Across Five Aprils  •  Irene Hunt LITERATURE •  1987 •  PAPER  • 190 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) Irene Hunt's enduring classic of the Civil War recounts the story of Jethro and his older brothers, who choose to fight on opposite sides during the Civil War. While Jethro grows to adulthood in Illinois (a state neither strictly Yankee nor strictly Reb), his brothers fight and send letters home. Gripping stuff for ages 9-12. (USA44, $4.99)
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  •  Mark Twain LITERATURE •  1985 •  PAPER  • 336 PAGES • YOUNG ADULTS An enormously influential American book, Twain's masterpiece of boyhood adventure is as much about America's growing pains as it is about Huck's coming of age. As crises of adolescence go, Huck's dawning awareness of the slave Jim's humanity is about as big as they come. Ages 12 and up. (USS41, $7.00)
A Christmas Memory with Audio CD  •  Truman Capote  •  Beth Peck BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2006 •  HARD COVER  • 48 PAGES • FAMILY Simple and sweet, Truman Capote's autobiographical tale is an enduring classic. Originally published in 1956, this 50th anniversary edition features delightful new illustrations and an accompanying audio version narrated by actress Celeste Holm. (USS381, $17.95)
Everglades, Buffalo Tiger and River of Grass  •  Peter Laurie CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1998 •  PAPER  • 47 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) An account of the author's visit to the Everglades with his Miccosukee Indian guide, Buffalo Tiger, this book focuses on the human history of the region, particularly the disruption of traditional ways. Told in first person and written for young peoples in grades 3-6, the book takes the form of an extended photo-essay. (FLA16, $11.95)
Eyewitness American Revolution  •  Stuart Murray HISTORY •  2005 •  HARD COVER  • 64 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) The colonial era and American Revolution get the Eyewitness highly visual treatment in this book, which reveals not only the political climate of the times but also the prevailing fashions, foodstuffs and dwellings. Of course the founding fathers figure large. Recommended for kids ages 9-12. (USA40, $15.99)
Eyewitness Civil War  •  John Stanchak HISTORY •  2000 •  HARD COVER  • 64 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) The Civil War gets the big-picture treatment in this Eyewitness book, which features excellent, photographs and illustrations of costumes, household appliances, weapons and other artifacts that reveal the climate of the era. Ages 9-12. (USA46, $19.99)
Georgia (From Sea to Shining Sea)  •  Pattie Stechschulte HISTORY •  2000 •  HARD COVER  • 80 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) This book, designed as a library research tool, is a fact-filled, illustrated reference to Georgia's history, economy and culture. Ages 9-12. (USS259, $30.50)
Harriet and the Promised Land  •  Jacob Lawrence BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1997 •  PAPER  • 40 PAGES • FAMILY The wonderful 20th-century American painter Jacob Lawrence wrote and illustrated this tribute to Harriet Tubman, former slave, abolitionist and Underground Railroad escort. The paintings are full-color, reproduced from tempera originals. Ages 4 and up. (USS257, $7.99)
If You Lived at the Time of the Civil War  •  Kay Moore  •  Anni Matsick HISTORY •  1994 •  PAPER  • 64 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) One in Scholastic's nonfiction series about daily life and customs throughout history, this one focusing on 1860-65. With colorful illustrations and the kinds of interesting facts that draw young readers in. Ages 9-12. (USA45, $5.99)
If You Lived in Williamsburg in Colonial Days  •  Barbara Brenner  •  Jenny Williams HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 80 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) One in Scholastic's nonfiction series about daily life and customs throughout history, this one focusing on the community of Williamsburg, Virginia prior to the American Revolution. With colorful illustrations and the kinds of interesting facts that draw young readers in. Ages 9-12. (USA47, $5.99)
The Land  •  Mildred D. Taylor LITERATURE •  2001 •  HARD COVER  • 373 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) Chronologically the first book in Mildred D. Taylor's "Roll of Thunder" series (but written last), this knockout of a novel tells of Paul-Edward Logan, the child of a slave mother and a white father, growing up in Georgia just after the Civil War. Taylor has no equal among children's authors when writing about segregation and racial injustice. Ages 9-12. (USS260, $18.00)
