Focuses on this American author's connection with steamboats on the Mississippi River while also presenting a history of the craft.

In the early 1900s, two cousins leave their Russian shtetl with the rest of their family to come to America, hopeful that they will all pass the dreaded inspection at Ellis Island.

As a child Great-aunt Alice Rumphius resolved that when she grew up she would go to faraway places, live by the sea in her old age, and do something to make the world more beautiful--and she does all those things, the last being the most difficult of all.

Nine-year-old Booker works with his father and brother at the saltworks but dreams of the day when he'll be able to read.

An illustrated satirical study of modern civilization, presented from the viewpoint of archeologists in 4022 examining artifacts of twentieth-century American life.

After a young boy discovers how many wonderful things he can fit into his new backpack, his family can't seem to locate some of their most important possessions.

An Appalachian girl, Arizona Houston Hughes, grows up to become a teacher who influences generations of schoolchildren.

A ballet dancer recalls how she and her mother would welcome each season with a dance outdoors.

Eight-year-old Thandi describes the traditional artwork of the Ndebele people of South Africa, highlighting her village's painted houses and her mother's detailed beadwork.

Various people at a backyard picnic offer their comments on a young girl's tightly curled, "nappy" hair.