Book picks similar to
Family of Spies by Jodi Carmichael


historical-fiction
middle-grade
war
espionage

I Escaped The World's Deadliest Shark Attack


Scott Peters - 2019
    Can he escape? From multi-award-winning Ellie Crowe and Scott Peters.16-year-old Josh is thrilled to be a crew member aboard the mighty USS Indianapolis. But when a Japanese torpedo strikes in the middle of the night, it tears the warship in half. Josh is thrown from the deck and plunged deep into the black ocean. In horror, he watches the massive vessel begin its death plunge, threatening to pull him down with it. Josh is no swimmer. He's a baseball player from San Antonio, Texas. He's way out of his element. Soon, hundreds of sharks begin to circle. He's living his worst nightmare, but for how long? Can he survive without a lifeboat, food or water in a sea of countless hungry sharks? Every hour is a fight because if he gives up, he'll never make it home. But does he have what it takes to survive? With no rescue team in sight, can Josh ever hope to escape?On July 30, 1945, the USS Indianapolis was torpedoed at 15 minutes past midnight. It sank in 12 minutes. The survivors spent four days fighting off the deadliest shark attacks in history.This is the 3rd children's book in the I Escaped Series about brave kids who face real-world challenges and find ways to escape. Sure to appeal to fans of books like I Survived by New York Times Bestseller Lauren Tarshis, stories about the Titanic, and readers of Alan Gratz.A study guide is available at bit.ly/sharkescapeAn adrenaline-charged tale of bravery and friendship during a terrible tragedy in American history.

Mandie and Mollie and the Angel's Visit


Lois Gladys Leppard - 1998
    When Mollie visits Mandie for Easter, anything can happen! This fun and illustrated holiday story includes the full script of a play Mandie fans will love to perform.

Bird & Sugar Boy


Sofie Laguna - 2006
    I live with my dad who has a big tattoo that says Live to Ride. He is so strong he can lift up a car, but he can't tell me what he's thinking. Maybe he's thinking about my mother who shot through.Sugar Boy is my best friend. We hang around down at the river, in the bush tunnel, or beside the railway tracks riding our bikes fast enough to beat the train. There's only two of us, but we're the whole team.I don't know what would happen if I didn't have Sugar Boy . . .

The Red Umbrella


Christina Diaz Gonzalez - 2010
    But when the soldiers come to her sleepy Cuban town, everything begins to change. Freedoms are stripped away. Neighbors disappear. Her friends feel like strangers. And her family is being watched.As the revolution's impact becomes more oppressive, Lucía's parents make the heart-wrenching decision to send her and her little brother to the United States—on their own.Suddenly plunked down in Nebraska with well-meaning strangers, Lucía struggles to adapt to a new country, a new language, a new way of life. But what of her old life? Will she ever see her home or her parents again? And if she does, will she still be the same girl?The Red Umbrella is a moving story of country, culture, family, and the true meaning of home.

Orphan Monster Spy


Matt Killeen - 2018
    Then Sarah meets a mysterious man with an ambiguous accent, a suspiciously bare apartment, and a lockbox full of weapons. He's a spy, and he needs Sarah to become one, too, to pull off a mission he can't attempt on his own: infiltrate a boarding school attended by the daughters of top Nazi brass, befriend the daughter of a key scientist, and steal the blueprints to a bomb that could destroy the cities of Western Europe. With years of training from her actress mother in the art of impersonation, Sarah thinks she's ready. But nothing prepares her for her cutthroat schoolmates, and soon she finds herself in a battle for survival unlike any she'd ever imagined.

The Regiment


Christopher Nicole - 1988
    More dangerous than the perils of war, however, is the envy of his fellow officers and the double edge of his most cherished friendship.

New Dawn


Derek Birks - 2020
    He hopes to find a safe refuge in the south-west near Durnovaria, where he believes his dead mother’s kinfolk might be found. Arriving in the area, Ambrosius finds a small, abandoned settlement where his company can take shelter for the night before moving on to the town of Vindocladia – just north of Durnovaria. But Vortigern has put the word out: a high blood price will be paid to anyone who captures Ambrosius; and there are many who would take up the challenge… This story was first written in March and April 2020 as a contribution to Authors Without Borders, set up by distinguished author Ben Kane, as a means of providing some free stories online in first ‘lockdown’ during the Coronavirus Pandemic. It was written in 25 daily instalments, but has now been assembled and re-edited into a complete narrative.

The Blackbird Girls


Anne Blankman - 2020
    A reactor at the nuclear power plant where their fathers work--Chernobyl--has exploded. Before they know it, the two girls, who've always been enemies, find themselves on a train bound for Leningrad to stay with Valentina's estranged grandmother, Rita Grigorievna. In 1941 Rifka must flee Kiev before the Germans arrive. Her journey is harrowing and fraught with danger because Germans and Russians alike will revile her for her Jewish blood.In both time periods, the girls must learn who to trust and how to have hope in the midst of horrible events.

Music on the Bamboo Radio


Martin Booth - 1997
    As he grows to manhood, he witnesses the atrocities and deprivations of the Japanese occupation and is himself drawn into the Communist resistance activities. The book ends when the Japanese surrender and Nicholas is reunited with what remains of his family.

