Thrashin' Time

Thrashin' Time takes us back to autumn days in North Dakota in 1912, when farmers worked the land with sturdy draft horses and a new-fangled machine called the steam traction engine. The story opens with young Peter's first look at the engine- blue boiler and red wheels, puffing smoke and hissing steam, gears spinning and rods stroking back and forth- and old Mr. Torgrimson's wise prediction: "You know, Peter, you're witnessing the beginning of real scientific farming."