family evicted from the mountains to make way for Shenandoah National Park. His path seemed set by family history and the comfort he finds in the mountains, but fate and war will take him away from home.David is the eldest son of a local fundamentalist preacher. His future seemed set in the ministry, but experiences guide him down a path that differs from his father's expectations and he must reconcile his changing world view with the values he holds dear.Debut novelist James G. Brown has published articles on life in rural Virginia and books in the fields of agroindustry and rural development and lives in the shadow of the Blue Ridge."SO MUCH TO ENJOY IN THIS POWERFUL GENERATIONAL STORY" -Charles Burnell