When her father's business closes because of the Great Depression forcing Kit to make changes in her life, the nine-year-old responds with resourcefulness.

On a visit to Cincinnati from rural Kentucky during the Great Depression, Aunt Millie impresses Kit with her money-saving cleverness. Includes information on life in America during the Great Depression.

The Alden children draw upon their resourcefulness to save the neighborhood firehouse from being torn down, while they also face a series of mysterious incidents connected with it.

Because her Haitian family is too poor to be able to buy paints for her, eight-year-old Ti Marie finds her own way to create pictures that make the heart sing.

"A patterned flour sack becomes a clever creation in this story set in the late 1930's featuring a crafty girl with a gift for repurposing her favorite daisy print. When the family flour sack is emptied, Nancy Bess remakes it into a dress. But little girls grow as little girls do, and soon that dress is too small. Bit by bit, Nancy Bess fashions the material into new creations, until finally, all that is left of the flour sack are a few tattered pieces....

Daniel, Joy, and Kimani appear on a beach and see a mysterious tower in the distance, but to reach the tower in time, they must work together and build a cart for speed with the materials they have on hand.

After finding themselves mysteriously transported to a magical island, this time in a rainforest swamp, Daniel, Joy, and Kimani must figure out how to safely traverse across the island with their knowledge of friction and pulleys.