Historical fiction

The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz

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Published by Candlewick 

Summary:  14-year-old Joan Skraggs lives on her father’s farm with three older brothers, and records daily life in 1911 in a journal.  Since her mother’s death a few years previously, Joan has been doing all the housework on the farm.  Her father is a brute; the last straw for Joan is when he burns her three beloved books that were given to her by her teacher before she was forced to leave school.  She makes up her mind to run away, and in a well-planned escape, makes her way to Baltimore.  Unfortunately, her plans end there.  She is sitting on a bench with night falling, when she is rescued by Solomon Rosenthal, a young Jewish man whose wealthy family runs a department store.  Taken on as the Rosenthals’ hired girl, Joan finds a home filled with love, beauty, and books.  Pretending to be 18, she falls in love with younger son David, and finds innumerable ways to get in trouble with every member of the family.  Joan’s loving heart triumphs in the end, though, and with the help of the Rosenthals, she is well on the way to making a better life for herself as she reaches the final pages of her journal.  392 pages; ages 11-15.

Pros:  Readers will cheer for Joan (who wisely changes her name to Janet when she leaves home), a strong but impetuous girl whose roller-coaster emotions will be familiar to 21st-century teenagers.  The historical details are interesting, too; running a household in 1911, not to mention a kosher one, was not for the faint of heart.

Cons:  The story bogs down a bit once Joan is settled in Baltimore and writes in great details about her longing for David Rosenthal and her religious struggles.

Oskar and the Eight Blessings by Richard Simon and Tanya Simon, illustrated by Mark Siegel

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Roaring Brook Press 

Summary:  After the Night of Broken Glass, Oskar’s parents put him on a ship to America.  His father’s last words to him are, “Even in bad times, people can be good.  You have to look for the blessings.”  Oskar arrives in New York City on the seventh day of Hanukkah, which is also Christmas Eve.  He has to walk over one hundred blocks to find his Aunt Esther.  As he walks, he looks for blessings.  An old woman feeding pigeons gives him a loaf of bread to eat.  A boy playing in the snow gives him a pair of mittens.  And Eleanor Roosevelt herself gives him a few kind words.  As night falls, and the Hanukkah candles begin to glow in windows, Oskar at last reaches his destination and finds a new home.  Grades 1-3.

Pros:  A beautifully illustrated, moving story about finding good in the world during a bleak time in history.  An author’s note explains that the events of Christmas Eve 1938 are historically accurate, including Eleanor Roosevelt’s visit to New York City.

Cons:  While very young children would enjoy this story, it does require at least a basic explanation of Nazi Germany and the beginning of the Holocaust.

Happy Hanukkah!

The Blackthorn Key by Kevin Sands

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 Published by Aladdin 

Summary:  Apothecaries around London are being murdered.  Christopher Rowe, apprentice to apothecary Benedict Blackwell, isn’t too worried…until his master sends him on a wild goose chase errand, and he returns to learn that Blackwell has become the latest victim.  Overwhelmed by grief, Christopher discovers an encoded message in the shop’s ledger and sets out to decipher it.  When he realizes Blackwell has named his killer in the message, Christopher knows he is in great peril.  Slowly, he uncovers the dangerous secrets of the Cult of the Archangel, and learns of his master’s involvement in activities designed to unleash the power of God.  Ultimately, Christopher must make certain that these powers don’t fall into the hands of the evil men who are seeking them…and rapidly closing in on Christopher himself.  Grades 5-8.

Pros:  Set in 17th-century London, this murder mystery/historical fiction thriller is a DaVinci Code for kids.  It took me awhile to dig into a book about an apothecary from the 1600’s, but Christopher is given a humorous, modern voice, without taking away from the historical authenticity.  With an escaped evildoer, uncertainty about Christopher’s next master, and the plague pushing against London’s borders, a sequel must surely be in the works.

Cons:  The final showdown gets pretty gory.  Someone loses half his fingers, a couple eyes are put out, and two characters will move into the next installment with a good portion of their faces gone.

