Set in Washington, D.C.,1917. 13-year-old Kathleen Bowen revels in her diary her hopes, dreams, fears, and her suffering. Her mother has become a active member in the suffrage, and pickettes everyday. Her sisters have joined the Red Cross and have left her alone, Her cousin and only best friend Alma, leaves after her parents get a divorce. Her father spend more time in his office than at home. Alone and sad, she faces the world alone. Her only friend and the person she can confide in is her diary. Just when she thinks things cannot get worse, they do. Her mother is put in jail. Kat must find all her courage and streght to face what is to come. I highly recommed this diary for any Dear America fan or any one that enjoys historical fiction.

A Time for Courage, an historical fiction novel by Kathryn Lasky, is a tale that will make your heart cringe in anger and fear. Washington D.C. in 1917 is a town filled with picket lines and banners flying high for women's rights. The main characters are Kathleen Bowen, a spunky thirteen year old girl, and the brave suffragist Mrs. Bowen.

As the women's rights fight rages on, Mrs. Bowen is arrested and put in jail. Kathleen must find a way to see her mom and be strong during the war. The reader will love this book because of the excitement and the frightful moments that will keep you reading. If you don't like adventure books, slam this book down and pick another. Otherwise, you'll love it!

It's 1917 in Washington, D.C, and as the Great War rages in Europe, thirteen-year-old Kathleen Bowen is caught up in a fight closer to home. Her mother, sister Nell, and Auntie Claire are suffragists, fighting for voting rights for women, to the disapproval of her Uncle Bayard and the worry of her father. Kat and her cousin Alma, who are the exact same age, want to help, but they are too young to join the picket line. As it begins to seem more and more likely that the United States will enter the war, life begins to change in other ways. Nell leaves to join the Women's Ambulance Corps in France, and Alma, desperate to escape after her parents' bitter divorce, runs away to England and becomes a Red Cross volunteer. But the worst hardship of all is still to come. Kat's mother is arrested, and Kat wonders how she will ever make it through this unbearable loneliness. I highly recommend this book to all fans of the Dear America series.

Relatively short, this beautifully illustrated version of the son of a God's battle to regain his honor is a good read for intermediate students. Serving the purpose of an introduction to Greek mythology, this book gives a well-rounded biography of "Hera's glory," Hercules. A series of these books done in the same style would have made it easier for teachers to design units on mythology for young children. The illustrations complement the text nicely, however because there is a lot of information on a single page, the picture cannot always tell enough. The text is set off from the illustration in a colorful, but easy to read manner. Some of the vocabulary and pronunciations will need to be explained and demonstrated, and probably should not have been included.

Why 3 stars?:
The illustrations are absolutely wonderful, unfortunately the text drags the books down. There is too much information on a single page. I do not support the condensing of myths, but this book would have been better if it focused on a single aspect of Hercules' life rather than trying to tell the whole thing in a picture book format. It's just too heavy.

I love this book! The book has lovely fight scenes. Very interesting book. I think this book would be great to teach the story of Hercules to your kids.

I just got this book and I love it. Hercules is so cool even though his life was so hard. I love the great pictures, some are scarry but so beautiful.

As a sixth-grade Social Studies teacher I needed ways to integrate other subject areas into my curriculum. I came across this book while researching for a unit on Ancient Greece. The book has pictures that are vivid and exciting and follow young Eratosthenes throughout his life until the time in which he "measured the Earth" . My students will find its words complex enough to keep them interested but simplistic enough to follow along. This can be integrated well with math lessons dealing with angles and circumference. I found the book to be extremely enjoyable.

