Outside of ancient Syracuse on the island of Sicily, there lived a cruel ruler named Dionysius. He trusted no one. Nearby lived two best friends, Damon and Pythias. One day Pythias spoke out against Dionysius, who quickly ordered his execution, to take place in one month. Pythias wanted to return to his elderly parents to say goodbye and arrange for their care. Dionysius laughed, not trusting that Pythias would return. Damon stood up and offered to take Pythias’ place until he returned. The ruler agreed only after stipulating that if Pythias did not come back, Damon would die instead. When the execution day arrived, Pythias had not returned, but Damon still believed that his friend would be there if he could. Just in time, Pythias ran in, offering up his own life for his friend’s.
Age
Catalog sorted by age group
Elephant Have Right of Way
A noted conservationist describes her nearly thirty years living and working in Africa, describing the various animals with which she has worked and providing a firsthand view of the plight of Africa’s wild animals.
With Love
A collection of stories based on the author’s experiences with chimpanzees in Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania over a period of almost forty years.
A New Frontier: The Peace Corps in Eastern Europe
A collection of black-and-white photographs offers a dramatic portrait of the Peace Corps teachers, business specialists, and other volunteers in the ex-Communist countries of Eastern Europe.
Two Suns in the Sky
In 1944, an Upstate New York teenager named Christine meets and falls in love with Adam, a Yugoslavian Jew living in a refugee camp, despite their parents’ conviction that they do not belong together.
Twist of Gold
A Mama for Owen
Owen the baby hippo and his mama were best friends. They loved to play hide-and-seek on the banks of the Sabaki River in Africa. That was all before the tsunami came and washed Owen’s world away. But after the rain stops, Owen befriends Mzee, a grayish brown tortoise. He plays with him, snuggles with him, and decides he just might turn out to be his best friend and a brand-new mama. Inspired by the tsunami of 2004, acclaimed storyteller Marion Dane Bauer and celebrated illustrator John Butler depict this heartwarming true tale of healing, adoption, and rebirth — with splendid illustrations and oodles of love.
The Forty-Third War
A twelve-year-old boy learns about death and the conflicts that grip his Central American country when he’s pressed into military service and trained as a soldier.
Yum Yum!: What Fun!
Creak, crack, creak, crack. There’s a mysterious noise in the house, but Katie and James and their little dog, Harry, are too busy cooking up something delicious to notice. Crash! Bash! Crash! Bash! Everyone heard that noise! What could it be? Katie and James and their little dog, Harry, are happy to share their snacks with anyone who drops by . . . but what if this boisterous surprise guest wants to snack on them instead? Yum, Yum!
Memory (Phoenix Award Book)
On the fifth anniversary of his sister’s death, nineteen-year-old Jonny Dart is still troubled by guilt and an imperfect memory of the accident that took hr life. He goes searching for the only other witness to the fatal event, his sister’s best friend. But instead of finding the answers he’s looking for, he finds Sophie — a gentle old woman suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, who teaches him about remembering and about loss.
