Sometimes a war's greatest heroes are its survivors, those who manage to forge new lives despite the tragedy they have experienced. For the sixteen unsung heroes profiled in Beyond Their Years, surviving also meant surrendering their childhood. These children found themselves on the edge of the fray - both in combat and in the throes of daily life - helping, or simply enduring, as best their interrupted youths allowed. Their behind-the-scenes stories illustrate what it was really like for children during the Civil War. Meet Ransom Powell, a thirteen-year-old drummer boy who survived grueling Confederate prison camps; writer and patriot Maggie Campbell, only eight years old when the war ended; Ulysses S. Grant's son Jesse, who rode proudly alongside Abraham Lincoln's son Tad and Ella Sheppard, daughter of a slave mother and a freed father, who lived through the backlash of slave rebellions. Each of these young survivors' lives represent an amazing contribution to the war effort and to postbellum life. Learn the inspiring stories of these American children who displayed courage, devotion, and wisdom beyond their years.

From the establishment of Roanoke to a miracle of modern medicine, It Happened in North Carolina takes you on a behind-the-scenes tour of thirty compelling episodes from the vibrant history of the Tar Heel State. Guess the identity of the wealthy and mysterious stranger of New Orleans. Go back to June 27, 1857, and climb the highest peak in the East along with Elisha Mitchell, who died there. Discover how the last shot of the Civil War was fired in 1941. Get the inside story on the North Carolina gold rush, the Wright brothers' first real flight, a showdown at Torpedo Junction, and the case of the telltale laundry ticket.

Sometimes a war's greatest heroes are its survivors, those who manage to forge new lives despite the tragedy they have experienced. History books usually do not describe how a nine-year-old Massachusetts boy might have felt when his friend was killed in the Boston Massacre or what went through the mind of a teenage Quaker girl when her family fled Philadelphia. Children like these found themselves on the edge of the fray-both in combat and in the throes of daily life-helping, or simply enduring, as best their interrupted youths allowed. Their behind-the-scenes stories illustrate what it was really like for children during the Revolutionary War.
Meet Frances Slocum, a five-year-old girl captured and raised by Native Americans; James Fortune, a free African American who at the age of fifteen enlisted on a government-commissioned ship; and Deborah Samson, who, at twenty, dressed in men's clothes and joined the Continental army.
Learn the inspiring stories of American children who displayed courage, devotion, and wisdom during the colonies' fight for freedom.

The definitive collection of Chicago's odd, wacky, and most offbeat people, places, and things, for Chicago residents and anyone else who enjoys local humor and trivia with a twist.

The Kingdom of Atoz is thrown into a panic when the letter C disappears from the Royal Alphabet. No one can say or write the letter, and it has vanished from all the books in the kingdom. Sir Clooney becomes Sir Looney. A sign in a bakery window offers "akes" and "fresh baked pie rust." The librarian, Lord Reading, tries to recite his favorite poem but the lines come out all wrong. "A terrible rime has been ommitted " he wails. A young page named Wordsworth believes that the letter C was stolen by a dragon. Seeing a chance to prove himself worthy of knighthood, he heads into the Forest of Spells to fight the dragon and recover the missing letter. Wordsworth isn't acting alone. He has the help of Phrasia, the local witch; Klause, a goat-like creature called a cavabok; and his friend, Princess Rho, who has a secret power. But will that be enough? What will happen when Wordsworth has to face not only a dragon but a gang of large, mean creatures called muddletonques? Who will protect him?

From the "crocodile's dentist," to the "mongoose spa," Animal Partners takes a whimsical look at symbiotic relationships of animals large and small. Although many animals live in groups of the same kind, here you will learn how some animals form unique partnerships with different species. After all, don't we all need a little help from our friends?