Over two thousands years ago a man named Eratosthenes figured out the circumference of the earth using a method that involved camels and light shining straight down into a well at midday. This "crude" method was off by less than 200 miles when compared to the most accurate measurements of today. Kathryn Lasky reports that while Eratosthenes wrote numerous volumes on geography, the constellations, history and comedy, he left behind no personal records of any kind. As a result, Lasky engages in trying to "responsibly imagine based on what we already know." Working from what we know about the time and places in which he lived, Lasky creates a compelling portrait of Eratosthenes as a child constantly asking questions who turns into a man interested in understanding so many things about the universe in which he lives that he was nicknamed Pentathlos, a reference to the athletes who competed in five different events in recognition of the fact Eratosthenes knew a lot about so many different things. It was after he was appointed the head librarian at the great library in Alexandria that Eratosthenes became consumed with the idea of determining the size of the earth. Lasky recreates the process by which the librarian determined his calculation, using the example of a grapefruit as the basis metaphor. Step by step she explains how the librarian determined the distance from Alexandria to Syene, a city in southern Egypt, despite the problem presented by camels.

Now, I have not had to sit in a math class since I was a freshman in high school and I took Life Through the Microscope and Ecology rather than have to dissect frogs in Biology, so math and science are not exactly my strong suits. But if I can understand how Eratosthenes arrived at his calculation then most school children in this country should be able to follow the idea as well. The illustrations by Kevin Hawkes perfectly compliment the text (I thought they were pastels but there are acrylics done on two-play museum board). Young readers will be captivated by the way Eratosthenes solved his problem and will learn about the educational system for young Greek boys that existed at that time. It should be easy for teachers and students to extend the example of Eratosthenes to any other famous scientist being studied in class from Galileo to Einstein. Even if young readers do not want to be scientists, or even librarians, after reading this book, I would not be surprised if they practice being bematists for a while (surveyors trained to walk with equal steps). In her afterword, Lasky explains how Columbus would have had smoother sailing on his voyage of discovery if he had relied more on the calculations of Eratosthenes. "The Librarian Who Measured the Earth" is an excellent mix of history and science, served up with some reasonable biographical speculations.

As a teacher, I've used this book for several years as a "read-aloud" in my sixth grade math classroom. I time it with my geometry units. It's a hit every time. The kids truly love it, and ask great follow-up questions. The book explains the math involved in finding the circumference of the earth 2000 years ago. The language and great illustrations make the math easy to understand. Since the students also read mythology in reading class, it's a perfect cross-curricululm connection. In the past two years, I've timed it to coincide with the "Read Across America" movement on March 2.

This book was a very interesting and engaging read. Kathryn Lasky did an excellent job of portraying the young Mary Stuart's thoughts, worries, dreams, and other feelings.
The diary begins one day after Mary's eleventh birthday and covers the span of almost one year. During this time, Mary describes the challenges she faces as the Queen of Scots and future wife of the sickly French hire, Francis. Mary records her homesickness for Scotland and the loneliness caused by being away from her mother. Many interesting, real-life characters enter the scene, including the mysterious astrologer Nostradamus, the enigmatic Diane de Poitiers, and four girls each also named Mary, close friends of Mary Stuart. Throughout several months, the French court moves from chateau to chateau, living a withdrawn and lavish existence- a world within a world. Mary is forced to question her conscience, spirit, and ablility to be a good ruler in this coming of age story. As in some of the other Royal Diaries, the details presented often seem a little trivial and unimportant, but without them, I suppose this diary wouldn't be genuine or real enough. Although the diary entries provide a very good picture of what Mary's character and life were like during this stage of her childhood, I thought that some vital information was missing from the epilogue and historical note...... In general, though, this book was accurate, interesting, and very thought provoking.

1553, Mary Stuart, aka Mary, Queen of Scots resides in France at age eleven. She describes to her journal, the details of the French court with her four Marys, her close friends from Scotland. She details encounters with the stern Queen Catherine de Medici, the beautiful Diane de Poitiers, her friend, the sickly Dauphn who is to be her future husband, Francis, and many others. She finds conflicts with the Queen Catherine and believes that "there is no room in one country for two Queens". She misses her mother and native land of Scotland dearly. An eleven year old girl who is at times, a queen and a child. Some things conflict but she takes them introspectively. She is truly growing up as a Queen away from home.

Kathryn Lasky did a great job in this portryal of the young Scottish Queen. It was very believable and convincing. She was able to weave cameos of people like Nostradamus and important historical details of things happening in England at that time. This is another great book to add to the series but I thought many details were left out in the Historical Notes and Epilogue which can be researched in more detail though. Overall, Mary, Queen of Scots, is an asute, lonely and brave young Queen in this addition to the Royal Diary Series. An enjoyable read.

