Historical Young Adult Fiction Around the World
From Wiki
Article in Young Adult Fiction, Location, Historical, and Diversity categories.
Contents |
North America
Canada
- Another Shore by Nancy Bond (18th Century)
- Lyn, who works in a reconstructed colonial settlement in Nova Scotia, finds herself transported back to 1744, when the French inhabitants are at war with England.
- The Broken Blade by William Durban (18th and 19th Century)
- When an injury keeps his father from going into northern Canada with fur traders, 13-year old Pierre decides to take his father's place.
Mexico
- In the Shadow of the Alamo by Sherry Garland (19th Century)
- 15-year-old Lorenzo is conscripted into the Mexican Army and finds himself in the middle of the battle for the Alamo against the Americans.
Latin America
- The Honorable Prison by Lyll Becerra de Jenkins (1950's)
- When Marta's father, a newspaper editor who persistently attacks the military dictator of their Latin American country, decides to take a moral stand, the family becomes political prisoners.
Europe
- The Ramsay Scallop by Frances Temple (14th Century)
- Elenor and Thomas, unhapy at being chosen by their families to be wed, discover love and respect for each other during a pilgrimage taking them across Europe to Spain.
Check the titles in Holocaust fiction for stories from the era of World War II.
Great Britain
- Song for a Dark Queen by Rosemary Sutcliff (England, 1st Century)
- A fictional account of the life of Boudicca, queen of the Iceni, who led British tribes in a revolt against the Romans in 62 A.D.
- Frontier Wolf by Rosemary Sutcliff (England, 4th Century)
- An inexperienced Roman army officer is sent to England as a punishment to command a group known as the Frontier Wolves.
- Black Horses for the King by Anne McCaffrey (England, 6th Century)
- Galwyn, son of a Roman Celt, escapes from his tyrannical uncle and joins King Arthur to acquire the Libyan horses that Arthur hopes to use in battle against the Saxons.
- The King's Shadow by Elizabeth Alder (England/Wales 11th Century)
- Evyn's experiences as slave to King Harold of England.
- The Winter Hare by Joan E. Goodman (England, 12th Century)
- Will's dreams of experiencing the adventure and excitement of aknight come true when, as a page at his uncle's castle, he becomes involved in a battle for control of the English throne.
- Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman (England, Middle Ages)
- Catherine knows the limitations of women in the Middle Ages, but her diary tells of her dreams of adventure and her efforts to avoid being married off until she experiences those adventures.
- The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman (England, Middle Ages)
- In medieval England, a homeless girl is taken in by a midwife and finds stability and a purpose in life.
- Quest for a Kelpie by Frances Hendry (Scotland, 18th Century)
- During the Scottish uprising against the English throne, Jeannie's loved ones are in great danger, and she must seek out the Kelpie, a Scottish spirit in the form of a horse, in the hopes of saving her family.
- The Ruby in the Smoke by Philip Pullman (England, 19th Century)
- Sally, recently orphaned, becomes involved in a deadly search for a mysterious ruby.
- Shadow in the North by Philip Pullman (England, 19th Century)
- Sally tackles the mystery surrounding the 1878 collapse of a shipping firm and its ties to the sinister North Star.
- The Tiger in the Well by Philip Pullman (England, 19th Century)
- In London in 1881, Sally finds her young daughter and her possessions assailed by an unknown enemy, while a shadowy figure involves her in his plot to defraud and exploit recent immigrants.
- Good Night, Mr. Tom by Michelle Magorian (England, World War II)
- A battered child learns to trust again when he is adopted by an old man during World War II.
- The War of Jenkins' Ear by Michael Morpurgo (England, 1950's)
- At a 1950's boarding school, Toby befriends a boy who claims to be Jesus Christ.
France
- Dove and Sword by Nancy Garden (15th Century)
- In this fictionalized account, Gabrielle joins her friend Joan of Arc on a pilgrimage to learn about the art of healing and to help crown the French king.
- The Burning Time by Carol Matas(16th Century)
- In a very oppressive, hysterical era, Rose's mother is accused of being a witch, and Rose is challenged with clearing her name.
- The Hunted by Peter Carter (World War II)
- In this gripping story of one soldier's efforts to save a Jewish boy from the Nazis, the quiet heroics of ordinary people caught in war come to life.
- Waiting for Anya by Michael Morpurgo (World War II)
- With German soldiers rapidly advancing on France, Jo and Benjamin devise an escape plan for Jews being hidden in the area.
Netherlands
- Postcards from No Man's Land by Aidan Chambers (World War II)
- A modern story of Jacob, an English teen who travels to Amsterdam and meets a Dutch woman who had cared for his soldier grandfather when he was wounded in battle alternates with an historical tale narrated by the woman about her relationship with Jacob's grandfather during World War II.
Denmark
- Number the Stars by Lois Lowry (World War II)
- Annemarie helps shelter her Jewish friend from the Nazis during Germany's occupation of Denmark during World War II.
Germany
- Chase Me, Catch Nobody by Erik Christian Haugaard (1930's)
- On a school trip to Germany in 1937, a Danish boy becomes involved in the activities of the anti-Nazi underground.
