Nim and the War Effort (Sunburst Book)
Nim's story takes place in China town, San Fransisco, 1943, during a competitive paper drive for the war effort. I really love how she stands up to the bully! Tender and humourus.
 | author: Milly Lee rating:  asin: 0374455066 binding: Paperback list price: $6.95 USD amazon price: $6.95 USD |
"Details place the affecting story in a real, not idealized, America." --Kirkus Reviews
"It’s the last day of the newspaper drive and Nim, a Chinese-American girl in San Francisco during World War II, is determined to win. Her nearest rival has cheated. Undaunted, she leaves Chinatown and walks up Nob Hill after school, determined to find more scrap newspaper. Nim’s sweet seriousness and ingenuity are captured in the text and in the luminous, grave illustrations." --The New York Times Book Review
"Based on the author’s childhood memories, Nim’s story celebrates the patriotism of Asian family members in embracing their new home and country and their efforts to maintain their cultural traditions. A fine addition." -- School Library Journal
The Town in the Library
 | author: E. Nesbit rating:  asin: 0803704771 binding: Hardcover list price: $10.95 USD amazon price: $10.95 |
The Enchanted Book: A Tale from Krakow
If your child needs some motivation to learn to read, this book may do the trick. In it, the girl who learns to read is able to read the spell that sets her sisters free after they have been imprisoned by an enchanter.
| author: Janina Porazinska rating: asin: 0152259503 binding: Hardcover list price: $4.98 USD amazon price: $4.98 |
Welcome to Kirsten's World, 1854: Growing Up in Pioneer America (American Girls Collection)
These books have helped our girls (then 10 and 7) to understand this part of history. We read the entire Kirsten story first, which I strongly recommend. That way they understood how it all connected.
 | author: Susan Sinnott Jodi Evert Michelle Jones Yvette Lapierre rating:  asin: 1562477706 binding: Hardcover list price: $16.95 USD amazon price: $16.95 |
Presents a look at daily life in pioneer America during the 1850s by following a family that emigrates from Sweden to Minnesota.
Welcome to Felicity's World, 1774: Growing Up in Colonial America (American Girls Collection)
A great way to get a glimpse of what life was like just before the American Revolution. We have really enjoyed understanding history with these books.
 | author: Catherine Gourley Camela Decaire Jodi Evert rating: asin: 1562477684 binding: Hardcover list price: $16.95 USD amazon price: $16.95 |
Provides an in-depth look at daily life and historical events in the American colonies during the Revolutionary War, including home life, work, medicine, and play.
Molly's Pilgrim
 | author: Barbara Cohen rating: asin: 0688162797 binding: Hardcover list price: $16.99 USD amazon price: $11.55 USD |
Sparkling new illustrations refresh this Thanksgiving classic based on the true experience of a member of Barbara Cohen's family. The touching story tells how recent immigrant Molly leads her third-grade class to discover that it takes all kinds of pilgrims to make a Thanksgiving. Originally published in 1983, Molly's Pilgrim inspired the 1986 Academy Award winning live-action short film.
What's The Big Idea, Ben Franklin? (Paperstar)
Laurel (then 10) found this book fascinating and asked to hear it twice.
 | author: Jean Fritz rating: asin: 0698113721 binding: Paperback list price: $6.99 USD amazon price: $6.99 USD |
A brief biography of the eighteenth-century printer, inventor, and statesman who played an influential role in the early history of the United States.
Hokusai: The Man Who Painted a Mountain
Our girls were captivated by this book, especially Ella (then 6) who wanted me to read it again (even though it took 25 minuets to read through just once)!
 | author: Deborah Kogan Ray rating: asin: 0374332630 binding: Hardcover list price: $18.00 USD amazon price: $13.50 USD |
A tribute to an artist unafraid to break with tradition.
In her own glowing paintings and lucid text, Deborah Kogan Ray tells the fascinating life story of the Japanese artist Hokusai (1760-1849). He rose from poverty, taught himself to draw, became the promising pupil of a great master, and then defied tradition to become one of the most important and influential artists in the world.
Ray's paintings are rich with period and biographical detail. The endpapers show drawings from Hokusai's sketchbooks. Also included is one of his famous Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji.
The Magic School Bus Inside the Earth (Magic School Bus)
We love the Magic School Bus series.
 | author: Joanna Cole rating: asin: 0590407600 binding: Paperback list price: $6.99 USD amazon price: $6.99 USD |
Where do rocks come from? When Ms. Frizzle asks her students to bring rocks to class, almost everyone forgets.
Elsie Piddock Skips in Her Sleep
This is a sweet and lengthy story of a little girl who is a "born
skipper." She began at 3, "By the time she was six her name and fame
were known to all the villages in the county. And by the time she was
seven, the fairies heard of her." Of course, we all love our fairy
stories! The fairies Skipping Master invites her to be his student
every new moon for a year, and she learns remarkable tricks like
skipping through her mother's keyhole! Many years pass, and trouble
arises - and a 109 year old Elsie has an idea to save the day... We
enjoyed the story, but beware, it took 35 minuets to read it.
 | author: Eleanor Farjeon rating: asin: 0763638102 binding: Paperback list price: $6.99 USD amazon price: $6.99 USD |
"A classic tale of tyranny overcome. . . . Voake makes this neglected gem — an unforgettable read-aloud — look new." — KIRKUS REVIEWS (STARRED REVIEW)
Elsie Piddock is a born skipper. By the time she’s seven, the tireless girl can even outskip the fairies and is rewarded with a gift of rare and lasting value. Can she use it many years later to save the children’s fabled skipping grounds from a greedy, factory-building lord? Charlotte Voake’s exuberant art pairs with Eleanor Farjeon’s unforgettable tale for a match made in picture-book heaven.
