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Applegate and Ormerod join forces to contribute to the all-too-small picture-book selection recounting the frontier movement to the Pacific coast. Young Hallie is distraught at the thought of leaving her beloved grandmother and her farm, but her parents have decided to move to Oregon. Hallie has an overwhelming fear of thunderstorms and cannot imagine surviving the journey westward without her grandmother, who always manages to calm her fears. Hallie’s grandmother says just the right things to her granddaughter, suggesting she write down everything she experiences on the westward journey. Applegate is realistic about the hardships typically faced by those who made the journey and shows floods, storms and unfamiliar terrain and animals causing a variety of reactions. Once Hallie rescues a baby buffalo, she hears a frighteningly loud sound and watches a herd of buffalo go by. Grandmother had predicted such an event, making Hallie feel close to her, and a baby sister is born and named after her grandmother. The placement of text lacks inventiveness, but the pictures, colors and gentle tale combine to make a solid package. Teachers and parents will appreciate this high-quality combination of text and illustration. (Picture book. 4-7)
