Most boys and girls in Grade 6 can read this book themselves. Those in grades 5 to 10 will find it of compelling interest from beginning to end.

This is the story of our country thousands upon thousands of years ago, before Columbus came, before the first Indians reached our shores. Animals and plants that can no longer be found on earth were part of its scenery.

The soil trembled under the feet of the gentle brontosaurus, sixteen feet tall. Much later came the graceful little horse—no bigger than a fox. Elephants, sabre-toothed tigers, camels, and huge lions filled our forests and plains. Then they vanished, no one knows where.

The story of the animals who lived long ago is told in the rocks that hold the remains of America's earliest creatures. Reading about them is as exciting as reading an adventure tale.

It is no less exciting to follow the footsteps of America's early people: the Basket-Makers and the Mound Builders.

In this fine book Anne Terry White makes us feel the thrill that man must have known as they discovered details of America's forgotten past. Some of them were scientists, some merely had their eyes open and knew when they had found something unusual. But they were all great adventurers. Among them were Major Powell, the first man to read the Grand Canyon’s story, and James Cook, who discovered a hill in Wyoming filled with the book of rhinoceroses.

This is a book for those who like to solve puzzles and mysteries. It is for readers who like tales of adventure; and it is for all who want to know what our country was like long, long ago.

From the dust jacket