One Little Match


Thomas S. Monson - 2014
    Thomas S. Monson told the story about his time as a young boy spending the summerat his family's cabin in Vivian Park. He and his best friend, Danny,decided to clear a field so they could gather with their friends and have acampfire. The tall, stubborn weeds would not pull out easily. So Tommyhad the idea of using one little match to burn the weeds. He knew heshouldn't use matches without permission from his parents. But he ignoredthe prompting warning him of the danger and set the parched Junegrass ablaze. The consequence of his disobedience nearly endangered theentire forest and almost burned down neighboring cabins.I learned several difficult but important lessons that day. Perhaps the biggestlesson was the need for obedience. Rules and laws are created to keep us safe.When we obey those rules, we can avoid the dangers that can come from somethingas small as one little match.

The Cartel: Inside the Rise and Imminent Fall of the NCAA


Taylor Branch - 2011
    deprives them of the right to due process guaranteed by the Constitution." Decades of greed and self-interest pushed the NCAA to collapse under the weight of its hypocrisy. The parasitic business of college sports generates billions every year, yet fails to compensate college athletes.

Dad, Jackie, and Me


Myron Uhlberg - 2005
    And every kid in Brooklyn knew this was our year. The Dodgers were going to go all the way!"It is the summer of 1947 and a highly charged baseball season is underway in New York. Jackie Robinson is the new first baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers--and the first black player in Major League Baseball. A young boy listens eagerly to the Dodgers games on the radio, each day using sign language to tell his deaf father about the games. His father begins to keep a scrapbook, clipping photos and articles about Jackie. Finally one day the father delivers some big news: they are going to Ebbets Field to watch Jackie play!Author Myron Uhlberg offers a nostalgic look back at 1947, and pays tribute to Jackie Robinson, the legendary athlete and hero. Illustrator Colin Bootman's realistic, full-color illustrations capture the details of the period and the excitement of an entire city as Robinson and the Dodgers won the long-awaited pennant, and brought an entire New York community together for one magical summer.

Baseball Saved Us


Ken Mochizuki - 1993
    Fighting the heat and dust of the desert, Shorty and his father decide to build a baseball diamond and form a league in order to boost the spirits of the internees. Shorty quickly learns that he is playing not only to win, but to gain dignity and self-respect as well.Baseball Saved Us is the ultimate rite of passage story. It will appeal again and again to readers who enjoy cheering for the underdog.

Freedom Summer


Deborah Wiles - 2001
    He crawls like a catfish, blows bubbles like a swamp monster, but he doesn’t swim in the town pool with me. He’s not allowed. Joe and John Henry are a lot alike. They both like shooting marbles, they both want to be firemen, and they both love to swim. But there’s one important way they're different: Joe is white and John Henry is black, and in the South in 1964, that means John Henry isn’t allowed to do everything his best friend is. Then a law is passed that forbids segregation and opens the town pool to everyone. Joe and John Henry are so excited they race each other there...only to discover that it takes more than a new law to change people’s hearts.

Pink and Say


Patricia Polacco - 1994
    This story, about how a young black soldier rescues a white soldier, opens young readers' eyes to the injustices of slavery and the senselessness of war. Highly charged emotionally, this masterful retelling of a true story is seen through the white soldier's eyes.

One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference


Katie Smith Milway - 2008
    When his mother receives a loan from some village families, she gives a little money to her son. With this tiny loan, Kojo buys a hen.A year later, Kojo has built up a flock of 25 hens. With his earnings Kojo is able to return to school. Soon Kojo's farm grows to become the largest in the region.Kojo's story is inspired by the life of Kwabena Darko, who as a boy started a tiny poultry farm just like Kojo's, which later grew to be the largest in Ghana, and one of the largest in west Africa. Kwabena also started a trust that gives out small loans to people who cannot get a loan from a bank.One Hen shows what happens when a little help makes a big difference. The final pages of One Hen explain the microloan system and include a list of relevant organizations for children to explore.One Hen is part of CitizenKid: A collection of books that inform children about the world and inspire them to be better global citizens.

Olive Oatman: Explore The Mysterious Story of Captivity and Tragedy from Beginning to End


Brent Schulte - 2019
    She is the girl with the blue tattoo.The story behind the distinctive tattoo is the stuff of legends. Some believed it was placed on her face during her captivity, following the brutal murders of her family members and the kidnapping of her and her sister. Others believe it was placed on her after her return.Rumors swelled. Her tattoo became a symbol of Native barbarianism and the triumph of American goodness, but like many stories of that era, the truth is far more complicated.This short book details the murders, her captivity, the aftermath, and her baffling return to her captors. Unravel the mystery of the woman who would become famous for all the wrong reasons and discover what her life story says about cultural identity, the power of resiliency, and what happens when fact and fiction bend and twist to muddy the waters.Read on to find out the truth!

