Product Description
For each Texas mission, there is a rich and complicated history. In the title story, from Mision de San Francisco de los Tejas, a mysterious woman in blue visits the Teas people to prepare them for the missionaries' arrival. In "Rosa's Window" and "The Bell" the love and grief of two couples torn apart in the making of the Mision de San Jose y San Miguel de Aguayo manifest themselves in the very edifices of the mission. The Mision de Nuestra SEnora de la Purisma Concepcion de Acuna, named for and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, was the scene of a remarkable salvation as the Teas workers tried to escape the heated pursuit of the Comanches in "The Miracle at the Gate." Here Kimmel gracefully retells these and other powerful legends behind four of th missions, each enhanced by a beautifully evocative painting by Susan Guevara. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Older Children Will Enjoy this History
Written for a slightly older reader, ages 6 to 10, "The Lady in the Blue Cloak: Legends from the Texas Missions" contains six chapters and many more words than pictures. Based on truth as well as legend, this book contains a bit of violence and a couple of ghosts. A story set at the East Texasmission San Francisco de los Tejas in Nacogdoches opens the book. Other chapterscenter around the San Antonio missions San Jose y San Miguel de Aguayo with it's Rosa's Window, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception of Acuna, and the Mission of San Antonio de Valero, now called the Alamo. At the back of the book is a Texas Missions Time Line.

I liked that the author never condescends to his young audience. He strives to entertain but also engages the reader intellectually. The drawings and illustrations are visually stimulating, and in some cases, downright breathtaking. ... Read more

Product Description
The Library of American Lives and Times™

Biographies For Grades 4-8 Correlated to the Curriculum

Extend the learning through this new biography series. The Library of American Lives and Times use extensive primary resources as it brings American history to life for your students.
Learn about some of the greatest players who helped in shaping America as it grew from a colony to a world super power.Through a chronological narrative, enriched with diary entries, letters, and other primary documents, students will learn about the various stages of our nation's development, as well as learning to think about history from the perspective of both individuals and society.
By learning about history from a particular and unique biographical perspective, each student will learn about the following themes that form the framework for the social studies standards:Culture; People, Places, and Environments; Individual Development and Identity; Individuals, Groups, and Institutions; Power, Authority, and Governance; Production, Distribution, and Consumption; Global Connections: Civic Ideals and Practices.
These books are comprehensive biographical treatments of important Americans, emphasizing not just their lives, but the times in which they lived.

In a time where thousands pushed westward to find their fortune, Stephen Austin went west to found a colony. The fierce struggle between Austin’s settlers and the Mexican government would lead to the birth of Texas and countless stories of heroes and heroism.Jailed by Mexican authorities, Austin fought a long, bitter struggle for the survival of Texas. Many may not know that Austin’s dream almost did not come true.

"Stunning reproduction and photos provide a clear sense of the times and settings. These attractive titles serve not only as quality report sources but also as a general interest titles." - School Library Journal
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Customer Reviews (1)

A Proud and Isolated Nation


Book arrived in a timely manner and is in great shape. ... Read more

Product Description
Few states have gone the route that Texas did to become part of the Union. First a part of Spain, then Mexico, Texas faced a very uncertain future when it opted to revolt against the regime of Santa Anna. On the plains of San Jacinto, a ragtag Texas army won immortality by defeating Santa Anna and gaining independence for Texas. The path to Texas statehood shines brightly with some of the memorable names in American history, such as Davy Crockett, Sam Houston, Jim Bowie, Stephen Austin, William Barret Travis, and Andrew Jackson. That same path is also glorified by the legendary Battle of the Alamo, at which people died willingly in the defense of an idea they believed in. The route to Texas statehood is long, thrilling, sometimes desperate, and an overall triumph of the spirit of freedom. ... Read more

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This book presents the flags, folklore, culture, architecture, government, industry, and natural wonders unique to Texas.

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Early in the year 1854 Frederick Law Olmsted, a young New England journalist, crossed the Louisiana border and set off on horseback into the teeth of the Texas winter. In A Journey through Texas he recounts his travels along the Old San Antonio Road through East Texas' piney woods, the dry prairies further west, the chaparral of South Texas, the coastal prairies, and the rich bottomlands around Houston and Galveston.

Olmsted does not romanticize the discomforts of his trip--the monotonous food, crude housing, wet and dry northers, rough companions--yet his book reflects a sense of limitless possibility for this new and open country. The cultured Easterner remembers in relentless detail the squalor and brutality met with in parts of East Texas, but he writes fondly of the civility and cleanliness of the German settlements around New Braunfels.

In his introductory "A Letter to a Southern Friend," omitted in earlier reprints, Olmsted sets forth his views opposing the extension of slavery into the West and promoting free-soil agriculture for frontier states.

The remarkably versatile Olmsted is best known as the founder of landscape architecture in America and for works including Central Park and Stanford University.

