Historical Fiction

 Milly and the Macy’s Parade 

Author: Shana Corey

Genre: Historical Fiction

Summary: This book is about the first ever Macy’s Parade. The Parade came about because many of the workers were feeling home sick; this is when Milly suggested to Mr. Macy that they have a parade. Milly’s dad worked for Macy’s so she saw firsthand the pain the workers were experiencing. The parade would feature all the different cultures and people traditions so that it would make them feel like they were back in their home countries. The Parade was a huge success and it lives on to this day on every Thanksgiving.

Characters: Milly, Mr. Macy, mom, dad, Mr. Snidely ( Mr. Macy’s assistant)

Setting: New York, Macy’s

Plot: The creation of the Macy’s Parade.

Theme: Homesick, coming together,  Holiday traditions

The Memory Coat

Author:  Elvira Woodruff

Genre: Historical Fiction

Summary: The Memory Coat is about Rachel, Grisha and their family. Rachel and Grisha are cousins, but Grisha lives with Rachel because he lost his mother. Grisha wears an old worn out coat but refuses to get a new one because this is the only thing he has left of his mother. One day the family realizes they must leave Russia and go to Ellis Island because Russia is no longer safe. When they get to Ellis Island they must go through inspection and if the inspectors do not think they are healthy enough for America they are sent back to Russia. Grisha falls right before his inspection and the inspector will not let him onto Ellis Island. This is when Rachel has the idea to turn his coat inside out to expose the beautiful wool, her father takes him to another inspector and he is cleared to live on Ellis Island.

Characters: Rachel, Grisha, Dad, Mom, Grandpa and Grandma.

Setting: Russia, Ellis Island

Plot: A families trip from Russia to Ellis Island

Theme: Family, memories, moving to a new land

  

  When Jessie Came Across the Sea

Author: Amy Hest

    Genre: Historical fiction 

Summary: This book is about a young girl named Jessie who lives with her grandmother in a poor village far away from here. The rabbi of the town has a ticket to America that his brother who just passed had sent him, but he cannot go to America and abandon his people so instead he is going to choose someone from the town. He picks Jessie to go to work for his brother’s now widowed wife in a dress shop. Jessie is very sad to leave her grandma but she knows she cannot disobey the rabbi. A few weeks later she boards the boat without her grandmother and without her mother’s wedding band. On the boat Jessie meets a young boy names Lou who is a shoemaker son, however when they get to America she does not get to say goodbye to him. Jessie works at the dress shop and saves her money to buy her grandma a ticket! She finally has enough to send grandma the ticket. She also meets up with Lou again and they are going to get married. The day Grandma arrives in America she has the band and Jessie and Lou are going to get married.

      Characters: Jessie, Lou, Grandmother, rabbi, Cousin Kay

       Setting: New York

     Plot: Story about a young girl’s journey to America.

  Theme: America, Love

Coming on Home Soon

 Author: Jacqueline Woodson
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: Ada Ruth’s mother leaves home to go work in Chicago since the men are off in the war colored women are now allowed to work for the trains. Ada Ruth stays with her grandma and waits and waits for her mother to return. The days drag on and Ada Ruth receives no letters from her mother, until one day she sends a letter saying she will be coming home soon! The book ends with a picture of Ada Ruth’s mother arriving home.

Characters: Ada Ruth, mother, grandmother

  Setting: Ada Ruth’s house

  Plot: A young girl’s mother going to work in Chicago and leaving her behind to stay with the grandmother.

 Theme: Waiting and a woman’s role during the war.

