Bøger af Geoff Baggett

Esther Billups was a girl of the Virginia frontier. She was an able pioneer, farmer, and hunter. Thanks to the influence of her soldier father, she learned at a young age how to play the drum. She could drum military tunes and cadences with great skill. She dreamed of one day becoming a drummer in the Continental Army. But girls could not serve as drummers in any army. Hers was an impossible dream. So, she settled for the happiness of a simple life in the Virginia backcountry. Then, through a series of unspeakable events, Esther lost everyone and everything important to her. When she faced the possibility of losing her freedom, as well, Esther went on the run. She ran from her past, from her pain, from her loneliness ... and from the law. With the help of a newfound friend, Esther discovered a way to hide from everyone and everything. She assumed the cleverest of disguises. And it was a disguise that might actually help her fulfill her greatest dream! But would she ever realize that dream? Could she ever serve the cause of independency as a Little Drummer?

Pierre Grimard was a courageous little boy who lived with his parents on the Northwest Frontier in Colonial America. His home was in Vincennes, a tiny, peaceful French settlement on the banks of the majestic Wabash River. In his humble village there were hard-working farmers, crusty fur-trappers, tribes of majestic Indians, and an army of fearsome British soldiers. Pierre absolutely loved his frontier life. Every day was a new and exciting adventure. The creeks, forests, and fields were full of a lifetime of amazing, fun discoveries. But in the winter of 1778-79 his quiet, boring village became an important battlefield in the conflict of the American rebellion against England. Rugged soldiers from Virginia invaded the region to fight against the British Army. The Frenchmen who lived in Vincennes, including Pierre's father, had to choose a side in the violent war. The question was ... would they choose the right side? Would the peaceful French people of the Illinois Country be able to survive yet another bloody war on the American continent? Little Spy of Vincennes tells the exciting story of a young French-American boy who joined with his father in the great battle for liberty and freedom known as the American Revolution.

Lewis Hammock was only nine years old when his parents took his family on a great trek from their Virginia homelands to settle in the untamed forests of the faraway colony of Georgia. As a boy he helped his family build a new cabin home and begin an exciting new life on the Georgia frontier. But then the Revolutionary War descended upon Georgia with a merciless fury. The British and their allies swept through the Georgia backcountry and attempted to drive all of the Patriot families from their lands. Lewis became caught up in a violent world in which he had to fight ... and even kill ... to protect his family and home. At the age of fifteen he became a skilled and respected warrior and soldier. But would this young man who had experienced such violence and suffering throughout most of his young life ever find peace on the American frontier? Little Warrior is the gritty, honest, captivating story about a brave Patriot boy who fought for his country, his home, his freedom, and his family.

**Free teaching guide resource available for teachers and parents on the author's web site. www.geoffbaggett.comThe British have invaded Charlestown and the Revolutionary War has descended with a vengeance upon the sleepy southern frontier. Oppression, violence, and fear overwhelm the villages and homesteads of North and South Carolina. Thirteen-year-old William Hamilton is violently drawn into the war by forces seemingly beyond his control. He is racked with guilt after he is forced to take part in a battle at a frontier cabin. He vows that he will never take up arms against another human being. But as the war rages around him and the British declare a personal war upon his family, William must decide whether he will honor his vow or stand up to the enemy.Little Hornet is the emotional, triumphant story of a brave American boy fighting for his country, home, and freedom ... and for his big brothers.

There were some very unusual jobs in Colonial America. One of the strangest jobs of all was catching rats. Towns and villages all over the early Colonies had professional rat catchers ... men who hunted rats and removed them from homes, shops, and stores. Needless to say, it was a dirty, stinky, and sometimes scary job.Come and meet Silas Moore, a humble man from Colonial Virginia. See why he became a rat catcher, and join him on his first adventure!

Betsy Johnson was only eight years old when she traveled with her family to reach the rugged, untamed Kentucky frontier. The Johnson family found a home at a place called Bryan Station, a remote fort in the dense Kentucky forest. She worked with her family to plant crops, make clothing, and care for her younger brothers and sisters. It was a hard life, but a good life. Betsy loved her home in Kentucky. Every day was an adventure.Then, in the summer of 1782, the American Revolutionary War found its way to this isolated fort. Over five hundred Indians, led by British officers, surrounded Bryan Station and prepared to attack the settlers there. A Bucket Full of Courage tells about the incredible spirit and bravery of this little girl and the other heroes of Bryan Station who stood against the attack.

