Historical Fiction Reads for Fourth and Fifth Graders

Posted on July 4, 2018

by Regina S

Experience the past with these great historical fiction reads for 4th and 5th Graders.

Historical Fiction Books for Kids

Beyond the Bright Sea” by Lauren Wolk

Beyond the Bright Sea by Lauren Wolk

Set adrift on the ocean in a small skiff as a newborn, twelve-year-old Crow embarks on a quest to find the missing pieces of her history. Also available in AudioeBook and eAudio.

Echo” by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Decades after a man is entwined in a prophecy-based quest involving three mysterious sisters and a harmonica, three individuals from different areas of the world confront daunting challenges involving the same harmonica. Also available in AudioPlayaway (pocket audiobook)eBook and eAudio.

Full Cicada Moon” by Marilyn Hilton

Full Cicada Moon by Marilyn Hilton

In 1969 twelve-year-old Mimi and her family move to an all-white town in Vermont, where Mimi’s mixed-race background and interest in “boyish” topics like astronomy make her feel like an outsider. Also available in eBook.

Inside Out and Back Again” by Thanhha Lai

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai

Through a series of poems, a young girl chronicles the life-changing year of 1975, when she, her mother, and her brothers leave Vietnam and resettle in Alabama. Also available in eBook and eAudio.

Lucky Broken Girl” by Ruth Behar

Lucky Broken Girl by Ruth Behar

In 1960s New York, fifth-grader Ruthie, a Cuban-Jewish immigrant, must rely on books, art, her family, and friends in her multicultural neighborhood when an accident puts her in a body cast. Also available in Audio and eAudio.

One Crazy Summer” by Rita Williams Garcia

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

In the summer of 1968, after travelling from Brooklyn, New York, to Oakland, California, to spend a month with the mother they barely know, 11-year-old Delphine and her two younger sisters arrive to a cold welcome as they discover that their mother, a dedicated poet and printer, is resentful of their intrusion and wants them to attend a nearby Black Panther summer camp. Also available in eBook and eAudio.

Refugee” by Alan Gratz

Refugee by Alan Gratz

Although separated by continents and decades, Josef, a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany; Isabel, a Cuban girl trying to escape the riots and unrest plaguing her country in 1994; and Mahmoud, a Syrian boy in 2015 whose homeland is torn apart by violence and destruction, embark on harrowing journeys in search of refuge, discovering shocking connections that tie their stories together. Also available in AudioeBook and eAudio.

Some Kind of Courage” by Dan Gemeinhart

Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart

In 1890 Washington the only family Joseph Johnson has left is his half-wild Indian pony, Sarah, so when she is sold by a man who has no right to do so, he sets out to get her back–and he plans to let nothing stop him in his quest. Also available in Audio and eAudio.

Stella by Starlight” by Sharon M. Draper

Stella by Starlight by Sharon M. Draper

When a burning cross set by the Klan causes panic and fear in 1932 Bumblebee, North Carolina, fifth-grader Stella must face prejudice and find the strength to demand change in her segregated town. Also available in eBook and eAudio.

The Journey of Little Charlie” by Christopher Paul Curtis

The Journey of Little Charlie by Christopher Paul Curtis

Striking a deal with a formidable local in the aftermath of his father’s death, 12-year-old Charlie, the child of sharecroppers, agrees to track down a band of thieves only to confront a difficult moral choice when he learns the true identities and circumstances of his targets. Also available in Audio and eAudio.

The War that Saved My Life” by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

A young disabled girl and her brother are evacuated from London to the English countryside during World War II, where they find life to be much sweeter away from their abusive mother. Also available in eBook and eAudio.

Towers Falling” by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Towers Falling by Jewell Parker Rhodes

While learning about September 11th, fifth grader Dèja (born after the attacks) realizes how much the events still color her world. Also available in AudioeBook and eAudio.

Unbound: A Novel in Verse” by Ann E. Burg

Unbound : A Novel in Verse by Ann E. Burg

The day nine-year-old Grace is called to work in the kitchen in the Big House, everyone warns her to to keep her head down and her thoughts to herself, but the more she sees of the oppressive Master and his hateful wife, the more she questions things until one day her thoughts escape–and to avoid being separated she and her family flee into the Dismal Swamp, to join the other escaped slaves who live there. Also available in eAudio.

Wolf Hollow” by Lauren Wolk

Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk

Twelve-year-old Annabelle must learn to stand up for what’s right in the face of a manipulative and violent new bully who targets people Annabelle cares about, including a homeless World War I veteran. Also available in AudioeBook and eAudio.

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