Mary became Queen of Scotland when she was just a baby, after the death of her father. But in a time where alliances among the powerful nations of Europe are important, Mary is sent away from her home at age five to live in the court of King Henry II of France, where she will be educated and live as one of the family until she old enough to marry Henry's son, Francis. The year is 1553, and Mary is eleven. She longs for her homeland, and for her mother, but is good friends with nine-year-old Francis and the other royal children. In her diary, Mary describes her daily life over one year. She may be a queen, but in many ways Mary is just like any eleven-year-old girl, enjoying fun and games. but at the same time longing to return to her home and mother. I really enjoyed this wonderful new Royal Diaries book, and I recommend it to all fans of the series.

It's late November, 1932, and the entire nation is feeling the effects of the Great Depression. Christmas is nearing, but for many families, it will be a joyless holiday. Eleven-year-old Minnie Swift fears that will be the case for her family. Although her father still has a job, he hasn't been making much money. Life changes for the whole family, however, when Minnie's orphaned cousin, Willie Faye, comes to live with the family. Eleven-year-old Willie Faye is the same age as Minnie, but she is very different. Having grown up in the dust bowl of Texas, she's had an even harder life than Minnie. Minnie and her older sisters, and even her pesky younger brother, welcome Willie Faye into their family. But when her father loses his job, Minnie fears that her family will soon be joining the homeless. This wonderful new Dear America book, told through Minnie's diary entries over the month from Thanksgiving to Christmas, showed how the love in a family could help make the worst of times bearable. All fans of the series will want to read this book.

Do you like books taking place in history with a fun story to it? If you do this would be a great book for you!This takes place in 1932 during the Great Depression in Indianapolis,Indiana.
This is about a family who gets a new member, their cousin, Willie Faye, from Texas. She is very different from all of the family, except for Minnie who is the same age. This book explains how many people loose thier jobs, and Minnies father was one of them. Suddenly something happened; someone was missing but you'll have to read the book to find out!
This book has a lot of surprises, and the characters are always coming up with exciting ideas. For example,Minnie and Willie Faye don't have any money, so they make their Christmas gifts. Now you'll never belive what they use to decorate the gifts, but chicken feathers from their very own live chickens! There are many more exciting events through out the book!
I think this author was trying to give the message that no matter how poor, or how rich you are you still have the love in your heart that somehow everyone will get a chance to live the life they deserve.

This is a great book. There are lots of funny twists to it. Like, for example, their servant, Jackie, goes to lots of funerals and takes pictures of the bodies in the caskets to show everybody back home. Another funny twist is when a chicken they bought from some friends gets frozen to the trash can and the parents pour ale over it to get the ice to melt. The chicken has one leg that turns black and falls off, and hopped around on one leg, falling face-down wherever it hopped, so Jackie killed it for dinner. The best part is that my town, Greenfield, is a suburb of Indianapolis!

I wanted to like this book, I really did. The design is exquisite, the illustrations compelling with lush, gorgeous colors. The story is a fascinating one and the idea of turning it into a picture book for younger children was fantastic. It has many important themes such as the struggle for women's sufferage and the idea of empowerment, working for a cause you believe in, and the elements of successful political action, all told in a way that young children can understand. However, I found the text just a little too preachy for my taste, and I am very sympathetic to the cause. I don't think environmental causes are helped by looking down on those who view things differently, instead I would like to read books that help children to understand why there are differences of opinion and have empathy for those who are different. I found the words like "silly" "disgusting" "revolting" "nauseating" "ghastly" used to describe feather-wearers to be unconstructive, uncompassionate and not particularly admirable.

I am in first grade and I am six years old. I really like this book. The pictures are funny. I like the dodo bird and the heath hen, and the spoonbill escaping from the picture. I learned about the Audubon Society, it saves birds. I also learned that Harriet and Minna were cousins and real people. This book is great for ages six and up!