Pierre Grimard's dream was to leave his boyhood home in France and voyage to America. He longed to begin a new life, business, and family in the French settlements of the faraway frontier in the Illinois country. Ten years later it seemed that Pierre had fulfilled every one of his dreams. He had a beautiful, devoted wife, a home full of children, and a thriving business in the French trading outpost at Vincennes on the Wabash River. Then in the winter of 1778 this tiny, primitive village became the epicenter of a bloody struggle between the powerful armies of Great Britain and the rebels of the American Revolution. Colonel George Rogers Clark of Virginia and his ragtag army of frontier riflemen, the Long Knives, occupied Vincennes and its fort in an effort to eliminate the British influence on the Native Americans in the Northwest. But the British would soon return ... and with a vengeance.Frenchmen and Long Knives is the unique story of a small band of French settlers and frontiersmen who swore an oath to Virginia and chose to become Patriots and soldiers in the struggle to give birth to a new nation.

Robert Hammock had a restless spirit. He grew weary of the quiet life of Colonial Virginia and left his ancestral lands in 1774 in search of a new life on the edge of civilization. He and his wife, Milly, guided their family on a adventurous overland journey to settle in the rugged, untamed Indian lands of Georgia. Frontier life suited the Hammock family. They formed new friendships and hacked a rich and fulfilling life out of Georgia woods.Then a War of Revolution swept the colonies, eventually invading their pristine backcountry. Robert and Milly chose to make a stand and fight, side by side, for their security and freedom. But that choice soon cost them their farm, their possessions, and their home. Forced to flee for their lives from revenge-hungry Tories and their British masters, Milly and her children became refugees across the mountains in Tennessee while Robert and his faithful slave, Frank, returned to Georgia to fight a guerrilla war against the British. Would Robert Hammock and the tenacious Regiment of Refugees be able to drive the British from Georgia? Would Milly ever see her beloved Robert and her distant Georgia home again? Would Frank ever know real love and family or experience true freedom?Partisans and Refugees is the heartbreaking but victorious story of an early American family torn apart by war but united by loyalty, love, and liberty.

Walter Billingsley's entire life changed on a dark, violent night in the spring of 1776. At the tender age of fifteen, he witnessed and experienced unspeakable acts of terror against his family, perpetrated by militants loyal to the British Crown. The horrors of that unforgettable night launched this innocent Colonial lad on a determined course toward service in the rebellion known as the American Revolution.Five horrendous years of suffering, privation, violence, loss, and war molded the North Carolina lad into a battle-hardened, bitter, and angry young man. He became disheartened, despondent, and vengeful. Walter grew to hate the world around him, so he departed all that was familiar to him and set out in search of a new life in the raw, unspoiled mountains of the western frontier.Would Walter ever feel peace and forgiveness in his heart again? Or, would he carry his painful scars of violence and rage to his grave?Soldiers and Martyrs is the story of an unlikely Patriot who left his farm and home in North Carolina to become a man, fight for his loved ones, and help earn freedom for the United States of America.

The British have invaded Charlestown and the Revolutionary War has descended with a vengeance upon the sleepy southern frontier. Oppression, privation, and fear overwhelm the villages and homesteads of North and South Carolina. The Patriot cause seems all but lost.James and John Hamilton are violently drawn into the war by forces seemingly beyond their control. Since their early childhood these brothers have survived rejection, hunger, death, tragedy and loss. But will they survive the bloody onslaught and depravity of the Redcoats and their Tory allies? Can they spill the blood of their enemies and still hold on to compassion and humanity? Will they ever again know the peace of their humble cabin in the Carolina forest?Brothers and Warriors is the tumultuous, triumphant story of brothers fighting and surviving for home, justice, love, and freedom ... and for one another.

A great multitude of Germans departed Europe in the mid-1700's to pursue new lives in America. Most settled in Pennsylvania, where their native German culture thrived. These new citizens of the New World gladly swore their oaths to Great Britain's king, and enjoyed the rights and privileges afforded to all citizens of England's colonies.But, when the American Revolution erupted in their new land, these German pioneers had to make a very difficult choice. They could retain their allegiance to King George III and Great Britain, or they could align themselves with the rebels, and fight for the formation of an altogether new nation. Immigrants and Patriots tells the stories of two young German-Americans who chose to fight for the United States of America. In so doing, they each charted a course in life that would lead them much personal pain, privation, tragedy, and loss. But, ultimately, that same choice would help ensure liberty and freedom for their families and for generations of their descendants.