 Chains
by Laurie Halse Anderson
Ages 10–up
As the Revolutionary War begins, 13-year-old
Isabel and her 5-year-old sister Ruth are about to be freed
from slavery by the will of their Rhode Island mistress. However,
the unscrupulous heir prevents the reading of the will and
the girls are soon the property of an abusive Loyalist couple
in New York. Isabel agrees to spy for the Patriots in exchange
for passage back to Rhode Island for herself and her sister.
This well researched exploration of the treatment of slaves
is contained in a gripping story. |
|
 Forge
by Laurie Halse Anderson
Ages 10–up
This sequel to Chains is
narrated by Curzon, the young slave Isabel freed from prison
while escaping from New York City in 1777. After staying for
a few months in New Jersey, Isabel runs away to find her sister,
a quest Curzon feels is futile. Curzon joins the army, passing
as a freed slave, and suffers through the harsh winter at Valley
Forge. His fragile acceptance is threatened when his owner
arrives. Readers will be anxious to read the final book in
the trilogy to learn the fate of Curzon and Isabel. |
|
 The
Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation,
Volume 1: The Pox Party
by M.T. Anderson
Ages 14–up
Octavian, a black youth in Revolution-era
America, is raised in a Boston household of radical philosophers.
He is given a classical education and kept with his mother,
an African princess, in comfort. As he matures, Octavian
realizes he is an experiment to discover the intellectual
capability of Africans. When his mother dies, Octavian
runs away and joins the Patriot army. Though written
in 18th century language in the form of letters, this
powerful novel raises contemporary issues of racism,
human rights, the causes of war, and the struggle of
an individual to define himself. |
|
 The
Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation,
Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves
by M.T. Anderson
Ages 14–up
Octavian heads to Virginia where
Lord Dunmore, the colony’s governor, is emancipating
slaves in exchange for military service. Octavian soon
realizes that his liberation is not a moral decision,
but a political expediency. As the Revolutionary War,
explodes around him, Octavian struggles with ideals of
liberty and his own personal growth in this fascinating
perspective on our national origins. (sequel to The
Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the
Nation, Volume 1: The Pox Party) |
|
 They
Called Themselves the K.K.K.: The Birth of an American Terrorist
Group
by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Ages 12–up
This accessible book presents
the origins and development of the Ku Klux Klan through
slave narratives, newspapers, congressional testimony,
and other sources, against the background of the complex
Reconstruction era of 1865–1877. Photographs, engravings,
and illustrations provide a graphic context for KKK
terrorism and the societal forces that provide a growth
medium for hate and terrorist groups. |
|
 LIE
by Caroline Bock
Ages 12–up
Skylar Thompson (17) feels she has
to lie to protect her boyfriend Jimmy Seeger. Jimmy was the
only person who made Skylar feel safe and protected when her
mother died, and now Jimmy needs Skylar’s help. Jimmy has been
leading a gang that goes out on Saturday nights looking for
Latinos to terrorize. Now Jimmy and his best friend Sean have
been arrested for a vicious beating of a young El Salvadoran,
who dies of his injuries. Another victim of the attack demands
justice, and Skylar can’t decide if she should keep covering
up for Jimmy or not. This powerful novel honestly deals with
the theme of a racially motivated hate crime within a community
determined to cover it up. |
|
 A
Time of Miracles
by Anne-Laure Bondoux
Ages 12–up
Gloria was picking peaches
in her father’s orchard in the Republic of Georgia
when she heard a train derail. An badly injured French
woman gave Gloria her baby to care for. As Gloria and
the child flee the Republic of Georgia to escape the
fighting during the collapse of the Soviet Union, she
tells the boy, now 7 years old and known as Koumaïl,
the story of his past. The two make a perilous five-year
journey to France, retelling the boy’s story and embellishing
it to give him hope for the future. |
|
 Ashley
Bryan: Words to My Life’s Song
by Ashley Bryan
All Ages
This powerful autobiography
tells a story of a creative life. Illustrations and
memories show a boy finding art materials during the
Depression, storing art supplies in his gas mask during
WWII, losing an art scholarship because of his race,
and an award-winning art career. A book for parents
and children to enjoy together, this book will inspire
artists of all ages. |
|
 Smoky
Night
text by Eve Bunting, illustrations
by David Diaz
Caldecott Medal 1995
Ages 5–10
Daniel’s cat doesn’t get along with Mrs.
