Books published by publisher Hillside Education

To escape his villainous uncle who wants to steal his inheritance, Pedro takes a job as a cabin boy on Magellan's flagship. Pedro experiences all the drama and excitement of the first voyage to travel the globe, including the mutiny of the officers and the hostility of suspicious natives. Pedro survives the voyage and returns to Spain to claim his birthright.

A readable history for Catholic Elementary students, The text presents the context for the founding of the United States including the years of the Crusades and exploration. Told in story-telling fashion, students are drawn into the events leading up to the American Revolution and the key events of the War for Independence. Used in several Catholic home study curricula.

Set in 1005 AD, twins Brus and Jan go a-Viking with their father Harald Redbeard and all their household. They plan to settle in England with Danish relatives there. But, their ships are caught in a fierce gale on the North Sea, and they are taken far off course to the western shore of Scotland. Held captive by a cunning Scottish Laird, Jan and Brus must navigate the political intrigue of chieftain, clan, and king without the help of their father, who has been killed and their mother, who is believed lost at sea. They follow adventure after adventure until they earn their freedom and find a home in Scotland at last.

In 1683, Vienna endured a two-month siege and a battle with the Ottoman Turks. At the last minute, they were relieved by an army led by the King of Poland John Sobieski, with a combined army that included the Habsburg Monarchy, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Holy Roman Empire. Two young trumpeters from nearby Heiligenkreuz Abbey become embroiled in the action, one in the city and one in the hills outside the city. Both have adventurous tales to tell and will never forget their part in the saving of Vienna, and ultimately Christendom, from the conquering Turks.

Sequel to the popular Father Brown Reader: Stories from Chesterton. Includes adaptations for young readers of four of Chesterton's Father Brown murder mysteries: The Inivisible Man, The Mirror of the Magistrate, The Eye of Apollo, and The Perishing Pendragons. In these stories, the notorious criminal Flambeau has reformed and is now a great detective. He is often aided by his friend and confidant Father Brown.

In the mid 500s AD, Irish monks came to Gaul to help restore Christianity in the aftermath of barbarian invasions which had laid waste the Church. Fingal's master at the Abbey in Ireland, Brother Columban had been chosen to go and Fingal secretly follows him. He endures years of hardship as he travels all over Gaul searching for his beloved Columbanus. And yet as he travels and tells others of the wondrous Columbanus and his teaching of God, many are converted and come to serve God with Columbanus. Finally, Fingal realizes how he himself must serve God, and recognizes how God has used his hardship and questing to bring many into His sheepfold. One of Polland's finest stories, weaving adventure and poignancy into a tale of a quest for God's will.

A young Huron boy, Tsiko and his friend Satouta meet Father Jean de Brebeuf and begin a journey that will change his life. As Tsiko grows into manhood, he accepts Christianity and witnesses the painful destruction of his people by the constant and vicious attacks by the neighboring Iroquois. Set in the mid 1600s, this story paints a vivid picture of the Canadian Jesuit missionaries and their patient work with the peaceful Huron people.

This true story of a priest in the American colonial period will inspire young readers to learn more about our religious and patriotic roots. While stationed in Pennsylvania, Father Farmer is assigned to meet the needs of the Catholics in the colony of New Jersey, but there is one problem--Catholic priests are appreciated at all in the New Jersey colony. He goes in plain clothes about the countryside for twenty-one years, never failing to reveal himself as a priest whenever needed. And there is a lot of need, as Father Farmer encounters one adventure after another in his travels. The backdrop of the story is the tumultuous period in which the colonists decide whether or not to rebel against England. Father Farmer's life is a testament to the living of the faith in word and deed, and that the Christian religion is one of love and service to others. Yet for all his outward mildness, within him a white hot flame burned, a consuming love of God which made him willing to run all risks, a flame which enkindled those whom he instructed. Eva Betz

My brow is bent beneath a heavy rod! My face is wan and white with many woes! But I will lift my poor chained hands to God, And for my children pray, and for my foes. From "The Prayer of the South" by Fr. Abram Ryan Father Abram Ryan served as a chaplain for the Confederate army during the Civil War, but was revered and admired by North and South alike. He felt a longing to participate in defending his homeland, but saw first hand the moral and physical destruction of war. He prayed fervently for a peaceful end to the conflict. This is his story, the story of his faithful service to God's children and his forgiving victory over the hate and cruelty that followed the war.

Brought to Rome from the British campaign by a kindly Roman officer, young Gretorix is made body slave to Diomed, the crippled son of a Roman senator. Both captives in their own way, the two boys become fast friends, and when Diomed hears of the man called Simon Peter, who heals the sick, he sends Gretorix to learn more about the new religion. Woven into this moving story of friendship and faith is the account of St. Peter's last days in Rome. This is a beautifully told tale of the early Christian movement, set against the flamboyant era of Nero's decadent reign. Originally published in 1963.

Packed with exploits in the forest and on the waterways of colonial America, this is the story of Henry de Tonti, French explorer and pioneer of the Mississippi river. His story has been somewhat lost to history, sitting in the shadows of his friend and commandant, the explorer La Salle. But his accomplishments are just as noteworthy, his bravery just as commendable, and his perseverance just as admirable. The best years of de Tonti's life were given to the exploration and navigation of the that great inland waterway. In 1682 he accompanied La Salle on his voyage of discovery to the river's mouth on the Gulf of Mexico. After the death of La Salle, he continued these explorations and later aided Pierre Le Moyne to build Fort Mobile, the first fortified French garrison and settlement on the Gulf. He was also instrumental in founding the first white settlement west of the Mississippi in Arkansas as well as the city of St. Louis, Missouri.