It's 1860 and a new mail company is looking for riders. You are the son of a pioneer family, living in Kansas Territory. You read an ad for a direct mail delivery service. How do you survive the 1,966 miles of the Pony Express?
In 1860, the first Pony Express rider set out on a trail from Missouri to California. With him, he carried a special delivery—the first mail ever carried by hand to the West. Over the next eleven days, he and many other riders would endure harsh weather, dangerous animals, and more. But nothing would diminish their unflagging determination and courage.
In 1860, with North and South about to be divided by war, East and West were united through an extraordinary venture—the Pony Express. Over the course of ten days in April, eighty riders and five hundred horses delivered mail between California and Missouri—a mission that took three weeks by stagecoach. Although it existed for only a year and a half, the Pony Express remains a legendary chapter in American history and a symbol of the bold, adventurous character of the Old West.
When the Pony Express came along, it cut the time it took to send a letter across the country in half. But only a year and a half later, with the arrival of the transcontinental telegraph lines, it was put right out of business. Along with a family's story told through cross country letters, Verla Kay uses her trademark short, rhythmic verse to pack in loads of information about how the Pony Express came to be and why it didn't last.
In 1860, the only Pony Express job 13-year-old Will Cody could land was the "sweat and water run," taking care of the tired and thirsty ponies. But one chilly November morning, Will has his big chance. The news of the U.S. presidential election has been entrusted to the pony boys, and from the looks of it, only Will would be able to get the mail through. But should he risk his own safety and the wrath of his boss, the Terrible Slade, and ride himself?
Hold onto your hats! It's windy on the Danish island of Samsø. Meet the environmentally friendly people who now proudly call their home Energy Island. At a time when most countries are producing ever-increasing amounts of CO2, the rather ordinary citizens of Samsø have accomplished something extraordinary—in just ten years, they have reduced their carbon emissions by 140% and become almost completely energy independent. A narrative tale and a science book in one, this inspiring true story proves that with a little hard work and a big idea, anyone can make a huge step toward energy conservation.
In the 1630s in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, a Puritan settler planted a pear tree—the first pear tree in America. More than a century later, the tree still bore fruit, impressing a famous poet and one of the first US presidents. The pear tree survived hurricanes, fire, and vandalism, and today, more than 350 years after it was first planted, it's alive and strong, and clones of it grow all around the US. This is the amazing true story of the Endicott Pear tree, and how it grew up with our nation.
Cesar Chavez is known as one of America's greatest civil rights leaders. When he led a 340-mile peaceful protest march through California, he ignited a cause and improved the lives of thousands of migrant farmworkers. But Cesar wasn't always a leader. As a boy, he was shy and teased at school. His family slaved in the fields for barely enough money to survive. Cesar knew things had to change, and he thought that—maybe—he could help change them. So he took charge. He spoke up. And an entire country listened.
Poet Juan Felipe Herrera's bilingual memoir paints a vivid picture of his migrant farmworker childhood. In delightful and lyrical language, he recreates the joy of eating breakfast under the open sky, listening to Mexican songs in the little trailer house his father built, and celebrating with other families at a fiesta in the mountains. He remembers his mother singing songs and reciting poetry, and his father telling stories and calling the doves.
All year long Chico and his family move up and down the state of California picking fruits and vegetables. Every September they pick grapes and Chico starts at a new school again. Often other children pick on him—maybe because he is always new or maybe because he speaks Spanish sometimes. Chico's first day in third grade turns out to be different. His teacher likes him right away, and she and his classmates are quick to recognize his excellent math skills. He may even get to go to the math fair! When the fourth-grade bullies confront Chico in the lunchroom, he responds wisely with strengths of his own.
In simple words and sun-drenched paintings, Alma Flor Ada and Simón Silva take us into the fields and orchards, and into the lives of the people who work them. Simple poems in Spanish and English, one for each letter of the Spanish alphabet, describe the wonder of the vegetable and fruit farms. Together, the poems and rich illustrations celebrate the glory of nature and the hearts of all who dedicate their lives to working the land.
Anna is the child of Mennonites from Mexico, who have come north to harvest fruits and vegetables. Sometimes she feels like a bird, flying north in the spring and south in the fall, sometimes like a jackrabbit in an abandoned burrow, since her family occupies an abandoned farmhouse near the fields, sometimes like a kitten, as she shares a bed with her sisters...But above all Anna wonders what it would be like to be a tree rooted deeply in the earth, watching the seasons come and go, instead of being like a "feather in the wind."