"She's Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head" is an absolutely wonderful book to illustrate how we need to be kind to our feathered friends! Great when read with "voices" to match the pinch-faced, conservation minded women who star in the book! Hurray to Kathryn Lasky for writing a this child-eye opener and to David Catrow for bringing it to life!

One of my kids is crazy about pigs, so...anyway, now she is crazy about ballerinas, too! Very cute story about a little pig who gets a tutu for a birthday present. Is great at presenting sibling rivalry, but I could have done with out the older brother riding his bike through the living room (!), and calling his sister "stupid". Other than that, great book!

Kathryn Lasky's Starring Lucille receives Marilyn Hafner's fun drawings as it tells of a pig who gets a tutu from her grandmother and begins practicing for her debut. Her siblings almost ruin her show in this gentle story of rivalry.

I thought that this book was very good. the characters were realistic. I felt bad for Harper the whole story, as if I knew her. This book made me realize that I am very lucky to not have to move around a lot. That, if for no other reason I suggest that you read this book.

Religion, adolescence,and Briar Rabbit? Intriguing and thought provoking, this novel is without a doubt the pinnacle of what religion can do if taken to the extreme. Harper doesn't want the past of her parents to come back but at what price are they all happy? As religion takes a firm grip on her life she is slammed with censorship and her beloved books are deemed satanic. Her references to fiction and books made me think twice about the depth of her fantasy world. Writing to authors seems the whimsical thoughts of children and she does in fact view much of her life through a child's eyes. Dealing with the theory of evolution and sin Harper is torn between two fantasy worlds, her parents and her own. Dragged by her parents on their "quest" she encounters an ally in her sanctuary and finds grounds she never knew existed. Only read this book with an open mind, you will view religion more diffrently than you ever thought possible.

Being thrown into the confusing, almost surreal, world of 14-year old Harper Jessup is incredible. Even if you have nothing, this book makes you feel loved. Touring the US with god-fearing perents is hardly the way to be even if you do live in a Roadmaster Grand Deluxe motor home. When you read this book you start you realize how hard people have it. If someone took away the one thing you loved and called it satanic you would be miserable too. This book is well worth reading. I am reading it now for the fourth time.

This was a great book. At first i thought this book was boring , but as i got deeper and deeper into the book i found my self not stoping when reading time was over. The book was told in first person which made it intresting , because they would flip back and forth through time. It was intresting for me because it was about the jews in world war, and i am half jewish. Most world war booke spark my intrest. The charasters were well described down to the smallest detail. Also, what was intresting about the book was that it was about an old latie telling her grand daughter about how she helped her family escape from a consentration camp and getting them home safly. the only thing i did not like about the book was thet since it switched back and forth in time so mush that sometimes i didnt understand. All in all i rated this book a 3 out of 5 because of all the action and drama, but little bordem. I would reccomend this book to anyone who is intresten in world war 2 events.

At first i thought this book was very boring. As i got deeper and deeper in to it i foung my self not stoping when reading was over. What i liked about the book was that it was about jews in world war 2, and that sparks my intrest because i have jewish backround. The fact that a little girl helped her family escape from the nazies was also very intresting to me. The book was told in first person and kept going back and forth in time which sometimes confused me. That was the only thing about the book that annoyed me. i would find myself having to read a hold 3 pages over because i was confused. I liked that the story was told by an elderly grandma to her grand daughter. My grandmother used to tell me stories like that and it brought back memories. I rated this book a four out ot five because of all the action and drama. The only thing i did not like about the book was that sometimes it got very boring and it went back and forth in time, confusing me. All in all it was a good book, and i would reccomend it to anyone who likes world war 2 stories about jews.

This was a really great book that kept me reading for a few days. It really showed me what it was like for a Jewish girl to live through turn-of-the-century Russia. This was a summer reading book for me at school, but I'm certainly glad I read it! I would reccommend this book to any and all who are looking for a great read!

Beyond the Burning Time Book Review
Beyond the Burning Time is an interesting book. It is based in true events and is historical fiction. Its plot is based on the Salem witch hangings in 1692. AT the time Massachusetts had no regional government, which led to the execution of innocent people without fair trial. Superstition of witches began to take hold of North America in the late 1600s.

