"A collection of long-form essays on joy, in which the author turns his curious and poetic mind to everything from skateboarding and cover songs, basketball and race, dancing and academia, death and laughter, and, always, the garden and the natural world."--

Biddy Mason's life began as an enslaved person. She had to walk 2000 miles to reach California, but once there, she gained her freedom. She became a successful nurse, midwife, and land owner, and left behind a legacy of caring and charity. This primary source reader integrates literacy and social studies content knowledge, and uses maps, letters, images, and photographs to engage students and develop their curiosity about the people and the world...

"In 1876, Lakota chief Crazy Horse helped lead his people's resistance against the white man's invasion of the northern Great Plains. One of the leaders of the US military forces was Army Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer. The men had long been enemies. Atthe height of the war, when tribalism had reached its peak, they crossed paths for the last time. In this action-packed double biography, S. D. Nelson draws fascinating parallels between Crazy Horse...

This classic of the Jewish-American immigrant experience was an instant critical and popular success upon its 1912 publication. Author Mary Antin arrived in the United States from Russia in the 1890s at the age of 12. Her memoir vividly recaptures scenes from both Old and New World cultures, chronicling the poverty and oppression of Czarist Russia as well as the excitement and challenges of her assimilation into American life at the turn of the twentieth...

By turns reflective, tragic and hilarious, Turn Left at the Devil Tree is the story of a visiting teacher in remote Aboriginal Australia. Accompanied by a 'rough-tough hunting dog' named Turkey, Derek Pugh founded several outstation schools in the most isolated parts of Arnhem Land.Spending many years among the people and wildlife of the Top End of the Northern Territory, Derek Pugh reveled in the lifestyle and freedom of the bush and gained an insight...

Henry Ossian Flipper (21 March 1856 - 3 May 1940) was an American soldier, former slave, and the first African American to graduate from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1877, earning a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Army.

Yentin Ongbou Chang came from a priestly clan. Due to the various rituals it performs, his clan is prohibited from eating beef and mutton due to the odor from the meat. The biography of Yentin Ongbou Chang is the story of a tribal statesman from the Chang Naga tribe of Northeast India. Yentin Ongbou loved his people and helped them to advance. He lived a traditional life through many societal changes in Nagaland and in India. In the early days, his...

Tripping Over' is the true comic foil sequel to 'Reluctant Hero.' John grows up in post war England in the 1950s and 1960s. It tells the story of John, who grows up in the shadow of his Dad, a returned war hero. John senses he is different but not in a good way and knows he has big shoes to fill. He is not coping well. Beleaguered and confused, poor judgement and clumsiness dog his every move.When his parents visit the annual Earl's Court Motor Show...

The story of Australia's almost-250-year love affair with alcohol told with yarns, verse, anecdotes, and surprising historical narratives "It seemed like a good idea . . . at the time." -the lament of many a morning after Rum, beer, scotch, wine, beer, and more beer. For nearly 250 years, Australian history has been punctuated with stories of booze and boozing. From Cook's voyages and the First Fleet to the Rum Rebellion, the mutiny of the 99th Regiment,...

Technologically, Britain is moving forward in leaps and bounds. We can buy everything we could possibly need online from Tesco, Amazon or a plethora of other outlets—and have the goods delivered within hours. Words like gigabyte and Netflix are as familiar to us as tea and coffee. We can talk to our friends on the other side of the world, at no cost, in real time, fully visible and stark naked if we like. Everything's on tap, 24/7. But is downloading...