World Geography

Sen, a young boy in Myanmar, begins the rite of passage called Shinbyu, where he receives training at a Buddhist monastery.

Sanghee's father lights a bonfire on top of the mountain near their Korean village every night. It is a signal to the next mountain, where another fire is lit as a signal to the next mountain, and so on all the way to the king's palace. If the first isn't lit, the others won't be lit, and the king will know that trouble has come to the land. One evening, Sang-hee notices that the fire is not lit. Has trouble come?

As assistant to Mangkon’s most celebrated mapmaker, twelve-year-old Sai plays the part of a well-bred young lady with a glittering future. In reality, her father is a conman—and in a kingdom where the status of one’s ancestors dictates their social position, the truth could ruin her. Sai seizes the chance to join an expedition to chart the southern seas, but she isn’t the only one aboard with secrets. When Sai learns that the ship might be heading for the fabled Sunderlands—a land of dragons, dangers, and riches beyond imagining—she must weigh the cost of her dreams.

In a central African animal sanctuary, young Akimbo sees the carcass of a mother elephant rotting in the sun. Hearing that his ranger father rarely catches these killers, Akimbo hatches a secret plan to apprehend these villains himself. But are the dangers too daunting for this aspiring hero?

Mercy lives in modern-day Pietermaritzburg, South Africa with her eccentric foster aunts - two elderly sisters so poor, they can only afford one lightbulb. A nasty housing developer is eying their house. And that same house suddenly starts falling apart - just as Aunt Flora starts falling apart. She's forgetting words, names, and even how to behave in public. Mercy tries to keep her head down at school so nobody notices her. But when a classmate frames her for stealing the school's raffle money, Mercy's teachers decide to take a closer look at her home life.

Imagine your shock at waking up one morning to a fleet of enormous, otherworldly craft looming over you. And when bizarre aliens begin to emerge - speaking strange gibberish - your heart races even faster. Similar fears may have gripped New World inhabitants when diverse civilizations - separated by a vast ocean - first met. American natives once knew nothing of towering ships, galloping horses, thundering guns, or smallpox. From 1492 onward, however, waves of adventurers would give them a cruel introduction.

This entertaining book encourages young listeners to become creative thinkers. People with great ideas, some famous and some not so much, invented the things we use every day. Inventors like Ben Franklin, the Wright Brothers, Heddy Lamar, and Josephine Cochran dreamed the big dreams that led to lightning rods, airplanes, torpedoes, and dishwashers.

An alphabetical exploration of the people, geography, animals, plants, history, and culture of Israel.

In this all-new very special miniseries, the Aldens have been recruited by a secret society to return lost artifacts and treasures to their rightful locations - all around the world! The final leg of the Aldens' journey brings them to South America and to the Salt Flats in northern Argentina. But when they hit a dead end, they realize someone has tricked them in order to delay their plans! Returning to Buenos Aires, the Aldens connect with the Silvertons and are able to get back on track. But it is clear their rivals are closer than ever.

Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, The Geography of Bliss takes the listener from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of "un-unhappiness". This uses a beguiling mixture of travel, psychology, science and humor to investigate not what happiness is, but where it is.

Two tall tales about the tiny town of Chewandswallow, featuring immense foodstuffs and distinct characters, are included this delightful collection.

Welcome to Greece! Gaze at the crumbling walls of ancient ruins. Cross the Aegean Sea to a volcanic island. Learn about the people, places, and traditions of the country where the Olympic Games began.

After decades of war, South Sudan became an independent country in 2011. Though its people face struggles as they build their new nation, they do have reason for national pride. Their country contains Bandingilo National Park, which hosts one of the largest annual animal migrations. This title describes the birth of South Sudan and its efforts to create a national identity.

Take an alphabetical exploration of the people, geography, animals, plants, history, and culture of Australia!

Nationally syndicated radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh has long wanted to make history come to life for the children of his listeners. In this book, he travels back in time with fearless history teacher Rush Revere. With the help of his faithful talking horse, Liberty, Rush experiences American history as it happens, having adventure after adventure with exceptional Americans such as Paul Revere and George Washington.

Haunted places exist across the globe. From haunted prisons to castles and schools to houses, ghosts continue to make themselves known. Learn about some of the most haunted places on Earth, such as Winchester House and Alcatraz. Then turn out the lights if you dare.

Serafina has a secret dream. She wants to go to school and become a doctor with her best friend, Julie Marie. But in their rural village outside Port-au-Prince, Haiti, many obstacles stand in Serafina's way - little money, never-ending chores, and Manman's worries. More powerful even than all of these are the heavy rains and the shaking earth that test Serafina's resolve in ways she never dreamed. At once heartbreaking and hopeful, this exquisitely crafted story will leave a lasting impression on your heart.

Jade is starting eighth grade in a new city—Atlanta. She just wants to go back to Chicago, where her friends are. Where her Abuela lives. But Jade does like walking to her new school on the trail that winds through the woods behind her house, where lush flowers bloom and soft leaves rustle beneath her feet. In the forest, Jade feels protected. Sometimes, it's as if it's listening to her. There, Jade meets Itztli, an elderly storyteller who exists between dreams and reality. In the golden afternoons when Itztli appears, he steps out of the forest as a lithe, agile jaguar.

Minni lives in the poorest part of Mumbai, where access to water is limited to a few hours a day and the communal taps have long lines. Lately, though, even that access is threatened by severe water shortages and thieves who are stealing this precious commodity—an act that Minni accidentally witnesses one night. Meanwhile, in the high-rise building where she just started to work, she discovers that water streams out of every faucet and there’s even a rooftop swimming pool. What Minni also discovers there is one of the water mafia bosses.

Nature, money, work, care, food, energy, and lives: these are the seven things that have made our world and will shape its future. Bringing the latest ecological research together with histories of colonialism, indigenous struggles, slave revolts, and other rebellions and uprisings, Patel and Moore demonstrate that throughout history, crises have always prompted fresh strategies to make the world cheap and safe for capitalism.