Books like 'An American Story'
Readers who enjoyed An American Story by Kwame Alexander also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical action / adventure social-commentary slavery grief historical-fiction poc-mc children exploration black-mc
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Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA stirring, dramatic story of a slave who mails himself to freedom by a Jane Addams Peace Award-winning author and a Coretta Scott King Award-winning artist.Henry Brown doesn't know how old he is. Nobody keeps records of slaves' birthdays. All the time he dreams about freedom, but that dream seems farther away than ever when he is torn from his family and put to work in a warehouse...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc slavery social-commentary action-adventure audiobook -
Pink y Say by Patricia Polacco
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsFor use in schools and libraries only. Say Curtis describes his meeting with Pinkus Aylee, a black soldier, during the Civil War, and their capture by Southern troops. Based on a true story about the author's great-great-grandfather... -
Hand Of Fate by Duane Boehm
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsBestselling Western author Duane Boehm has written another western novel with enough humor, heartbreak, love, and outlaws to keep you turning the page.While the ranchers around Trinidad are circling like buzzards in wait for Flannery Vogel to fail, the downtrodden widow with a young daughter refuses to surrender as she struggles to run the ranch that cost her husband his life... -
Room to Dream by Kelly Yang
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsMia Tang is going for her dreams!After years of hard work, Mia Tang finally gets to go on vacation with her family -- to China! A total dream come true! Mia can't wait to see all her cousins and grandparents again, especially her cousin Shen. As she roams around Beijing, witnessing some of the big changes China's going through, Mia thinks about the changes in her own life, like . . .1... -
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Ashes by Laurie Halse Anderson
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsReturn to the American Revolution in the conclusion to the Seeds of America trilogy.As the Revolutionary War rages on, Isabel and Curzon have narrowly escaped Valley Forge--but their relief is short-lived. Before long they are reported as runaways, and the awful Bellingham is determined to track them down... -
Summer by Laurence E. Dahners
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe third book in the Bonesetter series, a pre historical account of Pell, a boy in a primitive society who learns to "set bones." In this third story he’s become the de facto leader of the Cold Springs tribe, though he still resists the mantle. The tale follows his invention of such things as the spear thrower, chimney and the beginnings of agriculture...Categorized as:
historical-fiction slavery action-adventure adult book fiction historical prehistoric -
Hand Of Fate by Duane Boehm
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsBestselling Western author Duane Boehm has written another western novel with enough humor, heartbreak, love, and outlaws to keep you turning the page.While the ranchers around Trinidad are circling like buzzards in wait for Flannery Vogel to fail, the downtrodden widow with a young daughter refuses to surrender as she struggles to run the ranch that cost her husband his life... -
Goin' Someplace Special by Jerry Pinkney, Patricia C. McKissack
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratings1950s Nashville, Tennessee is segregated, and black people are persecuted, but young Tricia Ann is determined to venture on her own across town to someplace special. A must read book about persecution of minorities, but also about hope and light...Categorized as:
black-mc children exploration historical-fiction poc-mc social-commentary action-adventure book -
Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsKek comes from Africa. In America he sees snow for the first time, and feels its sting. He's never walked on ice, and he falls. He wonders if the people in this new place will be like the winter – cold and unkind.In Africa, Kek lived with his mother, father, and brother. But only he and his mother have survived, and now she's missing. Kek is on his own...Categorized as:
children exploration grief historical-fiction poc-mc social-commentary action-adventure animals -
The Door of No Return by Kwame Alexander
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAn instant #1 New York Times Bestseller!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 Kwanta, 11-year-old Kofi loves his family, playing oware with his grandfather and swimming in the river Offin...Categorized as:
historical-fiction slavery poc-mc children social-commentary grief exploration middle-grade -
La pierre et le sabre by Eiji Yoshikawa