THE YOUNGEST GREEN BERET: Real people, real combat, espionage, and conflict in the Mekong Delta 1969


Terry McIntosh - 2019
    From working with a double agent who betrays his friendship and exposes a top secret cross border operation, Terry McIntosh wrestles with his own doubts and fears while protecting the rights of others to live free. He was chosen from the ranks of long range reconnaissance training to serve with Special Forces Detachment A-team 414 in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam 1968-1969. The border camp conducted clandestine operations to observe and engage a growing Viet Cong armed force 15 miles across the line. The top secret mission is exposed after team members are accused of executing the double agent. It is believed that Terry McIntosh is the youngest soldier to serve with the Green Berets on an "A" team and earn the coveted Combat Badge. This is his story about the transition from boy to man in the jungles of Vietnam where he met himself for the first time with a sense of shame and honor.

Guide to the Superior Hiking Trail: Exploring the 300-Mile Footpath on Minnesota's North Shore


Superior Hiking Trail Association - 1993
    Much of the trail is on the rocky ridgeline overlooking Lake Superior with sweeping vistas of Lake Superior and inland forests, cascading waterfalls and remote lakes. Mile-by-mile descriptions lead the casual hiker or ardent backpacker through forests of birch, maple, spruce, pine and fir—a region thriving with spectacular wildflowers and diverse wildlife. Whether you have two hours or two weeks, an afternoon or a weekend, this guide will enhance your hiking experience. Provided is detailed information on trailhead parking, 90+ backcountry campsites located every five to ten miles that require no fees, permits, or reservations, and a mile-by-mile description of the trail as you hike along. The Superior Hiking Trail goes to numerous scenic spots including Ely's Peak, Hawk Ridge, Bean and Bear Lakes, Mount Trudee, Baptism High Falls, Egge Lake, Sonju Lake, Manitou River, Caribou Falls, Cross River, Carlton Peak, Britton Peak, Oberg Mountain, Cascade River, and Pincushion Mountain. The trail travels through eight Minnesota state parks: Jay Cooke, Gooseberry Falls, Split Rock Lighthouse, Tettegouche, Crosby-Manitou, Temperance River, Cascade River, and Judge Magney. Complete trail maps are included in each section. In addition, it includes a "how-to" chapter on backpacking the trail and a chart with services in the towns close to the trail. It also includes informational chapters on wildflowers, birds, geology, and area history. The trail starts south of Duluth, MN in Jay Cooke State Park, travels through Duluth for 43 miles, and then heads northeast along the North Shore for 255 miles to Canada. Backpacking opportunities with backcountry campsites start at the northern boundary of Duluth. The Guide is written so each section of 5-12 miles can be hiked separately, a longer segment can be hiked, or the entire trail can be thru-hiked.

A Place Where Sunflowers Grow (砂漠に咲いたひまわり) Japanese/ English Bilingual


Amy Lee-Tai - 2006
    But it's hard to think of anything to draw in a place where nothing beautiful grows—especially a place like Topaz, the internment camp where Mari's family and thousands of other Japanese Americans have been sent to live during World War II. Somehow, glimmers of hope begin to surface—in the eyes of a kindly art teacher, in the tender words of Mari's parents, and in the smile of a new friend. Amy Lee-Tai's sensitive prose and Felicia Hoshino's stunning mixed-media images show that hope can survive even the harshest injustice.

The Believer: How an Introvert with a Passion for Religion and Soccer Became Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Leader of the Islamic State (The Brookings Essay)


William McCants - 2015
    ISIS), a group so brutal and hardline that even al-Qaida deemed them too extreme. Baghdadi, an introverted religious scholar, with a passion for soccer, now controls large swaths of land in Iraq and Syria. McCants shows how Baghdadi became radicalized in the Saddam Hussein era and found his path to power after connecting with other radicals in an American prison during the Iraq War, culminating in his declaration of a reborn Islamic empire bent on world conquest.

Brothers in Hope: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan


Mary Williams - 2005
    Based on true events.

The Koehler Method of Dog Training


William R. Koehler - 1974
    The method is based in the philosophy that a dog acts on its right to choose its actions. Koehler explained that a dog’s learned behavior is an act of choice based on its own learning experience. When those choices are influenced by the expectation of reward, the behavior will most likely be repeated, and when those choices are influenced by the anticipation of punishment, they will most likely cease. Once the dog has learned that its choices result in comfort or discomfort it can be taught to make the correct decisions. Action→Memory→Desire encapsulates the learning pattern used by the method; the dog acts, remembers the consequences, and forms the desire to repeat or avoid those consequences. Adherents believe that once the behavior has been correctly taught, it should be performed, thus making any correction, fair, reasonable, and expected.

Lennon Legend: An Illustrated Life of John Lennon


James Henke - 2000
    Created with the cooperation of Yoko Ono Lennon, who has opened her archives for this project, the book offers insightful details about every era of John's life, from his early days at art school to the height of Beatlemania to "Imagine." A live recording of that song is included, along with several interviews of John talking about his life and art, on the audio CD contained in this package. Throughout, the book features archival photographs and reproductions of John's handwritten song lyrics, drawings, memorabilia, and personal papers. In all, 40 removable facsimiles can be enjoyed by the reader, several previously unpublished, including an intimate self-portrait in pen and ink and a plea for world peace. It's been said that John Lennon's was the voice of a generation. Lennon Legend celebrates that voice's power to resonate across the generations.