Independence Day

Kindly Farmer Puckett has always hauled a wagonload of fireworks to the town's Independence Day Social. His no-nonsense wife has always worn her holiday hat. But the year the farmer acquires a hu-mon-gous new mule to do the hauling, all traditions are out the window. Jake Johnson arrives on the farm, sits -- and stays seated. He hollers for food, but otherwise comes to resemble "a big, hairy rock." No enticement works to budge him: not pitchfork prods, not horn honks, not even extra rations. As July Fourth nears, Mrs. Puckett steams, "There's just one thing we haven't tried." But Jake Johnson has the last, braying word as, tall-tale-true, that one thing sparks the "best lit-up Independence Day Social there ever was."

A young apprentice silversmith growing up in Boston during the Revolutionary War becomes involved with such patriots as Hancock, Otis, and Samuel Adams.

A brief introduction to the history of Independence Day and how and why it is celebrated.

Suggested for ages 4 - 8

An illustrated collection of humorous riddles about American colonial life and the Revolution.

Suggested for ages 8 - 12

The text of the Declaration of Independence is accompanied by illustrations meant to help explain its meaning.

Suggested for ages 9 - 13

In The Making of America, historian Robert Johnston takes us on a wonderful journey from the time just before Europeans arrived in this land to the most recent events of the 21st century. Along the way, we meet people from all walks of life who have helped shape our nation, and we take part in some of the great debates of the eras. We discover that we are just as much a part of America's ongoing story as the people of the past.

Suggested for ages 10 - 13