In parallel stories, a Ukrainian Jewish family prepares to emigrate to the United States in the late 1800s, and Frederic Auguste Bartholdi designs, raises funds for, and builds the Statue of Liberty in honor of the United States' centennial.

Penny instantly loves the doll her grandmother sends her, but finding the perfect name for her is a challenge.

Mirha questions her name after her classmates continually pronounce it wrong on the first day of school so her mother helps her to learn the significance of her name and to be proud of it.

Sam's favorite thing about second grade is the class pet, a hamster named George Washington, so when the class goes on a field trip to a science museum, Sam cannot resist bringing George along.

A librarian named Mavis McGrew introduces the animals in the zoo to the joy of reading when she drives her bookmobile to the zoo by mistake.

A child takes a sloth named Sparky as a pet.

When she notices several unattended, colorful eggs in the barnyard, the hen named Minerva Louise worries that they are abandoned and cold.

A mouse named Wemberly, who worries about everything, finds that she has a whole list of things to worry about when she faces the first day of nursery school.

In the bustling city of Paris, a small yet brave dog, Diva, and an adventurous cat named Flea become two unlikely friends.

"When Sophie's new sister won't stop crying, only two-year-old Sophie can communicate with her, even if she isn't using her words as her parents want her to"--