Legends of the Seminoles  •  Betty Mae Jumper LITERATURE •  1994 •  PAPER  • 96 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) An enjoyable illustrated retelling of Seminole folk tales, intended for both children and adults. These tales are a central part of the oral tradition of the Seminoles. (FLA12, $18.95)
Night of the Black Bear, A Mystery in Great Smoky Mountains National Park  •  Gloria Skurzynski LITERATURE •  2007 •  PAPER  • 151 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) While their mother investigates a series of bear attacks in and near Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Jack and Ashley learn about country music and Cherokee people from two new friends, one of whom is keeping a secret. (USS400, $4.99)
The Race to Save the Lord God Bird  •  Phillip Hoose NATURAL HISTORY •  2004 •  HARD COVER  • 208 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) An engaging and well-researched history of the ivory-billed woodpecker, and the struggles surrounding its survival. It's a suspenseful and entertaining book about modern conservation and environmental issues for middle-school readers, featuring John James Audubon and others. The bird, only recently rediscovered, once ranged across the southeastern United States. With black-and-white photographs throughout. (BRD30, $21.00)
Stories from Where We Live, The Gulf Coast  •  Sara St. Antoine  •  Trudy Nicholson  •  Paul Mirocha LITERATURE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) An anthology of writings about coastal Texas, Florida and Louisiana -- wonderfully useful as a young person's guide to people, nature and place. It includes Native American myths, poems and songs, historical accounts and modern short stories, as well as black-and-white drawings and maps. Ages 9 to 14. (USS248, $10.95)
Stories from Where We Live, The South Atlantic Coast  •  Sara St. Antoine  •  Trudy Nicholson  •  Paul Mirocha LITERATURE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 231 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) An anthology of short stories, poems, essays, and historical accounts about the ecoregion spanning the thousand miles from Baltimore to Miami. A charming guide to the people, places, animals and ecology of the region, complete with black-and-white line drawings and maps. Ages 9-12. (USS378, $10.95)
To Kill a Mockingbird  •  Harper Lee LITERATURE •  1960 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES • YOUNG ADULTS Mandatory reading in most American classrooms, this affecting novel-of-conscience remains a humane portrait of the black and white denizens of the American south. It's set in Alabama. (USS254, $7.99)
The Tree that Owns Itself and Other Adventure Tales from Georgia's Past  •  Loretta Johnson Hammer  •  Gail Langer Karwoski LITERATURE •  1996 •  PAPER  • 149 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) A pleasurable collection of stories, featuring real and fictitious characters in scenes from Georgia's colonial past to the present. Ages 9-12. (USS262, $8.95)
Turn Homeward, Hannalee  •  Patricia Beatty LITERATURE •  1999 •  PAPER  • 193 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) A Civil War fiction in which a 12-year-old girl and her little brother walk from north of the Mason-Dixon line to their family home in Georgia. Lots of period detail. (USS261, $5.99)
Where Was Patrick Henry on the 29th of May?  •  Jean Fritz  •  Margot Tomes BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1997 •  PAPER  • 48 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) If only all colonial historians possessed Jean Fritz's flair for characterization, we'd probably think the Stamp Act was the most interesting thing ever. Fritz turns her hand to the life of the orator Patrick Henry, who grew up poor in Virginia and rose high enough to say "Give me liberty, or give me death." Ages 9-12. (USA43, $6.99)
Who's Saying What in Jamestown, Thomas Savage?  •  Jean Fritz HISTORY •  2007 •  HARD COVER  • 64 PAGES • YOUNG READERS (Age 4-8) Young Thomas Savage comes to the new world to work as a tranlator between the colonists and the Powhatan speaking Algonquian Indians, but he quickly gets caught up in the rising tensions between the two groups. An illuminating view of our nation's history as Jamestown celebrates its 400th anniversary in 2007. (USE400, $18.99)