Claudia Friddell

This powerful tribute to Civil War nurse Clara Barton and her heroic efforts during the Battle of Antietam reveals how she earned the name "The Angel of the Battlefield," and shows the beginnings of her journey as one of our country's greatest humanitarians and the founder of the American Red Cross. During the Civil War, Clara Barton—one of the first women to receive permission to serve on a battlefield—snuck her supply wagon to the head of a ten-mile wagon train to deliver provisions to the Antietam Battlefield. On the bloodiest day in American history, Clara and her team of helpers sprang into action as they nursed the wounded and dying, cooked meals for soldiers, and provided doctors with desperately needed medical supplies and lanterns so they could operate through the night. Author Claudia Friddell blends her words with Clara Barton’s firsthand account to capture the nurse’s brave actions, while Christopher Cyr’s dramatically accurate illustrations portray one of the most heroic women in history.

Clara Barton Braves the Battle of Antietam

To the Front!

An account of General George Washington's Revolutionary War leadership of the Culper Ring spy network describes how his team used secret names, codes, invisible ink and other measures to collect and share important information.

George Washington's Spies (Totally True Adventures)

Led by twenty-five-year-old Grace Banker, thirty-two telephone operators — affectionately called "Hello Girls" back in the US — became the first female combatants in World War I. Follow Grace Banker's journey from her busy life as a telephone switchboard trainer in New York to her pioneering role as the Chief Operator of the 1st Unit of World War I telephone operators in the battlefields of France. With expert skill, steady nerves, and steadfast loyalty, the Signal Corps operators transferred orders from commanders to battlefields and communicated top-secret messages between American and French headquarters. After faithfully serving her country —undaunted by freezing weather and fires; long hours and little sleep, and nearby shellings and far off explosions — Grace was the first and only woman operator in the Signal Corps to be awarded the Army's Distinguished Service Medal.

The Heroic Story of WWI Telephone Operators

Grace Banker and Her Hello Girls Answer the Call

Join Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, and John Burroughs on their pioneering camping trips during the early 1900s in this energetic and entertaining nonfiction picture-book adventure. After years of inventing things that other people needed, Thomas Edison and Henry Ford realized there was something they needed—a vacation! So, the famous inventors packed up Ford's Model T and invited their good friends Harvey Firestone and John Burroughs to join them as "the Four Vagabonds" hit America's back roads to enjoy the country's natural beauty, fireside chats, and frolicking fun with friends—all while inspiring future generations to invent camping adventures of their own. “Buckle yourself in as Claudia Friddell and Jeremy Holmes take you on a fun, creative, and certainly unique road trip with America’s most famous vagabonds—Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, and John Burroughs. The colorful and spirited illustrations, the stories of the Vagabond’s bivouacking travels and campsite escapades, and the well-researched bibliography makes Road Trip! a great addition to any child’s library!” —Matt Andres, curatorial registrar, Edison and Ford Winter Estates

Camping with the Four Vagabonds: Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, and John Burroughs

Road Trip!

Troy Howell

Traces the story of the famous fire horse who aided Engine Company 15 by pulling the mammoth Hale Water Tower No. 1 during Baltimore's three-day blaze in 1904.

Hero of the Great Baltimore Fire

Goliath

In 1904 the city of Baltimore was almost destroyed by fire. Hundreds of firemen, policemen, soldiers, and citizens battled the blaze for three days. The disaster brings out the best in man and the bravest of deeds, but one hero stands head and shoulders above all...literally. Goliath is a fire horse assigned to Engine Company 15. He is massive in size and mighty in heart and steadfastness. To the men of Engine Company 15, Goliath is the ultimate fire horse. He is the lead horse for the team assigned to pulling the mammoth Hale Water Tower No. 1. When the fire alarm sounds, calling them to action, Goliath leads his team into the blaze. Soon his lifesaving actions will lead him into the pages of history. Masterful artwork from acclaimed illustrator Troy Howell brings this true story to pulse-pounding life. Educator Claudia Friddell says of her work researching Goliath, "It was a privilege to meet and interview firefighters and fire historians about the Baltimore Fire of 1904." Goliath is her first children's book. Claudia lives in Baltimore, Maryland. Artist Troy Howell has had a prolific career as a children's book illustrator with countless books to his credit, including The Secret Garden, The Ugly Duckling, and Favorite Greek Myths. He received his formal art education from the Art Center in Los Angeles and the Illustrators' Workshops in New York. Troy lives in Falmouth, Virginia.

Here is the story of how the Statue of Liberty got its pedestal when Joseph Pulitzer, a Jewish immigrant and famous newsman, created one of the first American crowdfunding campaigns to raise money for it. When Joseph Pulitzer first saw the Statue of Liberty's head in Paris, he shared sculptor Auguste Bartholdi's dream of seeing France's gift of friendship stand in the New York harbor. Pulitzer loved words, and the word he loved best was liberty. Frustrated that many, especially wealthy New Yorkers, were not interested in paying for the statue's needed pedestal, Pulitzer used his newspaper, the New York World, to call on all Americans to contribute. Claudia Friddell's text and Stacy Innerst's illustrations capture this inspiring story of how one immigrant brought together young and old, rich and poor, to raise funds for the completion of a treasured national monument.

Claudia Friddell

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