Historical Non-Fiction
Middle School
A few red drops : the Chicago Race Riots of 1919
by Claire Hartfield

A compelling introduction to the Chicago race riot of 1919 documents key events that led to days of urban violence that continue to reverberate a century later, offering insight into contributing factors in race relations, politics, business and culture. 
In the Shadow of Liberty : The Hidden History of Slavery, Four Presidents, and Five Black Lives
by Kenneth C Davis

The best-selling author of the Don't Know Much About± series presents the true stories of five slaves who were considered the property of U.S. presidential families, including Washington's valet Billy Lee, Jefferson's servant Isaac Granger, and War of 1812 witness Paul Jennings.
Chasing King's killer : the hunt for Martin Luther King, Jr.'s assassin
by James L. Swanson

The award-winning author of The President Has Been Shot! presents a dramatic account of the assassination of Civil Rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that shares the story of his killer, racist prison escapee James Earl Ray.
We've got a job : the 1963 Birmingham Children's March
by Cynthia Levinson

We've Got a Job tells the little-known story of the 4,000 black elementary, middle and high school students who voluntarily went to jail in Birmingham, Alabama, in May 1963. Fulfilling Mahatma Gandhi's and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s precept to "fill the jails," the students succeeded in desegregating one of the most racially violent cities in America. The astonishing events surrounding the Children's March are retold here from the perspectives of four of the original participants.
The Nazi hunters : How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World's Most Notorious Nazi
by Neal Bascomb

Recounts how, sixteen years after the end of World War II, a team of undercover Israeli agents captured the Nazi war criminal, Adolf Eichmann, in a remote area of Argentina and brought him to trial in Israel for crimes committed during the Holocaust.
Terrible typhoid Mary : a true story of the deadliest cook in America
by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

In a riveting biography that reads like a crime novel, a Sibert Medalist and Newbery-Honor winner uncovers the true story of Mary Mallon, a.k.a. Typhoid Mary, one of the most notorious and misunderstood women in American history.
A dog in the cave : the wolves who made us human
by Kay Frydenborg

Explores the connection between dogs and humans from hunter-gatherer partners to modern day pets, focusing on how humans have influenced dogs' evolution and raising new questions about the species' shared future.
Tommy : the gun that changed America
by Karen Blumenthal

An examination of the origins of America's debate over gun control recounts a history-shaping case in which a practical gun intended for military use became a weapon of choice for outlaws before Congress attempted to remove it from the streets.
Women heroes of World War I : 16 remarkable resisters, soldiers, spies, and medics
by Kathryn J. Atwood

Commemorates 16 lesser-known women of valor who served in World War I, including Allies guide and first-aid teen Emilienne Moreau, Imperial Russian Army peasant Maria Bochkareva and American journalist Madeleine Zabriskie Doty.
Eugene Bullard : world's first black fighter pilot
by Larry W. Greenly

Presents the life of the African-American pilot who flew missions for France during World War I, experienced racial discrimination in the United States, was beaten in the Peekskill Riots of 1949 and became a member of the French Legion of Honor.
Imprisoned : the betrayal of Japanese Americans during World War II
by Martin W. Sandler

Drawing from interviews and oral histories, chronicles the history of Japanese American survivors of internment camps.
I have lived a thousand years : growing up in the Holocaust
by Livia Bitton Jackson

The author, who was imprisoned in Auschwitz as a teenager, describes her terrible experiences as one of the camp's few adolescent inmates and the miraculous twists of fate that enabled her to survive. 
Sabotage : the mission to destroy Hitler's atomic bomb
by Neal Bascomb

The author of the award-winning The Nazi Hunters chronicles the World War II efforts of heroic Allied forces to thwart the Nazi occupiers of Norway in their efforts to build a nuclear bomb. 
Silver people : voices from the Panama Canal
by Margarita Engle

A tribute to the Panama Canal's 100th anniversary, written by the Newbery Honor-winning author of The Surrender Tree, traces its story while paying tribute to the laborers who risked their lives throughout its construction.
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