Karen Ritz – illustratör

From the time she was a young child, Willa Cather had a gift with words and she loved stories. As a child on the Nebraska prairie, she heard many stories from her neighbors, many of them immigrants, and she never forgot them. She begun to write stories of her own, and even after she became a successful journalist, she made time for them. Her great novels of the prairie, such as O Pioneers! and My Antonia, established her as one of the finest writers of all time. In Writer of the Plains, author Tom Streissguth paints a clear and interesting portrait of this complex and independent woman.

In the 1870s, surgery was a crude affair performed on the patient''s kitchen table. In the frontier town of Rochester, Minnesota, Dr. W. W. Mayo brought his young sons, Will and Charlie, to assist him with operations. Fifty years later, Rochester became a medical mecca as the Mayo brothers were established as world-class surgeons. With a firm belief in sharing information and learning from others, the Mayo brothers proved the benefits of cooperation in a jealously competitive field, and accomplished more than any single colleague of their time. Emily Crofford gives a vivid account of the Mayos'' meteoric rise to fame and their contributions as pioneers on the frontier of modern surgery.

Sisters against Slavery recounts the lives of Sarah Grimke and Angelica Grimke Weld. These daughters of wealthy Southern planters and slave owners renounced slavery in the 1830''s. Through their writings and through a series of lectures delivered in the North, the sisters became famous for their views on slavery and women''s rights. Although the sisters were active as speakers and essayists for a relatively short time in the 1830s and 1840s, they reached tens of thousands of people, influenced American views on slavery, and were an inspiration to women''s rights leaders for decades to come.

For the first twenty-eight years of her life. Harriet Tubman lived as a slave on a southern plantation. Finally, with the help of a Quaker woman, she was able to escape to Philadelphia by way of the Underground Railroad. After her escape, Harriet began her quest to help free other slaves. Over a ten-year period she led more than three hundred people through the Underground Railroad. In Go Free or Die, young readers will learn about this courageous woman who refused to be a slave and who fought for freedom for everyone.

Tea with a hedgehog and supper with a rabbit? Beatrix Potter entertained guests that most people--certainly Beatrix Potter''s proper Victorian parents--would have thought belonged in a meadow, not in a London nursery. Such unlikely companions were company for lonely Beatrix, and she spent much of her time sketching and making up stories about these small creatures. Beatrix was so well acquainted with the characters of her various animal friends that when she was older it seemed natural to write and illustrate small books about their delightful adventures. Generations of children all over the world have gotten to know and love Beatrix Potter''s animal friends--Benjamin Bunny, Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, Squirrel Nutkin, Peter Rabbit, and many more. David Collins''s lively text and Karen Ritz''s striking illustrations combine to tell the wonderful tale of this gentle, creative woman who had a special feeling not only for animals, but also for children.

Growing up in China as the child of American missionaries, Pearl read and listened to stories from both the East and the West. A story, she thought, was a wonderful way to learn about people and places. Pearl had read and heard about America and her family there, but she had never met her American relatives. When, at the age of 10, she spent a year in America, Pearl came to understand that she was a part of two worlds. Between Two Worlds tells the story of how Pearl Buck worked to increase the understanding between the two worlds she knew.

Kate stared at the rickety wooden bridge. There were boards loose on its narrow walkway. There was no railing to hold on to. She was afraid to cross this bridge even in daylight. But she had to cross it now. She had to get to the train station in time to stop the midnight express. When a heavy storm destroyed the bridge over Honey Creek, near Kate Shelley''s home in Moingona, Iowa, fifteen-year-old Kate bravely rushed out into the storm, saving the lives of two men and preventing hundreds of other lives from being lost. This is the true story of a young girl''s resourcefulness and courage in the face of great danger.

