Trouble on the Ohio River

This is the fifteenth book in The American Adventure series. This series tells about the lives of children from many generations of a fictional family throughout American history, from the settling of Plymouth by the Pilgrims through the end of World War II. It's 1819 in the growing frontier city of Cincinnati, Ohio, and ten-year-old Lucy Lankford is very excited. Her parents have finally agreed to buy her the thing she wants more than anything in the world, a piano. But soon after the piano is ordered, everything changes in Cincinnati. Due to a drought, the Ohio River dries up, and no river traffic can come into town. This hurts businesses already struggling due to a depression. Many people lose their homes and jobs, including Lucy's best friend Charlotte and her family. At the same time, Lucy must deal with helping her cousin Ben fit in. Ben is an orphan from Boston who has come to live in Cincinnati with his older brother. The school bully seems determined to torment Ben, and Lucy is determined to find a way to help her cousin. This was one of my favorite books in the American Adventure series. The characters seemed more realistic and appealing, and the pace was better; the story flowed along really well. I'd definitely recommend this book to readers who enjoyed other American Adventure books, and I am looking forward to read more from this series.