Lubeck is a powerful Norseman who is innocently fishing when his ship is attacked and he is left injured. After he is pulled aboard a slave vessel, Lubeck pledges not to die chained to an oar, but instead to break free and find his son before he stands with his forefathers in Valhalla. After Lubeck and his shipmates manage to orchestrate an escape that washes them straight into the ocean and eventually onto a beach, Lubeck and his loyal companion, Thorsten, transform the former galley slaves into a formidable army. As they embark on a dangerous quest to rescue and recover their loved ones and to plot revenge against their slavers, Lubeck leads his Gurlemeck warriors from northern Viking territories to the equatorial tropics and through numerous battles. But when they are unwittingly drawn into a deceitful and traitorous power struggle that tests their abilities, courage, and determination, now only time will tell if they will persevere and complete their mission or die trying. In this heroic fantasy adventure, a band of escaped slaves set out on a perilous journey to find their families and seek justice for their captors.
In moving verse, Children’s Poet Laureate J. Patrick Lewis gives new voice to seventeen heroes of civil rights. Exquisitely illustrated by five extraordinary artists, this commanding collection of poems invites the reader to hear in each verse the thunder that lies in every voice, no matter how small. Featuring civil rights luminaries Coretta Scott King, Harvey Milk, Mohandas Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Sylvia Mendez, Aung San Suu Kyi, Mamie Carthan Till, Helen Zia, Josh Gibson, Dennis James Banks, Mitsuye Endo, Ellison Onizuka, Jackie Robinson, Muhammad Yunus, James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner.
It’s time for a family reunion! when tricia’s aunts, uncles, and cousins arrive at her house for an annual family reunion, the fun really begins. And this year, gramma has promised to teach the children something wonderful—how to catch “lightning” in a jar. with so many people and so much love, this family reunion will certainly prove to be the most memorable one yet. inspired by her own family, patricia polacco beautifully depicts an endearing family reunion that will surely have readers—young and old— yearning to spend quality time with their family.
Twelve years after the death of her lover in a college hazing, Susan Thornton, hospitalized after a serious accident, sees the four men responsible for his death
A fictional portrayal of real events that occurred during WWII from Afro-American author John Oliver Killens, who had previously served in the Amphibian Forces in the South Pacific. Through his characters, the reader gains a close-to-the-bone account of what it was like to be a Negro soldier fighting in segregated units under racist commanding officers. The final chapters reveal one of the war’s best-kept secrets concerning the escalating racial tension between black American GIs and their white commanding officers. The story climaxes in a terrifying race riot, which took place on the seedy night streets of South Brisbane in March 1942. Editorial Reviews: “...a big and powerful, angry novel, pulsating with love and hate, laughter and tears, sex and violence, and all the other juices of life.”—Sidney Poitier “...that big, polyphonic, violent novel...calls James Jones to mind.”—Saturday Review “...A beautiful and powerful book.”—James Baldwin
A loud clap of thunder booms, and rattles the windows of Grandma's old farmhouse. "This is Thunder Cake baking weather," calls Grandma, as she and her granddaughter hurry to gather the ingredients around the farm. A real Thunder Cake must reach the oven before the storm arrives. But the list of ingredients is long and not easy to find . . . and the storm is coming closer all the time! Reaching once again into her rich childhood experience, Patricia Polacco tells the memorable story of how her grandma--her Babushka--helped her overcome her fear of thunder when she was a little girl. Ms. Polacco's vivid memories of her grandmother's endearing answer to a child's fear, accompanied by her bright folk-art illustrations, turn a frightening thunderstorm into an adventure and ultimately . . . a celebration! Whether the first clap of thunder finds you buried under the bedcovers or happily anticipating the coming storm, Thunder Cake is a story that will bring new meaning and possibility to the excitement of a thunderstorm.
You can take the dead girl out of the country... Veronica Fischer, small-town bloodsucking madam, is an orphan or at least she finally feels that way. Jules, the one who made her, is gone and cleaning up after him isn't something she ever thought she'd have to do. While her hometown seems to be turning against her, she's forced to set off for the bright lights of the big city with a carload of her dysfunctional supernatural family, hoping not to have to face the Dragon of Chicago. Now she has to rescue a sister she didn't know she had, keep Rachel-her adopted 8-year-old ghost-safe, and try to keep Pekin from unraveling under the onset of the coming storm. Sex, violence, and cryptic undead prophecy-all for fun and profit.