Kim’s cat and Daniel’s mother doesn’t shop at Mrs. Kim’s store,
preferring to patronize African-American stores. But when Daniel’s
apartment building goes up in flames, all the neighbors, including
the cats, learn the importance of working together and accepting
differences. Inspired by the Los Angeles riots, this book delivers
a message about racism with a light touch supported by dazzling
mixed-media collage illustrations. |
|
 All
The Broken Pieces
by Ann E. Burg
Ages 11–up
Two years ago Matt Pin was airlifted
from war-torn Vietnam. Now 12, and living with his loving
adoptive American family, Matt is still haunted by memories
of the family he left behind. Told in first person free
verse, Matt’s present and past are slowly revealed as
he begins to come to terms with the guilt of being the
only survivor. |
|
 A
Thousand Never Evers
by Shana Burg
Ages 9–12
Set in rural Mississippi during the
civil rights movement, this emotionally compelling novel shows
the racism and violence endured by the African-American community
through Addie Ann Pickett, a junior high school girl. Caught
between her mother’s rule to stay away from trouble and her
brother and minister who argue that there comes a time when
dignity is worth more than life, Addie has to make some difficult
decisions. |
|
 Words
Set Me Free: The Story of Young Frederick Douglass
by Lesa Cline-Ransome, James E.
Ransome
Ages 5–9
Powerful first person narration
tells the story of Frederick Douglass’s early life
as a plantation slave. Learning to read was the
catalyst for Frederick’s determination to escape
from slavery. “I bought my first newspaper
and learned new words—liberty, justice, and
freedom.” Eventually Frederick uses his writing
skills to forge a letter from his master releasing
him. Though not avoiding the cruel realities of
slavery, this accessible biography celebrates determination
and hope. |
|
 Bog
Child
by Siobhan Dowd
Ages 12–up
When Fergus McCann is digging
for peat for his uncle to sell in 1981, he finds the
body of a small boy. Archaeologists suspect the body
is ancient and arrive in droves to study the find. Trying
to earn entrance to medical school 18-year-old Fergus
is haunted by his find and confused by the hunger strike
his imprisoned IRA brother has joined. This compelling
book raises questions about moral choices and highlights
the impact of political conflict on innocent bystanders. |
|
 Underground
by Shane W. Evans
Ages 4–8
Minimal text and haunting illustrations
tell the story of a slave family creeping away from a plantation
on a dark night lit only by the moon. Moving along the underground
railroad, the family travels throughout the night until the
dawn breaks, illuminating their passage into freedom. |
|
 March
On! The Day My Brother Martin Changed The World
by Christine King Farris, London
Ladd
Ages 9–12
Christine
King Farris, Martin Luther King, Junior’s older
sister describes the 1963 March on Washington with an
intimate down-to-earth perspective, presenting her brother
as a man rather than as an icon. |
|
 The
War to End All Wars: World War I
by Russell Freedman
Ages 12–up
This powerful book begins with
the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914
and ends with the Treaty of Versailles in 1918. The
accessible narrative shows the brutality and horror
of trench warfare along with the leaders and the new
technology that made it all possible. The ramifications
of the war—the end to American isolation, the Russian
revolution, and the defeat that provided a foundation
for Fascism and Nazism—are clearly demonstrated. |
|
 Once
by Morris Gleitzman
Ages 12–up
Everybody deserves to have something
good in their life at least once, believes Felix, a 10-year
old Polish Jew, who runs away from a Catholic orphanage to
search for his parents. After finding his home occupied by
hostile neighbors, Felix lives in hiding, in constant fear
of discovery, as he slowly becomes aware of the Nazi atrocities.