A Night Divided by Jennifer A. Nielsen

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Published by Scholastic 

Summary: When Gerta is 8, her father and brother Dominic go to West Berlin to look for work, preparing to move there from the east. While they’re gone, the Berlin wall goes up overnight. Four years later, she spots the two of them on an observation platform on the western side of the wall. Her father seems to be pantomiming for her to dig. When he manages to smuggle her a picture of a building, Gerta is sure he means for her and her other brother Fritz to start there and tunnel an escape route through the wall. As they work on their tunnel, their neighbors and friends grow more and more suspicious, and before long, completing it has become a life-and-death proposition. Grades 5-8.

Pros: An eye-opening story of life behind the Iron Curtain during the early 1960’s, with danger lurking everywhere for Gerta and her family, resulting in an exciting story from start to finish.

Cons: The page-turning suspense was so intense that I almost booked a cardiologist appointment before I was done.

Walking Home to Rosie Lee by A. LaFaye, illustrated by Keith D. Shepherd

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Published by Cinco Puntos Press

Summary: The Civil War is over, and Gabe wants to find his mama. She was sold by his master when Gabe was so young that all he can remember of her is her smell of jasmine, her good cooking, and the scarf she wore to cover up a scar she received as a punishment for trying to escape. For the first time in his life, Gabe is free to travel away from the plantation where he was a slave, and he sets off to find Mama. For months, he travels through the south, meeting other newly-freed slaves, following leads, and enduring crushing disappointments. One day, he sees a woman setting pies on the windowsill of a hotel, her long scarf trailing behind her. That night, he sleeps snuggled against his mama, hoping other boys will be as fortunate as he has been. Ages 8-12.

Pros: Told in Gabe’s distinctive voice (“Had me thinner than a leaf with the sorrow of it”), this story fills a gap in historical fiction picture books with its narrative about Reconstruction. The author’s note tells how Gabe’s story is representative of many newly freed slaves who sought to reunite with loved ones.

Cons: The history of the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation aren’t told here, so kids will need some background to understand Gabe’s story.

Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Disney-Hyperion 

Summary: Serafina’s always been pretty happy living in the basement of the Biltmore estate with her Pa. Sure, she’s a little different than other kids and her existence is a secret, but she enjoys prowling through the house at night, catching rats. Then one night she sees a man in a black cloak abducting a little girl. When he wraps the girl in his cloak, she disappears. Serafina barely escapes herself, but when she tries to tell her story the next morning, only one person believes her. That’s Braeden Vanderbilt, the nephew of the estate’s owner, whose tragic past has made him a bit of a loner as well. As more children vanish from the estate, Serafina and Braeden team up to try to figure out who the mysterious man is and what can be done to stop him…before it’s too late for them. Grades 5-7.

Book Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFZvSzfnm6I

Pros: This would be a great choice to teach the term “gothic novel”. Lots of dark creepiness everywhere, relieved only at the end when Serafina proves herself a true heroine and learns the amazing truth about her own past.

Cons: Preview this before giving it to a child. Pretty scary stuff, and occasionally a bit gruesome as well.

Danger in Ancient Rome (Ranger in Time) by Kate Messner

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Scholastic 

Summary: Golden retriever Ranger is back for his second time-traveling adventure, this time to Ancient Rome. He meets Marcus, a slave boy who works for a gladiator trainer, and Quintus, a new gladiator who is afraid he’s made the wrong decision. Ranger, whose search-and-rescue career was cut short because of his inability to resist squirrels, is able to use his finding abilities in a number of adventures, including a fire, Quintus’s disappearance, and the final brutal fight in the Coliseum. Despite the odds being stacked against them, Marcus and Quintus find satisfying happy ending, and Ranger is able to go back to his 21st-century family. Grades 2-4.

Pros: Readers ready to move on from the Magic Tree House will enjoy this time-traveling adventure that features a lovable dog.

Cons: Life was pretty tough there in ancient Rome. There are a few harrowing references to the public executions that preceded the gladiator fights.

