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Genre Guide

Middle Grade Historical Fiction -- 4th grade and up

By:

ACL_NidyaGG

Alameda County Library

Staff-created list

For my fellow history buffs or those simply seeking to better understand past events, here is a list for you! This list covers a little bit of everything, from the Brazero movement during the 1930s to war in the Middle East. History is today -- it has shaped us and influenced us into what we are.

By:

ACL_NidyaGG

Alameda County Library

20 items

20 items

Gold Rush Girl

Gold Rush Girl

by Avi

Book - 2020

Also available in eBook. Life for the Blaisdell family in 1840s Providence, Rhode Island, is nice and normal, but this state of affairs chafes at 13-year-...Show more Also available in eBook. Life for the Blaisdell family in 1840s Providence, Rhode Island, is nice and normal, but this state of affairs chafes at 13-year-old Victoria (Tory), who yearns for adventure. She’s frustrated by the lack of opportunities in Providence, including not being allowed to attend school. Tory snatches education where she can, learning to read from her mother and having her younger brother, Jacob, share his lessons with her. The family’s stability abruptly ends when her father loses his accounting job and her mother becomes ill. Father chooses to take Jacob with him to San Francisco to join the California gold rush, but Tory’s determined not to be left behind. With her mother’s permission, Tory secretly stows away on board the ship. The three face life as they’ve never known it, one marked by mud, tents, and lawlessness. When Father heads to the gold fields, leaving Tory and Jacob alone in San Francisco, Tory resents being in charge of Jacob. But when her brother goes missing, she launches a frantic search to find him. Show less

Also available in eBook. Life for the Blaisdell family in 1840s Providence, Rhode Island, is nice and normal, but this state of affairs chafes at 13-year-...Show more Also available in eBook. Life for the Blaisdell family in 1840s Providence, Rhode Island, is nice and normal, but this state of affairs chafes at 13-year-old Victoria (Tory), who yearns for adventure. She’s frustrated by the lack of opportunities in Providence, including not being allowed to attend school. Tory snatches education where she can, learning to read from her mother and having her younger brother, Jacob, share his lessons with her. The family’s stability abruptly ends when her father loses his accounting job and her mother becomes ill. Father chooses to take Jacob with him to San Francisco to join the California gold rush, but Tory’s determined not to be left behind. With her mother’s permission, Tory secretly stows away on board the ship. The three face life as they’ve never known it, one marked by mud, tents, and lawlessness. When Father heads to the gold fields, leaving Tory and Jacob alone in San Francisco, Tory resents being in charge of Jacob. But when her brother goes missing, she launches a frantic search to find him. Show less

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Esperanza Rising

Esperanza Rising

by Ryan, Pam Muñoz

Book - 2000

In 1930, Esperanza lives a privileged life on a ranch in Aguascalientes, Mexico. But when her father dies, the post-Revolutionary culture and politics for...Show more In 1930, Esperanza lives a privileged life on a ranch in Aguascalientes, Mexico. But when her father dies, the post-Revolutionary culture and politics force her to leave with her mother for California. Now they are indebted to the family who previously worked for them, for securing them work on a farm in the San Joaquin valley. Esperanza balks at her new situation, but eventually becomes as accustomed to it as she was in her previous home, and comes to realize that she is still relatively privileged to be on a year-round farm with a strong community. She sees migrant workers forced from their jobs by families arriving from the Dust Bowl, and camps of strikers—many of them US citizens—deported in the "voluntary repatriation" that sent at least 450,000 Mexicans and Mexican-Americans back to Mexico in the early 1930s. (Kirkus Reviews, October 1, 2000) Show less

In 1930, Esperanza lives a privileged life on a ranch in Aguascalientes, Mexico. But when her father dies, the post-Revolutionary culture and politics for...Show more In 1930, Esperanza lives a privileged life on a ranch in Aguascalientes, Mexico. But when her father dies, the post-Revolutionary culture and politics force her to leave with her mother for California. Now they are indebted to the family who previously worked for them, for securing them work on a farm in the San Joaquin valley. Esperanza balks at her new situation, but eventually becomes as accustomed to it as she was in her previous home, and comes to realize that she is still relatively privileged to be on a year-round farm with a strong community. She sees migrant workers forced from their jobs by families arriving from the Dust Bowl, and camps of strikers—many of them US citizens—deported in the "voluntary repatriation" that sent at least 450,000 Mexicans and Mexican-Americans back to Mexico in the early 1930s. (Kirkus Reviews, October 1, 2000) Show less