Felix’s traumatized present-tense narrative drives this powerful
novel which manages to find welcome bits of humor and heroic
kindness in the midst of horror and tragedy. |
|
 Then
by Morris Gleitzman
Ages 12–up
Felix (10) and Zelda (6) have escaped
from the train carrying Jews to the death camp, but as two
children alone in Nazi-occupied Poland they are surrounded
by danger. Felix uses his masterful storytelling skills to
create new denies for himself and Zelda, allowing them to live
safely in public for a time. Seeking to protect each other,
the two children secretly put a locket containing a picture
of Zelda’s Nazi parents among the other’s possession. They
form a family with a woman named Genia and begin to heal, but
with no certainty that their temporary safety will last. (sequel
to Once) |
|
 The
Midnight Zoo
by Sonya Hartnett, Andrea Offermann
Ages 10–up
When German soldiers attack
their Romany encampment and arrest their relatives,
Andrej (12) and Tomas (9) flee to hide in the woods
with their baby sister. They discover a bombed out
town with an intact zoo filled with creatures in need
of hope. Like the children, the animals have stories
to tell and a burning desire to reclaim their lives.
This somber fable explores themes of responsibility
and freedom. |
|
 Most
Loved in All the World
by Tonya Hegamin, Cozbi A. Cabrera
Ages 4–8
When our heroine is sent north
on the Underground Railroad, her mother stays behind
to help others make the journey. She sends a beautiful
quilt with her daughter to help her find her way, and
to remind her that she is the most loved in all the world.
This beautiful book uses a child’s voice to talk about
difficult concepts of slavery, courage, and sacrifice.
(12/08) |
|
 John
Brown: His Fight for Freedom
by John Hendrix
Ages 8–12
In the late 1850s, John Brown,
the infamous white abolitionist, backed his beliefs
with action. This unflinching biography presents Brown’s
transformation from a supporter of the underground
railroad into an activist prepared to use violence
to support his beliefs. The violent raid in Harper’s
Ferry, Virginia, that led to Brown’s arrest and execution
provides an exciting climax to this compelling biography. |
|
 Claudette
Colvin: Twice Toward Justice
by Phillip Hoose
Ages 10–up
In March 1955, nine months
before Rosa Parks refused to surrender her seat to
a white passenger, 15-year old Claudette Colvin was
dragged from a bus and arrested for the same reason.
This book introduces readers to the courageous teenager
who was overshadowed by Rosa Parks as the center of
the bus boycott. Young readers are encouraged to empathize
with young Claudette, at first dismissed as too “emotional” to
withstand public scrutiny, but later a key witness
in the federal lawsuit that would end discrimination
on public transportation. (2010 Newbery Honor Book) |
|
 To
the Mountaintop: My Journey Through the Civil Rights Movement
by Charlayne Hunter-Gault
Ages 12–up
This accessible historical
memoir tells the story of the author’s harassment and
threats when she entered the University of Georgia
in 1959. Other chapters tell of other struggles for
equal rights: lunch counter sit-ins, Freedom Riders,
voter registration drives. The personal look at political
struggle is both educational and inspiring. |
|
 Freedom
Stone
by Jeffrey Kluger
Ages 9–12
When the Confederate Army promised
freedom to the family of any slave who served in the
army, whether he made it home or not, Lillie’s father
decided he had to take the chance. But when Lillie’s
father is killed in the war, the army claimed he was
a thief and the plantation master refused to free the
family. In fact, he decided to sell Lillie’s little
brother Plato. With the help of another slave, Lillie
travels to the battlefield to prove her father’s innocence
and win freedom for her family. |
|
 Play
Ball, Jackie!
by Stephen Krensky, Joe Morse
Ages 7–10
It’s 1947, and 10-year-old
Matty Romano is going to his first baseball game with
his father to see the Brooklyn Dodgers, his favorite
team. It’s also the first day for Jackie Robinson,
the first Black baseball player in the major leagues.