The most recorded executions of accused witches occurred in Salem village. It began when (or so the book says) when a fortuneteller named Tituba stared predicting a group of girl's fortunes. The girls then started behaving strangely days after. They threw strange fits. The villagers believed it was the work of evil hands A.K.A. witches. Superstition took over and the Salem townsfolk started to accuse other people of being witches. The Chases, Mary, Caleb, and Virginia, unwillingly find themselves victims of atrocities committed by the villagers. Then Virginia, Mary and Caleb's mother, is accused of being a witch. The children formulate a plan to save their mother before she is hanged.

All the main characters in this book were down to earth decent people. They were persistent in their beliefs, yet they were simple. I would only recommend this book to intellectuals and philosophers. People will have to carefully read through it to enjoy it. I personally liked it. It's important that we understand History so we do not make mistakes.

The book Beyond The Burning Time, by Kathryn Lasky, was a compelling novel about the Salem Witch Trials in 1692. I enjoyed it cover to cover. The reader is transported back into a time of witches, lies, ignorance, and despair. The book captures you with its interesting plot, making you want to keep turning the pages. Told from a 12-year-old girl's point of view, the events unfold touching everyone. No one can escape the hysteria during this awful time. Mary, the main character, watches as her once quite town changes. Girls her own age, start to act in strange ways, having fits, seizures and twisting themselves into unnatural positions as if they were being attacked by black magic and witchcraft. The "afflicted" girls cause many innocent people to be persecuted, imprisoned or even hung due to untrue accusations of witchcraft. When Mary's mom, Virginia, is accused of witchcraft, Mary and her brother, Caleb, must find a way to help their mom escape and put an end to the Witch hunting craze.

Beyond the Burning Time is great reading for anyone who enjoys historical fiction or is interested in the Salem Witch Trials. Kathryn Lasky goes into great detail on the characters emotions, personal beliefs and how lies-upon-lies can touch so many. Many teenagers will find themselves identifying with Mary as she strives for acceptance, independence and faces difficult decisions, just as we do now.

The book Beyond the Burning Time, by Kathryn Laskey, is a tale of the famous Salem witch trials. Set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, this book describes the life of a 12 year old girl, Mary Chase, during a terrifying time in America's history. Beyond the Burning Time has a lot of very realistic historical background information about the hanging of witches but the story does not have gory details that would be too scary for children. In the story Mary and her brother, Caleb, tried to rescue their mother, Virginia, who had been accused of witchcraft. Virginia was in prison and was about to be hanged for her crime.

The author also gives information about the characters that help the reader relate to the story. Even though Mary lived in an unusual time in American history, she was like teenagers today. Mary felt like an outsider because she lived on the outskirts of Salem village and had to help her mother keep up with the farm while the other girls socialized. Mary was interested in everything that was going on in Salem village, but her mother did not allow her to have anything to do with it. One night she was so fed up about not knowing about anything that was going on in the village that she sneaked out to her neighbor's house to see what the latest gossip was. Throughout the novel, Mary struggled with a lot of the same issues as many teenage girls today.

Mary's desire to be considered an adult and accomplish almost impossible things is an important theme of this book. Examples of Mary's bravery were when she stood up for what she believed in, didn't follow the crowd and saved her mother from being hanged for being accused of witchcraft.

The beginning of this book is a little dull and the many characters become confusing to the reader. However, after a while, the book is so full of excitement that the reader cannot put it down. By the end of the book, Mary and Caleb's plan to rescue their mother was successful. Captain Eli Coatsworth helped Mary and her brother to come up with a plan to rescue Mary's mother. Mary knew Coatsworth because the owner of the dolphin resort where Mary worked was a close friend of Coatsworth's. This book ends happily because the Chases and Captain Eli Coatsworth moved to Jamaica where Mary's mother and Coatsworth married.

This was a very realistic book about the time of the Salem witch trials. Even though it was a little confusing at times, anyone who enjoys historical fiction should definitely read this book.