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Don't Tell the Nazis

Don't Tell the Nazis

A Novel

by Skrypuch, Marsha Forchuk

Book - 2019

Krystia, around 12 years old, is living under Soviet occupation in a small Ukrainian village in 1941. When the Germans arrive, the townspeople are initia...Show more Krystia, around 12 years old, is living under Soviet occupation in a small Ukrainian village in 1941. When the Germans arrive, the townspeople are initially celebratory, anticipating that their lives will improve, but their hopes are soon dashed. Krystia is not Jewish, but she and her family are horrified as their Jewish neighbors begin to be persecuted. When more German people arrive in the village, Krystia learns about the varying levels of classification used by the Nazis. The "Master Race" consists of Aryans, Germans, and Volksdeutsche. Anyone else, including Ukrainians, are considered "lesser" or subhuman, with Jewish people at the bottom of the list. Many Jewish villagers are killed outright, while Krystia's family slowly starves as they are forced to give their food and livestock to the Volksdeutsche settlers. When a Nazi commander discovers hidden Jews in Krystia's home, her mother is killed for the crime, and Krystia is forced to flee Show less

Krystia, around 12 years old, is living under Soviet occupation in a small Ukrainian village in 1941. When the Germans arrive, the townspeople are initia...Show more Krystia, around 12 years old, is living under Soviet occupation in a small Ukrainian village in 1941. When the Germans arrive, the townspeople are initially celebratory, anticipating that their lives will improve, but their hopes are soon dashed. Krystia is not Jewish, but she and her family are horrified as their Jewish neighbors begin to be persecuted. When more German people arrive in the village, Krystia learns about the varying levels of classification used by the Nazis. The "Master Race" consists of Aryans, Germans, and Volksdeutsche. Anyone else, including Ukrainians, are considered "lesser" or subhuman, with Jewish people at the bottom of the list. Many Jewish villagers are killed outright, while Krystia's family slowly starves as they are forced to give their food and livestock to the Volksdeutsche settlers. When a Nazi commander discovers hidden Jews in Krystia's home, her mother is killed for the crime, and Krystia is forced to flee Show less

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White Bird

White Bird

A Wonder Story

by Palacio, R. J.

Graphic Novel - 2019

Also available in eBook and eAudiobook. A grandmother shares her story of survival as a Jew in France during World War II.As part of a homework assignmen...Show more Also available in eBook and eAudiobook. A grandmother shares her story of survival as a Jew in France during World War II.As part of a homework assignment, Julian (Auggie's chief tormentor in Wonder, 2012) video chats with Grandmère, who finally relates her wartime story. Born Sara Blum to a comfortable French Jewish family, she is indulged by her parents, who remain in Vichy France after 1940. Then, in 1943, after the German occupation, soldiers come to Sara's school to arrest her and the other Jewish students. Sara hides and is soon spirited away by "Tourteau," a student that she and the others had teased because of his crablike, crutch-assisted walk after being stricken by polio. Nonetheless, Tourteau, whose real name is Julien, and his parents shelter Sara in their barn loft for the duration of the war, often at great peril but always with care and love. Show less

Also available in eBook and eAudiobook. A grandmother shares her story of survival as a Jew in France during World War II.As part of a homework assignmen...Show more Also available in eBook and eAudiobook. A grandmother shares her story of survival as a Jew in France during World War II.As part of a homework assignment, Julian (Auggie's chief tormentor in Wonder, 2012) video chats with Grandmère, who finally relates her wartime story. Born Sara Blum to a comfortable French Jewish family, she is indulged by her parents, who remain in Vichy France after 1940. Then, in 1943, after the German occupation, soldiers come to Sara's school to arrest her and the other Jewish students. Sara hides and is soon spirited away by "Tourteau," a student that she and the others had teased because of his crablike, crutch-assisted walk after being stricken by polio. Nonetheless, Tourteau, whose real name is Julien, and his parents shelter Sara in their barn loft for the duration of the war, often at great peril but always with care and love. Show less

