This novel, written in diary form, tells of "a pivotal year for 19th-century New Englander Catherine Cabot Hill--one of change, loss, and leave taking . . . a low-key, intense and reflective book".--"School Library Journal", starred review. 1980 Newbery Award book.

In 1607, three English ships sail up the James River in Virginia and establish the first permanent English colony. Nine-year-old Elizabeth "Lizzie" Barker keeps a journal for her brother, Caleb, who stayed in England because of his weak lungs. In her entries, Lizzie describes the abundant forests, trading with and learning from the Indians, and adventures with her new friends.

From battling toothaches while fighting the British, to having rotten teeth removed by his dentists, readers get a tongue-in-cheek dental history of the Father of His Country, who suffered all his life with tooth problems.