56 pages • 1 hour read
Heaven
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Summary and Study Guide
Overview
Angela Johnson’s Heaven (1998), the first installment in the series of the same name, is a young adult novel that follows the story of Marley, a 14-year-old girl whose idyllic life in the small town of Heaven, Ohio, is disrupted by the revelation that the couple she thought were her birth parents actually adopted her after her biological mother died and her biological father left her behind for a life on the road.
Heaven explores themes of identity, belonging, and the meaning of family. Johnson’s lyrical prose is rich with emotional depth and illustrates the impact of secrets and the power of love and community support. The novel has been honored with the 1999 Coretta Scott King Award for fiction.
This guide refers to the 2013 Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers edition.
Content Warning: Both the source text and this guide contain descriptions of racist violence and self-harm.
Plot Summary
Fourteen-year-old Marley lives with her Momma, Pops, and brother Butchy in the small town of Heaven, Ohio. Marley goes to the Western Union in town frequently to wire money to her Uncle Jack, who travels around the country in a truck, living a nomadic lifestyle with his dog, Boy.
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