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Crushing the Red Flowers

Crushing the Red Flowers

by Voigt Kaplan, Jennifer

Book - 2019

Two boys forge a brief and dangerous alliance in 1938 Germany. Friedrich Weber is a 12-year-old member of the Jungvolk in Hannover. Membership is mandato...Show more Two boys forge a brief and dangerous alliance in 1938 Germany. Friedrich Weber is a 12-year-old member of the Jungvolk in Hannover. Membership is mandatory if quietly reluctant on his part. Emil Rosen is a 12-year-old Jewish boy in Hannover. Restrictions on Jewish life are coming into force, but Emil is still required to practice the piano and study for his bar mitzvah. The two cross paths at a remote spot on the Leine River, Emil finding peace there and Friedrich remembering that it was his papa who had shared this "special place, their secret." But in the weeks leading up to Kristallnacht, each is caught up in the all-consuming anti-Semitism of their country as Jews are declared "non-German." Friedrich becomes one of those throwing rocks at Jewish businesses as his parents embrace Hitler in the hope it will "keep [them] safe." Emil's family is torn between immigration to Paraguay and bewilderment; his vati fought for Germany in the Great War. Show less

Two boys forge a brief and dangerous alliance in 1938 Germany. Friedrich Weber is a 12-year-old member of the Jungvolk in Hannover. Membership is mandato...Show more Two boys forge a brief and dangerous alliance in 1938 Germany. Friedrich Weber is a 12-year-old member of the Jungvolk in Hannover. Membership is mandatory if quietly reluctant on his part. Emil Rosen is a 12-year-old Jewish boy in Hannover. Restrictions on Jewish life are coming into force, but Emil is still required to practice the piano and study for his bar mitzvah. The two cross paths at a remote spot on the Leine River, Emil finding peace there and Friedrich remembering that it was his papa who had shared this "special place, their secret." But in the weeks leading up to Kristallnacht, each is caught up in the all-consuming anti-Semitism of their country as Jews are declared "non-German." Friedrich becomes one of those throwing rocks at Jewish businesses as his parents embrace Hitler in the hope it will "keep [them] safe." Emil's family is torn between immigration to Paraguay and bewilderment; his vati fought for Germany in the Great War. Show less

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The War That Saved My Life

The War That Saved My Life

by Bradley, Kimberly Brubaker

Book - 2015

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook and Large Print. With the threat of German bombs being dropped on London, most parents are anxious to get ...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook and Large Print. With the threat of German bombs being dropped on London, most parents are anxious to get their children out of the city. But Ada’s mother, shamed by her daughter’s deformed foot, doesn’t seem to care. Ada takes it upon herself to board an evacuee train with her younger brother and, without their Mam’s knowledge, they arrive in a country village with a crowd of students. Malnourished and filthy, the siblings are placed with Miss Smith, a woman lacking any experience with children, who claims she isn’t “nice.” Nonetheless, she offers Ada and Jamie food, clothing, and security, and she owns a pony that Ada is determined to learn to ride. Show less

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook and Large Print. With the threat of German bombs being dropped on London, most parents are anxious to get ...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook and Large Print. With the threat of German bombs being dropped on London, most parents are anxious to get their children out of the city. But Ada’s mother, shamed by her daughter’s deformed foot, doesn’t seem to care. Ada takes it upon herself to board an evacuee train with her younger brother and, without their Mam’s knowledge, they arrive in a country village with a crowd of students. Malnourished and filthy, the siblings are placed with Miss Smith, a woman lacking any experience with children, who claims she isn’t “nice.” Nonetheless, she offers Ada and Jamie food, clothing, and security, and she owns a pony that Ada is determined to learn to ride. Show less

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Lifeboat 12

Lifeboat 12

by Hood, Susan

Book - 2018

It's 1940, the beginning of the Blitz, and 13-year-old Kenneth Sparks is selected to go to Canada as part of a program to send British children to the saf...Show more It's 1940, the beginning of the Blitz, and 13-year-old Kenneth Sparks is selected to go to Canada as part of a program to send British children to the safety of the U.K.'s overseas dominions. When his ship is torpedoed, Kenneth, five other boys from the program, and about 40 adults make it aboard Lifeboat 12, one of the only lifeboats remaining after the evening's gale-force winds. Together, they must survive the North Atlantic in a boat with limited supplies. Evocative verse perfectly captures the horror of their situation, the agonizing disappointment of near-rescues, and the tedium of daily life aboard a cramped lifeboat. Show less

It's 1940, the beginning of the Blitz, and 13-year-old Kenneth Sparks is selected to go to Canada as part of a program to send British children to the saf...Show more It's 1940, the beginning of the Blitz, and 13-year-old Kenneth Sparks is selected to go to Canada as part of a program to send British children to the safety of the U.K.'s overseas dominions. When his ship is torpedoed, Kenneth, five other boys from the program, and about 40 adults make it aboard Lifeboat 12, one of the only lifeboats remaining after the evening's gale-force winds. Together, they must survive the North Atlantic in a boat with limited supplies. Evocative verse perfectly captures the horror of their situation, the agonizing disappointment of near-rescues, and the tedium of daily life aboard a cramped lifeboat. Show less

