Best of
Chapter-Books

1997

Swift Arrow


Josephine Cunnington Edwards - 1997
    They were riding north and moving quickly. So many Indians moved along the path that George, who rode near the front of the line, could not see the end when he turned around to look. The farther they went, the more unhappy George became. For with every step, Neko (his faithful pony)took him farther and farther from his home and from Ma and Pa. Even the fluttering leaves seemed like little hands waving good-bye all the day long. So begins chapter seven of this beloved classic by Josephine Cunnington Edwards. George, a young pioneer boy is captured by Indians and raised as the son of a mighty chief. He spends his time learning the ways of these native Americans, and yearning for the day that he might find a way to return to his loving family.

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler/The Westing Game (TAP instructional materials)


Ruth L. Van Arsdale - 1997
    

Leon's Story


Leon Walter Tillage - 1997
    But in those days they didn't call you "black." They didnt say "minority." They called us "colored" or "nigger." Leon Tillage grew up the son of a sharecropper in a small town in North Carolina. Told in vignettes, this is his story about walking four miles to the school for black children, and watching a school bus full of white children go past. It's about his being forced to sit in the balcony at the movie theater, hiding all night when the Klansmen came riding, and worse. Much worse.But it is also the story of a strong family and the love that bound them together. And, finally, it's about working to change an oppressive existence by joining the civil rights movement. Edited from recorded interviews conducted by Susan L. Roth, Leon's story will stay with readers long after they have finished his powerful account.Leon's Story is the winner of the 1998 Boston Globe - Horn Book Award for Nonfiction.

The Heart of God: Prayers of Rabindranath Tagore


Rabindranath Tagore - 1997
    He was also a distinguished author, educator, social reformer, and philosopher. Today, Tagore along with Mahatma Gandhi is prized as the foremost intellectual and spiritual advocates of India's liberation from imperial rule. This inspiring collection of Tagore's poetry represents his "simple prayers of common life." Each of the seventy-seven prayers is an eloquent affirmation of the divine in the face of both joy and sorrow. Like the Psalms of David, they transcend time and speak directly to the human heart. The spirit of this collection may be best symbolized by a single sentence by Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the renowned philosopher and statesman who served as president of India: "Rabindranath Tagore was one of the few representatives of the universal person to whom the future of the world belongs."

Oh, Freedom!: Kids Talk About the Civil Rights Movement with the People Who Made It Happen


Casey King - 1997
    His class, comprised mostly of African-American students, knew little about the modern civil rights movement. Without a satisfactory text on the movement from which to teach, he decided that the kids should learn their history first hand. So, he sent them out to interview the people who were really there. The kids came back with truly wonderful stories -- many of the parents, grandparents, and friends interviewed had never before had the opportunity to share their stories with their children. THE BOOK:There are 31 interviews that cover three main areas of the movement: life under segregation, the nonviolent movement, and the black power movement. Everyone is here -- regular, ordinary people who dedicated themselves to the cause of freedom and the fight for equality, and even a few of the better known people whose names we hear and associate with Martin Luther King, or with the Freedom Rides, or with other familiar aspects of the movement. In her foreword, Rosa Parks writes, "I can't think of anything more important to teach young people today than this: that ordinary people working together can change history." Through warm, down-to-earth interviews with children, readers will meet people who lived in the segregated south, people who took part in sit-ins, people who were jailed for protesting, and people who found strength they never knew they had. They will meet a member of the Black Panthers, a woman who witnessed the assassination of Malcolm X, and a former Ku Klux Klansman. In addition, there are three introductory essays which provide background information to help kids to better understand the context of the interviews. Also included are portraits of the people in each interview and over 40 archival photographs of important moments during the movement.