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDans le Japon du XVIIe siècle, le jeune Takezó devient le samouraï Miyamoto Musashi et n'a plus qu'un seul but : tendre à la perfection. Dépasser ses sentiments et persévérer pour s'améliorer, se perfectionner et parvenir à comprendre le sens profond de la vie en développant son art, l'art du combat. Duel après duel, il crée son propre style... -
The Apprenticeship of Nigel Blackthorn by Frank Kelso
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsNigel must choose between entering an orphanage or entering an apprenticeship on a mule train.The APPRENTICESHIP OF NIGEL BLACKTHORN is a coming-of-age story set in the American West of 1853. The story relates the adventures of a thirteen-year-old English boy whose missionary parents came to convert the wild heathens to the way of Christ...Categorized as:
exploration historical-fiction poc-mc 19th-century action-adventure book fiction historical -
Captured by Beverly Jenkins
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsShe was the most irresistible treasure of all . . . Dominic LeVeq, the most notorious privateer ever to command the high seas, has just captured a coveted prize: a British frigate. On a dangerous mission against the Crown, Dominic should be thinking only of his ship's safety. But the rebel captain is utterly entranced by Clare Sullivan, the stunning slave on board...Categorized as:
black-mc historical-fiction poc-mc slavery action-adventure adult american-civil-war audiobook -
Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIllus. in full color. "Winter's story begins with a peg-leg sailor who aids slaves on their escape on the Underground Railroad. While working for plantation owners, Peg Leg Joe teaches the slaves a song about the drinking gourd (the Big Dipper). A couple, their son, and two others make their escape by following the song's directions...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc slavery social-commentary action-adventure book -
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Ruth and the Green Book by Calvin Alexander Ramsey, Gwen Strauss
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsRuth and the Green Book is the story of one black family's trip from Chicago to Alabama by car in the late 1940s. Along the way they encounter prejudice, but they also discover The Green Book, a real guide to accommodations which was published for decades to aid African-American travelers as they faced prejudice on the roads across the country...Categorized as:
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Togo by Kate Klimo
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSmall, feisty Siberian husky Togo—the overlooked sled-dog hero of the 1925 serum run to Nome—sets the record straight in Dog Diaries #4! When a diptheria epidemic breaks out in isolated Nome, Alaska, in January 1925, the only way to get life-saving serum to the town is by using dog-sled relay teams...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction action-adventure animals book children-books dogs fiction -
Welcome to Nowhere by Elizabeth Laird
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsTwelve-year-old Omar and his brothers and sisters were born and raised in the beautiful and bustling city of Bosra, Syria. Omar doesn't care about politics—all he wants is to grow up to become a successful businessman who will take the world by storm. But when his clever older brother, Musa, gets mixed up with some young political activists, everything changes...Categorized as:
historical-fiction children exploration young-adult war fiction children-books middle-grade -
A Sweet Smell of Roses by Angela Johnson
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsTwo young girls not only witness but help to change history in this inspiring and urgent Civil Rights-era picture book by three-time Coretta Scott King Award winner Angela Johnson.There's a sweet, sweet smell in the air as two young girls sneak out of their house, down the street, and across town to where men and women are gathered, ready to march for freedom and justice...Categorized as:
historical-fiction social-commentary poc-mc children black-mc exploration children-books historical -
The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales by Virginia Hamilton
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsVirginia Hamilton (1936-2002), a giant in the world of children's literature, was the first African-American woman to win a Newbery Medal and the first children's book author to be awarded a MacArthur Genius Grant...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc slavery action-adventure anthologies audiobook -
African Town by Irene Latham, Charles Waters
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsChronicling the story of the last Africans brought illegally to America in 1860, African Town is a powerful and stunning novel-in-verse. In 1860, long after the United States outlawed the importation of enslaved laborers, 110 men, women and children from Benin and Nigeria were captured and brought to Mobile, Alabama aboard a ship called Clotilda... -
