Angela Johnson has won numerous literary prizes for her children's books, including three Coretta Scott King awards for distinguished writing by an African-American author.

Last year, she was selected for a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation "genius'' grant, one of only four children's book authors ever to have won the prestigious, no-strings-attached $500,000 award.

But young fans of Johnson's work often are most impressed by who once lived in her Kent, Ohio, house.

"They love the idea that 'Captain Underpants' lived here,'' Johnson laughed in an interview, explaining that she bought the house some years ago from "Captain Underpants" author Dav Pilkey and his girlfriend, Newbery Medal-winning author Cynthia Rylant.

It was Rylant who gave Johnson a crucial leg up in the literary world. In the 1980s, Johnson had quit Kent State University, determined to try to make it as a writer for children. To keep herself financially afloat, she worked as a nanny, and among her young charges was Rylant's son.

Rylant, already an established star in the children's book world, heard that Johnson was interested in writing for children. She asked to see some of Johnson's work. At first, Johnson demurred, cowed by Rylant's reputation.

"Then, a couple of years later, she asked again. I was leaving town, so I thought it would be perfect timing, I could give some writing to her and then run,'' Johnson said.

She didn't get to run far. Rylant was impressed with Johnson's work and sent it on to her publisher. In 1989, Johnson published her first children's book, Tell Me a Story Mama.

Since then, Johnson, 42, has published 40 books for children. Her work ranges from board books for the youngest readers to children's poetry to gritty young adult novels.

Last month, Johnson's latest young adult novel, The First Part Last (Simon & Schuster, $15.95, ages 12 up) won a double prize - it was chosen both for this year's Coretta Scott King award and for the Michael L. Printz award for best young adult novel. Both awards are given by the American Library Association, which also selects the winners of the Caldecott and Newbery Medals each year.

Featuring an arresting cover photo of a young man holding an infant, The First Part Last tells the story of 16-year-old Bobby, a teenage artist who decides to ignore advice to give up his baby daughter for adoption, and instead chooses to raise her himself.

"Bobby, first introduced in Heaven - another Coretta Scott King Award winner (1999) - tells in a gripping first-person narrative the not-so-rosy realities of teen parenthood,'' said Chrystal Carr Jeter, head of the 2004 King Award committee. "Johnson's powerful portrayal of a sensitive and nurturing young man is about a rare, yet realistic, teen dilemma.''

Pam Spencer Holley, chair of the 2004 Printz Award committee, adds: "Bobby's voice comes on strong and poignant, pulling readers into heartache, confusion, and insecurity. Angela

Johnson's work never verges on sentimentality and brings readers close to the true meaning of parenthood.''

Johnson said she never meant to write a sequel to Heaven. In that book, she details what happens when 14-year-old Marley learns that the people she thought were her parents actually are her aunt and uncle. One of the characters in Heaven is a teenager named Bobby, a single father raising his young daughter, Feather.

At a school talk one day, Johnson asked a group of sixth-grade girls who was their favorite character in Heaven. They readily replied, "Bobby.'' Shortly afterward, Johnson got a call from her editor, wondering if she would consider writing a sequel to Heaven.

But Johnson still wasn't persuaded that she should write a sequel until several months later, when she was on a New York City subway platform. "I saw a young boy, probably 15 or 16, standing there with a little baby in his arms. And I was just overcome. He looked so incredible holding that baby that I just wanted to follow him. Instead I went back to my hotel room and started writing.''

Johnson, who lives alone, is writing a third book focused on the same characters. It's just one of three young adult novels that the prolific author currently is working on. Meanwhile, three other Johnson books are scheduled to be published this year - two picture books and a novel.

"I'm completely neurotic,'' she laughed. "I work on three books at a time. When your agent says, 'Stop it, you need a rest,' you know that you're overdoing it!''

Although her characters are African-American, Johnson stressed that she works hard to write stories that can appeal to young readers of any race. "I want to reach a wide audience,'' she said.

The universality of Johnson's stories was one of the reasons she was chosen to receive a MacArthur award. As the foundation officials put it: "While her narrators are feisty, intelligent, and sensitive African-American girls struggling with their parents, their independence, and the challenges of growing up, Johnson's stories retain a universality that resonates with both young readers and adults.''

Born June 18, 1961 in Tuskegee, Ala., Johnson moved with her family to northeast Ohio when she was a young child. Johnson's father was an autoworker and her mother was a comptroller at a social service agency.

Books and reading played a major role in Johnson's childhood. Everyone in the family, including Johnson's two younger brothers, spent much of their time reading. In fact, Johnson's father actually banned reading during meals after he looked around the dinner table one night and saw everyone in the family with their heads buried in books.

Johnson also vividly recalls story times at her elementary school. During those read-aloud sessions, "book people came to life. They sat beside me in Maple Grove School.''

That's when Johnson knew she wanted to be a writer. She asked for a diary and has been writing in journals ever since. "In high school, I wrote punk poetry that went with my razor blade necklace,'' she writes in an essay on the Simon & Schuster Web site. "I didn't want anyone to like it. ... [Now] I hope that my writing is universal and speaks to everyone who reads it. I still have the necklace, though.''

Thinking she needed to find a way to make a living, Johnson attended Kent State University. Her goal was to get a degree in education and become a special education teacher, tapping into her love for working with children. Partway through college, however, Johnson decided that she needed to choose between teaching and writing.

"I felt that, if I had stayed and gotten my degree, more than likely I wouldn't write,'' she said.

Johnson was thrilled by the lucky break she got via her connection to Rylant. But she also felt a responsibility to succeed.

"It's not always wonderful to do the 'Cinderella' thing. She put herself out for me, and I had to make it work.''

Johnson said she never specifically chose to become a children's writer, but that was the "voice'' in which she naturally wrote. And it feels just right, she added. While she doesn't have any children of her own, Johnson said she's never forgotten the emotions of being a child or young adult, and that helps keep her work fresh.

"I love children. I find them so interesting. And I love the incredible spirit they show in a very difficult world.''

Contact Karen MacPherson at: kmacpherson@nationalpress.com or 202-662-7075.