Showing results by narrator "John H. Mayer" in All Categories

In the eleventh book of the Capital Mysteries—an early chapter book mystery series featuring fun facts and famous sites from Washington, D.C.—KC and Marshall are painting a closet in the White House when they come across a forgotten cubbyhole. Hidden inside is an old box of homemade toy horses that one belonged to Thomas Jefferson! KC and Marshall take the historic treasure to Jefferson's home, Monticello, but right after they get there, the box—with all the horses inside—is stolen! How did a thief snatch the horses from right under everyone's noses?

In the fifth book of the Capital Mysteries—an early chapter book mystery series featuring fun facts and famous sites from Washington, D.C.—it's party time in Washington, D.C.! The president is planning a celebration at the Lincoln Memorial in honor of the man who sculpted the famous statue of Abraham Lincoln. But KC and Marshall notice one small problem—one of the thumbs has broken off the statue! Has someone stolen Lincoln's thumb? Can KC and Marshall find it before the celebration?

In the third book of the Capital Mysteries—an early chapter book mystery series featuring fun facts and famous sites from Washington, D.C.— KC and her friend Marshall explore the Smithsonian, the most famous museum in the world. The money to build it was given to Washington, D.C., over a hundred years ago, but now one man is claiming that money should be his. KC and Marshall think they can prove Mr. Fisher is a big liar. But if they are wrong, the Smithsonian will belong to him!

In curiously parallel lives, Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr were both orphaned at an early age. Both were brilliant students who attended college - one at Princeton, the other at Columbia - and studied law. Both were young staff officers under General George Washington, and both became war heroes. Politics beckoned them, and each served in the newly formed government of the fledgling nation. Why, then, did these two face each other at dawn in a duel that ended with death for one and opprobrium for the other?

Ben has been invited to try out for a special hockey academy. But Dad wants Ben to catch up to the school field trip instead. So Ben, Dad, and their dogs, Atticus and Conor, jump into their truck. Ben concocts a secret plan to make the tryout, but Atticus and Conor are on to him. Ben and Dad's road trip turns into a wacky adventure full of new friends and surprises.

When Sir Sidney, a kindly old circus owner, becomes too tired to travel with his show, he places a Help Wanted ad in the newspaper. Enter Barnabas Brambles: "I have a degree in lion taming from the University of Piccadilly Circus." But does Leo the lion need taming? Will Elsa the elephant still get her gourmet peanuts? And what will Brambles say when he discovers Bert and Gert - two mice who travel with the circus on popcorn cleanup patrol?

The Spaghetti is a floating palace of elegance and entertainment. There's only one problem: Miss LaPasta doesn't want Barnabas Brambles to come aboard, because she's heard he's the meanest man alive. Lucky for Barnabas Brambles, his boss is Sir Sidney, the nicest man alive.

The fascinating story of a man whose exploration in spiritual existence has not been limited to his life as a rabbi, this autobiography shares Jerry Steinberg’s experience down a path less traveled. Revealing an understanding of God that goes beyond the conventional, the memoir contributes to a different perception of the world today - an open-eyed and open-minded view that will resonate with readers of any religious or spiritual background.

One hundred and thirty years ago Eadweard Muybridge invented stop-motion photography, anticipating and making possible motion pictures. He was the first to capture time and play it back for an audience, giving birth to visual media and screen entertainments of all kinds. Yet the artist and inventor Muybridge was also a murderer who killed coolly and meticulously, and his trial is one of the early instances of a media sensation.

Augie Boretski knows how to get by. If you're a scrawny loser in the destitute city of Camden, New Jersey, you keep your head down, avoid the drug dealers and thugs, and try your best to be invisible. Augie used to be good at that, but suddenly his life is changing....

Yes, Jack Plank started out to be a pirate. His shipmates all liked him, and their ship, the Avarice, was certainly very beautiful. But after a while it was clear that he wasn’t much good at plundering. He just didn’t have the knack for it. So what to do? Jack did the only thing he could do - he went ashore to look for another line of work. The town was called Salt-wash, on the coast of the Caribbean Sea, and he had a lot of helpful advice from the people in Mrs. DelFresno’s boardinghouse.

When a young reindeer sneaks into Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve, he accidentally falls out and must find a way to return to the North Pole.

In the spring of 1844, a fiery political conflict erupted over the admission of Texas into the Union. This hard-fought and bitter controversy profoundly changed the course of American history. Indeed, as Joel Silbey argues in Storm Over Texas, it marked the crucial moment when partisan differences were transformed into a North-vs-South antagonism, and the momentum towards Civil War leaped into high gear.