Ruby's Wish by Shirin Yim Bridges, Sophie Blackall
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsRuby is unlike most little girls in old China. Instead of aspiring to get married, Ruby is determined to attend university when she grows up, just like the boys in her family...Categorized as:
historical-fiction poc-mc children social-commentary exploration children-books family fiction -
The Seven Chinese Brothers by Margaret Mahy
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA magnificently illustrated and authentic retelling of the classic Chinese folktale of the seven brothers and their supernatural gifts. "Exceptional...Categorized as:
children exploration historical-fiction poc-mc action-adventure book children-books classics -
This Is the Rope: A Story from the Great Migration by Jacqueline Woodson, James E. Ransome
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsJacqueline Woodson--New York TimesBestselling, National Book Award andNewbery Honor winning author--writes arich story of a family adapting to change as they hold on to the past and embrace the future. WithCoretta Scott King Award winning illustrator James Ransome.During the time of the Great Migration, millions of African American families relocated from the South, seeking better opportunities...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc social-commentary action-adventure audiobook book -
Jackie & Me by Dan Gutman
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsLike every other kid in his class, Joe Stoscack has to write a report on an African American who's made an important contribution to society. Unlike every other kid in his class, Joe has a special talent: with the help of old baseball cards, he can travel through time...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc action-adventure book children-books fiction -
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Unbound: A Novel in Verse by Ann E. Burg, Bahni Turpin
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFrom the award-winning author of All the Broken Pieces and Serafina's Promise comes a new novel-in-verse that is a gripping, transcendent story about a little-known piece of slave history. The day Grace is called from the slave cabins to work in the Big House, Mama makes her promise to keep her eyes down... -
Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsA middle-grade novel about two enslaved children’s escape from a plantation and the many ways they find freedom.Under the cover of night, twelve-year-old Homer flees Southerland Plantation with his little sister Ada, unwillingly leaving their beloved mother behind. Much as he adores her and fears for her life, Homer knows there’s no turning back, not with the overseer on their trail...Categorized as:
historical-fiction slavery children poc-mc social-commentary black-mc middle-grade fiction -
I Survived the Battle of Gettysburg 1863 by Lauren Tarshis
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIssued on Playaway, a dedicated audio media player...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc slavery action-adventure american-civil-war audiobook -
The Tide Between Us by Olive Collins
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratings1821: After the landlord of Lugdale Estate in Kerry is assassinated, young Art O'Neill's innocent father is hanged and Art is deported to the cane fields of Jamaica as an indentured servant. On Mangrove Plantation he gradually acclimatises to the exotic country and unfamiliar customs of the African slaves, and achieves a kind of contentment.Then the new heirs to the plantation arrive... -
O'Sullivan Stew by Hudson Talbott
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSomeone has stolen the witch of Crookhaven's horse, and there will be no peace in the village until it is returned. So bold, brassy Kate O'Sullivan takes matters into her own hands. But instead of saving the day, she manages to land herself--and her family--in trouble with the king. So Kate sets out to save their hides the only way she knows how--with a good story...Categorized as:
children exploration historical-fiction poc-mc 20th-century action-adventure animals book -
Two Thousand Seasons by Ayi Kwei Armah
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTrans Atlantic and African slave trades are the subject of Armah's Two Thousand Seasons (1973) in which a pluralized communal voice speaks through the history of Africa, its wet and dry seasons, from a period of one thousand years. Arab and European oppressors are portrayed as "predators," "destroyers," and "zombies"...Categorized as:
historical-fiction poc-mc slavery 20th-century action-adventure adult book colonization -
Mystery of the Egyptian Mummy by Scott Peters
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsLOOKING FOR HALLOWE'EN BOOKS FOR KIDS? "Action-packed" - Middle Grade Fiction Finder Shhhh... Something spooky is happening in ancient Egypt! Can these four friends unwind the riddle of the moaning mummy? When Zet comes face-to-face with a mummy, his eyes practically pop out of his head... -