Little Women


Bob Blaisdell - 1997
    They live with their mother, called Marmee, in a small house next to the Lawrence mansion. Their father is an army chaplain, away during the Civil War.You’ll enjoy getting to know the sisters and sharing the adventure of growing up. Meg is plump and earns money by caring for children in the neighborhood. Jo likes to write and make up stories and plays for her sisters. Beth is gentle and quiet and enjoys knitting by the fire and helping with household chores. Amy, the youngest, wants to be an artist.As you read or listen to this specially abridged version of the story, you’ll be there as the Marches share Christmas breakfast with a poor family; as Jo sells her beautiful long hair to buy a train ticket so Marmee can visit Mr. March; as Beth falls ill with scarlet fever; and as the sisters become grown women who fall in love and get married. Reprinted in large, easy-to-read type, this edition includes 30 illustrations that capture the joy and sadness of this wonderful story of a close-knit family in nineteenth-century America.

Jane Eyre


Jane E. Gerver - 1997
    There she meets the mysterious Mr. Rochester and sees a ghostly woman who roams the halls at night. What is the sinister secret that threatens Jane and her new found happiness? Step into Classics(TM) adaptations feature easy-to-read texts, big type, and short chapters that are ideal for reluctant readers and kids not yet ready to tackle original classics.

The Misfit


Nancy N. Rue - 1997
    Austin, Thomas Hutchinson's great-grandson, is sent to live with relatives, but his cousins don't seem to like him. Will Austin ever find his place?

Frogs, Toads & Turtles: Take Along Guide


Diane L. Burns - 1997
    Children learn to identify a variety of different plant, animal and insect species.-- Helps children identify different species.-- Includes scrapbook pages, for notes or drawings.-- Features detailed true-to-life illustrations.

The Amber Brown Collection


Paula Danziger - 1997
    Includes Amber Brown is Not a Crayon, You Can't Eat Your Chicken Pox, Amber Brown and Amber Brown Goes Fourth.

More Stories Huey Tells


Ann Cameron - 1997
    Sometimes his older brother Julian tries to push him around, but Huey knows how to handle him. When Huey gets scared about their father's smoking, the boys work together to help him quit. But some problems are bigger than Huey or Julian. After a hunt for gold leaves Huey trapped at the bottom of a crumbling mine, he'll need more than cleverness and bravery—and more than Julian—to save him.

The Jewel Kingdom


Jahnna N. Malcolm - 1997
     The Ruby Princess Runs Away The Sapphire Princess Meets a Monster The Emerald Princess Plays a Trick The Diamond Princess Saves the Day

Aloha Summer


Bill Wallace - 1997
    The island of Lanai looks more like Oklahoma than an exotic paradise -- but other things are much stranger than John expected. The "white" people on the island treat the Hawaiians miserably -- and the only native in school who will speak to him is Carol, a pretty dark-eyed Hawaiian girl who becomes, to his shock, his best friend. But as Carol shows him the wonders of the island, an insidious enemy is secretly trying to harm Carol's beloved grandfather Makalii and steal his land. It will take all of the strength John and Carol can muster to save Makalii and return him to his beloved land.

The Team That Couldn't Lose


Matt Christopher - 1997
    A young, inexperienced football team discovers its beginner's luck is due to a series of mysterious but successful plays anonymously sent to the coach.

Shadow of the Titanic: A Survivor's Story, a Biography of Miss Eva Hart


Eva Hart - 1997
    She was going to emigrate to Canada with her parents. Her mother had a strong premonition that the trip would end in disaster--as indeed it did. Eva Hart's father died in the ocean catastrophe that killed over 1,500 people.This heart-wrenching biography tells the story of the Titanic through the eyes of a child. The book also covers the aftermath of the disaster, recounting the difficulties the Harts faced in rebuilding their lives in England. The tragedy of the Titanic cast a shadow on Eva Hart's life, which took years to confront. This book is her attempt to look beyond the shadow of the Titanic.

Frankenstein


Debra Doyle - 1997
    Shelley's classic hints in part at the possible dangers inherent in the pursuit of pure science; it also portrays the injustice of a society which persecutes outcasts such as the "Monster." Disturbing and profoundly moving, Frankenstein has become part of our own mythology.