Ships

Dazzle Ships: World War I and the Art of Confusion

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Copies: 6

"During World War I, British and American ships were painted with bold colors and crazy patterns from bow to stern. Why would anyone put such eye-catching designs on ships?

Desperate to protect ships from German torpedo attacks, British lieutenant-commander Norman Wilkinson proposed what became known as dazzle. These stunning patterns and colors were meant to confuse the enemy about a ship's speed and direction. By the end of the war, more than four thousand ships had been painted with these mesmerizing designs.

Author:

Chris Barton

Lexile:

990

Dazzle Ships: World War I and the Art of Confusion

Seven and a half Tons of Steel

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Copies: 6

There is a ship, a navy ship. It is called the USS New York. It is big like other navy ships, and it sails like other navy ships, but there is something special about the USS New York.

Following the events of September 11, 2001, a steel beam from the World Trade Center towers was given to the United States Navy.

The beam was driven from New York to a foundry in Louisiana.

Metal workers heated the beam to a high, high temperature.

Chippers and grinders, painters and polishers worked on the beam for months.

Author:

Janet Nolan

Lexile:

AD820L

Papa's Mechanical Fish

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Copies: 7

Clink! Clankety-bang! Thump-whirr! That's the sound of Papa at work. Although he is an inventor, he has never made anything that works perfectly, and that's because he hasn't yet found a truly fantastic idea. But when he takes his family fishing on Lake Michigan, his daughter Virena asks, "Have you ever wondered what it's like to be a fish?"—and Papa is off to his workshop. With a lot of persistence and a little bit of help, Papa—who is based on the real-life inventor Lodner Phillips—creates a submarine that can take his family for a trip to the bottom of Lake Michigan.

Author:

Candace Fleming

Lexile:

480L

Pedro's Journal

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Copies: 30

Destination Unknown...

Pedro de Salcedo could not have known what adventures lay ahead! His incredible voyage as ship's boy aboard Christopher Columbus' Santa Maria would bring both danger and excitement. Pedro captured his experience between the pages of a journal. If he did not return alive perhaps someone, someday would find it and learn of his incredible journey to the new world.

Author:

Pam Conrad

Lexile:

1030L

The 290 (Unabridged)

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Jim Lynne is idly playing darts in Liverpool when his brother, Ted, calls him over to a table to ask a question about the ship that he's working on. It seems the ship, enigmatically named the 290, is not the cargo ship that people are saying it is. Whatever its purpose, it is certainly built for speed. But Jim thinks he knows that purpose: it is being built for the Confederate navy.

Author:

Scott O'Dell

Grade Level:

Middle

Lexile:

910L

Length:

02:33

The Vikings (Unabridged)

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Between the 8th and 11th centuries, Vikings stormed out of their Scandinavian homelands to raid and loot along the coasts of Europe. In old Norse, to "go viking" meant to take to sea in a long ship for an adventure. Sometimes this was a trading trip, sometimes a piratical raid. Often it was both.

Author:

David Angus

Grade Level:

Elementary

Length:

02:26

Drowned Wednesday: The Keys to the Kingdom, Book 3 (Unabridged)

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Wednesday has rolled around, and Arthur Penhaligon has an invitation to return to the House that he can't refuse. Drowned Wednesday has sent a ship to pick him up from the hospital...even though his hometown is miles away from any ocean.

Author:

Garth Nix

Grade Level:

Middle

Lexile:

900L

Length:

08:40

Drowned Wednesday: The Keys to the Kingdom, Book 3 (Unabridged)