An accessible story of America's birthday brings alive the history and spirit of the Fourth of July, with an introduction to the fight for independence and the events and people that shaped American tradition. What happened on the Fourth of July long before there were fireworks and parades? Alice Dalgliesh takes young readers back to revolutionary times, back to the colonists' desire for freedom and the creation of the Declaration of Independence. Simple text captures the excitement of the era, telling how word of Independence traveled up and down the thirteen colonies, touching the lives of everyday people throughout the land. Like all of Alice Dalgliesh's work, The Fourth of July Story remains an American classic.

A Pilgrim family's struggle to survive in their harsh new homeland culminates in a thanksgiving feast.

"There are no bears on Hemlock Mountain, No bears, no bears at all..."

Or so young Jonathan is told by the grown-ups as he sets out alone over Hemlock Mountain. But as Jonathan discovers on that cold winter night, grown-ups don't always know...

And there are bears on Hemlock Mountain!

In 1707, young Sarah Noble and her father traveled through the wilderness to build a new home for their family. "Keep up your courage, Sarah Noble," her mother had said, but Sarah found that it was not always easy to feel brave inside. The dark woods were full of animals and Indians, too, and Sarah was only eight!

The true story of Sarah's journey is inspiring. And as she cares for her father and befriends her Indian neighbors, she learns that to be afraid and to be brave is the greatest courage of all.

"A well written, easy-to-read, interesting picture-story of the voyage of the Mayflower to the New World, the settlement at Plymouth, and the celebration of the first Thanksgiving Day".--Library Journal.