Product Description

When her mother and sister fall ill, Meg and her brother, Preston, are sent to live with relatives on the prairie to avoid the cholera epidemic in St. Louis. After an adventurous journey, Meg and Preston arrive in Kansas, where they must adjust to a rugged country lifestyle.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2056151 in Books
• Published on: 2001-12
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 106 pages

From School Library Journal
Grades 3-5--Nine-year-old Meg Wells recounts the long, dangerous journey she and her readbrother must take to avoid the cholera epidemic in St. Louis. Leaving their sick sister and parents behind, the two children travel to the Kansas frontier to live with their aunt and uncle for the summer. Their temporary home is quite different from the city life they are used to, and, in addition, they learn that it is part of the Underground Railroad. McMullan has incorporated the historical events with some basic emotional turmoil through the character of Meg as she follows the traditional diary format for this junior version in the well-known series. A historical note is appended complete with reprints of some drawings of the events and rugged lifestyle of the day. Simple historical fiction.
Rita Soltan, Baldwin Public Library, Birmingham, MI
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

A wonderful new book from the My America series.
When she is given a diary for her ninth birthday, Margaret Cora Wells, called Meg by her family and friends, expects to record her daily life in St. Louis, Missouri. But then a cholera epidemic strikes, and Meg's mother and little sister, Grace, fall ill. Having already lost two children to cholera seven years before, Meg's mother is determined not to lose another. So Meg and her seven-year-old brother, Preston, are sent to live with their aunt, uncle, and cousins in the Kansas Territory. Accustomed to a comfortable city life, Meg finds frontier living to be tough, but at the same time full of adventure. But in 1856, Kansas is a very dangerous place, where pro-slavery Border Ruffians attack northerners like Meg's family, who have come to Kansas in the hopes of making it a free state. Can Meg come up with a plan to help her family? I highly recommend this new title from the My America series.

The Courage and Strength of A Young Girl Comes Alive!
During 1856 in St. Louis her mother and sister fall ill with the cholera epidemic, which has spread widely in Missouri , nine-year-old Meg and her brother Preston are sent to live with relatives in the praire lands of Kansas, until the epidemic passes. In her diary Meg describes the dangerous journey they have to take to get to Kansas and when they finally get their she and her brother Preston must adjust to the rugged lifestyle which is much different from St. Louis with their everyday chores. This was a great story about how a young girl braved her new lifestyle and someday wishes to be reunited with her family. I highly recommend Dear America fans to read this great new book in the My America series. I can't wait for the conclusion of Meg's story in her next diary!