The Minstrel in the Tower


Book Description

An adventurous rescue set in the time of medieval knights, castles, bandits, and music. Before their father returns to France from the Crusades, daring Alice and musical Roger set off on their own journey: to find their long-lost uncle. But on the way, the siblings are kidnapped and locked in an ancient hidden tower. To finish their quest, they need to escape—and fast! Can Alice use her courage to slip away and find help? And can Roger use his musical talents to guide her back before it’s too late? History Stepping Stones now feature updated content that emphasizes Common Core and today’s renewed interest in nonfiction. Perfect for home, school, and library bookshelves!




The Minstrel in the Tower


Book Description

An adventurous rescue set in the time of medieval knights, castles, bandits, and music. Before their father returns to France from the Crusades, daring Alice and musical Roger set off on their own journey: to find their long-lost uncle. But on the way, the siblings are kidnapped and locked in an ancient hidden tower. To finish their quest, they need to escape—and fast! Can Alice use her courage to slip away and find help? And can Roger use his musical talents to guide her back before it’s too late? History Stepping Stones now feature updated content that emphasizes Common Core and today’s renewed interest in nonfiction. Perfect for home, school, and library bookshelves!




Goblins in the Castle


Book Description

When William's new friend, Igor, accidentally releases a horde of goblins, the two must journey to Goblin Land to undo the damage.




Balto and the Great Race (Totally True Adventures)


Book Description

Balto has a quiet life as a sled dog—until tragedy strikes. Dozens of children in Nome become sick with diphtheria. Without antitoxin serum, they will perish—and the closest supply is 650 miles away! The only way to get the serum to Nome is by sled, but can the dogs deliver it in time? Heading bravely into a brutal blizzard, Balto leads the race for life. A Kansas City Children’s Book Award for Grades 1–3




Virtual War


Book Description

Imagine a life of virtual reality -- a childhood contained in a controlled environment, with no human contact or experiences outside of the world of computer-generated images. Corgan has been genetically engineered by the Federation for quick reflexes, high intelligence, and physical superiority. Everything Corgan is, everything he has ever seen or done, was to prepare him for one moment: a bloodless, computer-controlled virtual war. When Corgan meets his two fellow warriors, he begins to question the Federation. Now Corgan must decide where his loyalties lie, what he's willing to fight for, and exactly what he wants in return. His decisions will affect not only these three virtual warriors, but all the people left on earth.




Next Spring an Oriole


Book Description

A pioneer adventure perfect for fans of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House series! On Libby Mitchell’s tenth birthday, she and her parents climb into a covered wagon and set off on a journey that takes them two months and a thousand miles. Their trip from Virginia to the deep woods of Michigan is hard, but it is exciting, too. And at its end lies their new home—a place that is rugged, wild, and full of promise. History Stepping Stones now feature updated content that emphasizes Common Core and today’s renewed interest in nonfiction. Perfect for home, school, and library bookshelves!




The Treasure in the Royal Tower


Book Description

A two-hundred-old mystery puts Nancy in immediate peril.




Robin Hood


Book Description

Life in Sherwood Forest has never been livelier than with this selection of tales of the fun-loving outlaw and his merry men. A fast-moving adaptation of the classic adventure will delight older slow readers as well as kids reading on grade level.




While Beauty Slept


Book Description

“Elizabeth Blackwell is a story-telling genius. Her mesmerizing writing weaves a spell that will enchant you. While Beauty Slept breathes new life into the fairytale genre with a historical twist that will take your breath away.” —Meg Cabot, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Princess Diaries and Heather Wells mystery series I am not the sort of person about whom stories are told. Those of humble birth suffer their heartbreaks and celebrate their triumphs unnoticed by the bards, leaving no trace in the fables of their time… And so begins Elise Dalriss’s story. When she hears her great-granddaughter recount a minstrel’s tale about a beautiful princess asleep in a tower, it pushes open a door to the past, a door Elise has long kept locked. For Elise was the companion to the real princess who slumbered—and she is the only one left who knows what actually happened so many years ago. As the memories start to unfold, Elise is plunged back into the magnificent world behind the palace walls she left behind more than a half century ago, a labyrinth where the secrets of her real father and the mysterious fate of her mother connect to an inconceivable evil. Elise has guarded these secrets for a lifetime. As only Elise understands all too well, the truth is no fairy tale.




The Minstrel's Melody


Book Description

A twelve-year-old aspiring performer follows her dream in a novel that culminates at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair Orphelia Bruce lives in rural Missouri, the corner where Illinois, Iowa, and her home state come together. She can sing and play the piano better than anyone in Lewis County. So when Orphelia’s mother forbids her from taking part in a traveling minstrel show looking for new talent and starring her idol, Madame Meritta, she runs away to join their troupe. But life on the road isn’t what she expected. She misses her family, even her annoying older sister, Pearl—Momma’s favorite. And it’s not nearly as glamorous as Orphelia imagined. The group performs in a different town every night, which means long hours of travel. Despite her fame, Madame Meritta still has to work hard to keep her band fed and clothed. But performing at the St. Louis World’s Fair could be Orphelia’s big chance. When a long-buried secret changes everything she thought she knew about her family, will she still get to live her dream? This ebook includes a historical afterword.