The crowd is divided between those who are outraged
and those who just want to see good baseball players,
no matter what their color. Matty’s conversations with
his father provide an intimate look at this historic
baseball game. |
| |
|
 Inside
Out and Back Again
by Thanhha Lai
Ages 9–12
After her father has been missing
in action for nine years in the Vietnam War, 10-year-old
Hà, her mother, and her three older brothers flee to
Guam, eventually ending up in Alabama. Though finally
safe, Hà finds it difficult to master the new language
and customs, and is cruelly mocked by her classmates.
Befriended by a teacher who lost a son in Vietnam, Hà
gradually adjusts to her new life. Narrated in first
person free-verse poems, this poignant novel captures
the sense of alienation felt by many immigrants. |
|
 In
Darkness
by Nick Lake
Ages 14–up
Shorty (15) is trapped in the
rubble left by a collapsed hospital during the 2010
earthquake in Haiti. As he waits, hoping to be rescued,
Shorty relives his life’s journey running drugs until
ending up in the hospital with a bullet wound. As he
waits in darkness, Shorty is joined by Toussaint L’Ouverture,
a slave and revolutionary leader 200 years earlier.
The parallels between the two stories highlight the
violence and brutality of Haiti’s history. This disturbing
and challenging book faces hard truths head-on. |
|
 The
Year of Goodbyes: A True Story of Friendship, Family and
Farewells
by Debbie Levy
Ages 10–up
This book tells the true story
of a year in the life of Jutta, a 12-year-old girl
in 1938 Nazi Germany, and the author’s mother. Photos
and translations of comments from friends written in
Jutta’s diary introduce each chapter, giving a vivid
picture of an ordinary teenager in an extraordinary
time and place. This very personal and powerful book
in verse documents a year of change, confusion, cruelty,
and farewells. |
|
 Snow
Falling in Spring: Coming of Age
in China During the Cultural Revolution
by Moying Li
Ages 12–up
In this memoir, Moying, a 12-year
old student in Beijing, finds her house ransacked and her
father taken to a labor camp. With faith in knowledge and
education, Moying survives the climate of fear that accompanies
the rise of the Red Guard. |
|
 Crow Call
by Lois Lowry
Ages 6–12
Lizzie’s father has been away in WWII
for longer than she can remember, so the fall hunting trip
the two take together after his return is awkward. But her
father respects her wishes, even when they are fanciful, and
gives her the crow call to summon the birds. To Lizzie’s relief,
her father never fires his gun on the magical day. Based on
Lowry’s own childhood, this picture book is a loving look at
the relationship between parent and child. Though set in the
past, it is fully relevant to today’s military families. |
|
 Number
the Stars
by Lois Lowry
Newbery Medal 1990
Ages 10–up
It’s 1943 in Nazi-occupied Denmark, and
the Jews are about to be rounded up and sent to the death camps.
Annemarie Johannesen’s best friend Ellen Rosen is Jewish. The
Johannesen family helps Ellen’s parents go into hiding and take
Ellen into their own home, pretending she is part of their family.
Narrated by 10-year-old Annemarie, this book vividly portrays
the Nazi threat and the courage it takes to help friends while
possibly endangering your own family. This moving and suspenseful
book is based on true events. |
|
 Flesh
and Blood So Cheap: The Triangle Fire and its Legacy
by Albert Marrin
Ages 10–up
On March 25, 1911, the Triangle
Shirtwaist Factory in New York City burst into flames.
