Jennifer Thermes

"A Place Called America takes the long view of the land's history from its earliest formation and inhabitants up through today. Meet those indigenous to the deserts, prairies, forests, and shores of the land called Turtle Island and their relatives who contributed to World War II and whose ideas founded the basis of the Constitution. Meet immigrant communities, who came to the land from all around the world--at different times and against all odds,...

"An innovative look back through time, Manhattan Maps follows the history of Manhattan Island from its natural formation to the bustling city today. It explores the ways in which nature and people are connected, tracking the people who lived on Manhattan from the Lenape Indians to Dutch settlers hunting for beaver pelts to early Americans and beyond, and how they've (literally) shaped the island (and vice versa). Jen Thermes highlights watershed moments...

"Emma Gatewood's life was far from easy. In rural Ohio, she managed a household of 11 kids alongside a less-than-supportive husband. One day, at age 67, she decided to go for a nice long walk and ended up completing the Appalachian Trail. With just the clothes on her back and a pair of thin canvas sneakers on her feet, Grandma Gatewood hiked up ridges and down ravines. She braved angry storms and witnessed breathtaking sunrises. When things got particularly...

Sam is excited about getting new shoes, and as he grows into the shoes he becomes old enough to help his father on the farm, eventually becoming a farmer himself.

Freya, a penguin, and Zoose, a mouse, become friends while stowaways on Salomon August Andreé's 1897 hot air balloon expedition to the North Pole.

A dog whose beloved owner has died and an orphaned ten-year-old girl find each other while enduring poverty and homelessness in early-twentieth-century Boston.

Seven children work together to navigate their way up a steep, icy hill so that they can enjoy an exciting sled ride.