Pappy's Handkerchief

Pappy's Handkerchief

Written by: Devin Scillian
Illustrated by: Chris Ellison

"Young Moses and his family are barely scraping by. He helps his father in their fish stall selling each day’s catch to passersby but times are hard in 1889 Baltimore. It’s difficult to provide for a family of ten. But when they hear of free farmland out in Oklahoma, it sounds like the answer to their prayers. The family sells all they own and heads west to fulfill a lifelong dream.

Their wagon journey, however, is plagued with troubles from ice storms and flooded rivers to diminishing supplies and sickness. Yet Moses and his family persevere. They arrive in time to take a place along the boundary line that marks the staging point for the Oklahoma Land Run. But after making it this far, will even more bad luck prevent them from realizing their dream of owning their own piece of America?"

Product Description

Online Resources:
*scroll down the page to find "Pappy's Handkerchief" pdf doc - titles in alpha order*
http://www.sleepingbearpress.com/educators/

Down the Colorado: John Wesley Powell, the One-Armed Explorer

Down the Colorado: John Wesley Powell, the One-Armed Explorer

Written and Illustrated by: Deborah Korgan Ray

"Although John Wesley Powell's minister father always wanted his son to follow in his footsteps, young Wes had different plans for his future. Enraptured by the wonders of the natural world, he was determined to take the path of science. Even after losing his right arm below the elbow in battle during the Civil War, Wes would not be deterred from his dream of leading the first scientific expedition down the Colorado River and through the Grand Canyon. Braving treacherous rapids and perilous waterfalls, Major Powell would surpass all expectations and return home a national hero.

With breathtaking illustrations and excerpts from Powell's own journals, Deborah Kogan Ray brings to vivid life the exploits and explorations of one of America's greatest conservationists."

Publishers Synopsis

Online Resources:
http://philip.greenspun.com/travel/grand-canyon-rafting

On the Trail of Sacagawea

On the Trail of Sacagawea

Written by: Peter Lourie

"In this handsome book, archaeologist and researcher Lourie chronicles a trip he took with his family along the path of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, beginning where Sacagawea joined the explorers and hoping to compare what exists now with what she might have seen. The family traveled through Native American land where historic sites remain untouched and the people practice traditional customs, fishing in the streams that the explorers fished in, swimming in the same hot springs, and eventually arriving at a reconstructed Fort Clatsop, where the river meets the ocean. Throughout, Lourie intersperses his family's adventures with the history of the Corps of Discovery in a comparison that conveys the rugged beauty and harsh terrain that the explorers must have experienced. The book is illustrated with the author's striking color photographs, as well as paintings and archival photos. An epilogue offers different theories of what became of Sacagawea."

Booklist Review

Online Resources:
http://www.peterlourie.com/journeys/sacagawea/

How We Crossed The West: The Adventures Of Lewis And Clark

How We Crossed The West: The Adventures Of Lewis And Clark

Written by: Rosalyn Schanzer

"A simplified version of the diaries of Lewis and Clark; in an introduction, Schanzer explains how she condensed much of the excitement and adventure of the 40 volumes into this one. The book follows the route mapped out on the end papers, beginning with President Jefferson's request that the two explore the west, and ending when Lewis and Clark return two years later to St. Charles (near St. Louis), long after everyone thought they'd died. In that time the two men discovered many new animals and plants, met with Indian tribes, and created new maps of the uncharted territories. Schanzer often breaks up the page into a series of vignettes with captions, effectively covering many of their experiences in a small space. Her drawings include portraits of the members of the expedition and other details that make an already authentic text all the richer."

Kirkus Reviews

Online Resources:
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/lewisandclark/

Sarah Plain and Tall

Sarah Plain and Tall

Written by: Patricia MacLachlan

"Set in the late 19th century a widowed midwestern farmer with two children--Anna and Caleb--advertises for a wife. When Sarah arrives she is homesick for Maine, especially for the ocean which she misses greatly. The children fear that she will not stay, and when she goes off to town alone, young Caleb--whose mother died during childbirth--is stricken with the fear that she has gone for good. But she returns with colored pencils to illustrate for them the beauty of Maine, and to explain that, though she misses her home, "the truth of it is I would miss you more." The tale gently explores themes of abandonment, loss and love."