- The Final Journey by Gudrun Pausewang (World War II)
- lice has lived hidden away with her grandparents in Nazi Germany. But they have been discovered and are now riding on a train with other Jews to an unknown destination.
Austria
- The Devil in Vienna by Doris Origel (World War II)
- A Jewish girl and the daughter of a Nazi have been best friends for years, but with the onset of World War II, they find their friendship difficult to maintain.
Italy
- The Apprentice by Pilar Molina Llorente (Renaissance)
- Working as an artist's apprentice in Renaissance Florence, Arduino makes a discovery that may cost him the chance to become a painter.
Poland
- King Matt the First by Janusz Korczak (19th Century)
- Upon his father's death, Matt becomes both an orphan and a king. His hope is for children and adults to truly understand one another, but his idealism is viewed with suspicion by others in power.
- The Man from the Other Side by Uri Orlev (World War II)
- Living on the outskirts of the Warsaw ghetto during World War II, Marek and his grandparents shelter a Jewish man from the Nazis.
Greece
- Inside the Walls of Troy by Clemence McLaren (Ancient Greece)
- A fictional account of the Trojan War, as told by Helen of Troy and Cassandra.
Africa
Morocco
- The Beduin's Gazelle by Frances Temple (14th Century)
- In this sequel to THE RAMSAY SCALLOP, Etienne reaches the Middle East in 1302, where he meets an engaged couple who are separated because of warring tribes.
Northwestern Africa
- The Legend of Tarik by Walter Dean Myers (Middle Ages)
- After witnessing the annihilationh of his people by El Muerte's legions, Tarik undergoes training in order to destroy the fierce leader.
Egypt
- Escape from Egypt by Sonia Levitin (Ancient Egypt / Israel)
- When Moses comes to lead the Israelites to the Promised Land, Jesse, a Hebrew slave, finds his life changed by his growing faith in God and his attraction to the half-Egyptian, half-Syrian Jennat.
Nigeria
- Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (19th Century)
- Okonkwo and his family see their native ways challenged when his favorite son converts to Christianity.
South Africa
- 92 Queens Road by Dianne Case (1960's)
- As Kathy grows up in South Africa in the 1960's, she gradually learns how the Apartheid society will judge her based on her skin color.
Middle East
Israel
- Song of the Magdalene by Donna Jo Napoli (Ancient Israel)
- The story of Miriam, who grows up in ancient Israel to become Mary Magdalene.
- After the War by Carol Matas(1940's)
- Having survived the Holocaust, Ruth is recruited by the Jewish underground to help smuggle children into Palestine.
- The Garden by Carol Matas (1940's)
- In this sequel to AFTER THE WAR, Ruth and her friends are struggling for the formation of a Jewish state.
- The Lady with the Hat by Uri Olev (1940's)
- Yulek, believing he's the only member of his family to survive the German concentration camps during World War II, joins other Jews who are headed for a kibbutz in Israel, unaware that his aunt in London is trying to find him.
Asia
India
- Tusk and Stone by Malcolm Bosse (7th Century)
- Arjun, a member of the scholarly Brahmin class, is forced to make major adjustments in his life when he is captured and put to work as an elephant driver in the army.
China
- The Examination by Malcolm Bosse(15th Century)
- Brothers chen and Hong experience adventure and a secret society while traveling across the country in order for Chen to take government examinations that will determine his future.
- Rebels of the Heavenly Kingdom by Katherine Paterson (19th Century)
- After being abducted by bandits, Wang Lee is rescued from slavery gy a girl who introduces him to a secret society planning the overthrow of the Manchu government.
Japan
- Island of the Ogres by Lensey Namioka (Middle Ages)
- Kajiro, an unemployed samurai, helps solve a mystery and prevent the overthrow of a young ruler on an island in medieval Japan.
- The Samurai's Tale by Erik Christian Haugaard (16th Century)
- Taro, an orphan, is taken in by a great warlord and grows up to be a samurai fighting for the enemies of his dead family.
- Valley of the Broken Cherry Trees by Lensey Namioka (16th Century)
In medieval Japan, two samurai attempt to solve a number of puzzling mysteries, including who is mutilating the cherry trees in the valley of Lord Ohmori.
- The Revenge of the Forty-Seven Samurai by Erik Christian Haugaard (17th anbd 18th Century)
- A 14-year-old servant becomes a target of suspicion and betrayal as his master gathers a group of samurai to avenge Lord Asano's death.
Korea
- Year of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi (1940's)
- Sookan survives the oppressive Japanese and Russian occupation of North Korea and later escapes to freedom in South Korea.
- Echoes of the White Giraffe by Sook Nyul Choi (1940's and 1950's)
- Sequel to YEAR OF IMPOSSIBLE GOODBYES. Sookan adjusts to life in a refugee village but hopes for the end of the civil war and the reunion of her family.
Australia and South Pacific
New Zealand
- The Champion by Maurice Gee (World War II)
- In 1943, Rex sees his quiet new Zealand village dramatically changed by the arrival of a black American soldier on leave from the war.
- [http://aries.jmrl.org/search/t?in+lane+three+alex+archer In Lane Three, Alex Archer by Tessa Duder (1960's)
- Alex struggles to overcome personal trauma and hardship as she competes with a rival for a spot on New Zealand's swimming team at the 1960 Olympics.