    

My America: Our Strange New Land

  Author: Patricia Hermes

 Genre: Historical Fiction 
 Summary: My America: Our Strange New Land, Elizabeth's Jamestown Colony Diary is about a young girl named Elizabeth. Her family has boarded a boat and moved away from England to Jamestown, Virginia. However her younger brother could not come with due to his sickness, he will come later but could not come until they were settled. Elizabeth took her brothers book where he draws his pictures in, she now uses it to write down what is happening so that Caleb will know what he missed. There are many problems in Jamestown, the Indians are at war with the new people because some of the people are treating them badly, there is a lack of food, and there are many illnesses. Elizabeth’s family experiences these happy and sad times, they lose loved ones, however new ones are born, and they build a new house. In the end some of the people are very sick and must return to England for aide, Elizabeth gives Captain John Smith her journal and asked him to make sure that Caleb gets it so he knows they are ok.

 Characters: Elizabeth Barker, Jessie (Elizabeth’s friend she met on the boat), Mama, Papa, Caleb (Jessie’s Twin Brother), Gabriel Archer, Captain John Smith.

 Setting: Boat, Jamestown

  Plot: Story about a family coming and settling in America

Theme: Jamestown, family, settling

 

Number the Stars
Author: Lois Lowry
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: This book is about a young girl and her family. They lived through the Nazi invasion in Denmark. Annemarie and her family are not Jewish however her best friend Ellen and her parents are. Annemarie's family takes Ellen in and pretend she is Annemarie's sister who died a couple of years ago. Annemarie and her family help Ellen and her family get away from the Nazi's and be in the safe land of Sweden.
Characters: Annemarie, Ellen, Mr. and Mrs. Johanson, Peter, Kirsten, Henrick, Lise, The Rosens,
Setting: Denmark
Plot: A Jewish family and their friends lives during the Nazi invasion.
Theme: Nazi invasion, friendship, family
 
Freedom Summer
Author: Deborah Wiles
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: This book is about two young boys living in Mississippi in the summer of 1964. John and Joe are best friends. They both have the same hobbies and both want to be the same thing when they grow up. However Joe is white and John is black which means John is not allowed to do all of the things that Joe can do. Finally the law is passed that forbids segregation and John can go to the pool with Joe. However it takes more then a law to change the town people's heart.
Characters: John and Joe
Setting: Mississippi
Plot: Two young boys living in Missippi in 1964.
Theme: Segregation

The Other Side
Author: Jacquelin Woodson
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: This book is about two little girls who are not allowed to play together because black people live on one side of the fence and white people live on the other side of the fence. Clover is black and Anna is white. Although Clover's mother tells her not to go to the other side of the fence because it is not safe, her and Anna become great friends. The two girls never cross the fence, they just sit on top of the fence and become great friends.
Characters: Anna, Clover, parents
Setting: Town
Plot: Two girls forming an unlikely friendship
Theme: Segregation and friendship

The Wall
Author: Eve Bunting
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: This book is about a young boy and his father who travel to look at the Vietnam Veterans Wall. They go there to seek out his grandfather's name. They search for the name until they finally find them.
Characters: Boy and Father
Setting: Vietnam Veterans Wall
Plot: A boy and his father visiting the Vietnam Wall.
Theme: Remembering loved one, Vietnam Wall

The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree
Author: Gloria Houston
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: This book is about Ruthie and her family. Her Papa went away to war and now her and her mama have to find the perfect Christmas tree for their town. They go out on Christmas Eve to get the perfect tree. On Christmas morning they get the best surprise of all, Papa comes home!
Characters: Papa, Mama, Ruthie, Preacher, Old Piedy's
Setting: Appalachian Mountains
Plot: Papa is away at war and Ruthie and Mama need to find the perfect Christmas tree for the church.
Theme: Family
 
The Butterfly
Author: Patricia Polacco
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: This book is about 2 girls who live in Paris where the Nazi's are now patrolling the streets. One day Monique thinks she sees a ghost but really it is a young girl. Monique's family is hiding the Jewish family in their cellar.  The book then talks about the struggle of keeping it a secret. One day the neighbor sees the family in the cellar so now Monique and her family need to find  a new safe place for the family to stay.
Characters: Monique, Marcel, Denise, Marks,Severine
Setting: Paris
Plot: A Jewish family hiding while the Nazi's are patrolling the streets.
Theme: World War II

