Aaron and Anna
She wants a family. He wants to run. The Orphan Train carries them both west.
Adults Not Wanted - Aaron survives on the streets and trusts no adults. Anna has always depended on them. When both are sent west on the Orphan Train, they must leave behind the lives they know and learn whether a new home—and a new family—might truly be possible.
Twelve-year-old Aaron has survived on the streets of New York City by stealing, running, and trusting no one. Eight-year-old Anna has grown up loved and sheltered until a Christmas Eve accident leaves her orphaned. When both children are sent west on the Orphan Train, Anna hopes for a new family while Aaron is determined not to be chosen. At the final stop in Bismarck, North Dakota, Cyrus and Carolyn Lansing take both children home. This illustrated historical companion to Adults Not Wanted introduces young readers to Aaron and Anna’s first journey toward family, trust, and belonging.
A father’s journey east.
Two children’s pasts.
One family still learning how to belong.
Cyrus Lansing has taken Aaron and Anna home to North Dakota, but he wants to understand more about the lives they left behind. Traveling to New York City, he visits the orphanage, speaks with Lieutenant Drake, meets street children and vendors, and sees the sharp contrast between Anna’s comfortable former home and Aaron’s life on the streets.
This illustrated historical companion to Adults Not Wanted and Aaron and Anna: The Train West follows Cyrus as he gathers pieces of the children’s past and returns home with a deeper understanding of the family he and Carolyn are building.