When the world gets too loud and chaotic, a young boy’s grandfather helps him listen with wonder instead. Kids laughing, sneakers squeaking, balls bouncing—for Thunder, the sounds of the school day often brew into overwhelming noise storms. But when Thunder’s mosom asks him what he hears on an urban nature walk, Thunder starts to understand how sounds like bird wings flapping and rushing water can help him feel calm and connected. Gentle, inviting illustrations by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley emphasize Mosom’s lessons about the healing power of the world around us.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Continuing the series that began with A Blaze of Glory, Jeff Shaara returns to chronicle another decisive chapter in America’s long and bloody Civil War. In A Chain of Thunder, the action shifts to the fortress city of Vicksburg, Mississippi. There, in the vaunted “Gibraltar of the Confederacy,” a siege for the ages will cement the reputation of one Union general—and all but seal the fate of the rebel cause. In May 1863, after months of hard and bitter combat, Union troops under the command of Major General Ulysses S. Grant at long last successfully cross the Mississippi River. They force the remnants of Confederate Lieutenant General John C. Pemberton’s army to retreat to Vicksburg, burning the bridges over the Big Black River in its path. But after sustaining heavy casualties in two failed assaults against the rebels, Union soldiers are losing confidence and morale is low. Grant reluctantly decides to lay siege to the city, trapping soldiers and civilians alike inside an iron ring of Federal entrenchments. Six weeks later, the starving and destitute Southerners finally surrender, yielding command of the Mississippi River to the Union forces on July 4—Independence Day—and marking a crucial turning point in the Civil War. Drawing on comprehensive research and his own intimate knowledge of the Vicksburg Campaign, Jeff Shaara once again weaves brilliant fiction out of the ragged cloth of historical fact. From the command tents where generals plot strategy to the ruined mansions where beleaguered citizens huddle for safety, this is a panoramic portrait of men and women whose lives are forever altered by the siege. On one side stand the emerging legend Grant, his irascible second William T. Sherman, and the youthful “grunt” Private Fritz Bauer; on the other, the Confederate commanders Pemberton and Joseph Johnston, as well as nineteen-year-old Lucy Spence, a civilian doing her best to survive in the besieged city. By giving voice to their experiences at Vicksburg, A Chain of Thunder vividly evokes a battle whose outcome still reverberates more than 150 years after the cannons fell silent. Praise for A Chain of Thunder “[Jeff] Shaara continues to draw powerful novels from the bloody history of the Civil War. . . . The dialogue intrigues. Shaara aptly reveals the main actors: Grant, stoic, driven, not given to micromanagement; Sherman, anxious, high-strung, engaged even when doubting Grant’s strategy. . . . Worth a Civil War buff’s attention.”—Kirkus Reviews “Searing . . . Shaara seamlessly interweaves multiple points of view, as the plot is driven by a stellar cast of real-life and fictional characters coping with the pivotal crisis. . . . [A] riveting fictional narrative.”—Booklist “Shaara’s historical accuracy is faultless, and he tells a good story. . . . The voices of these people come across to the reader as poignantly as they did 150 years ago.”—Historical Novels Review “The writing is picturesque and vibrant. . . . [an] engrossing tale.”—Bookreporter
On the edges of a sealed-off city, a chance encounter between two girls in the misty woods is about to change the course of everything. . . Lena is on the run from her home, the Duke's Forest, after being convicted as a mage and sentenced to death. Meanwhile, Constance escaped the Forest years before, after her own magical powers were discovered--but now, she will do anything to get back inside and reclaim her place as the duke's daughter. The girls cross paths for only a moment, but that's long enough to set them down paths that will change the dukedom forever. As Lena reaches a safe haven where she can study and develop her powers alongside handsome but mysterious mage Emris, Constance maneuvers her way back into the home she left behind, unsure whether she trust the people she once considered her family and friends. All the while, the girls are connected by the dark, terrifying storm clouds that hang over the land and devastate everything in their wakes. Only Lena and Constance hold the keys to dispelling the storm and keeping their home safe--if they can uncover who cast the spell that generated the clouds to begin with. But the truth is far more sinister than anyone could imagine, and it could mean that one of the girls will lose everything.
