New Releases by Gretchen Woelfle

How did Ben Franklin become an outspoken leader of the American Revolution? Learn all about it in seven (not-so-easy) steps in this humorous, accessible middle-grade chapter book that focuses on Ben’s political awakening. Famous founding father Benjamin Franklin was a proud subject of the British Empire—until he wasn’t. It took nearly seventy years and seven not-so-easy steps to turn Benjamin Franklin from a loyal British subject to a British traitor—and a fired-up American revolutionary. In this light, whimsical narrative, young readers learn how Franklin came to be a rebel, beginning with his childhood lesson in street smarts when he buys a whistle at an inflated price. Franklin is a defiant boy who runs away from his apprenticeship, and while he becomes a deep thinker, a brilliant scientist, and a persuasive writer when he grows up, he never loses that spark. As a community leader who tries his best to promote peace and unity both between the colonies and with Great Britain, he becomes more and more convinced that independence for the American colonies is the way forward. Illustrated throughout with art by noted New Yorker cartoonist and illustrator John O’Brien and sprinkled with quotations from Franklin, this unfamiliar story of a familiar figure in American history will surprise and delight young readers.

For take-charge girls in the making and fans of I Dissent and Kamala Harris: Rooted in Justice, this is the story of Jeannette Rankin, the first US congresswoman. Jeannette Rankin was always a take-charge girl. Whether taking care of horses or her little brothers and sisters—Jeannette knew what to do and got the job done. That’s why, when she saw poor children living in bad conditions in San Francisco, she knew she had to take charge and change things. But in the early twentieth century, women like Jeannette couldn’t vote to change the laws that failed to protect children. Jeannette became an activist and led the charge, campaigning for women’s right to vote. And when her home state, Montana, gave women that right, Jeannette ran for Congress and became America’s first congressWOMAN!

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and sentence highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! "All men are born free and equal." Everybody knows about the Founding Fathers and the Declaration of Independence in 1776. But the founders weren't the only ones who believed that everyone had a right to freedom. Mumbet, a Massachusetts enslaved person, believed it too. She longed to be free, but how? Would anyone help her in her fight for freedom? Could she win against the richest man in town? Mumbet was determined to try. Mumbet's Declaration of Independence tells her story for the first time in a picture book biography, and her brave actions set a milestone on the road toward ending slavery in the United States. "The case is fascinating, emphasizing the destructive irony at the heart of the birth of America and making Mumbet an active and savvy architect of her own release, and this is likely to spur much discussion." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Uncover the lives of thirteen African-Americans who fought during the Revolutionary War. Even as American Patriots fought for independence from British rule during the Revolutionary War, oppressive conditions remained in place for the thousands of enslaved and free African Americans living in this country. But African Americans took up their own fight for freedom by joining the British and American armies; preaching, speaking out, and writing about the evils of slavery; and establishing settlements in Nova Scotia and Africa. The thirteen stories featured in this collection spotlight charismatic individuals who answered the cry for freedom, focusing on the choices they made and how they changed America both then and now. These individuals include: Boston King, Agrippa Hull, James Armistead Lafayette, Phillis Wheatley, Elizabeth "Mumbet" Freeman, Prince Hall, Mary Perth, Ona Judge, Sally Hemings, Paul Cuffe, John Kizell, Richard Allen, and Jarena Lee. Includes individual bibliographies and timelines, author note, and source notes.

Explaining how the wind works, what windmills have contributed to the past, and why they offer environmental promise today as a source of clean, renewable energy, this revised and updated edition offers a glimpse into all the current and historical uses for wind power. Featuring new information on wind energy technology and wind farms, new photographs, and 24 wind-related activities—from keeping track of household energy use and conducting science experiments to cooking traditional meals and creating arts and crafts—this handy resource offers kids interested in the science of energy and green technologies an engaging, interactive, and contemporary overview of wind power.

Provides a biography of Mercy Otis Warren, an unsung heroine of the American Revolution, who wrote patriotic plays and poems, including a history of the Revolution.

Based on fact, this coming-of-age story offers a vivid picture of life behind the curtain at Shakespeare's theater. Illustrations.

Photographs, newpaper clippings, campaign materials, and even hate mail are collected to tell the remarkable story a woman who played a dramatic part in many historic moments of twentieth-century America.

This charming book teaches readers about the many funny and fascinating relationships found in nature, using the familiar concepts of family, friends, and neighbors. Luminescent, realistic paintings and simple text make this an inviting introduction to animal communities and cooperation.

Dans un petit village de Hollande, Katje la chatte vivait paisiblement avec Nico, le meunier. Mais un beau jour, celui-ci se maria avec Léna et ils eurent un enfant, Anneke. Très vite, Léna chassa Katje, qui dut s'installer dans le moulin. Jusqu'au jour où la digue céda, déversant sur le village de véritables torrents... Katje sauvera-t-elle Anneke ? Cet émouvant récit, magnifiquement mis en scène par Nicola Bayley et raconté par Gretchen Woelfle, s'inspire d'un fait authentique qui se déroula en Hollande, en 1421. Dans la région des moulins de Kinderdijk, un chat sauva un enfant de la noyade.

When a dike breaks during a violent storm, flooding a little Dutch town, Nico's baby is saved by his heroic cat.