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Refugee

Refugee

by Gratz, Alan

Book - 2017

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook. In the midst of political turmoil, how do you escape the only country that you've ever known and navi...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook. In the midst of political turmoil, how do you escape the only country that you've ever known and navigate a new life? Parallel stories of three different middle school-aged refugees—Josef from Nazi Germany in 1938, Isabel from 1994 Cuba, and Mahmoud from 2015 Aleppo—eventually intertwine for maximum impact. Three countries, three time periods, three brave protagonists. Yet these three refugee odysseys have so much in common. Each traverses a landscape ruled by a dictator and must balance freedom, family, and responsibility. Each initially leaves by boat, struggles between visibility and invisibility, copes with repeated obstacles and heart-wrenching loss, and gains resilience in the process. Each third-person narrative offers an accessible look at migration under duress, in which the behavior of familiar adults changes unpredictably, strangers exploit the vulnerabilities of transients, and circumstances seem driven by random luck. Mahmoud eventually concludes that visibility is best: "See us….Hear us. Help us." Show less

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook. In the midst of political turmoil, how do you escape the only country that you've ever known and navi...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook. In the midst of political turmoil, how do you escape the only country that you've ever known and navigate a new life? Parallel stories of three different middle school-aged refugees—Josef from Nazi Germany in 1938, Isabel from 1994 Cuba, and Mahmoud from 2015 Aleppo—eventually intertwine for maximum impact. Three countries, three time periods, three brave protagonists. Yet these three refugee odysseys have so much in common. Each traverses a landscape ruled by a dictator and must balance freedom, family, and responsibility. Each initially leaves by boat, struggles between visibility and invisibility, copes with repeated obstacles and heart-wrenching loss, and gains resilience in the process. Each third-person narrative offers an accessible look at migration under duress, in which the behavior of familiar adults changes unpredictably, strangers exploit the vulnerabilities of transients, and circumstances seem driven by random luck. Mahmoud eventually concludes that visibility is best: "See us….Hear us. Help us." Show less

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Allies

Allies

by Gratz, Alan

Book - 2019

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook. The action begins just before dawn on June 6, 1944, and ends near midnight that same day. Six differen...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook. The action begins just before dawn on June 6, 1944, and ends near midnight that same day. Six different operations in settings across Europe, each fictionalized with imagined characters but based on true events, exemplify the ordinary people in extraordinary situations who risked or gave their lives to destroy what Gen. Eisenhower styled "the German war machine" and "Nazi tyranny." The narrative moves from scene to scene as the day marches on—a sea invasion, French citizens and Resistance fighters on land, and soldiers arriving by air—but repeatedly returns to Dee, a German fighting on the American side and hiding his German identity from comrades like Sid, a Jewish American determined to wipe out the Germans even as he suffers insults from his peers. Show less

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook. The action begins just before dawn on June 6, 1944, and ends near midnight that same day. Six differen...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook. The action begins just before dawn on June 6, 1944, and ends near midnight that same day. Six different operations in settings across Europe, each fictionalized with imagined characters but based on true events, exemplify the ordinary people in extraordinary situations who risked or gave their lives to destroy what Gen. Eisenhower styled "the German war machine" and "Nazi tyranny." The narrative moves from scene to scene as the day marches on—a sea invasion, French citizens and Resistance fighters on land, and soldiers arriving by air—but repeatedly returns to Dee, a German fighting on the American side and hiding his German identity from comrades like Sid, a Jewish American determined to wipe out the Germans even as he suffers insults from his peers. Show less

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Under the Broken Sky

Under the Broken Sky

by Nagai, Mariko

Book - 2019

Natsu’s twelfth birthday finds her in Manchuria with her small family, Japanese farmers with an unyielding belief in their Emperor’s preeminence. When her...Show more Natsu’s twelfth birthday finds her in Manchuria with her small family, Japanese farmers with an unyielding belief in their Emperor’s preeminence. When her father is called up to WWII’s Manchurian front, Natsu is left to care for her little sister Asa—with the help of their neighboring “Auntie.” After the Soviet army invades and Japan surrenders, Natsu joins Auntie and Asa on a journey through hunger, sickness, and violence as they search for safety among the changing sociopolitical landscape of the place they once called home. (Booklist, vol 116, number 1, p109) Show less

