1801, presents the dawn of the 19th century with all its brilliant advancements in transportation, communication, and technology. While the world of technology is progressing rapidly, human rights and liberty are variously being trampled or rising. The megalomaniac Napoleon is proclaiming "liberty, equality, and fraternity" to a war-weary Europe, Jefferson is contemplating the largest land purchase in the history of the world, and Toussaint L'Ouverture is fighting for liberty in Haiti. Robert Livingston, Robert Fulton, Richard Trevithick, Beethoven, Lewis and Clark, Sacajawea, and Dolley Madison are all playing their parts. In this memorable retelling, youthful readers will come to appreciate why Foster was convinced that "history is drama."