Patricia Lakin, a former elementary school teacher and an award-winning author, has written more than fifty published works. Her books, both fiction and nonfiction, span multiple age groups-from toddlers to middle graders. Patricia lives in New York City with her husband, Lee Koenigsberg. They have two grown sons, Aaron and Benjahmin. When not reading, writing, or researching, she can be found traveling with Lee to far-off places in the world.

Get to know heroes of the Civil War in this fact-tastic, nonfiction Level 3 Ready-to-Read, part of a new series about the secrets of American History!

Secrets of American History is an action-packed nonfiction Level 3 Ready-to-Read series that lets beginning readers in on a little secret: history is full of surprises! Want to know what invisible ink has to do with the American Revolution? Or why shark repellant and inflatable army tanks were used in World War II? Find out in this fact-filled series of fascinating true tales, wild adventures, and spy missions, and discover the secret side of American history!

Did you know that Harriet Tubman was a spy for Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War? Or that Robert Smalls used secret hand signals to escape slavery on a Confederate ship? Mary Touvestre risked everything to bring plans for the first ironclad warship to the Union. Find out about heroes who spied, fought, and sailed to freedom in this book of amazing true stories!