In his Foreword, Larry McMurtry calls A Journey through Texas an "intelligent, lively, readable book, packed with keen observation and lightened by a delicate strain of humor."

Customer Reviews (1)

A rare gem!
Bought this at a museum gift shop having been previously unaware of it. The book is subtitled "A Saddle-Trip on the Southwestern Frontier." It was written by New Yorker Frederick Law Olmsted in the mid-1850s and describes a trip by horseback through a large swath of Texas, including a trip to the Mexican border. As a longtime Texas resident, I can safely say that for him to have traveled as far as he did over the types of terrain that he did without major incident was an amazing accomplishment in itself. The author was then a newspaperman reporting on slavery in the South, but he later became a famous landscape architect who would help design Central Park in New York. The book is like a time capsule from the pre-Civil War frontier. His descriptions of the natives and settlers in Texas are detailed and revealing. If you are from Texas, his descriptions of the early days in familiar places (Austin, San Antonio) will be especially enjoyable. His accounts of visits to small towns in Texas (New Braunfels, Castroville, many others) are also quite entertaining. Lastly, his observations on the corrupting influence of slavery and on the variety of peculiar relationships between slaves and masters (including former slaves holding slaves!) are absolutely fascinating. Anyone wishing to learn what it was like in the "Old West" in Texas will enjoy this book. Those interested in the history of slavery in the antebellum South will also find this book valuable. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An account of life on the post, not in the field.
H.H.McConnell's Five Years A Cavalryman is a rem iniscence of the author's military service in the U.S. 6th Cavalry in northwest Texas from 1866 to 1871.If you are interested in a straightforward firsthand account of lifeon a frontier post along with some interesting anecdotes you will like thisbook. However...if you are an old horse cavalry aficianado and reenactorlike myself and are looking for the "nuts and bolts" of cavalrylife in the field, forget it.The author spent his hitch on post doingmostly bureaucratic work. It seems the only time he got on a horse was torelocate to a new fort or to attend to some official business here orthere.On the rare occassions when he does discuss troops in the field,either on scout or on campaign, he wasn't there. The only discription hegives of these events are only in very general and uninformative terms. Youwill not learn anything about the cav out in the field, anything abouttheir equipment, their tactics, or procedures. The best book I have foundso far on the old horse cavalry is Forty Miles A Day On Beans And Hay byDon Jr. Ricky which you can purchase on Amazon.com. If you only read onebook on the subject read this one!Happy Trails......Trooper7E ... Read more

Product Description
FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. To prove themselves worthy of succeeding Texas Jake as leader of the Feline Club of Mysteries, cat brothers Marco and Polo agree to bring him the comfrey that will heal his wounds. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Funny.great for 4th grade
my child's fourth grade teacher read this to the class.i bought a copy for my child to have as it was read out loud.it's an adorable, funny tale. there are several more books in this series...

Excellent!
The shipping was fast and on time during the holiday rush. The seller delivered a quality product as expected. Thank You!

Great Book, Terrible Binding!
This is a great sequel to the "Grand Escape" by Naylor. My students and I really enjoyed it. The only problem was they books started falling apart the day we got them. There was obviously a flaw in the way the book were bound (glued.) My students were so excited about reading them I just taped them as we read and told them they would be able to write in them and keep them. Meanwhile, I had already ordered a few extra before the first ones arrived. When the extras came, I sent them back unopened, telling customer service of the problem I had with the originals. I never received a reply. I was disappointed with this service and with the Alladin paperbacks.

A cherished memory
My son would have his grandmother read this story everytime she visited. They loved it and it took them a long time to read each chapter. They would talk about each paragraph and never finish. He did over her grave last July 07. It would break your heart. My son loved this book and so did his grandmother. It will always have a special memory with us.

Cats
Great book for any cat lover

author of "Hobo Finds A Home" ... Read more

Product Description
The Texas cattle town of Buckhorn has been taken over by outlaw boss Wade Garvey. When his men start turning up with their throats cut, he brings in the hired gunfighter known as Nevado to find the killer.But all is not what it seems in Buckhorn where simmering passions lead to the unlikely liaison between Nevado and the mysterious knife-wielder. It all culminates in an explosive climax on Nob Hill: a breath-taking finale to an exciting tale of the Old West. ... Read more

Product Description
When Victor Fontaine headed for Texas he promised himself he wouldn't be a loser. He joined a cattle drive and later seized the opportunity to join with Jim Calder to help save his small ranch. He even fought Craig Masters, Calder's ruthless neighbour, and vicious Comanche Indians. ... Read more

Product Description
FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. Isabel's sister Elena Maria is turning fifteen, and the Martinez family is planning her quinceaera -- at Uncle Hector's ranch in San Antonio! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Good clean relationship book for young YA readers
Unlike a lot of series targeted at young teens, this one explores friendship, boys/girls, and growing up without scenes and situations that would make a lot of parents uncomfortable. The main character is charming, and I had no trouble believing in her. I wasn't sure the quality of the writing would be very good after I saw the excerpt on the Amazon main page for the book, but in context I thought it was well done.

