A wonderfully written, sweeping narrative history of the United States that will help Americans discover the land they call home. American History for Middle School — Grades 6-8 The FIRST book in a two-volume narrative for Young Readers studying Land of Hope VOLUME ONE: SHAPING A NEW NATION, From 1492 to 1877 From its beginnings America was a land of hope, a magnet for those seeking a new beginning for themselves. The American Founders created a unique plan of government designed to realize those ideals. Implementing the plan was not easy, though, and a bloody civil war would push the American experiment to the breaking point - and to a new birth of freedom.