Historical Fiction for Middle Schoolers

Looking for Historical Fiction to read before it's back-to-school? Check out these titles at your local branch!

Updated August 13, 2024
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Ahimsa /
Kelkar, Supriya,
Paper Book
In this historical middle-grade novel, Gandhi asks for one member of each family to join the fight for independence from the British, and when Anjali's mother is jailed for doing so, Anjali must step out of her comfort zone to take over her mother's work. In 1942, when Mahatma...
All the Greys on Greene Street
Tucker, Laura
Paper Book
"A dazzling debut novel about resilience, courage, home and family."--Rebecca Stead, Newbery Award-winning author of When You Reach Me SoHo, 1981. Twelve-year-old Olympia is an artist--and in her neighborhood, that's normal. Her dad and his business partner Apollo bring...
Allies /
Gratz, Alan,
Paper Book
A New York Times bestseller!Alan Gratz, bestselling author of Refugee, weaves a stunning array of voices and stories into an epic tale of teamwork in the face of tyranny -- and how just one day can change the world.June 6, 1944: The Nazis are terrorizing Europe, on their evil quest to...
The button war :
Avi,
Paper Book
Renowned, award-winning author Avi pens a stark, unflinching tale of ordinary boys living in wartime as tensions -- and desperations -- mount among them. Twelve-year-old Patryk knows little of the world beyond his tiny Polish village; the Russians have occupied the land for as...
The door of no return /
Alexander, Kwame.
Paper Book
From the Newbery Medal and Coretta Scott King Award winning author Kwame Alexander, comes the first book in a searing, breathtaking trilogy that tells the story of a boy, a village, and the epic odyssey of an African family. In his village in Upper...
Dragonfly eyes
Cao, Wenxuan
Paper Book
Forge
Anderson, Laurie Halse.
Paper Book
"One of the best novels they have ever read." --Kirkus Reviews Curzon navigates the dangers of being a runaway slave in this keenly felt second novel in in the historical middle grade The Seeds of America trilogy from acclaimed author Laurie Halse Anderson. ...
Ground Zero
Gratz, Alan
Paper Book
  Ground Zerois a number one New York Timesbestseller The plot starts at a heart-pounding pace and never relents... A contemporary history lesson with the uplifting message that humanity's survival depends on us working for, not against, one another. A must-have.-- School...
How high the moon
Parsons, Karyn
Paper Book
It's 1944, and in a small Southern town, eleven-year-old Ella spends her summers running wild with her cousins and friends. But life isn't always so sunny. The deep racial tension that simmers beneath their town's peaceful facade never quite goes away, and Ella misses her mama - a beautiful jazz...
Iceberg /
Nielsen, Jennifer A.
Paper Book
As disaster looms on the horizon, a young stowaway onboard the Titanic will need all her courage and wits to stay alive. A thrilling tale from New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen! Hazel Rothbury is traveling all alone from her home in England aboard...
Inside out & back again
Lai, Thanhha.
Paper Book
Inside Out and Back Again is a #1 New York Times bestseller, a Newbery Honor Book, and a winner of the National Book Award! Inspired by the author's childhood experience as a refugee--fleeing Vietnam after the Fall of Saigon and immigrating to Alabama--this coming-of-age debut novel told...
Johnny Tremain : a novel for young and old
Forbes, Esther.
Paper Book
Lenny's book of everything
Foxlee, Karen
Paper Book
A multi-award-winning book about finding good in the bad that will break your heart while raising your spirits in the way that only a classic novel can.
Light and air /
Wendell, Mindy Nichols
Paper Book
It's 1935, and tuberculosis is ravaging the nation. Everyone is afraid of this deadly respiratory illness. But what happens when you actually have it? When Halle and her mother both come down with TB, they are shunned-and then they are sent to the J.N. Adam Tuberculosis...
A long walk to water
Park, Linda Sue
Paper Book
Cherished by millions of readers, this #1 New York Times bestselling novel is a powerful tale of perseverance and hope. Newbery Medalist Linda Sue Park interweaves the stories of two Sudanese children who overcome mortal dangers to improve their lives and the lives of others. A Long Walk...
The lost year /
Marsh, Katherine.
Paper Book
*A National Book Award Finalist* From the author of Nowhere Boy - called "a resistance novel for our times" by The New York Times - comes a brilliant middle-grade survival story that traces a harrowing family secret back to the Holodomor, a terrible famine that...
The lucky ones /
Jackson, Linda Williams
Paper Book
Award-winning author Linda Williams Jackson pulls from her own childhood in the Mississippi Delta to tell the story of Ellis Earl, who dreams of a real house, food enough for the whole family--and to be someone. It's 1967, and eleven-year-old Ellis Earl Brown has big dreams. He's...
A night divided
Nielsen, Jennifer A.
Paper Book
A stunning thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of Iceberg, Jennifer A. Nielsen, A Night Divided is about a girl who must escape to freedom after the Berlin Wall divides her family between east and west. A Night Divided joins the Scholastic...
Sophia's war : a tale of the Revolution
Avi
Paper Book
Lives hang in the balance in this gripping Revolutionary War adventure from a beloved Newbery Medalist. In 1776, young Sophia Calderwood witnesses the execution of Nathan Hale in New York City, which is newly occupied by the British army. Sophia is horrified by the event and...
The war that saved my life
Bradley, Kimberly Brubaker
Paper Book
*Newbery Honor book *Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award  *Forbes 25 Top Historical Fiction Books Of All Time selection This #1 New York Times bestseller is an exceptionally moving story of triumph against all odds set during World War II,...
When you reach me
Stead, Rebecca.
Paper Book
Four mysterious letters change Miranda's world. Miranda and Sal are best friends, but when Sal gets punched by a new kid for no apparent reason, he shuts Miranda out of his life. Then she finds a mysterious note scrawled on a tiny slip of paper- I am coming to save your friend's life,...
Willow Run /
Giff, Patricia Reilly
Paper Book
1944 Meggie Dillon’s life has been turned upside down by World War II. Her older brother Eddie enlisted and was shipped off to fight in Europe. And people say that anywhere else Grandpa would be turned in because he’s German, and people might think he’s a spy. Is it true? Could...
The Windeby puzzle :
Lowry, Lois
Paper Book
Newbery Medalist and New York Times bestselling author Lois Lowry transports readers to an Iron Age world through the suspenseful dual narrative of a boy and girl both battling to survive. In an utterly one-of-a-kind blend of fiction and history, a master storyteller explores the...

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