The Detective’s Assistant by Kate Hannigan

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers 

Summary: 11-year-old Nell Warne has had a tough life, seeing her mother die, then her two brothers, and finally, her estranged father. With no other family left, she is unceremoniously dumped on her dead uncle’s widow, Aunt Kitty, in Chicago. Aunt Kitty has no interest in taking in an orphan. First of all, she blames Nell’s father for her husband’s murder. And secondly, she’s too busy with her career as the first woman detective in America, working for Pinkerton’s National Detective Agency. But there’s no other place for Nell, so the two of them end up traveling undercover to Philadelphia, Mississippi, and New York City to solve a series of mysteries. Their final case brings them to Baltimore, where Nell proves herself once and for all by helping Aunt Kitty thwart an assassination attempt on the new president, Abraham Lincoln. Grades 4-7.

Pros: The author’s note explains that Kate (Kitty) Warne was a real person, the first female detective in America. Both she and Nell are strong, spunky characters that are fun to read about, and their adventures read like a series of 19th-century Nancy Drew mysteries. The subplot about Nell’s father, Kate’s husband, and their involvement with the Underground Railroad just before the Civil War add interesting historical details.

Cons: Although the letters between Nell and her friend Jemma helped explain some necessary background, they sometimes felt like an interruption of the main plot.

Wrap-Up Wednesday: Middle Grade Historical Fiction

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

I believe at least one of these books will get some sort of Newbery recognition this year.  They are not only the best historical fiction I’ve read this year, but among the most memorable books overall.  Put your beach time to good use by picking up one of these this summer!

Catch You Later, Traitor by Avi.  Published by Algonquin Young Readers

Catch You Later, Traitor: Avi, .: 9781616205874: Amazon.com: Books

12-year-old Pete gets caught up in a tangle of lies and secrets in Cold War-era Brooklyn.  A good introduction to McCarthyism and the 1950’s, presented in a page-turning story.  Personal aside:  This book gets my vote for this year’s worst cover.

The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley.  Published by Dial Books.

This may be my favorite book of the year (so far).  Ada and her brother are evacuated to Susan’s house to escape the bombing of London during World War II.  Susan, overwhelmed by loss and grief, has no room in her heart to love these two children.  Ada, kept a virtual prisoner by her mother because of her club foot, is desperate to stay.  You can’t help but take the characters to heart, and the ending is so, so perfect.

Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan.  Published by Scholastic Press.

 So engrossing the 592 pages fly by.  Three stories–Friedrich in Germany just before World War II, Mike in Pennsylvania a few years later, and Ivy in California in the midst of wartime–share the common link of a magical harmonica. Music ties all three stories together in a satisfying conclusion.

Cast Off: The Strange Adventures of Petra de Winter and Bram Broen by Eve Yohalem.  Published by Dial Books.

Cast Off: The Strange Adventures of Petra de Winter and Bram Broen: Yohalem, Eve: 9780525428565: Amazon.com: Books

A maritime adventure worthy of the Bounty or Charlotte Doyle.  Petra and Bram struggle to survive on a Dutch sailing ship, complete with keel-hauling, pirates, and mutiny. Life in the twenty-first century never looked so good.

Cast Off: The Strange Adventures of Petra de Winter and Bram Broen by Eve Yohalem.

~ Janet Dawson ~ Leave a comment

Published by Dial Books

Summary: When Petra de Winter’s wealthy father threatens to kill her, she runs away and hides on board the Golden Lion a ship sailing from the Netherlands to the East Indies.  Bram Broen, the mixed-race son of the ship’s carpenter discovers her and helps her stay hidden.  She disguises herself as a boy, which turns out to be fortunate when she is eventually discovered.  After surviving a keel hauling, she is put to work as the surgeon’s assistant, using skills she learned back home in Holland.  Told in alternating voices, Petra and Bram relate a story that includes piracy, mutiny, and lots of adventure.  Grades 5 and up.

Pros:  While more of a middle school book, good fifth grade readers will enjoy this page-turning adventure.  It would also make an exciting read aloud.

Cons: Pretty much every aspect of life for anyone living in 17th century Europe who wasn’t  wealthy, white, and male.