New Releases by Gena K. Gorrell

An entertaining and informative look at firefighting, from the equipment to the techniques, both in history and today. Enhanced with black and white photos, anecdotes from firefighters, and fire prevention and safety tips.

In Florence Nightingale’s day, if a person was sick – and lucky – he or she was nursed at home with caring family members tending the bedside. Hospitals were horrible places from which few emerged alive. The nurses were often drunks and prostitutes. Doctors had rudimentary skills. Thus the privileged Nightingale family was appalled when Florence, who had done her share of household nursing, announced that she wanted to train to work in a hospital. After all, her role was cut out for her: she was to be a decorative, witty lady. A career, much less nursing, was out of the question. It took many years, but Florence found her calling in Crimea. More English soldiers died of sickness there than died in battle. If they were wounded they were almost sure to suffer in misery, lying on pallets caked with old blood, hungry and thirsty, without anyone to offer them so much as a sip of water. Florence caused a revolution in her insistence for cleanliness, wholesome food, and kind treatment of men, who were considered to be nothing more than cannon fodder. Florence’s campaign resulted in reforms to health care for millions of people. Although she was in frail health for much of her life, her sense of outrage and her extraordinary stamina in the face of prejudice and almost criminal ignorance make her story one of the most inspiring in history. Dozens of photographs, posters, and cartoons bring the past to life in this memorable biography.

More than a million words, weird spellings, words that are spelled the same but pronounced differently or vice versa. Where on Earth did the English language come from? The answer is that English isn’t just the speech of one nation. It’s the memory of thousands of years of history. It tracks the places people came from, the places they went, the adventures they had, the friends and enemies they made, the battles they won and lost. As English changed and grew, it became a jumble of sounds, words, and rules from countless languages and nations. And it’s still changing and growing every day. More than seventy percent of all English words were born someplace other than England. That’s why English can be so confusing and inconsistent. And that’s why English is the richest, most international, and most versatile language in the world. This innovative book takes us on a journey through time to unravel and demystify the story of English. Word games, intriguing facts, and tricky quizzes add an element of fun while enriching readers’ knowledge and understanding.

Winner of The 2003 ASPCA Henry Bergh Children’s Book Award Included on VOYA’s ninth annual Nonfiction Honor List Since the first hungry wolf bravely approached an ancient cooking fire and was rewarded with a scrap of meat, our lives and the lives of dogs have been interwoven. Dogs have worked for us as warriors with ammunition strapped to their bodies. Dogs have gone through snow, icy seas, and into the dangerous rubble of collapsed buildings to rescue us. Dogs, with their spectacular ability to detect odors, keep us safe by finding drugs and explosives. They lead us if we cannot see and react for us when we cannot hear. Most of all, they love us – and we love them. This fascinating book by Norma Fleck Award-winner, Gena K. Gorrell, describes the dogs of history, the evolution of breeds for different purposes, and the training involved in preparing the modern-day heroes who find lost children, nab criminals, and point out contraband – heroes who just happen to be dogs.

Imagine escaping from the terrors of plantation slavery, only to live for years in a swamp full of biting insects and deadly snakes. Picture yourself making a dangerous journey to freedom, guided by nothing but courage and the North Star. Think of beginning a new life in a new country, only to fall prey to bounty hunters. The stories of the people who made up the Underground Railroad, that amazing network of quiet farm houses, peaceful country lanes, and busy city streets that reached from the slave-owning areas of the southern United States to the free states of the north and on to Canada, are among the most moving in our history. Meet some of the men and women who planned daring and ingenious ways to escape slavery, such as the resourceful Henry "Box" Brown, who mailed himself to Philadelphia''s Anti-Slavery Society in a box, and the strong-willed Harriet Tubman, who fled with nothing more than a scrap of bread and the clothes on her back, and then returned to the south year after year to help others find their way to freedom. North Star to Freedom draws on the stories of the Underground Railroad''s courageous "passengers," whose extraordinary spirit broke their own chains, and the brave "conductors," who risked their lives to help others simply because they believed that every person had the right to live free. More than just a book about the worst injustices of slavery, North Star to Freedom is ultimately about resourcefulness, compassion, and hope. Period posters, photographs, and paintings help to make North Star to Freedom a living history for readers of all ages.