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A Light in the Storm: The Civil War Diary of Amelia Martin, (1999) Karen Hesse. Scholastic, ISBN 0-590-56733-0. The story is from the Dear America Series of fictional diaries of young people in different historical periods. This one features the daughter of a Delaware lighthouse keeper at the beginning of the Civil War written by a Newbery winning author.
A Soldier's Book: A Novel of the Civil War, (1999 pb) Joanna Higgins. Harcourt Brace, ISBN 0-15-600727-4. In the spring of 1864 all prisoner exchanges between the North and South had ceased. Ira Cahill Stevens, a young Union soldier captured during the Battle of the Wilderness is on his way to Andersonville, tantamount to a death sentence. His struggle to hope makes this terrible story ultimately uplifting.
Amelia's War, (1999) Ann Rinaldi. Scholastic, ISBN 0-590-11744-0. This story is about a twelve-year-old girl in Maryland at the end of the Civil War. The war divided their state and town in two. The divided loyalties of family and friends make it hard to live together or "walk in the other person's shoes."
Bearing Witness: Stories of the Holocaust, (1999 pb) selected by Hazel Rochman and Darlene Z. McCampbell. Orchard Books, ISBN 0-531-09488-X. Twenty-four first person stories about the Holocaust make this book a gripping read or read aloud.
Black Hands, White Sails: the Story of African-American Whalers, (1999) Patricia C. McKissack and Fredrick L. McKissack. Scholastic, ISBN 0-590-48313-7. An excellent perspective to our history. This book is about whaling history from the African American contributions. They too had an influence on the abolitionist movement in the United States.
Black Hoops: The History of African Americans in Basketball, (1999) Fredrick McKissack, JR. Scholastic, ISBN 0-590-48712-4. A thorough history of basketball and African Americans from its inception to the present day.
Daily Life in a Plains Indian Village 1868, (1999) Michael Bad Hand Terry. Clarion Books, ISBN 0-395-94542-9. This is a detailed look at a Plains Indian village from 131 years ago. Terry used present day folks outfitted in native costume and recreated the settings as they may have been. A very informative book that is a superb addition to libraries and studies of this time period.
Emma's Journal: The Story of a Colonial Girl, (1999) Marissa Moss. Silver Whistle, ISBN 0-15-202025-X. This book is done in the Marissa Moss style of a journal with sketches and little side notes. The entries are from the perspective of a 10 year old colonial girl. This book would make an excellent and highly appealing addition to fifth grade classrooms studying American history.
Gone A-Whaling: The Lure of the Sea and the Hunt for the Great Whale, (1998) Jim Murphy. Clarion Books, ISBN 0-395-69847-2. This 200-page book is filled with facts, photographs, and drawings. Extraordinary and thorough, Murphy does his usual expert job of drawing out a specific period in history in an exciting style.
Good Night Maman, (1999) Norma Fox Mazer. Harcourt Brace, ISBN 0-15-201468-3. Lake Oswego, New York was the only refugee camp on U.S. soil during the Second World War. In this book Marc and Karin Levi are two of the lucky 982 who after years of hiding came there to survive. This fictional historical footnote illuminates a period of history few are familiar with today.
Ice Story: Shackleton's Lost Expedition, (1999) Elizabeth Cody Kimmel, Original Photos by Frank Hurley. Clarion, ISBN 0-395-91524-4. This is one book that is hard to put down. Shackelton and his men's story is a spellbinding read for middle grades and up. The photos by the expedition photographer, Frank Hurley, are incredible. Sir Edmund Hillary said, " For scientific discovery give me Scott; for speed and efficiency of travel give me Amundsen; but when disaster strikes and all hope is gone, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton."
Indian School: Teaching the White Man's Way, (1999) Michael L. Cooper. Clarion Books, ISBN 0-395-92084-1. Perhaps one of our Nation's biggest acts of injustice was the removal of Indian children from their families and forcing them into schools that began stripping them of their culture. Cooper has a reputation for researching and highlighting parts of history that have been omitted until more recently. This book provides an important look at a period in our history that started in the 1800's through the early 1950's.
Longwalker's Journey: A Novel of the Choctaw Trail of Tears, (1999) Beatrice O. Harrell, Illus. by Tony Meers. Dial Books, ISBN 0-8037-2380-6. This is a unique novel in that it is based on Harrell's own family history. In this work of fiction, Minko Ushi and some 60,000 other Native people were forced to leave Mississippi for Oklahoma on foot. As history always speaks the truth, many died from starvation and sickness along the way. Minko, a character modeled after Harrell's grandfather, was one of the survivors. This is a good book to include with Native American studies of the Southeast.