Natsu’s twelfth birthday finds her in Manchuria with her small family, Japanese farmers with an unyielding belief in their Emperor’s preeminence. When her...Show more Natsu’s twelfth birthday finds her in Manchuria with her small family, Japanese farmers with an unyielding belief in their Emperor’s preeminence. When her father is called up to WWII’s Manchurian front, Natsu is left to care for her little sister Asa—with the help of their neighboring “Auntie.” After the Soviet army invades and Japan surrenders, Natsu joins Auntie and Asa on a journey through hunger, sickness, and violence as they search for safety among the changing sociopolitical landscape of the place they once called home. (Booklist, vol 116, number 1, p109) Show less

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Paper Wishes

Paper Wishes

by Sepahban, Lois

Book - 2016

During World War II, Manami and her parents and grandfather are forced to relocate from Bainbridge Island in Washington to Manzanar, an internment camp in...Show more During World War II, Manami and her parents and grandfather are forced to relocate from Bainbridge Island in Washington to Manzanar, an internment camp in California for Japanese-Americans. As they're about to leave behind everything they own, Manami snatches Yujiin, their beloved dog, into her coat before anyone sees. Sadly, a soldier catches Manami, and Yujiin is left behind in a crate. Heartbroken, guilt-ridden over Yujiin, and fearful of their Manzanar "prison-village," Manami loses her voice. The relentless, swirling red dirt that coats her throat with mud worsens her silence. Her parents try to make a home in their one-room barrack, while their son, Ron, leaves college to join them. A breath of fresh air is felt when Manami meets her teacher, Miss Rosalie, who doesn't make her speak but offers Manami plenty of paper and pencils. When Manami sends hand-drawn messages via the wind to Yujiin, she hopes that the little dog will get them and find his way back home. Show less

During World War II, Manami and her parents and grandfather are forced to relocate from Bainbridge Island in Washington to Manzanar, an internment camp in...Show more During World War II, Manami and her parents and grandfather are forced to relocate from Bainbridge Island in Washington to Manzanar, an internment camp in California for Japanese-Americans. As they're about to leave behind everything they own, Manami snatches Yujiin, their beloved dog, into her coat before anyone sees. Sadly, a soldier catches Manami, and Yujiin is left behind in a crate. Heartbroken, guilt-ridden over Yujiin, and fearful of their Manzanar "prison-village," Manami loses her voice. The relentless, swirling red dirt that coats her throat with mud worsens her silence. Her parents try to make a home in their one-room barrack, while their son, Ron, leaves college to join them. A breath of fresh air is felt when Manami meets her teacher, Miss Rosalie, who doesn't make her speak but offers Manami plenty of paper and pencils. When Manami sends hand-drawn messages via the wind to Yujiin, she hopes that the little dog will get them and find his way back home. Show less

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Brother's Keeper

Brother's Keeper

by Lee, Julie

Book - 2020

A harrowing, heartbreaking tale of hope, love, and survival against insurmountable odds. Twelve-year-old Sora and her family live under the oppressive Nor...Show more A harrowing, heartbreaking tale of hope, love, and survival against insurmountable odds. Twelve-year-old Sora and her family live under the oppressive North Korean communist regime of 1950. As the South Korean army begins to lose ground to the Red Army, hope of liberation dwindles. Sora's stubborn, overbearing mother believes the family should keep their heads down and obey the law. But her father knows that their family's nonconformist political and religious beliefs mean they will never be safe, and convinces the family to flee south to Busan where his brother lives. Whip-smart Sora hopes that Busan will provide freedom from her mother's restrictive expectations of her as a woman and enable her to return to school. The family embarks upon the long journey by foot, but are separated in a sudden aerial bombardment. Sora and her eight-year-old brother Youngsoo must now attempt to complete the journey alone in hopes of reuniting with their family. They face threats at every turn—the elements, other people, lack of resources, and illness—but their strength carries them even as Youngsoo becomes ill. With an artful and expressive narrative voice, and inspiration drawn from her mother's experiences in Korea as a young woman, debut novelist Lee enthralls and enlightens. (School Library Journal, vol 66, issue 6, p62) Show less

