Wendy Hinote Lanier – författare

When the Missouri Territory applied for statehood in 1818, the United States had an equal number of free states and slave states. The territory''s leaders wanted Missouri to be a slave state. But that would have destroyed the balance of representation in Congress. A heated debate broke out. The southern representatives and Missouri''s leaders thought states should be able to decide the slavery question for themselves. Northern members of Congress thought otherwise. Would the Union split apart over the question of slavery? The Missouri Compromise settled the argument and saved the Union—temporarily. So why was the Missouri Compromise of 1820 so controversial? Who was the great compromiser? What were the terms of the Missouri Compromise? Discover the facts about one of the most debated compromises in U.S. history.

Choppers are custom-made motorcycles. Very few choppers are built for racing or trail riding. Instead, they are designed to cruise the roads in style. Discover the history, design, and features of these stylish vehicles in Choppers, part of the Let’s Ride series.

Dirt bikes are off‑road motorcycles that are not legal to drive on the street. Most dirt bikes do not have windshields, lights, turn signals, or license plates. They are much lighter and easier to handle than road bikes. Discover the history, design, and features of these exciting vehicles in Dirt Bikes, part of the Let’s Ride series.

Professional drag racing has four major classes. The fastest drag racers in the world are the Top Fuel class.Top Fuel cars have large rear wheels and small front wheels. Discover the history, design, and features of these exceptionally fast vehicles in Dragsters, part of the Let’s Ride series.

Hot rodding began as a way to bring new life to old cars. It allowed young people to own cars withoutspending a lot of money. Today’s hot rods are part art and part mechanical wonder, and they are no longer cheap. Discover the history, design, and features of these eye-catching vehicles in Hot Rods, part of the Let’s Ride series.

Indy cars are built for racing. They are similar to Formula 1 cars, but run on oval tracks. Indianapolis Motor Speedway is the best known of the oval tracks. Discover the history, design, and features of these impressive vehicles in Indy Cars, part of the Let’s Ride series.

A sports car is typically a two-seat, two-door car with rear-wheel drive. It has a responsive engine that handles well on all types of roads. It rides low and is usually fast. Most of all, it is fun to drive. Discover the history, design, and features of these sleek, powerful vehicles in Sports Cars, part of the Let’s Ride series.

The noses of bullet trains in Japan are shaped like kingfisher beaks. They help the train move both quietly and efficiently when traveling at high speeds. Find out more in Transportation Technology, a title in the Designed by Nature series.Designed by Nature is a series of AV2 media enhanced books. A unique book code printed on page 2 unlocks multimedia content. These books come alive with video, audio, weblinks, slideshows, activities, hands-on experiments, and much more.

Offers readers a close-up look at choppers. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides a thrilling overview of this exciting vehicle.

Offers readers a close-up look at dirt bikes. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides a thrilling overview of this exciting vehicle.

Offers readers a close-up look at choppers. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides a thrilling overview of this exciting vehicle.

Gives readers a close-up look at drones. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.

Gives readers a close-up look at fighter jets. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.

Gives readers a close-up look at flying cars. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.

Gives readers a close-up look at helicopters. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.

Gives readers a close-up look at passenger planes. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.

Gives readers a close-up look at rockets. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.

Gives readers a close-up look at drones. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.

Gives readers a close-up look at fighter jets. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.

Gives readers a close-up look at flying cars. With colorful spreads featuring fun facts, sidebars, labeled diagrams, and a "How It Works" feature, the book provides an engaging overview of this amazing aircraft.