Book — Fiction. By Marie Raphael. 2007. 217 pages.
Historical fiction about the life of the Irish in New York City at the beginning of the 20th century for ages 12+.
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Book — Fiction. By Walter Dean Myers. 2009. 320 pages.
Young adult novel about a U.S. soldier in Iraq.
Teaching Activity by Walter Dean Myers
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Book — Fiction. By Louise Erdrich. 1999. 244 pages.
Historical fiction set in the mid-19th century in the Lake Superior area.
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Book — Fiction. By Katherine Paterson. 2006. 275 pages.
Moving young adult historical-fiction novel based on a major strike in Lawrence, Mass., in 1912.
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Book — Fiction. By Mildred Taylor. 1998. 56 pages.
Cassie witnesses a Black man address a white storekeeper by his first name.
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Book — Historical fiction. By Winifred Conkling. 2011. 160 pages.
Based on the true story of two girls who meet in 1940s California and a landmark lawsuit on education.
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Book — Fiction. By Louise Erdrich. 2006. 288 pages.
The second in a series of novels for middle school and high school students about an Ojibwe family in the mid-19th century. The story parallels the time of the widely-read Little House on the Prairie series.
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Book — Fiction. By John Sayles. 2011. 955 pages.
Spanning five years and half a dozen countries, Sayles' novel of historical fiction paints a picture of the late 1890s — from the racist coup in Wilmington, North Carolina, to the bloody dawn of U.S. interventionism in Cuba and the Philippines.
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Book — Historical fiction. By Jewell Parker Rhodes. 2010. 224 pages.
Historical fiction for grades 6-12 about the devastation when the levees broke in New Orleans and how people drew on their wits, community, and history to survive.
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Book — Fiction. By Marge Pellegrino. 2009. 250 pages.
Historical fiction for young adult readers about the experience of Central American refugees and the long journey north.
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Book — Fiction. By Deborah Ellis. 2009. 206 pages.
A story based in Bolivia about a group of peasants who organize against the military.
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Book — Historical fiction. By Jeannine Atkins. Illustrated by Venantius J. Pinto. 2000. 32 pages.
Based on an event that took place in India in the 1970s, children and women in the village hug the trees to save them from being logged.
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Book — Fiction. By Harriette Gillem Robinet. 1998. 144 pages.
Historical fiction featuring 12-year-old Pascal, 8-year-old Nellie, and their older brother Gideon, a Union Army aide, as they claim and farm the land promised to them during Reconstruction.
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Book — Fiction. By Victoria Bond and T. R. Simon. 2010. 186 pages.
A coming-of-age story inspired by the early life of Zora Neale Hurston for ages 10 and up.
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Book — Fiction. By Milton Meltzer. 2006. 288 pages.
An historically accurate novel on abolitionists and the Underground Railroad for middle school readers.
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Book — Fiction. By Chris Crowe. 2003. 240 pages.
Historical fiction about the murder of Emmett Till for high school students.
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Book — Fiction. By James Sturm and Rich Tommaso with an introduction by Gerald Early. 2007. 96 pages.
Told from the point of view of a sharecropper, this narrative in graphic novel format follows baseball champion Satchel Paige as he travels throughout the segregated South.
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Book — Fiction. By Walter Dean Myers. 2011. 176 pages,
Historical novel about the 1863 draft riots in New York for young adults.
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Book — Historical fiction. By Donna Jo Napoli. 2010. 288 pages.
Historical fiction for young adults based on the true story of the lynching of Italian Americans in late 19th century Louisiana.
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Book — Fiction. By Katherine Paterson. 1995. 192 pages.
A young girl works in the mills and gets involved in labor activism.
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Book — Fiction. By Ann Turner and Ronald Himler. 1995. 32 pages.
Based on the diary of the author's great-grandmother, this is a poignant and compelling look at slavery through the eyes of a young girl.
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Book — Fiction. By Margaret Peterson Haddix. 2007. 352 pages.
Three young women march against unfair labor practices in the Shirtwaist Strike of 1909-10, only to find themselves engulfed in the raging flames consuming the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory.
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Book — Fiction. By Aya de León. Serialized in six parts at Orion Magazine. 2021.
A young adult novel that deals with immigration rights, climate justice, the Green New Deal, and youth activism. Available for free download at Orion Magazine.
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Book — Fiction. By Jewell Parker Rhodes. 2023 paperback release. 256 pages.
A powerful coming-of-age survival tale exploring issues of race, class, and climate change.
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Book — Fiction. By Lesa Cline-Ransome. 2021. 256 pages.
The final novel in the award-winning Finding Langston trilogy, this novel examines mid-twentieth century America through the eyes of Clem, a young boy whose family is torn apart after his father's untimely death.
Teaching Activity by Lesa Cline-Ransome
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