A harrowing, heartbreaking tale of hope, love, and survival against insurmountable odds. Twelve-year-old Sora and her family live under the oppressive Nor...Show more A harrowing, heartbreaking tale of hope, love, and survival against insurmountable odds. Twelve-year-old Sora and her family live under the oppressive North Korean communist regime of 1950. As the South Korean army begins to lose ground to the Red Army, hope of liberation dwindles. Sora's stubborn, overbearing mother believes the family should keep their heads down and obey the law. But her father knows that their family's nonconformist political and religious beliefs mean they will never be safe, and convinces the family to flee south to Busan where his brother lives. Whip-smart Sora hopes that Busan will provide freedom from her mother's restrictive expectations of her as a woman and enable her to return to school. The family embarks upon the long journey by foot, but are separated in a sudden aerial bombardment. Sora and her eight-year-old brother Youngsoo must now attempt to complete the journey alone in hopes of reuniting with their family. They face threats at every turn—the elements, other people, lack of resources, and illness—but their strength carries them even as Youngsoo becomes ill. With an artful and expressive narrative voice, and inspiration drawn from her mother's experiences in Korea as a young woman, debut novelist Lee enthralls and enlightens. (School Library Journal, vol 66, issue 6, p62) Show less

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Stella by Starlight

Stella by Starlight

by Draper, Sharon M.

Book - 2015

Also available on eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook CD. When a young girl gains confidence from her failures and strength from what her community dreads mo...Show more Also available on eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook CD. When a young girl gains confidence from her failures and strength from what her community dreads most, life delivers magic and hope. Stella Mills and her brother Jojo witness the Ku Klux Klan burning a cross late one starry night, setting off a chain reaction that leaves their entire community changed. During the Depression, North Carolina was less than hospitable for African-Americans forced to work more to earn less while being deprived of basic human rights. Through the perspective of Stella, young readers glimpse the nearly suffocating anguish that envelops this black community, illuminating the feelings associated with suppression. In a telling passage, Stella's mother attempts to comfort her: " 'It's gonna be all right,' her mother whispered as she smoothed down Stella's hair. But Stella felt the tension in her mother's arms, and she knew that in reality, fear hugged them both." Show less

Also available on eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook CD. When a young girl gains confidence from her failures and strength from what her community dreads mo...Show more Also available on eBook, eAudiobook and Audiobook CD. When a young girl gains confidence from her failures and strength from what her community dreads most, life delivers magic and hope. Stella Mills and her brother Jojo witness the Ku Klux Klan burning a cross late one starry night, setting off a chain reaction that leaves their entire community changed. During the Depression, North Carolina was less than hospitable for African-Americans forced to work more to earn less while being deprived of basic human rights. Through the perspective of Stella, young readers glimpse the nearly suffocating anguish that envelops this black community, illuminating the feelings associated with suppression. In a telling passage, Stella's mother attempts to comfort her: " 'It's gonna be all right,' her mother whispered as she smoothed down Stella's hair. But Stella felt the tension in her mother's arms, and she knew that in reality, fear hugged them both." Show less

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Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

by Taylor, Mildred D

Book - 1976

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook CD and Large Print. A Black family living in the South during the 1930s is faced with prejudice and discrimination which their children don't understand. Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook CD and Large Print. A Black family living in the South during the 1930s is faced with prejudice and discrimination which their children don't understand. Show less

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook CD and Large Print. A Black family living in the South during the 1930s is faced with prejudice and discrimination which their children don't understand. Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook CD and Large Print. A Black family living in the South during the 1930s is faced with prejudice and discrimination which their children don't understand. Show less

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The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963

The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963

by Curtis, Christopher Paul

Book - 1995

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook CD and Large Print. The ordinary interactions and everyday routines of the Watsons, an African American fam...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook CD and Large Print. The ordinary interactions and everyday routines of the Watsons, an African American family living in Flint, Michigan, are drastically changed after they go to visit Grandma in Alabama in the summer of 1963. Show less

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook CD and Large Print. The ordinary interactions and everyday routines of the Watsons, an African American fam...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook, Audiobook CD and Large Print. The ordinary interactions and everyday routines of the Watsons, an African American family living in Flint, Michigan, are drastically changed after they go to visit Grandma in Alabama in the summer of 1963. Show less

