Historical Literature For Teens

London, 1883. The Veil between the living and dead has thinned. Violet-eyed mediums commune with spirits under the watchful eye of the Royal Speaker Society, and sixteen-year-old trans, autistic Silas Bell would rather rip out his violet eyes than become an obedient Speaker wife. After a failed attempt to escape an arranged marriage, Silas is diagnosed with Veil sickness—a mysterious disease sending violet-eyed women into madness—and shipped away to Braxton’s Finishing School and Sanitorium.

Escape through a maze of deception, betrayal, and death is the key to survival for 13 rebellious colonies that dare to fight tyranny and win their independence. Powerful forces seek to assassinate General George Washington as the unstoppable British fleet sails into New York Harbor. The Epic Order of the Seven must identify and stop the assassin, or the epic Battle of New York will be over before it even begins. The Declaration of Independence rallies patriots to tear down the statue of King George III, but will its words be worth dying for?

It is 1943, and for four years, 16-year-old Stefania has been working for the Diamant family in their grocery store in Przemsyl, Poland, singing her way into their lives and hearts. She has even made a promise to one of their sons, Izio - a betrothal they must keep secret since she is Catholic and the Diamants are Jewish.

They are Hazel, James, Aubrey, and Colette. A classical pianist from London, a British would-be architect turned soldier, a Harlem-born ragtime genius in the US Army, and a Belgian orphan with a gorgeous voice and a devastating past. Their story, as told by goddess Aphrodite, who must spin the tale or face judgment on Mount Olympus, is filled with hope and heartbreak, prejudice and passion, and reveals that, though war is a formidable force, it's no match for the transcendent power of love.

Narasimha has never been so furious in his life. He now rules Kashyapuri after Hiranyakashyap's death and spends his time planning revenge. Narasimha has vowed to kill Lord Indra, the man behind Chenchen's death. As Prahlad watches Nara's anger grow, he knows Nara must be stopped before he takes more innocent lives and everything is consumed by chaos. But can he do what is needed?

A vengeful Hiranyakashyap seeks to destroy Indra's kingdom, but he's haunted by his son Prahlad's decision to oppose him. Narasimha is on a quest to find Prahlad but, on his way, he comes across an old friend and an ancient poison that threatens to derail his plans. A furious Holika hunts for her nephew, only to discover painful details about his childhood that make her rethink her actions. Will Hiranyakashyap be able to defeat Indra? Can Holika forget her rage against her nephew?

Halt makes a horrifying discovery: Skandia's borders have been breached by the entire Temujai army. And Araluen is next in their sights. If two kingdoms are to be saved, an unlikely union must be made. Will it hold long enough to vanquish a ruthless new enemy? Or will past tensions spell doom for all?

After fleeing Ojai, Nicholas, Sophie, Josh, and Scatty emerge in Paris, the City of Lights. Home of Nicholas Flamel. Perenell is still locked up back in Alcatraz and Paris is teeming with enemies. Niccolò Machiavelli, immortal author and art collector, is after them, and time is running. For every day spent without the Book of Abraham the Mage, they age one year, their magic becoming weaker and their bodies more frail. For Flamel, the Prophecy is becoming more and more clear.

Simi prayed to the gods, once. Now she serves them as Mami Wata—a mermaid—collecting the souls of those who die at sea and blessing their journeys back home. But when a living boy is thrown overboard, Simi goes against an ancient decree and does the unthinkable—she saves his life. And punishment awaits those who dare to defy the gods.

Sixteen-year-old Echo Sackett has never been far from her Tennessee home - until she makes the long trek to Philadelphia to collect her inheritance. In the wilderness Echo can take care of herself as well as any man, but she never imagined the challenge that awaits: a crooked city lawyer who intends to take advantage of her by any means necessary. Echo will need all of her wits to best this scoundrel and make it back home in one piece.

