When fifteen-year-old Christina Eudora Von Scholl learns that her family will leave their German homeland to seek freedom in Texas, her greatest sorrow is leaving behind her beloved grandmother. And so, in a series of letters, she takes “Oma” on this great adventure with her family . . . and takes us as readers. Sometimes the letters are dark with discouragement, for the Von Scholls find, as did many German-Texas families, that the Society for the Protection of German Emigrants, known as the Adelsverein, was unable to fulfill its promises of land, housing, horses, and farm implements. But they are Germans, determined and willing to work hard. More often these letters—and the text woven in between them—are bright with adventure, for Tina finds Texas an exciting, if puzzling, place. There are new customs to learn, new foods to eat, even while the family preserves its traditional German ways. Tina’s adventures include a run-in with a mountain lion, an exciting trip across Texas with her father to Sisterdale, and a frightening encounter with Lipan Indians. Her lessons in being an American are helped by Jeff, a young man who becomes part of the family when he undertakes to teach them to farm in Texas. Tina, in return, teaches Jeff to read and learns a lesson in love that is without nationality. Letters to Oma is a charming, informative novel that sweeps the reader back to a very particular time and place. And Tina Von Scholl is irresistible as correspondent and as heroine.

Letters to Oma: A Young German Girl's Account of Her First Year in Texas, 1847 (Chaparral Books)

Children's Books

Gurasich, Marj

Literature & Fiction

Texas Christian University Press

“A house divided against itself cannot stand.”—A. Lincoln Continuing the saga told in Letters to Oma of the von Scholls, a German family immigrating to Texas in 1847, A House Divided tells the story of the effect of the Civil War on German Texans who frowned on slavery and, like Sam Houston, thought the Union must be preserved at all costs. The von Scholl family is split apart when two brothers choose different sides—Will joining the Confederacy and Fred refusing to fight. When Fred is killed by renegade southerners and Will captured by Union soldiers, sixteen-year-old Louisa—Tina’s baby sister in Letters to Oma—masquerades as a hospital orderly to rescue Will from his Yankee prison. Louisa’s adventuresome story stands for that of over 800 women, on both sides, who actually went to war during this tragic conflict.

A House Divided (Chaparral Books)

Texas Christian Univ Pr

A biography of the woman known throughout Texas as "Aunt Mollie" who ran and traveled with the Mollie A. Bailey Show for nearly half a century.

Red wagons and white canvas: A story of the Mollie Bailey circus

Eakin Press

The life and accomplishments of an early champion of Texas independence as seen through the eyes of a young boy who grew to admire his courage and ideals.

Benito and the White Dove: A Story of Jose Antonio Navarro

Biographies

Provides biographies for a number of men and women important in Texas history.

Did You Ever-- Meet a Texas Hero?

Eakin Pr

Provides biographies for a number of men and women important in Texas history.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Gurasich, Marj. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Gurasich, Marj

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Gurasich, Marj. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Letters to Oma: A Young German Girl's Account of Her First Year in Texas, 1847 (Chaparral Books)

A House Divided (Chaparral Books)

Red wagons and white canvas: A story of the Mollie Bailey circus

Benito and the White Dove: A Story of Jose Antonio Navarro

Did You Ever-- Meet a Texas Hero?

Did You Ever-- Meet a Texas Hero?