The factory was crowded with workers, mainly young
Italian and Jewish women. The doors were locked to
prevent the workers from leaving before the end of
the work day, and 146 people died in the fire. One
hundred years later, this powerful book examines the
poor working conditions the immigrant factory workers
endured, the greed that motivated the bosses and owners,
and the courage of the workers who banded together
to change working conditions for everyone in America. |
|
 Purple
Heart
by Patricia McCormick
Ages 12–up
Matt Duffy, an 18-year old private
with memory problems following a traumatic brain injury
in Iraq, receives the Purple Heart. Haunted by the image
of a young Iraqi boy being killed, Matt slowly remembers
the contradictory events that led to the honor. This
gripping book raises moral issues without judgment, encouraging
readers to think deeply about loyalty, war, and the nature
of heroism. |
|
 Never
Forgotten
by Patricia C. McKissack, Leo
Dillon, Diane Dillon
All Ages
This powerful book tells the
story of Mustafa, a small boy from Mali who is abducted
and sold into slavery. The free verse narration follows
Mustafa across the ocean to South Carolina, where he
becomes a gifted blacksmith like his father. Dramatic
paintings by Leo and Diane Dillon intensify the grief
and longing for freedom, reminding children of the importance
of family and remembering the past. |
|
 What
the World Eats
by Peter Menzel, Faith D’Aluisio
All Ages
Twenty-five families in 21 countries
around the world are photographed surrounded by a week’s
worth of food. The multi-generational portraits provide
an avenue for exploring each family’s hopes and struggles
while gently raising issues about global food supplies.
Family recipes, maps, and county information reveal provocative
statistics. (adapted from Hungry
Planet) |
|
 Under
a Red Sky
Memoir
of a Childhood in Communist Romania
by Haya Leah Molnar
Ages 12–up
Eva Zimmerman grew up as an adored
only child in an apartment shared by her parents, grandparents,
and aunts and uncles in Bucharest, Romania. Sheltered by
her protective family from the harsh realities of scarce
food and housing under communist rule with the secret police
watching every move, religion and politics were never discussed
at home. In 1958, Eva is shocked to discover that she is
Jewish, and that her whole family has applied to emigrate
to Israel. Black and white family photographs illustrate
this poignant memoir of a girl struggling to understand
her own identity. |
|
 Trash
by Andy Mulligan
Ages 12–up
Raphael is a 14-year-old trash-picker
in an unnamed 3rd world Latin American country. One day he
finds a leather bag containing a wallet, a map, and a key.
Raphael and his two friends are soon involved in exposing political
corruption and abuse of the poor as they puzzle out a secret
code and follow clues to a hidden cache of money. Realistic
details of the lives of desperate children living in the dump
provide a sobering background to this gripping adventure tale. |
|
 Sunrise
Over Fallujah
by Walter Dean Myers
Ages 12–up
Robin Perry, nephew to Myer’s
Vietnam soldier from Fallen
Angel, writes to his uncle from Iraq in this powerful
novel that may help American teens grapple intelligently
and thoughtfully with the war in Iraq. |
|
 Sweethearts
of Rhythm
The Story of the Greatest
All-Girl Swing Band in the World
by Marilyn Nelson, Jerry Pinkney
Ages 10–up
Nelson’s poems and Pinkney’s
luminous paintings perfectly complement each other in
this tribute to an integrated female swing band that
toured the USA from the late 1930s to mid 1940s. Titled
after swing tunes, the 20 poems underscore the role of
music in bring joy and hope to an era haunted by war
and racism. |
|
 Miles
to Go for Freedom: Segregation and Civil Rights in the Jim
Crow Years
by Linda Barrett Osborne
Ages 10–14
Continuing the story begun
in Traveling
the Freedom Road, this thought-provoking book examines
racial segregation and early civil rights efforts in
the United States from the 1890s to 1954—the
Jim Crow years. First-person accounts, photographs,
and other primary sources capture the period’s violence,
dehumanization, and individual and collective defiance. |
|
 Marching
For Freedom:
Walk
Together Children and Don’t You Grow Weary
