Books in Young American Voices series

In this first book in the Young American Voices series, young Rachel and her family travel by covered wagon following the Oregon Trail from Illinois all the way to California. The terrain is rough and the seven-month trip is filled with adventure--a surprise encounter with Indians, a thunderous buffalo stampede, even the perilous crossing of a flooded river. Rachel's own handwritten journal chronicles every detail and features cherished "pasted-in" mementos--wildflowers, buttons, quilt patches--gathered along the way. Hear Rachel's story in her own words as she and her family make their way to their new home in California.

The Samuels family is made of tough stuff. That’s a good thing, because it’s another trying year in the Dust Bowl. Weeks pass without rain, and it seems that all the plow stirs up is dust. But fortified with hope, love, determination, and ingenuity, eleven-year-old Rose and her family weather the toughest of times. And although Rose’s older brother, Floyd, prefers drawing to farming, he comes through when he is needed most, in his own special way. Carefully and poignantly rendered, Rose’s story will linger in the hearts and minds of young readers.

The year is 1774 and trouble is brewing in Massachusetts. The British army has blockaded Boston and ten-year-old Emma Millar is stuck at Aunt Harmony’s house in the city, far from her family. Her only companion is snobbish Thankful Bliss, who denounces the Revolution and treats Emma like a country bumpkin. Emma wants desperately to help the American struggle for freedom.When Papa gives her a secret code the militia uses, Emma finally gets her chance to change the course of history.

Hannah's small European village buzzes with tales of life free from persecution in a place called America. Timid cousin Esther has passage for two aboard a ship bound for New York, and Hannah convinces Mama and Papashka to let her use the extra ticket. The voyage is long, but Hannah and Esther find a new friend in Samuel, a young orphan aboard the ship, and together they endure the stormy seas and cramped steerage quarters. Finally, the soaring Statue of Liberty greets them at Ellis Island, but will America really be everything they've dreamed of?

Hannah's small European village buzzes with tales of life free from persecution in a place called America. Timid cousin Esther has passage for two aboard a ship bound for New York, and Hannah convinces Mama and Papashka to let her use the extra ticket. The voyage is long, but Hannah and Esther find a new friend in Samuel, a young orphan aboard the ship, and together they endure the stormy seas and cramped steerage quarters. Finally, the soaring Statue of Liberty greets them at Ellis Island, but will America really be everything they've dreamed of?