What Was? – serie

When Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, and the "Corps of Discovery" left St. Louis, Missouri, on May 21, 1804, their mission was to explore the vast, unknown territory acquired a year earlier in the Louisiana Purchase. The travellers hoped to find a waterway that crossed the western half of the United States. They didn't. But their two-year journey finally brought them to the Pacific Ocean.

In the early morning hours of June 6, 1944, an armada of 7,000 ships carrying 160,000 Allied troops stormed the beaches of Nazi-occupied France. Up until then the Allied forces had suffered serious defeats, yet D -Day, as the invasion was called, spelled the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany and the Third Reich. Author Patricia Brennan takes readers into the heart of the action and gives an hour-by-hour breakdown of one of the greatest amphibious landings ever. With 80 black-and-white illustrations as well as a 16-page insert of period photos, this is the exciting story of a pivotal moment in WWll history.

The Age of Dinosaurs began about 250 million years ago. In the beginning they were quite small but over time they evolved into the varied and fascinating creatures that captivate our imaginations today. What we know about dinosaurs is evolving, too! We've learned that some dinosaurs were good parents, that dinosaurs could grow new teeth when old ones fell out and that most dinosaurs walked on two legs. We've even discovered that birds are modern relatives of dinosaurs!

The Holocaust was a genocide on a scale never before seen, with as many as twelve million people killed in Nazi death camps - six million of them Jews. Gail Herman traces the rise of Hitler and the Nazis, whose rabid anti-Semitism led first to humiliating anti-Jewish laws, then to ghettos all over Eastern Europe, and ultimately to the Final Solution. She presents just enough information for an elementary-school audience in a readable, well-researched book that covers one of the most horrible times in history.

At 2:20 a.m. on April 15, 1912, the Royal Mail Steamer Titanic, the largest passenger steamship of this time, met its catastrophic end after crashing into an iceberg. Of the 2,240 passengers and crew onboard, only 705 survived. More than 100 years later, today’s readers will be intrigued by the mystery that surrounds this ship that was originally labeled “unsinkable.”

Every four years, thirty two of the best men’s soccer teams from across the globe compete for the title of FIFA World Cup winner. Over one billion people tuned in worldwide to watch the final game of the 2014 competition, making the World Cup the most widely viewed sporting event in the world, exceeding even the Summer Olympics! This book takes a look back at what has changed since the first tournament in 1930 and what lies ahead for the most popular sport in the world.

Find out how these fun, stackable blocks became the most popular toys in the world.

Grab your skis, ice skates, and snowboard and learn how the Winter Olympic Games became a worldwide phenomenal event watched by millions. Although fans the world over have been fascinated by the modern Summer Olympics since 1896, the Winter Olympics didn't officially begin until 1924. The event celebrates cold-weather sports, displaying the talents of skiers, ice skaters, hockey players, and, most recently, snowboarding. Like its summer counterpart, the Winter Games are dedicated to bringing together the world's top athletes to honor their talents and see who gets to stand on the medal podium. Gail Herman covers it all in a wonderful read--the highs, such as the 1980 US hockey team's unexpected gold medal grab, as well as the lows, including the Tonya Harding-Nancy Kerrigan figure-skating scandal in 1994. Includes 80 black-and-white illustrations and a 16-page photo insert.

Whether Congress is in session or not, here is an enthralling overview about the branch of our government closest to average Americans.Best-selling adult author and the first woman to become executive editor of The New York Times, Jill Abramson is a self-confessed political junkie. Now she has written the book she wishes she'd had as a young reader. Explaining clearly and concisely what exactly Congress does, this book is peppered with fascinating stories, including the bloody beating in the Senate of a lawmaker in pre-Civil War days, the Watergate hearings, and Senator Joe McCarthy's shameful "witch hunt" of Communists. Kids may start considering a career in Congress themselves when they learn fun facts, such as the special "candy desk" in the Senate, and the fact that all lawmakers can bring their dogs to work!With 80 fun black-and-white illustrations and an engaging 16-page photo insert, readers will be excited to read this latest additon to this #1 New York Times Best-Selling series.

In this book from the #1 New York Times bestselling series, learn how this vibrant Black neighborhood in upper Manhattan became home to the leading Black writers, artists, and musicians of the 1920s and 1930s.Travel back in time to the 1920s and 1930s to the sounds of jazz in nightclubs and the 24-hours-a-day bustle of the famous Black neighborhood of Harlem in uptown Manhattan. It was a dazzling time when there was an outpouring of the arts of African Americans--the poetry of Langston Hughes; the novels of Zora Neale Hurston; the sculptures of Augusta Savage and that brand-new music called jazz as only Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong could play it. Author Sherri Smith traces Harlem's history all the way to its seventeenth-century roots, and explains how the early-twentieth-century Great Migration brought African Americans from the deep South to New York City and gave birth to the golden years of the Harlem Renaissance.With 80 fun black-and-white illustrations and an engaging 16-page photo insert, readers will be excited to read this latest addition to Who HQ!

Reconstruction - the period after the Civil War - was meant to give newly freed Black people the same rights as white people. And indeed there were monumental changes once slavery ended - thriving new Black communities, the first Black members in Congress, and a new sense of dignity for many Black Americans. But this time of hope didn’t last long and instead, a deeply segregated United States continued on for another hundred years. Find out what went wrong in this fascinating overview of a troubled time.

Go back to the thrilling time of warring knights who were prepared to give their life in order to protect their lord and his castle.Castles may conjure up a romantic fairy tale world; however, in real life, during the Middle Ages, castles were fortresses, providing shelter and protection for the lord as well as for the peasants who lived on his land. For an army, a lord depended on young soldiers in armor called knights who spent years at the castle learning the skills of warfare. Author Sarah Fabiny dives into the history of castles and how they grew from simple wood structures to mighty fortresses in stone. She also explains who could become a knight and what their lives were like off of the battlefield, enjoying feasts, courting their lady loves, and showing off in tournaments. With 80 fun black-and-white illustrations and an engaging 16-page photo insert, readers will be excited to read this latest addition to Who HQ!