North America Culture

Imagine your shock at waking up one morning to a fleet of enormous, otherworldly craft looming over you. And when bizarre aliens begin to emerge - speaking strange gibberish - your heart races even faster. Similar fears may have gripped New World inhabitants when diverse civilizations - separated by a vast ocean - first met. American natives once knew nothing of towering ships, galloping horses, thundering guns, or smallpox. From 1492 onward, however, waves of adventurers would give them a cruel introduction.

On May 4, 1961, thirteen activists—black and white, young and old, male and female—board two buses in Washington, D.C., for New Orleans, Louisiana. Their Freedom Ride will last just twelve days. But their mission is clear. The laws prohibiting segregation on buses crossing state lines and at bus stations are being violated. These Freedom Riders are determined to draw attention to the laws’ lack of enforcement. But what starts as a peaceful protest turns violent as they travel deeper into the South. This is their story.

McKenna Barney is trying to hide her worsening eyesight and has been isolating herself for the last year. But at the request of her little sister, she signs up for a commemorative mail run race in the Canadian wilderness - a race she doesn't know if she can even see to run. Winning would mean getting her disease - and her sister's - national media coverage, but it would also pit McKenna and her team of eight sled dogs against racers from across the globe for three days of shifting lake ice, sudden owl attacks, snow squalls, and bitterly cold nights.

Fifteen-year-old Francis Tucket has been searching for his parents ever since Pawnees kidnapped him from their wagon train on the Oregon Trail. He owes his survival to a one-armed mountain man, Jason Grimes, who came to his rescue. Now Francis owes his life to the mountain man once again. Unfortunately, it's a debt he'll never be able to repay. Grimes is killed defending Francis and his young friends, Lottie and Billy, from a band of marauding robbers.

Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny didn't think the old trunk in their house held anything interesting. But an unusual statue they find inside leads them to the Reddimus Society, a secret guild dedicated to returning lost treasures to where they belong. Now the Aldens must help their new friends by traveling across the country with the statue and six mysterious boxes! Can the Boxcar Children keep these seven treasures out of the wrong hands?

This the story of the unplanned adoption of an eleven-year-old girl orphan by an elderly brother and sister farm couple: Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert. They had requested a young boy orphan to help with farm chores, so the girl was unwanted at first. However, she was very intelligent, imaginative and quite a chatterbox. She gradually made her way into the unexpected adoption that brought love and respect, creating a warm and wonderful association. This delightful classic takes place in the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island.

This guide to Mexico takes you to the heart of Mexican society. It describes how people socialize and meet members of the opposite sex, the dynamics of daily life, the central importance of family, and the annual cycle of Catholic feasts and fiestas. For business travelers, there are key sections on the economy and vital insights into the general business culture. The third-largest country in Latin America, Mexico is hugely diverse, having both rural areas, where time seems to have stood still, and manic urban centers like Mexico City, one of the most exciting cities in the world.

After visiting Boston, Judy Moody's in the mood for liberty and freedom - freedom from her parents' rules and her pesky little brother, that is. But Judy's plans to declare independence, just like the Patriots did in 1776, wind up getting her into hot water. For sure and absolute positive, the founding fathers never had problems like hers! Will Judy be able to prove, once and for all, that she's ready for a bit more independence?

Juliette est une adolescente de 13 ans qui déteste son prénom. Elle vit avec sa mère, une journaliste indépendante un peu flyée. La nouvelle mission de sa maman : rédiger un article sur l'enthousiasmante ville de New York. Au départ, Juliette ne croit absolument pas sa mère lorsqu'elle l'informe qu'elles partent le soir même passer le long week-end de Pâques dans la cité de ses rêves. Bon, elle devra une fois de plus délaisser Gino et Gina, ces BFFs, mais c'est le prix à payer pour être une parfaite globe-trotter.

Victoria Secord, a 14-year-old Alaskan dogsled racer, loses her way on a routine outing with her dogs. With food gone and temperatures dropping, her survival and that of her dogs and the mysterious boy she meets in the woods is entirely up to her. The author Terry Lynn Johnson is a musher herself, and her crackling writing puts listeners at the reins as Victoria and Chris experience setbacks, mistakes, and small triumphs in their wilderness adventure.

The American Revolution was a war that allowed the birth of a new country. Secrets of the American Revolution reveals little-known stories of the people, weapons, and battles that have affected the maps on our walls and the allegiances in our hearts.

In a partnership with We Need Diverse Books, industry giants Kwame Alexander, Soman Chainani, Matt de la Peña, Tim Federle, Grace Lin, Meg Medina, Walter Dean Myers, Tim Tingle, and Jacqueline Woodson join newcomer Kelly J. Baptist in a story collection that is as humorous as it is heartfelt. This impressive group of authors has earned among them every major award in children's publishing and popularity as New York Times best sellers.

"Boys, let us get up a club." Six restless young men raided the linens at a friend's mansion, pulled pillowcases over their heads, hopped on horses, and cavorted through the streets of Pulaski, Tennessee. The six friends named their club the Ku Klux Klan, and, all too quickly, their club grew into the self-proclaimed Invisible Empire with secret dens spread across the South. This is the story of how a secret terrorist group took root in America's democracy.

The first African men, women, and children in colonial America did not arrive with dreams of freedom or hopes of a new, better life. They arrived after a torturous 90-day journey called the Middle Passage. And they arrived as slaves. Since that time, African-Americans have suffered, triumphed, despaired,and dreamed.

See America without leaving your chair with this exciting series for beginning book explorers.

Tyler Stoudt’s first assignment in sixth grade is to make a family tree. Tyler has no idea how she will complete the project. The only family she has is Papa. Determined to do her best, she begins to ask her father questions about their family. When he becomes angry, Tyler wonders if the truth is worth the hurt she is causing. But her need to know outweighs everything else, and she presses him for answers. The story he reveals to her is nothing she ever expected.

Eleven-year-old Rosey Sachs is worried about her school writing assignment. How can she write anything interesting about her ordinary life in Brooklyn? A poem might have made her neighborhood sound a little more exciting, but to Rosey's dismay, she quickly discovers that Brooklyn doesn't rhyme with anything.

For this striking, stripped-down account of youth immigration, Villalobos interviewed teens at various stages of the immigration process to illustrate their stories - the physical and emotional difficulties of their travels. He then changed certain elements of these stories in order to protect the children's identities. Each chapter brings forth the voice of one young immigrant's experience, from crossing the Mexican desert to gang violence to the freezers at ICE detention centers.

The mythic origin stories of the Grand Canyon and the Native American tribes who live in and near it.

Become a presidential pro with this interactive trivia book from Jeopardy! champ and New York Times bestselling author Ken Jennings.