Cairn has finally gained access to the Sanctum…the birthplace of the infernal’s mystic abilities and proving ground for their adolescents, a place filled to the brim with magic and mystery. The power he needs to solidify a major alliance is close at hand. All he needs to do is settle in and prove himself with the help of old friends and new. Simple enough. Or it would be, if Cairn was the only outsider to breach the Sanctum. When he arrives, he discovers an old enemy has sealed the Sanctum from the inside, holding it ransom. Her demands: “Bring me the head of the usurper.”

Her name is Omakayas, or Little Frog, because her first step was a hop, and she lives on an island in Lake Superior. It is 1850 and the lives of the Ojibwe have returned to a familiar rhythm: they build their birchbark houses in the summer, go to the ricing camps in the fall to harvest and feast, and move to their cozy cedar log cabins near the town of LaPointe before the first snows.

After his harsh beginnings as a rough-and-tumble orphan on the streets of London, Jake Everton, the boy Earl of Griffon, takes his rightful place as the long-lost heir of an aristocratic family with magical powers—his personal quest, to follow in his slain parents' footsteps as a Lightrider in the age-old battle of good versus evil. In the fantastical nooks and crannies of the Victorian Age, Jake and his friends (including his pet Gryphon!) find no shortage of adventure—righting magic-related wrongs, solving supernatural mysteries, and exploring wondrous new worlds.

Ranofer struggles to thwart the plottings of his evil brother, Gebu, so he can become master goldsmith like their father. Young listeners will love this exciting tale of ancient Egyptian mystery and intrigue.

Tamora Pierce brings readers another Tortall adventure! Alianne is the teenage daughter of the famed Alanna, the first lady knight in Tortall. Young Aly follows in the quieter footsteps of her father, however, delighting in the art of spying. When she is captured and sold as a slave to an exiled royal family in the faraway Copper Islands, it is this skill that makes a difference in a world filled with political intrigue, murderous conspiracy, and warring gods.

It's 1944 and the world is at war. Hideki lives peacefully with his family on the island of Okinawa, near Japan. Until the day WWII reaches their door. Hideki is drafted into the "Blood and Iron Imperial Corps" to fight for the Japanese army. He is handed two grenades and a set of instructions: go off into the jungle, and don't come back until you've killed an American soldier. Meanwhile, young American soldier Ray Majors has just landed on the beach in Okinawa. He doesn't know what to expect, or if he'll make it out alive, but he knows he must keep moving forward.

April 1294. With David returned from Ireland and Anna from Avalon, the time has come to confront the traitors who sought to assassinate David and take his throne. But before that can happen, David is tested yet again by his inability to account for everything or everyone in his life - and especially the magic that surrounds him.

Gul has spent her life running. She has a star-shaped birthmark on her arm, and in the kingdom of Ambar, girls with such birthmarks have been disappearing for years. Gul’s mark is what caused her parents’ murder at the hand of King Lohar’s ruthless soldiers and forced her into hiding to protect her own life. So when a group of rebel women called the Sisters of the Golden Lotus rescue her, take her in, and train her in warrior magic, Gul wants only one thing: revenge.

D-Day, June 6, 1944: the most expansive military endeavor in history. No less than world cooperation would bring down Hitler and the Axis powers. And so people - and kids - across the globe lent their part. From the young US soldiers in the boats to spies in the French countryside, the coordination of thousands came together. Alan Gratz, author of the New York Times best-selling Refugee, explores the necessity of teamwork and heroism in dismantling tyranny in this epic, yet personal, look at D-Day in time for the 75th anniversary of the operation.

The renegade outlaw group known as the Outsiders may have been chased from Clonmel, but not before killing Halt's only brother. Now Rangers Halt and Will, along with the young warrior Horace, are in pursuit. The Outsiders have done an effective job of dividing the kingdom into factions and are looking to overtake Araluen. It will take every bit of skill and cunning for the Rangers to survive. Some may not be so lucky.