by Elizabeth Partridge
Ages 9–12
Told in the voices of men and women
who participated as children and teens, this powerful book
tells the disturbing yet hopeful story of the march from
Selma to Montgomery in 1965. The dramatic personal stories
are illustrated by striking and unforgettable photographs. |
|
 Keeping
Score
by Linda Sue Park
Ages 9–12
Jim teaches Maggie the art of
scoring a baseball game, and she believes her extra involvement
in the game helps support her beloved Dodgers. When Jim
is drafted and sent to Korea, she searches for a way
to support him, too. |
|
 A
Long Walk to Water
by Linda Sue Park
Ages 10–up
Based on a true story, this
moving novel tells the story one of the “lost
boys” from Sudan. In 1956, when Salva is 11,
his school is attacked by brutal rebel solders. Covering
the next 23 years of his life, Salva's narration tells
of hunger, death, refugee camps, and his eventual relocation
to New York. Interspersed with Salva’s narrative is
that of Nya, who tells of her life in modern (2008)
Sudan, which revolves around her daily eight hour walk
to fetch water for her family. The two stories meet
when Salva returns to Sudan to help his people and
builds a well in Nya’s village. This honest book presents
harsh realities in terrifying detail, yet ends on a
note of hope for a better future. |
|
 Bamboo
People
by Mitali Perkins
Ages 11–14
Chiko (15) is pressed into
military service by the Burmese government. A scholar
rather than a soldier by nature, Chiko finds himself
involved in the ongoing war against the Karenni people,
one of the many ethnic minorities in modern Myanmar
(formerly Burma). Chiko is wounded and found by Tu
Reh, an angry Karenni teen. Told from both perspectives,
this novel shows both teens struggling with the prejudices
of culture and class. Themes of family, friendship,
and the circumstances of war are explored in this accessible
story. |
|
 Burn
by Suzanne Phillips
Ages 12–up
This thought-provoking book tells the
story of Cameron Grady, a badly bullied freshman who escapes
by playing with fire. When fatal results occur, the reader
is challenged to examine some hard questions about who is a
victim and who is a criminal, and how far a victim is allowed
to go in the struggle to stand up for himself. |
|
 Sojourner
Truth’s Step-Stomp Stride
by Andrea Davis Pinkney, Brian Pinkney
Ages 5–9
Belle was born into slavery, and
when her master fails to honor his promise to free her,
Belle runs away. But she knows that she will never be truly
free when others live in slavery, so Belle changes her
name to Sojourner and begins to travel across the country,
demanding equal rights for black people and for women.
Pinkney’s glowing illustrations capture the charisma and
courage of this larger-than-life heroine. |
|
 January’s
Sparrow
by Patricia Polacco
Ages 8–12
The Crosswhite family witness
the brutal whipping of January, a slave caught while
trying to escape, and flee the Kentucky plantation
in the middle of the night. Young Sadie is heartbroken
when she realizes she has left the wooden sparrow January
carved for her, her only memento of her dead friend.
The Crosswhites travel through the Underground Railroad
to Marshall, Michigan, where they finally live in freedom.
Then January’s sparrow appears on their doorstep. Based
on a true story, this book is both horrifying and empowering. |
|
 The
Things a Brother Knows
by Dana Reinhardt
Ages 14–up
Levi Katznelson’s older brother
Boaz joined the marines and spent three long years
overseas. Levi didn’t understand how Boaz could give
up his life as the high school football star, and has
waited impatiently for Boaz to return home to Boston.
But as soon as Boaz walks through the door, Levi knows
that his brother has changed, and he fears that life
will never return to normal. When Boaz leaves to hike
the Appalachian Trail, Levi follows, determined to
save his brother and bring him back home. Together
they walk to Washington, DC, visiting ex-Marines and
families of soldiers along the way, as Levi slowly
comes to understand the trauma of his brother’s wartime
experiences. |
|
 Back
of the Bus
by Aaron Reynolds, Floyd Cooper
Ages 6–8
One winter day in Montgomery
Alabama, a young boy and his mother are riding where
they are supposed to—in the back of the bus.