The Pegasus Quest by Jordan Quinn
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIn the tenth fantastical adventure of The Kingdom of Wrenly series, Prince Lucas and Clara must rescue a young Pegasus.When a shooting star streaks across the night sky, Prince Lucas makes a wish for an epic adventure. Little did he know it would come true! As Lucas and Clara set out to investigate some mysterious happenings in Wrenly, they find a Pegasus that is lost and in danger...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction action-adventure book children-books fiction historical middle-grade -
Geronimo Stilton Cavemice #8: Surfing for Secrets by Geronimo Stilton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsGeronimo Stilton's ancient ancestor is back in another prehistoric adventure!A mysterious rodent has been shipwrecked on Mouse Island. He's a prehistoric pirate, and he's searching for a lost Stone Age treasure! Geronimo Stiltonoot and his family volunteer to help him on his dangerous hunt...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction action-adventure book children-books fiction historical humor -
My Autosaurus Will Win! by Geronimo Stilton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFor cavemouse Geronimo Stiltonoot, life is one prehistoric problem after another!Geronimo Stiltonoot is competing in a race to Boulder Bay and back! It's dangerous, but it will supply the village cheese maker with rare hot lava peppers, and there's a big prize for the winner. Unfortunately, Geronimo has a lazy, slow, city autosaurus (the cavemice mode of transportation)...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction action-adventure book children-books fiction historical humor -
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Across the Great Sparkling Water (The Peacemaker Series) by Zoe Saadia
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTo live in captivity, adopted by the enemies of her people, or to break the law and tradition by running away? That question did not occur to Onheda until after she fled Little Falls on the spur of the moment, against any better judgment. If she was to die in the woods, making her way back to her people, accused, even by them, of breaking the ancient custom, it was still the better choice... -
Almost to Freedom by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsLindy and her doll Sally are best friends - wherever Lindy goes, Sally stays right by her side. They eat together, sleep together, and even pick cotton together. So, on the night Lindy and her mama run away in search of freedom, Sally goes too. This young girl's rag doll vividly narrates her enslaved family's courageous escape through the Underground Railroad...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc slavery social-commentary action-adventure book -
Long Road to Freedom by Kate Messner
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsRanger is a time-traveling golden retriever with search-and-rescue training. In this adventure, he goes to a Maryland plantation during the days of American slavery, where he meets a young girl named Sarah. When she learns that the owner has plans to sell her little brother, Jesse, to a plantation in the Deep South, it means they could be separated forever... -
An Instant in the Wind by André P. Brink
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe year is 1749, when the Boers ruled South Africa. And so it has come to his Baas's final command to his Hottentot slave Adam, to flog his mother, because she refuses to prune the master's vineyard in order to attend her own beloved mother's funeral. And when he refuses to do so, and his Baas smashes his face with a piece of wood, Adam turns on him, and beats him almost to death...Categorized as:
historical-fiction poc-mc slavery 20th-century action-adventure adult book colonization -
Aunt Harriet's Underground Railroad in the Sky by Faith Ringgold
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIllus. in full color. Cassie, who flew above New York in Tar Beach, soars into the sky once more. This time, she and her brother Be Be meet a train full of people, and Be Be joins them. But the train departs before Cassie can climb aboard...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc slavery social-commentary action-adventure book -
Encounter by Jane Yolen
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen Christopher Columbus landed on the island of San Salvador in 1492, what he discovered were the Taino Indians. Told from a young Taino boy’s point of view, this is a story of how the boy tried to warn his people against welcoming the strangers, who seemed more interested in golden ornaments than friendship...Categorized as:
historical-fiction social-commentary poc-mc children exploration children-books historical fiction -
Diamond by Jacqueline Wilson, Nick Sharratt