Kate miró el destartalado puente de madera. Había tablones sueltos en su estrecha pasarela. No había ninguna barandilla para sostener. Tenía miedo de cruzar este puente incluso a la luz del día. Pero ella tenía que cruzarlo ahora. Tenía que llegar a la estación de tren a tiempo para detener el expreso de medianoche. Cuando una fuerte tormenta destruyó el puente sobre Honey Creek, cerca de la casa de Kate Shelley en Moingona, Iowa, Kate, de quince años, se lanzó a la tormenta, salvando la vida de dos hombres e impidiendo que se perdieran cientos de vidas más. Esta es la verdadera historia del ingenio y el coraje de una joven ante un gran peligro.Kate stared at the rickety wooden bridge. There were boards loose on its narrow walkway. There was no railing to hold on to. She was afraid to cross this bridge even in daylight. But she had to cross it now. She had to get to the train station in time to stop the midnight express. When a heavy storm destroyed the bridge over Honey Creek, near Kate Shelley''s home in Moingona, Iowa, fifteen-year-old Kate bravely rushed out into the storm, saving the lives of two men and preventing hundreds of other lives from being lost. This is the true story of a young girl''s resourcefulness and courage in the face of great danger.

As two brothers try to reunite the lonely ghosts of a farmer and a sheepdog, "readers will be cheering them on every step of the way" (Publishers Weekly).In this short-chapter winner of the IRA Children''s Choices, Peter and Martin enjoy living atop Popcorn Hill, except for two things: They long for a big dog and their cabin is haunted by a lonely ghost. They do get a frisky mutt named Rosie, but she''s not as big or as appealing as the stray sheepdog that has been roaming around outside. When the boys learn the sheepdog is a ghost, however, they devise a plan for bringing the two ghosts together. In the process, they learn to appreciate their real pet, Rosie.

Kate stared at the rickety wooden bridge. There were boards loose on its narrow walkway. There was no railing to hold on to. She was afraid to cross this bridge even in daylight. But she had to cross it now. She had to get to the train station in time to stop the midnight express. When a heavy storm destroyed the bridge over Honey Creek, near Kate Shelley''s home in Moingona, Iowa, fifteen-year-old Kate bravely rushed out into the storm, saving the lives of two men and preventing hundreds of other lives from being lost. This is the true story of a young girl''s resourcefulness and courage in the face of great danger.

Kate miró el destartalado puente de madera. Había tablones sueltos en su estrecha pasarela. No había ninguna barandilla para sostener. Tenía miedo de cruzar este puente incluso a la luz del día. Pero ella tenía que cruzarlo ahora. Tenía que llegar a la estación de tren a tiempo para detener el expreso de medianoche. Cuando una fuerte tormenta destruyó el puente sobre Honey Creek, cerca de la casa de Kate Shelley en Moingona, Iowa, Kate, de quince años, se lanzó a la tormenta, salvando la vida de dos hombres e impidiendo que se perdieran cientos de vidas más. Esta es la verdadera historia del ingenio y el coraje de una joven ante un gran peligro.Kate stared at the rickety wooden bridge. There were boards loose on its narrow walkway. There was no railing to hold on to. She was afraid to cross this bridge even in daylight. But she had to cross it now. She had to get to the train station in time to stop the midnight express. When a heavy storm destroyed the bridge over Honey Creek, near Kate Shelley''s home in Moingona, Iowa, fifteen-year-old Kate bravely rushed out into the storm, saving the lives of two men and preventing hundreds of other lives from being lost. This is the true story of a young girl''s resourcefulness and courage in the face of great danger.

On October 11, 1896, 10-year-old Sam Deal and his horse, Ginger, watch as the brave surfmen of Pea Island struggle to save the lives of nine people stranded on a shipwreck. Sam has dreamt of becoming a surfman just like the all-African-American crew, and this is his chance. Can he and Ginger help the crew rescue the victims, or will they be lost forever?

Martha Dandridge Custis was twenty-seven years old when she married George Washington. She worked by her husband''s side to help keep their family, home, and country running smoothly. Whether she was at a ball or on a battlefield, Martha Washington set the standard for all future First Ladies with her quiet determination and courage.