When a drought tests the commitment of a mail-order bride from Maine to her new home on the prairie, her stepchildren hope they will be able to remain a family.

The dust storms that terrorized America's High Plains in the darkest years of the Depression were like nothing ever seen before or since, and the stories of the people that held on have never been fully told. Pulitzer Prize-winning New York times journalist and author Timothy Egan follows a half-dozen families and their communities through the rise and fall of the region, going from sod huts to new framed houses to huddling in basements with the windows...

"Simple text and full color photographs introduce beginning readers to the characteristics of droughts. Developed by literacy experts for students in kindergarten through third grade"--Provided by publisher.

"Carefully leveled text and engaging full-color photos introduce early fluent readers to the science behind droughts, including where and why droughts happen and how to conserve water. Includes activity, glossary, and index."--

"What causes droughts? How do scientists predict and prepare for them? Discover the answers to these questions and more." -- Publisher's website.