The boy passes the time rolling his marble in the aisle,
and Rosa Parks, sitting up in the front of the bus
where she isn’t supposed to, rolls it back to him.
See through the eyes of a child, who begins to wonder
if maybe Rosa does belong up there after all, brings
Rosa Park’ s defiance to vivid life. Beautifully lifelike
oil paintings convey the emotional tension of that
famous bus ride. |
|
 Eighth-Grade
Superzero
by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
Ages 10–14
Reggie McKnight earned the nickname “Pukey” thanks
to a disaster on the first day of middle school. So he
decides to hide out for the rest of the year with his
two best friends: Ruthie, a fellow Jamaican and political
activist, and Joe C. White, an aspiring rapper working
on a project at a homeless shelter with his church’s
youth group. Reggie becomes increasingly interested in
the homeless shelter project and his community, leading
to his eventual participation in his school’s presidential
race. There aren’t easy answers or solutions in this
book that deals honestly with issues of racial bias and
social justice. |
|
 Irena
Sendler and the Children of the Warsaw Ghetto
by Susan Goldman Rubin, Bill Farnsworth
Ages 8–12
Though small in stature, Irena
Sendler, a Polish social worker, managed to smuggle
more than 400 Jewish children out of the Warsaw ghetto
during World War II. Using clever ruses like toolboxes,
ambulances, and coffins, Irena defied the Nazis and
risked her own life to bring the children to safety.
Worried that the children might not be reunited with
their families, Irena kept a secret list of the children's
identities buried in jars under a tree in war-torn
Warsaw. Dramatic paintings illustrate this story of
courage and compassion. |
|
 Silent
Music
by James Rumford
Ages 4–9
Like his hero Yakut, who wrote
about the destruction of Baghdad in 1258, Ali turns to
calligraphy during the bombing of Baghdad in 2003. |
|
 I
Will Come Back for You: A Family in Hiding During World War
II
by Marisabina Russo
Ages 5–9
A small girl wonders why her
grandmother always wears a bracelet with curious charms
on it, and eventually Nonna tells the story of her
childhood in Rome during World War II. When the Nazis
threatened the Jews, Nonna was separated from her father
and sent to hide in the mountains with her mother and
brother. Each of the seven charms represents one of
the months the family was separated, and there is a
story of fear, ingenuity, and compassion to go with
each one. Based on her own family history, Russo tells
the tale of this terrifying time in a reassuring way
that is appropriate for young children. |
|
 Between
Shades of Gray
by Ruta Sepetys
Ages 12–up
Lina is a normal 15-year old
girl who loves to draw and paint and dream about boys
until the night in 1941 when Soviet soldiers invade
her town. Separated from her father on a crowded train,
Lina is sent to a work camp with her mother and younger
brother. The three make a long and arduous journey
north to the Siberian work camp north of the Arctic
Circle, where they are forced to dig for beets as they
struggle to survive. Using her art to maintain her
sense of hope, Lina illustrates messages she hopes
will reach her father in prison. Based on historical
fact, this gripping novel illustrates the persecution
suffered by the millions of Stalin’s victims. |
|
 Freedom’s
a-Callin Me
by Ntozake Shange, Rod Brown
Ages 8–12
This book of illustrated poems
tell the story of slaves making their way to freedom
on the Underground Railroad. The horrors of the past
that haunt the slaves as well as the dangers of the
journey are clearly portrayed in this hauntingly beautiful
book. |
|
 We
Troubled the Waters
by Ntozake Shange, Rod Brown
Ages 9–12
This unflinching look at the
Civil Rights Movement by poet Ntozake Shange and artist
Rod Brown presents powerful scenes of the fight for justice
from 1941 to the present. |
|
 The
Berlin Boxing Club
by Robert Sharenow
Ages 12–up
Karl Stern (14) has never thought
of himself as Jewish since his family isn’t religious.