Millennium Children's History of the 20th Century, (1999) DK Publishing, ISBN 0-7894-4722-3. Fantastic! Just what you might expect from over three hundred pages of facts on the 20th century. Art, literature, sports, world news, politics, people and more all included. A great book to have handy for browsing and reference.
No Man's Land: A Young Soldier's Story, (1999) Susan Bartoletti. Blue Sky Press, ISBN 0-590-38371-X. Fourteen-year-old Thrasher is surprised when his best friend Tim turns out to be a girl. Over 400 women served in disguise as soldiers in the Civil War. They too fought for the land and people they loved. This book is her story as well as his.
Nowhere to Call Home, (1999) Cynthia DeFelice. Farrar, Strauss, Giroux, ISBN 0-374-35552-5. During the Depression many people lost their entire life savings, their businesses, their jobs and their homes. Frances Elizabeth Barrow lost her only parent and everything she knew to be home and family when her father took his own life after the Crash. She decided to ride the rail and live the life of a hobo. One catch to her plan however was the fact that she was a girl, not a guy. DeFelice does a marvelous job of depicting the lifestyle of this desperate situation during this period of US history. A captivating read!
The Captain's Dog: My Journey With the Lewis and Clark Tribe, (1999) Roland Smith. Gulliver Books, ISBN 0-15-201989-8. With the anniversary of the Lewis and Clark journey soon approaching this books provides an overlooked vantage point to the trip. Lewis' journal makes mention of the dog who accompanied him on the journey and Roland Smith cunningly adds some of the more important canine details (according to Seaman) that were left out. Smith's background studying wildlife, sense of humor, and penchant for detail all come out in this book.
The Journal of Ben Uchida: Citizen 13559 Mirror Lake Internment Camp, (1999) Barry Denenberg. Scholastic, ISBN 0-590-48531-8. The fictional diary of Ben Uchida from the Mirror Lake Internment Camp reflects the living conditions of Japanese American who endured their unjust treatment. Idaho's children should be familiar with the life many of our Japanese American state citizens who lived during that time. Combine this book with a visit to the Four Rivers Cultural Center in Ontario,Oregon for a full display on the Japanese internment camp.
The Journal of Joshua Loper: A Black Cowboy, (1999) Walter Dean Myers, Scholastic Inc., ISBN 0-590-02691-7. Of the thirty-five thousand cowboys who rode the Chisolm Trail after the Civil War, between five and nine thousand were African American. This fictional diary in the My Name is America series contains the story of one of these cowboys accompanied by a useful appendix with pictures in the back.
The Perilous Journey of the Donner Party, (1999) Marian Calabro. Clarion Books, ISBN 0-395-86610-3. People out West have heard of this incredible journey. There have been a handful of books written about the trip and many others that mention the event. This new book, however, combines many historic photos and family anecdotes from the survivors with a captivating expository account.
The Scholastic Encyclopedia of the Civil War, (1999) Catherine Clinton. Scholastic, ISBN 0-590-37227-0. This reference contains pictures, drawings, letters, and documents as well a thorough treatment of the causes and aftermath of the war.
Through the Eyes of Your Ancestors: A Step-by-Step Guide to Uncovering Your Family's History, (1999) Maureen Taylor. Houghton Mifflin, ISBN 0-395-86982-X. This is a marvelous how-to resource for collecting family history and stories. Taylor walks you through the process in a clear and helpful format. Included in the book are additional resources, useful charts, tips for preserving and presenting old photos and archives, CD-ROM and Web site connections, and useful insights from this reference librarian.
Witches and Witch-hunts: A History of Persecution, (1999) Milton Meltzer. Blue Sky, ISBN 0-590-48517-2. Explores witch-hunts around the world, from 15th Century France, to Salem, Massachusetts, to Adolf Hitler, and Joseph McCarthy. Meltzer explores the patterns of behavior that led to the scape-goating of individuals and groups in society. A good read for those trying to find answers to the unanswerable question of this kind of evil and those who fought at their own risk to save others .
Words That Built a Nation: A Young Person's Collection of Historic American Documents, (1999) Marilyn Miller. Scholastic, ISBN 0-590-29881-X. A collection of 39 documents and their influence on the history of this country. Also included in this book is information on human rights, environment and immigration documents, and pictures.
Wrango, (1999) Brian Burke. Harcourt Brace, ISBN 0-15-201815-8. Inspired by the adventures of George McJunkin, one of the most famous of the African American cowboys on the Chisolm Trail, Burke tells of the adventures and travels of a sixteen-year-old cowboy. George became foreman of a 6000 acre ranch, was a musician, an inventor, astronomer, and a literate Renaissance man. Always curious, George was also known for a famous archeological find. He discovered the McJunkin's Bone Pit, later known as the Folsom Site.