Non-Fiction/Biography/Graphic Novels/Poetry

  Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad
Author: Ellen Levine
Genre: Biography
Summary: This story is about a man named Henry Brown who is a slave. He lives with his mother, but one day their owner sells Henry to his son. He leaves his family and goes to his new owner, where he works in a factory with tobacco. One day he met Nancy and the two instantly hit it off, they were both from different masters; however the masters agreed to let them marry each other and live together. They had 3 children together and were very happy, however months later Nancy said that she was worried that her and the children were going to be sold. She was right and Henry was left behind heartbroken and miserable. He wanted a way to be free so he came up with the idea to mail himself to a place where there was no slavery. With the help of Dr. Smith and James Henry accomplished this, he arrived in Philadelphia, was given a birthday, and the middle name Box.
Characters: Henry, Henry’s mother, Nancy, 3 children, James, Dr. Smith, Master
Setting: Factory of master
Plot: Story about a slave trying to become free after losing his family in an auction!
Theme: Slavery, freedom

 

My Great Aunt Arizona
Author: Gloria Houston   
   Genre: Non-Fiction  
Summary: “My Great Aunt Arizona” is about a child’s Great Aunt Arizona. She loved school and loved to learn. She went to a one room school house until her mother died, then she had to stay home to take care of her brother and dad. However when her dad remarried she then went off to live with her aunt. Her aunt made her do chores, but at night she studied to be a teacher. Finally she returned home and taught at the same one room school house that she and her brother attended. She taught there for 57 years. She taught children about numbers, words, and the faraway places they would one day visit. Although she never made it to the faraway places, she travels with her great niece and all the children she taught.  
Characters: Arizona, Arizona’s brother, mother, aunt, father, Mr. Hughes (Arizona’s husband) 
  Setting: Blue Ridge Mountains  
  Plot: Story about a woman’s teaching journey
Theme: Teaching, touching lives   

 We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States 
Author: Dave Catrow
Genre: Non-Fiction
Summary: This book is about the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States. The book takes a topic that may be hard for children to understand and through the use of pictures helps explain it. The book has 3 children and a dog that are sleeping outside for the night. If children get confused about the meaning of the phrase they can look at the dog for some helpful hints. The book also has a glossary in the front to help children understand the words in the Preamble in their own terms.
Characters: 3 children, dog
Setting: backyard
Plot: The Preamble of the United States Constitution.
Theme: History

 

What Do you Do With a Tail Like This?

Author: Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

Genre: Nonfiction

Summary: This book is about all different parts of different animals. One page will ask you a question for example what do you do with tails like this, the page will have pictures of all different tales and the children are supposed to guess what animals they belong to. On the next page it tells you what animal it is and what the tail or other body part they are talking about it used for.

Characters: animals

Setting: none

Plot: The book teaches children about different body parts of different animals.

Theme: Animals 

     Around the World  

Author: Matt Phelan 

Genre:  Graphic Novel 

Summary: This graphic novel takes us into 3 people’s journey around the world. Thomas Stevens traveled around the world on a bike. He was tired of being a miner and he wanted to make something of his life so he wanted to be the first person to ride a bike across America. However after he finished that journey he decided he wanted to continue his journey around the world. He was paid by a magazine to record the journey, and once his journey was over he wrote a book. He completed 13,500 miles on his bike. The next character is Nellie Bly; she wanted to go around the world in 74 days to beat the record of around the world in 80 days. She worked for a newspaper and when she proposed the journey the newspaper declined saying a lady can’t do that. However a year later they decided to send her, along her journey she wrote for the paper and the paper did a lot of things such as guessing games for when Nellie would return. She traveled around the world via train and boat. Although she has competition, Nellie made it around the world in 72 days with only one bag! The final story is about Joshua Slocum, he went around the world on a boat that he repaired himself. The boat was named the Spray and the captain ventured this journey alone. Although he faced madness, pirates, rough seas, and being sick he was the first person to sail around the world alone. When he got home he went a little mad, got back on the boat after some time and was never seen again.