But in 1930s Berlin he is tormented and beaten by his
classmates so his father’s friend Max Schmeling, a
boxing champ, agrees to train Karl as a boxer so he
can defend himself and his younger sister. As the Nazi
regime gains power, it becomes clear that Karl and
his family aren’t safe in German. A talented artist,
Karl draws cartoons and comics as he dreams of finding
freedom in America, falls in love with a Catholic neighbor,
and meets a cross-dressing homosexual. This powerful
historical novel examines racism and prejudice through
the lens of both fictional children and real historical
figures. |
|
 How
I Learned Geography
by Uri Shulevitz
Ages 4–8
Uri’s boyhood memories of WWII:
using geography and imagination to combat fear and rage
while fleeing Warsaw for Kazakhstan. |
|
 Borderline
by Allan Stratton
Ages 12–up
Mohammed “Sami” Sabiri’s
life falls apart when his father is accused of collaborating
with Muslim terrorists to poison the water supply of New York
City and Toronto. In the wave of discrimination that follows,
Sami’s mother is fired from her job and Sami is bullied at
school. Sami goes undercover in an attempt to prove his father’s
innocence in this gripping thriller that grapples with the
terrifying reality of racial and religious discrimination. |
|
 Otto:
The Autobiography of a Teddy Bear
by Tomi Ungerer
Ages 8–up
Otto the teddy bear belongs
to David, a Jewish boy living in German. When David
and his family are taken away to the camps, he gives
Otto to his best friend Oskar. Oskar’s father soon
leaves for the front, and Oskar loses Otto in the bombing
raids. Otto is found by an American soldier, and stops
the bleeding that would have killed him. Years later,
Oskar finds Otto in an American antique store, and
their picture in the paper leads to a reunion with
David. Narrated by Otto in a calm voice, this moving
book presents the reality of war, loss, and abandonment. |
|
 Climbing
the Stairs
by Padma Venkatraman
Ages 12–up
Set in World War II India, 15-year-old
Vidya’s father joins the freedom fighters who follow
Gandhi’s nonviolent protest of British rule. During a
rally he is severely beaten and left too brain-damaged
to support his family, who must move in with relatives
and work as servants. This novel movingly presents a
unique time and place and shows how love and hope can
blossom in even the most dismal of circumstances. |
|
 Small
Acts of Amazing Courage
by Gloria Whelan
Ages 9–12
Rosy, the 15-year-old daughter
of a major in the British Indian army, has a strong
sense of independence and justice. When her father
returns from WWI, he is horrified to find that she
has saved an Indian infant from being sold and has
secretly been to one of Gandhi’s speeches promoting
non-violent protests. Rosy’s father ships her off to
England to stay with her proper aunts and keep her
out of trouble, but it doesn’t take Rosy long to shake
up the somber household with her progressive ideas
about Indian independence. |
|
 Now
Is the Time for Running
by Michael Williams
Ages 12–up
Deo (14) and his friends are
playing soccer in the dusty field outside their Zimbabwe
village, cheered on by Deo’s older brother Innocent,
who was born brain damaged. The village is destroyed
by soldiers, and the two brothers flee for their lives,
traveling with no shoes and little money. They confront
a hungry lion in a game preserve, and encounter repeated
prejudice as unwanted refugees. The loving relationship
between the brothers is often the only thing they can
depend on as they struggle to survive. |
|
 Crow
by Barbara Wright
Ages 8–12
It’s the summer of 1898 in Wilmington,
North Carolina, and Moses (11) is teaching Boo Nanny, his slave-born
grandmother, to read. For the first time, Boo Nanny shares
stories of her youth as a slave. Moses’s Harvard-educated father
is a respected reporter for the newspaper, and Moses believes
the troubles his grandmother experienced are a thing of the
past. Then an editorial sparks the Wilmington Race Riots. The
first-person narration in this powerful book presents an intimate
look at race relations and injustice. |
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