Books published by publisher Kansas State Historical Society

In Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Writer's Life, Pamela Smith Hill delves into the complex and often fascinating relationships Wilder formed throughout her life that led to the writing of her classic Little House series. Using Wilder's stories, personal correspondence, a previously unpublished autobiography, and experiences in South Dakota, Hill has produced a historical-literary biography of the famous and much-loved author. Following the course of Wilder's life, and her real family's journey west, Hill provides a context both familial and literary, for Wilder's writing career. Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Writer's Life is the first book in the South Dakota Biography Series, which highlights some of the state's most famous residents. Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane: Deadwood Legends and Seth Bullock: Black Hills Lawman are also a part of this series. More information about this series can be found on the South Dakota Historical Society Press website.

Pickup trucks and eagles, yellow school buses and painted horses, Mother Earth and Sister Meadowlark all join together to greet the dawn. They marvel at the colours and sounds, smells and memories that dawn creates. Animals and humans alike turn their faces upwards and gaze as the sun makes its daily journey from horizon to horizon. Dawn is a time to celebrate with a smiling heart, to start a new day in the right way, excited for what might come. Birds sing and dance, children rush to learn, dewdrops glisten from leaves, and gradually the sun warms us. Each time the sun starts a new circle, we can start again as well. All these things are part of the Lakota way, a means of living in balance. S. D. Nelson offers young readers wonder and happiness as a better way of appreciating their culture and surroundings. He draws inspiration from traditional stories to create Greet the Dawn . His artwork fuses elements of modern with traditional. Above all, he urges each of us to seize the opportunity that dawn offers each day.

In 1886, the Statue of Liberty came to America. If Liberty had been a real woman, she would have had no voice in her new country. She could not vote or run for office. The men in charge of unveiling the statue in New York Harbor even declared that women could not set foot on the island during the welcoming ceremony. That did not stop New York suffragists Matilda Joslyn Gage, Lillie Devereux Blake, and Katherine Devereux Blake. They wanted women to have the liberty to vote and participate in government. They were determined to give the new statue a voice. But, first, they had to find a boat. Matilda, Lillie, and Katie organized hundreds of people and sailed a cattle barge to the front of the day's ceremony, making news and raising their voices for LIBERTY.

Perfect Reading for Ages Five and Up. Animals stop and listen. A new sound is in the forest. The beat vibrates through the trees and across the meadows. What is it? Where is it coming from? Muskrat and Skunk thump on a hollow log BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Birds begin to dance. Buffalo and Antelope join in. There is a rustle in the bushes; a large shape emerges. The animals scatter. Muskrat and Skunk drum on. The story of the drum connects the instrument s sound to the heartbeat of Mother Earth a beat inside all of us. For the Lakota people, the drum is more than something to be played. Its rhythm is felt, and it is central to many ceremonies. Donald F. Montileaux retells the origins of the drum, using traditional stories that Lakota people still tell today. His colorful images breathe life into Muskrat and Skunk, enhancing our understanding of the Lakota culture.

Bang, bang, tap, tap - the scientists at an underground laboratory in South Dakota are busy with their experiments. A creature who has slumbered for many years under the earth wakes up. Soozy opens her eyes and, with a big yawn, emerges from the Black Hills. She makes her way across the state searching for food and friends. The world she discovers is far different from the one she left behind. Munching on motorcycles, chasing bison, and seeing the sites, Soozy hunts for a new place to call home. Illustrations from the cartoonist Chris Browne bring the prehistoric Soozy to life as he regales readers with the adventures of the traveling dinosaur. Her journey takes her across the state, and Browne incorporates facts about the Mount Rushmore State informing readers about the places she visits.