Amazon.com Review

Online Resources:
http://www.mce.k12tn.net/reading3/sarah.htm

Words West: The Voices of Young Pioneers

Words West: The Voices of Young Pioneers

Written by: Ginger Wadsworth

"This book records the thoughts and feelings of the pioneer children who traveled west between 1830 and 1870 in wagon trains. They often encountered severe heat and extreme cold, hostile Indians, the death of friends and family, terrible illnesses, and great hunger. They also witnessed the beauty of the untouched West. The letters , diaries, and memoirs of these children and young people quoted in this book tell their stories in their own words. They are accompanied by archival photographs and prints. Together the stories and pictures help today's children and young people understand their counterparts from another era. A great primary source for those studying the pioneer period of history."

Product Description

Online Resources:
http://www.gingerwadsworth.com/
*Scroll to bottom of page for additional links

The Tragic Tale of Narcissa Whitman and a Faithful History of the Oregon Trail

The Tragic Tale of Narcissa Whitman and a Faithful History of the Oregon Trail

Written by: Cheryl Harness

"When she was a young girl, Narcissa loved nothing better than to read heroic tales about brave men and women risking their lives to bring Christian ideas to "barbarians" in far-off places. In 1831, her dream of doing the same was about to come true. That's when some Indians arrived in St. Louis, Missouri, looking for the "White Man's Book of Heaven." Their quest was the answer to Narcissa's prayers: She would bring salvation to "those wandering sons of our native forests. "

Narcissa married Marcus Whitman, another missionary want-to-be, and they headed West. She spent her honeymoon riding side-saddle some 2,000 miles across the vast, often perilous trail to Oregon Country—something no other white woman had ever done. Then she and Marcus lived happily ever after singing hymns and teaching the Indians about the Bible, right? Wrong! Readers will find out what really happened when East met West at the end of the real-life, legendary Oregon Trail."

Product Description

Online Resources:
http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/people/s_z/whitman.htm
http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/two/whitman0.htm

Streams to the River, River to the Sea

Streams to the River, River to the Sea

Written by: Scott O'Dell

"A fictional account of the life of the Indian woman who accompanied Lewis and Clark on their exploration in 1803. Sacagawea, a Shoshone Indian, guided and interpreted for explorers Lewis and Clarke as they traveled up the Mississippi, but she had adventures long before that one, like the time she was captured by the Minnetarees, and taken away from her family and everything that she knew and loved."

Publishers Description


Online Resources:
http://www.lewisandclarkexhibit.org/4_0_0/page_4_1_7_1_3_4.html
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0302/feature4/index.html

Buffalo Hunt

Buffalo Hunt

Written by: Russell Freedman

"As in his other acclaimed pictorial histories, Newbery Medalist Russell Freedman brings a lost world vividly to life for young readers. In accessible text full of fascinating details, he describes the importance of the buffalo to the way of life of the Great Plains Indians, paying particular attention to their various hunting methods, and the uses found for each part of the animal. He then moves on to the devastation caused by the gradual encroachment of white settlers, whose ferocious, firearm slaughter of the animals brought the species to near-extinction."

Scholastic Book Review

Online Resources:
http://teacherlink.ed.usu.edu/tlresources/units/byrnes-literature/Mabey.html

The West: An Illustrated History for Children

The West: An Illustrated History for Children

Written by: Dayton Duncan

"The American West stretches from the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean, from the northern plains to the Rio Grande, a land of infinite horizons and unimaginable distances. Here is the remarkable story of the West--the story of a magnificent but harsh landscape and the many people who have tried to claim it."

Publishers Description

Online Resources:
http://edtech.kennesaw.edu/web/westward.html

People of the West

People of the West

Written by: Duncan Dayton

"What was life like in the West before the arrival of the settlers from Europe? How did it feel to be the first white woman to cross the Continental Divide? What was it like to live in a house made of sod on a vast, treeless prairie, or to be part of the great California Gold Rush? This engaging volume answers these questions and more, telling the personal stories of 15 people who struggled to make this land their home."

Publishers Description

Online Resources:
http://www.proteacher.com/090023.shtml
http://www.pbs.org/nationalparks/about/dayton-duncan/

Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie: The Oregon Trail Diary of Hattie Campbell, 1847

Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie: The Oregon Trail Diary of Hattie Campbell, 1847

Written by: Kristiana Gregory

"Thirteen-year-old Hattie Campbell records the details of her family's harrowing migration to Oregon in a covered wagon and describes the many challenges, both joyful and tragic, that mark the journey."

Publishers Description

Online Resources:
http://www.scholastic.com/dearamerica/parentteacher/guides/dearamerica/lonesomefs.htm