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One Crazy Summer

One Crazy Summer

by Williams-Garcia, Rita

Book - 2010

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Large Print. It is 1968, and three black sisters from Brooklyn have been put on a California-bound plane by their...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Large Print. It is 1968, and three black sisters from Brooklyn have been put on a California-bound plane by their father to spend a month with their mother, a poet who ran off years before and is living in Oakland. It's the summer after Black Panther founder Huey Newton was jailed and member Bobby Hutton was gunned down trying to surrender to the Oakland police, and there are men in berets shouting "Black Power" on the news. Delphine, 11, remembers her mother, but after years of separation she's more apt to believe what her grandmother has said about her, that Cecile is a selfish, crazy woman who sleeps on the street. At least Cecile lives in a real house, but she reacts to her daughters' arrival without warmth or even curiosity. Instead, she sends the girls to eat breakfast at a center run by the Black Panther Party and tells them to stay out as long as they can so that she can work on her poetry. Over the course of the next four weeks, Delphine and her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, spend a lot of time learning about revolution and staying out of their mother's way. Show less

Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Large Print. It is 1968, and three black sisters from Brooklyn have been put on a California-bound plane by their...Show more Also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Large Print. It is 1968, and three black sisters from Brooklyn have been put on a California-bound plane by their father to spend a month with their mother, a poet who ran off years before and is living in Oakland. It's the summer after Black Panther founder Huey Newton was jailed and member Bobby Hutton was gunned down trying to surrender to the Oakland police, and there are men in berets shouting "Black Power" on the news. Delphine, 11, remembers her mother, but after years of separation she's more apt to believe what her grandmother has said about her, that Cecile is a selfish, crazy woman who sleeps on the street. At least Cecile lives in a real house, but she reacts to her daughters' arrival without warmth or even curiosity. Instead, she sends the girls to eat breakfast at a center run by the Black Panther Party and tells them to stay out as long as they can so that she can work on her poetry. Over the course of the next four weeks, Delphine and her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, spend a lot of time learning about revolution and staying out of their mother's way. Show less

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The Long Ride

The Long Ride

by Budhos, Marina Tamar

Book - 2019

A quiet but stirring historical novel about the awkward, thrilling, and often painful moments that make middle school a pivotal time.It's 1971, and best f...Show more A quiet but stirring historical novel about the awkward, thrilling, and often painful moments that make middle school a pivotal time.It's 1971, and best friends Jamila, Josie, and Francesca are excited to start seventh grade. But when their school district decides to bus the students in their northern Queens neighborhood to a middle school in predominantly black southern Queens in an attempt to desegregate New York City schools, their trio threatens to fall apart. Though their multicultural identities in a predominantly white neighborhood have united them in the past—Jamila is white and Bajan, Josie is Latinx and Jamaican, Francesca is black and white—their families' and community's divisions over the new policy chip away at their camaraderie. (Kirkus Reviews, June 15, 2019) Show less

A quiet but stirring historical novel about the awkward, thrilling, and often painful moments that make middle school a pivotal time.It's 1971, and best f...Show more A quiet but stirring historical novel about the awkward, thrilling, and often painful moments that make middle school a pivotal time.It's 1971, and best friends Jamila, Josie, and Francesca are excited to start seventh grade. But when their school district decides to bus the students in their northern Queens neighborhood to a middle school in predominantly black southern Queens in an attempt to desegregate New York City schools, their trio threatens to fall apart. Though their multicultural identities in a predominantly white neighborhood have united them in the past—Jamila is white and Bajan, Josie is Latinx and Jamaican, Francesca is black and white—their families' and community's divisions over the new policy chip away at their camaraderie. (Kirkus Reviews, June 15, 2019) Show less

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House Without Walls

House Without Walls

May 10, 1979 to June 7, 1980

by Russell, Ching Yeung

Book - 2019

Set soon after the 1975 Fall of Saigon, Russell’s novel reveals how life in Communist Vietnam becomes especially difficult for ethnic Chinese residents. E...Show more Set soon after the 1975 Fall of Saigon, Russell’s novel reveals how life in Communist Vietnam becomes especially difficult for ethnic Chinese residents. Eleven-year-old Lam and her brothers, Daigo and Dee Dee, flee, hoping to join their baba in San Francisco. Tragically, Daigo is arrested by police before boarding the boat, and the sea journey is fraught with difficulties for Lam and the younger Dee Dee: lack of food and water, pirate raids, a leaky ship, and ""rescuers"" who tow their boat into international waters to avoid providing sanctuary. Eventually Lam and Dee Dee arrive in a refugee camp, where they use sticks and a plastic drop cloth to construct a house without walls. Russell's fictionalized verse novel is based on the experiences of two of her friends, whose own journey paralleled that of Lam and Dee Dee. (Booklist, vol 115, number 19, p96) Show less

