Books with title Nothing Here But Trees

"At first I thought everything in America would look like New York City, with shops and crowded streets, but I have discovered, the farther west we travel, that there are long stretches of nothing. Absolutely nothing.I only hope the place we are going to is not so empty."Nancy Oswald's historical novel is based on the establishment of a Russian-Jewish community in Cotopaxi, Colorado, in 1882. Emma and her family, along with their neighbors have escaped persecution in Tsarist Russia to seek a better life in America, but they face hardship and struggle in the harsh climate of the Rocky Mountains. Nothing Here but Stones is winner of the Willa Literary Award and a finalist for the Spur Award from Western Writers of America.

At first I thought everything in America would look like New York City, with shops and crowded streets, but I have discovered, the farther west we travel, that there are long stretches of nothing. Absolutely nothing.I only hope the place we are going to is not so empty.Nothing Here but Stones is based on a Russian Jewish colony that settled in Cotopaxi, Colorado, in 1882. Told from the viewpoint of eleven-year-old Emma, the book vividly portrays the hardships and struggles of the colony.They were promised housing and rich ground for farming. Instead, the land is rocky and of poor quality. The houses are small and unfinished, and the colonists lack equipment and livestock for tilling and planting.The actual Jewish settlers faced many of the same hardships that Emma and her family did. There was an early frost, and the crops were stunted. The colonists were threatened by marauding bears and visited in the winter by starving Indians, who came to their doors begging for food.This new edition of Nancy Oswald’s award-winning novel brings brings an important piece of Colorado history to a new generation of young readers.

"Colby Ellis wants to start his own band. He has the drive. He has his saxophone. And he has a garage. He just needs a name. And bandmates! He finds some fresh faces, and some of his friends from Benton Bluff Junior High band join too. But harmony isn't their forte, so Colby makes a bold decision. Will it be the end of the band, or just the beginning?""--