Ride the rails to a spirited adventure at the turn of the century! When the town sheriff discovers the exact location of "Wanderville," the orphans who live there-Jack, Frances, Harold, Alexander, and their new friends-must flee their home in the woods. They take to the rails and, after nearly being caught, are rescued by a seemingly kind reverend and his wife. The pair brings the children to their home, telling them that if they help the sharecroppers who run their farm, they will eventually be adopted. But Frances can't stop thinking about a mysterious treasure mentioned to her by a hobo they met during their travels, and when a young African-American sharecropper is blamed for stealing a fiddle her brother Harold actually nabbed, the citizens of Wanderville will have to decide whether their community is heading in the right direction or whether they need to get their "town" back on track.

Author Biography

Wendy McClure is the author ofThe Wilder Life- My Adventures in the Lost of World of Little House on the Prairieand several other books for adults and children. She is a senior editor at Albert Whitman and Company, where her recent projects include books in the Boxcar Children series. She received an MFA from the Iowa Writer's Workshop and has been a contributor to theNew York Times MagazineandThis American Life. She lives in Chicago with her husband. Visit her online at WendyMcClure.net and follow her on Twitter @Wendy_Mc.