Characters: Thomas Stevens, Nellie Bly, Joshua Sloculm

Setting: Around the world.

Plot: 3 peoples journey’s around the world

Theme: adventures around the world, courage

Killer Whales

Author: Seymour Simon

Genre:Nonfiction

Summary: Killer Whales is a nonfiction book that tells you many details about the life of killer whales. The book tells you things like how much they weigh, how long they are, how they hunt, and many other interesting facts.

Characters: Killer Whales

Setting: Ocean

Plot: Book taking an in-depth look into the lives of killer whales.

Theme: Killer Whales.

 

 

 Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave
Author:  Laban Carrick Hill
Genre: Biography/Non-fiction
Summary: This book is about Dave, who is a slave but finds a love in poetry. Dave was a slave nearly 200 years ago and made his clay for his poetry out of dirt and water. He used a big paddle to mix the dirt with the water that he got from Big Horse Creek. Dave would have to kick his wheel really hard so it would spin fast so Dave could make his creation. Dave would make huge pots and then put coils on them to finish his pot. For a glaze Dave would mix sand and wood ash to help the poets withstand time. However his work was not done until he put his poems and signature on there.
Characters: Dave
Setting: farm
Plot: Story about a slave who is a famous potter and poet
Theme: Slavery, Art, poetry
 
Of Thee I Sing
Author: Barack Obama
Genre: Nonfiction/Biography
Summary: This book is a story to Barack Obama's daughters. Each page he tells them a quality about themselves and relates it to a famous historical person. At the end of the story he tells the girls that America is made up of people of many  kinds and that we all are accepted. He then tells his daughters that he loves them.
Characters: 13 American icons, Barack Obama, Daughters
Setting: Around the world, White House
Plot: Barack Obama telling his daughter's everything they are to him and all the qualities they poses. 
Theme: History, Qualities, Love


A Picture Book of Rosa Parks
Author: David A. Alder
Genre: Nonfiction/ Biography
Summary: This story is all about Rosa Parks. It talks about her life growing up and in her home. It also talks about her famous bus sit in. The book also discusses all of the wonderful things she did for America.
Characters: Rosa Parks
Setting: Rosa Park's Neighborhood
Plot: The life of Rosa Parks.
Theme:  History
 
The Three Bears Holiday Rhyme Book
Author: Jane Yolen
Genre: Poetry
Summary: This book is a book filled with poems about the three little bears. Each poem is about a different holiday they celebrate. There are 15 different holiday poems in this book! The poems are short and sweet!
Characters: 3 bears
Setting: Around the bears neighborhood
Plot: Three bears celebrating their holidays.
Theme: Holidays

Me I Am!
Author: Jack Prelutsky
Genre: Poetry
Summary: This poem is all about individuality. The poem talks about how there is only one you and how there will never be another one. It talks about how only we can fit in our skin. It also talks about how only we can feel our feelings. Great book to teach children individuality!
Characters: Three children
Setting: In their houses, around their towns
Plot: Three different children telling everyone what makes them special.
Theme: Individuality
 
I'm still here in the Bathtub
Author: Alan Katz
Genre:Poetry
Summary: This book is all different poems and songs to common tunes that children will know. children will love the funny tunes to some of their favorite songs! This would be a fun way to introduce poetry.
Characters: None! Book of Songs
Setting: Each poem has a different setting.
Plot: This book is filled with various poems to tunes children will know!
Theme: Poems

September 12th: We Knew Everything Would be All Right
Author:Masterson Elementary School
Genre: Non-Fiction
Summary: This book was written by a bunch of first grade students. They wrote about how although there was such a tragedy on September 11, they knew September 12 would be better. They knew it because their routine went the same way it always had. This book is great for young children who have questions about the tragedy that happened on September 11.
Characters: None
Setting: Masterson Elementary School
Plot: This book is about September 11 and how September 12 would be better.
Theme: September 11