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe fantastic new novel from bestselling author Jacqueline Wilson, starring Diamond, the little circus acrobat who first appeared in the hugely popular Hetty Feather books: Hetty Feather, Sapphire Battersea and Emerald Star.Diamond wasn’t always a star. Born to penniless parents who longed for a strong, healthy son, she was a dainty, delicate daughter - and a bitter disappointment...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction action-adventure book children-books family fiction historical -
Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsRinggold recounts the dream adventure of eight-year-old Cassie Louise Lightfoot, who flies above her apartment-building rooftop, the 'tar beach' of the title, looking down on 1939 Harlem. Part autobiographical, part fictional, this allegorical tale sparkles with symbolic and historical references central to African-American culture. The spectacular artwork resonates with color and texture...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc action-adventure book children-books classics -
Big Papa and the Time Machine by Daniel Bernstrom
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsDiscover the true meaning of being brave in this tender and whimsical picture book from Daniel Bernstrom (One Day in the Eucalytus, Eucalyptus Tree) and Shane Evans (Chocolate Me!) that follows a grandfather and grandson who travel through time in a beloved 1952 Ford.A little boy who lives with his grandpa isn’t reprimanded for being afraid to go to school one day...Categorized as:
black-mc children historical-fiction poc-mc social-commentary action-adventure book children-books -
Magic Tree House Set #1-47 by Mary Pope Osborne
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIncludes #1: Dinosaurs Before Dark; #2: The Knight at Dawn; #3: Mummies in the Morning; #4: Pirates Past Noon; #5: Night of the Ninjas; #6: Afternoon on the Amazon; #7: Sunset of the Sabertooth; #8: Midnight on the Moon; #9: Dolphins at Daybreak; #10: Ghost Town at Sundown; #11: Lions at Lunchtime; #12: Polar Bears Past Bedtime; #13: Vacation Under the Volcano; #14: Day of the Dragon King; #15:...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction action-adventure audiobook book children-books fiction historical -
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Abby - Lost at Sea by Pamela June Walls
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThis delightful new series, focusing on the travels of Abby Kendall, is a sure-fire hit for 8- to 12-year-old girls. Lots of surprises will keep them coming back for each new Abby title. In Book 1, spunky Abby and her friend Luke are thrown overboard while en route to Hawaii. Pirates, a treasure map, and friendly Hawaiians make for a story that readers won't be able to put down... -
Will's Race for Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBestselling and award-winning author Jewell Parker Rhodes goes West in this thrilling adventure story about a son and his father who set out to win land during the Oklahoma Land Rush. It’s 1889, barely twenty-five years after the Emancipation Proclamation, and a young Black family is tired of working on land they don’t get to own...Categorized as:
historical-fiction slavery poc-mc black-mc middle-grade audiobook historical action-adventure -
Stories from Around the World by Heather Amery
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe stories in this book, one from each major country or area of the world, are written in a way that young listeners and young readers will find easy to understand and...Categorized as:
children exploration historical-fiction poc-mc action-adventure anthologies children-books classics -
Jim & Me by Dan Gutman
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsHe was the world's greatest athlete, and a hero—until his medals were taken away.Stosh is shocked when his enemy, Bobby Fuller, begs him for a favor. He wants Stosh to take him back in time to meet Native American Jim Thorpe—an Olympic champion who lost his medals in a scandal. Thorpe went on to play professional baseball and football, but he could never again achieve such fame...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction poc-mc action-adventure book children-books fiction historical -
American History Quartet Set (Magic Tree House, #21-24) by Mary Pope Osborne
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsBooks 21-24 of the "New York Times" bestselling Magic Tree House series boxed together for the first time! These four titles are the perfect gift for a Magic Tree House fan or any child who loves a good adventure...Categorized as:
children exploration historical-fiction action-adventure book children-books fiction historical -
Tree Girl by Ben Mikaelsen
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThey call Gabriela Tree Girl. Gabi climbs trees to be within reach of the eagles and watch the sun rise into an empty sky. She is at home among the outstretched branches of the Guatemalan forests.Then one day from the safety of a tree, Gabi witnesses the sights and sounds of an unspeakable massacre...Categorized as:
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