Karen Hesse

In 1903 Brooklyn, fourteen-year-old Joseph Michtom's life changes for the worse when his parents, Russian immigrants, invent the teddy bear and turn their apartment into a factory, while nearby the glitter of Coney Island contrasts with the dismal lives of children dwelling under the Brooklyn Bridge.

1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 29 cmAD810L Lexile

Two Jewish sisters, escapees of the infamous Warsaw ghetto, devise a plan to thwart an attempt by the Gestapo to intercept food bound for starving people behind the dark Wall.

A collection of eight poems, each taking place on a different night of Hanukkah and following the history of Jews from twelfth-century England to twentieth-century Israel.

An Aleutian Islander recounts her suffering during World War II in American internment camps designed to "protect" the population from the invading Japanese.

Thursday, February 28, 1861 P. Cloudy. Wind N.W. Fresh Mr.Lincoln has arrived at last in Washington.... In one week, he inherits the trouble of this great, unhappy country. In one week, the responsibility will be his--whether we come together again a Union,or fall entirely to pieces. And here we sit, in Delaware, on the border between North and South, half the state hauling slaves, half the state opposed to the practice.... It is hard enough to hold a family together. Poor Mr. Lincoln. It is in his hands to hold a whole country together.... My hands are calloused and strong from rowing and working the ropes, from lifting and carrying barrels of oil and scrubbing stone floors and spiral stairs, but I do not know if they are strong enough to hold Mother and Father together. Mr. Lincoln's hands... they must be a thousand times stronger than mine. Please God, give Mr. Lincoln strong hands

Realizing that her father's lack of work has endangered her family, nine-year-old Juice decides that she must return to school and learn to read in order to help their chances of surviving and keeping their house.

A young girl eagerly awaits a coming rainstorm to bring relief from the oppressive summer heat.

Phoenix Rising is Atlanta, the Phoenix City that is reborn from its own destruction, the enthralling story of a silver-haired beauty and the exotic stranger who loves her... Kenna Chalmers, a georgeous debutante, becomes an army nurse with one thought in mind -- to search for her brother, who was shot down over France. But before she can leave Atlanta, many dangers and surprises await her. The terror of the chase as a hunted German officer tries to kill her... the passion of a gypsy who steals her love in a deserted cabin... the secret engagement to an aristocratic officer. Through it all, Kenna struggles to deny the irresistible passion of Irish Firzpatrick, the man determined to make her his own.

Sick with influenza during the 1918 epidemic and separated from her two sisters, a young Jewish girl living in Boston relies on the help of an old German man, and her visions of angels, to get better and to reunite herself with her family.

Tate Marshall is delighted when a stray dog turns up in the yard one day, but Sable, named for her dark, silky fur, causes trouble with the neighbors and has to go.

A boy overcomes his fear of Lester's fierce dog when he has to protect an abandoned kitten.

On her first summer visit to her grandmother since her grandfather's death, Leah is saddened by his absence, but Gramm helps her learn how to remember Poppy with joy.

When Codie's favorite aunt is having a baby, Codie has lots of worries: Will the baby and her aunt be all right, will Codie's baby quilt be done on time, and will her aunt still have time for her?

Daunting tale of a Jewish girl's journey during Anti-Semitic Germany.

Sixth grader Maggie feels burdened by her seven-year-old sister Hannie, who is slightly brain-damaged and believes that a toy unicorn has magical powers, until one afternoon a crisis shows her how special Hannie is.