I also appreciated that the author sneaks in a whole lot of cultural information throughout her story, about everything from Latin American family traditions to the history of Mexico. The girls in the book are latina but are second-generation American so have a lot to learn about Mexican history.I thought it sweet, for example, that Isabel's Spanish is not very good, although everyone assumes she is fluent.

Even without having read any other book from this series, I think you could easily start with this one if the topic is appealing. I didn't get the feeling I was missing much "insider" information and feel like the author provides everything you need to start here.

Lastly, the extras at the end of the book (including a Spanish-English glossary to help readers who don't know any Spanish and can't figure it out from context) were a neat plus.I especially liked the discussion questions, and thought they might not only be good for girls to talk about together but also for parents to sneak a look at and be able to ask thoughtful questions of their daughter after she finishes the book.Some of the questions could lead to great conversations.

Altogether, maybe not the most thrilling book I've ever read, but a solid book for young teenaged girls and one I would definitely recommend.

Average "Good-ness" for Series
Isabel's Texas Two-Step takes like two hours to read. No joke. It is not because the plot is so enticing to follow, or that the characters are all gems. No, this book is part of a franchised series, called The Beacon Street Girls. The books are supposed to go fast. That said, I think that this particular BSG book was slightly better than all the others.
Isabel Martinez is so excited. Her family is going down to San Antonio to celebrate her sister Elena Maria's Quinceañera! Isabel gets to see her cousins, her aunts and uncles, and most importantly her father. But Isabel's cousin, Ricardo, keeps getting her in trouble, first by breaking an art masterpiece, then by going armidillo hunting with her without telling anyone. Add this to the fact that Isabel's family, including the Quince-zilla Elena Maria, are constantly thinking that she is trying the botch up the party, and Isabel has an issue on her hands. Her only relief is that when she and Ricardo were stuck in cave, they might of stumbled upon an age-old treasure...
With the BSG books I only expect a little fun and entertainment. They are so commericial I can't take them seriously. They are well-written I suppose but way too fairy-taleish in the way that everyone is friends, they care about one another blah blah. They have no conflicts, etc. This BSG Special Adventure did have some good points. I learned a lot about Quinceañeras, which are very interesting to me. And I got to know Isabel, one of my least favorite BSG characters, much better than previously. If you are looking for a small break from heavy and dark novels, this book will do the trick.

Isabel's trip to San Antonio brings many challenges
Isabel is thirteen years old and has a great group of friends known as the Beacon Street Girls (BSG).When her sister Elena turns fifteen, the family has a big party known as a Quinceanera.Elena has lots of big plans, but things don't go the way she wants them too.Mrs. Martinez has multiple sclerosis (MS) and so her sister in San Antonio has volunteered to throw the quinceanera for Elena.Isabel is a part of all of this, and yet not a part; she spends as much time observing what is going on around her as she does participating.

Once everyone gets to San Antonio (and it's a big party, with several of Elena's friends along), Isabel finds herself getting into one scrape after another.Isabel is an artist, and her talents bring her both joy and grief on this trip.She makes some new friends and discovers a lot about her family.

Bryant has a great grasp of the social interactions, angst, and emotional upheavals that make up the life of young teenage girls.Her ability to convey life lessons without being turgid or didactic is another talent, one she uses well.I thoroughly enjoyed this book, so much so that I am sending it to my nieces in Spain AND tracking down more in the series for them.This was a thoroughly delightful book.

Clean & Wholesome Reading!
"Isabel's Texas Two-Step" by Annie Bryant (235 pages, Aladdin Mix) is part of the Beacon Street Girls (BSG) series.Isabel Martinez and her family travel to San Antonio, Texas to visit relatives that live on a nice ranch complete with servants, expensive art, and a real rooster.The trip is not just a family vacation, but the place where her sister Elena Maria is having her Quinceanera.Isabel is not too happy because her best friends are not going with them on the flight to Texas because this is Elena Maria's adventure, so Elena Maria's friends are going.Isabel learns a lot on this trip about herself, her mother, her cousin, her Aunt and life.

This is a cute, wholesome story that makes for great reading for young adults.I enjoyed the book extras:Trivialicious Trivia, Book Club Buzz, Texas Trivia, A Dilly of a Dillo, and Isabel's Spanish-English Dictionary.

My recommendation for this book - BUY IT.Isabel's Texas Two-Step would make an excellent stocking stuffer gift for Christmas or for any occasion.

Ok story
My daughter read this book and thought it was ok.She had a problem with all the spanish words and not knowing what they meant but other than that said the book was ok not great. ... Read more

Product Description
Profiles the life of a penniless steamboat pilot who moved to Texas where he fought against nature and outlaws as he built a cattle empire that still endures. ... Read more