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A German teen is jailed for treason after publishing leaflets that expose Hitler’s lies.

When a strike takes a dangerous turn, Rosa and Jake leave their homes for the safety of a neighboring town. Paterson uses the real events of the Lawrence textile strike as a backdrop for a compelling story about the turn of the century immigrant experience.

Twelve-year-old Sora and her eight-year-old brother, Youngsoo, must try to escape North Korea’s oppressive Communist regime and survive three hundred miles of warzone in winter in 1950.

Meg Medina transports readers to a time when New York seemed balanced on a knife-edge, with tempers and temperatures running high: the infamous summer of 1977, when the city is besieged by arson, a massive blackout, and a serial killer named Son of Sam who shoots young women on the streets. Seventeen-year-old Nora Lopez’s family life isn’t going so well, either. Before she turns eighteen and can strike out on her own, Nora will discover that the greatest dangers are often closer than we like to admit — and the hardest to accept.

In the final days of the Việt Nam War, Hằng takes her little brother, Linh, to the airport, determined to find a way to safety in America. In a split second, Linh is ripped from her arms — and Hằng is left behind in the war-torn country. Six years later, Hằng has made the brutal journey from Việt Nam and is now in Texas as a refugee. She doesn’t know how she will find the little brother who was taken from her until she meets LeeRoy, a city boy with big rodeo dreams, who decides to help her. Hằng is overjoyed when she reunites with Linh. But when she realizes he doesn’t remember her, their family, or Việt Nam, her heart is crushed. Though the distance between them feels greater than ever, Hằng has come so far that she will do anything to bridge the gap. Rip Van Winkle Award and NPR Best Books of 2019.

When Moose’s family moves to Alcatraz so his father can work as a guard and his sister can attend a special school in San Francisco, Moose has to leave his friends and his winning baseball team behind. Moose just wants to protect Natalie, live up to his parent’s expectations, and stay out of trouble, but on Alcatraz, trouble is never very far away.

Nothing is the way it’s supposed to be when you live on an island with a billion birds, a ton of bird crap, a few dozen rifles, machine guns and automatics and 278 of America’s worst criminals. And then there’s Moose Flanagan. Moose’s father works as a prison guard and his family lives on the east side of Alcatraz — not far from the mobster Al Capone.

Isabel, an enslaved 13-year old, and her younger sister are set to be freed but instead are sold to a ruthless Loyalist at the start of the Revolutionary War. Life in New York City during the time comes vividly alive as do the complexities of the war

In 1972, President Ida Amin had a dream that he believed was a message from God. Based on that dream, this dictator decides to eliminate all foreign Indians — the “Jews of Uganda” — in 90 days. Fifteen-year-old Sabine thinks that she and her family will be spared since they are citizens of Uganda, but eventually no one is spared from the effects of this mandate. When there is a governmental shift in power by an extremist, no one is spard.

Two young girls who have been raised by wolves are brought to Mohandas’s orphanage, and Mohandas tries to teach them the ways of humans.

Set against the backdrop of the segregation history of the American South, William “Scoob” Lamar, an eleven-year-old Black boy, takes an unplanned trip with his grandmother and discovers that the world hasn’t always been a welcoming place for kids like him, and things aren’t always what they seem—his G’ma included.

Though it’s unusual for a girl in colonial India, 15-year-old Vidya’s father supports her dream of attending college. When her father — an advocate of nonviolence — is severely injured in a protest against British rule, Vidya not only loses her best advocate, but she’s forced to live with her very traditional grandfather. Vidya’s quest for independence mirrors that of her country.

Throughout World War II, in the conflict fought against Japan, Navajo (Diné) code talkers were a crucial part of the U.S. effort, sending messages back and forth in an unbreakable code that used their native language. They braved some of the heaviest fighting of the war, and with their code, they saved countless American lives. Yet their story remained classified for more than twenty years. But now Joseph Bruchac brings their stories to life for young adults through the riveting fictional tale of Ned Begay, a sixteen-year-old boy who becomes a code talker. The story of his grueling journey honors this important piece of history. Winner of the ALA Best Book for Young Adults.

As a measure of safety, 13-year-old Lisette Beaucaire is sent away from her home in Nazi-occupied Paris to live with an aunt in the country. Disappointed she won’t be with her friends to start a new school year, Lisette is disconcerted about having nothing to do but spend time with her annoying cousin, Cecile. She quickly realizes, however, that her time in the country will be anything but ordinary when she discovers that her aunt is hiding Jewish and Gypsy children from the Nazis. In addition to preparing for the day the Germans come looking for them, she meets Gerard, the ghost of a 14th-century knight, who ends up playing a significant role in the outcome of this story.

Crispin is falsely accused of murder and must flee his medieval town to save his life. But, just as he’s leaving, he learns from the village priest that his parents’ origins – and fates – might be more mysterious than he ever imagined.

When Mariah and her younger brother Zeke are freed from slavery, Mariah packs her belongings and her brother into a wagon driven by Caleb, a free Black man, who helps them join General Sherman’s treacherous march through Georgia until he is forced to leave them behind when he must cross with the troops at Ebenezer Creek and leave Mariah trapped as Rebel forces draw near.

From Hitler Youth to hunted “mischling,” Daniel’s world unravels when he discovers his mother’s hidden history “taints” him with Jewish blood and marks him for extermination.

Twelve-year-old David has only known life in a concentration camp in Eastern Europe. When the opportunity to escape presents itself, David seizes it and then begins his journey to Denmark and freedom. Walden Media made a movie of this book, originally published in Denmark in 1963, by the same name in 2004. Since then, it has been mass marketed to educators. For teaching materials, visit their website.

Thirteen-year-old Azad knows nothing but war while growing up in a predominantly Kurdish town in Sardasht, Iran. Iran’s new religious leader, the Ayatollah Khomeini wants to eliminate the Kurds while Iraq’s Saddam Hussein’s would like to occupy that part of Iran. Readers get a glimpse into the heart of this young Kurdish refugee and will experience the loss and hope of emigration.

The flight of an Albanian family from Kosovo to avoid escalating violence and what they confront when they land in a small Vermont village comes to life through the voice of 12-year old Meli.

The murder of a young knight, a white wolfhound, and a faithful page in medieval France all come together to create a fast-paced, gripping mystery.

Moon Shadow joins his father, traveling from China to San Francisco in the early 20th century. Together father and son confront harsh prejudice as well as kindness, and ultimately follow a dream to build a flying machine in this Newbery Honor novel.

Dream Freedom is based on a real-life teacher and her students who worked to make a difference in the lives of Dinka slaves in modern day Africa. After reading a newspaper article to her class about atrocities in Sudan, Miss Hazel’s class wants to help. Their research uncovers a way to buy back slaves and the students work to raise money to purchase liberty for as many slaves as they can and to educate others about human rights and freedoms.

When seventeen-year-old biracial Rowan Chase discovers a skeleton buried on her family’s Tulsa, Oklahoma, property, her investigation reveals a murder and a racially-charged violent historical event.