Set soon after the 1975 Fall of Saigon, Russell’s novel reveals how life in Communist Vietnam becomes especially difficult for ethnic Chinese residents. E...Show more Set soon after the 1975 Fall of Saigon, Russell’s novel reveals how life in Communist Vietnam becomes especially difficult for ethnic Chinese residents. Eleven-year-old Lam and her brothers, Daigo and Dee Dee, flee, hoping to join their baba in San Francisco. Tragically, Daigo is arrested by police before boarding the boat, and the sea journey is fraught with difficulties for Lam and the younger Dee Dee: lack of food and water, pirate raids, a leaky ship, and ""rescuers"" who tow their boat into international waters to avoid providing sanctuary. Eventually Lam and Dee Dee arrive in a refugee camp, where they use sticks and a plastic drop cloth to construct a house without walls. Russell's fictionalized verse novel is based on the experiences of two of her friends, whose own journey paralleled that of Lam and Dee Dee. (Booklist, vol 115, number 19, p96) Show less

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The Blackbird Girls

The Blackbird Girls

by Blankman, Anne

Book - 2020

Available in eBook. The citizens of the town of Pripyat, Ukraine, have always been assured that "an accident at a nuclear power station was a statis...Show more Available in eBook. The citizens of the town of Pripyat, Ukraine, have always been assured that "an accident at a nuclear power station was a statistical impossibility."So when the morning of April 26, 1986, dawns red, with "unearthly blue" smoke billowing into the air, life proceeds as normal. Fifth grade classmates and rivals Valentina Kaplan and Oksana Savchenko, however, are worried. Their fathers, night-shift plant workers at the Chernobyl power station, have not yet come home. Soon word gets out that reactor No. 4 has exploded, killing several workers and sending the rest en masse to the hospital, poisoned by the very air they breathe. Forced together by the sudden evacuation, the girls must overcome both their hatred of each other and the grief heaped upon them by the accident as they forge a new life in Leningrad with Valentina's estranged grandmother, who harbors a dangerous secret. Show less

Available in eBook. The citizens of the town of Pripyat, Ukraine, have always been assured that "an accident at a nuclear power station was a statis...Show more Available in eBook. The citizens of the town of Pripyat, Ukraine, have always been assured that "an accident at a nuclear power station was a statistical impossibility."So when the morning of April 26, 1986, dawns red, with "unearthly blue" smoke billowing into the air, life proceeds as normal. Fifth grade classmates and rivals Valentina Kaplan and Oksana Savchenko, however, are worried. Their fathers, night-shift plant workers at the Chernobyl power station, have not yet come home. Soon word gets out that reactor No. 4 has exploded, killing several workers and sending the rest en masse to the hospital, poisoned by the very air they breathe. Forced together by the sudden evacuation, the girls must overcome both their hatred of each other and the grief heaped upon them by the accident as they forge a new life in Leningrad with Valentina's estranged grandmother, who harbors a dangerous secret. Show less

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Shooting Kabul

Shooting Kabul

by Senzai, N. H

Book - 2010

In July 2001, as 11-year-old Fadi and his family hastily board a truck to begin their escape from Afghanistan, six-year-old Mariam lets go of her brother'...Show more In July 2001, as 11-year-old Fadi and his family hastily board a truck to begin their escape from Afghanistan, six-year-old Mariam lets go of her brother's hand and is tragically left behind. Their arrival in San Francisco is bittersweet as they are all too concerned about Mariam to appreciate their newfound safety and freedom. Fadi struggles with integrating himself into American middle school culture, eventually finding solace in the photography club. Still, he is most concerned with the part he played in losing Mariam and getting her back. A photography contest with the prize of a trip to India seems to be his best means of finding a way back to Afghanistan to help in the search for his sister. Show less

In July 2001, as 11-year-old Fadi and his family hastily board a truck to begin their escape from Afghanistan, six-year-old Mariam lets go of her brother'...Show more In July 2001, as 11-year-old Fadi and his family hastily board a truck to begin their escape from Afghanistan, six-year-old Mariam lets go of her brother's hand and is tragically left behind. Their arrival in San Francisco is bittersweet as they are all too concerned about Mariam to appreciate their newfound safety and freedom. Fadi struggles with integrating himself into American middle school culture, eventually finding solace in the photography club. Still, he is most concerned with the part he played in losing Mariam and getting her back. A photography contest with the prize of a trip to India seems to be his best means of finding a way back to Afghanistan to help in the search for his sister. Show less

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