Newton the squirrel and his sister, Curie, conduct experiments based on what they hear through a classroom window, making simple machines to learn more about how the world works and to help their neighbors. Includes author's notes and glossary of scientific terms.
In long-ago China, as a young princess prepares to leave her parents' kingdom to travel to far-off Khotan where she is to marry the king, she decides to surreptitiously take with her a precious reminder of home.
Two boys explain the occasionally mysterious "rules" they learned over the summer, like never eat the last olive at a party, never ruin a perfect plan, and never give your keys to a stranger.
Twelve-year-old Aru stretches the truth to fit in at her private school, but when she is dared to prove an ancient lamp is cursed, she inadvertently frees an ancient demon.
During the Great Depression, seven-year-old Ruby's family leaves their Oklahoma home to seek work in California, where Ruby meets Dorothea Lange, who takes a photograph that becomes known as "Migrant mother." Includes historical note.