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit


Judith Kerr - 1971
    Suppose that without your noticing, it became dangerous for some people to live in Germany any longer. Suppose you found, to your complete surprise, that your own father was one of those people.That is what happened to Anna in 1933. She was nine years old when it began, too busy with her schoolwork and toboganning to take much notice of political posters, but out of them glared the face of Adolf Hitler, the man who would soon change the whole of Europe – starting with her own small life.Anna suddenly found things moving too fast for her to understand. One day, her father was unaccountably missing. Then she herself and her brother Max were being rushed by their mother, in alarming secrecy, away from everything they knew – home and schoolmates and well-loved toys – right out of Germany…

The Long Journey Home


Cecily Blench - 2021
    

Tamar


Mal Peet - 2005
    Out of the past, another Tamar emerges, a man involved in the terrifying world of resistance fighters in Nazi-occupied Holland half a century before. His story is one of passionate love, jealousy, and tragedy set against the daily fear and casual horror of the Second World War -- and unraveling it is about to transform Tamar’s life forever. From acclaimed British sensation Mal Peet comes a masterful story of adventure, love, secrets, and betrayal in time of war, both past and present.

Magic Marks the Spot


Caroline Carlson - 2013
    “My dear,” he said, “let me be clear: You are a young lady. You will not tell silly tales and you will never be a pirate.”Hilary Westfield has always dreamed of being a pirate. She can tread water for thirty-seven minutes. She can tie a knot faster than a fleet of sailors. She particularly enjoys defying authority, and she already owns a rather pointy sword. There’s only one problem: The Very Nearly Honorable League of Pirates refuses to let any girl join their ranks of scourges and scallywags.Girls belong at Miss Pimm’s Finishing School for Delicate Ladies, learning to waltz, faint, and cursty. But Hilary and her dearest friend, the gargoyle, have no use for such frivolous lessons—they are pirates! (Or very nearly.)To escape from a life of petticoats and politeness, Hilary answers a curious advertisement for a pirate crew and suddenly finds herself swept up in a seafaring adventure that may or may not involve a map without an X, a magical treasure that likely doesn’t exist, a rogue governess who insists on propriety, a crew of misfit scallywags, and the most treacherous—and unexpected—villain on the High Seas.Will Hilary find the treasure in time? Will she become a true pirate after all? And what will become of the gargoyle?

Somewhere There Is Still a Sun: A Memoir of the Holocaust


Michael Gruenbaum - 2015
    All of that changed forever when the Nazis invaded Prague. The Gruenbaum family was forced to move into the Jewish Ghetto in Prague. Then, after a devastating loss, Michael, his mother and sister were deported to the Terezin concentration camp.At Terezin, Misha roomed with forty other boys who became like brothers to him. Life in Terezin was a bizarre, surreal balance - some days were filled with friendship and soccer matches, while others brought mortal terror as the boys waited to hear the names on each new list of who was being sent 'to the East.'Those trains were going to Auschwitz. When the day came that his family's name appeared on a transport list, their survival called for a miracle - one that tied Michael's fate to a carefully sewn teddy bear, and to his mother's unshakeable determination to keep her children safe.Collaborating with acclaimed author Todd Hasak-Lowy, Michael Gruenbaum shares his inspiring story of hope in an unforgettable memoir that recreates his experiences with stunning immediacy. Michael's story, and the many original documents and photos included alongside it, offer an essential contribution to Holocaust literature.The book is now available in 12 languages: English (Simon and Schuster), German (Rowohlt), French (Didier Jeunesse), Spanish (Edelvives) , Greek (Papadopoulos Publishing), Russian (Samokat), Turkish, Ukrainian, Slovenian, Czech, Burmese (Myanmar) and Sinhala (Sri Lanka); Bulgarian and Khmer (Cambodia) are scheduled later this year. Publishers in China, Israel, The Netherland, Brazil, Italy, Tanzania (Swahili and Kinyarwanda), Romania, Japan and others are also close to signing up. Our goal is still the same - to have the book be added to the curricula of all middle schools around the world.. Simon and Schuster, together with Scholastic, sold 75,000 copies of the book in the USA last year.

The Adventures of Amelia Fang and Friends


Laura Ellen Anderson - 2019
    Full of exciting story shorts and activities – perfect for readers of 7+!MEET AMELIA FANG Everyone's favourite little vampire - and friends! Amelia Fang lives in Nocturnia - a dark and gloomy place full of furry, fanged and frightful creatures . . . and the occasional glittery unicorn!Along with her friends and pet pumpkin, Squashy, Amelia has the most eyeball-spinningly exciting adventures EVER!So come and join Amelia and her friends. They're all dying to meet you . . . Sink your fangs into Amelia’s other howlingly hilarious adventures:Amelia Fang and the Barbaric BallAmelia Fang and the Unicorn LordsAmelia Fang and the Memory ThiefAmelia Fang and the Half-Moon Holiday'The perfect mix of funny, foul and fearful' - Metro'Brilliantly imagined . . . laugh-out-loud funny' - Sunday Express Amelia Fang is perfect for readers of 7+ and fans of Witch Wars, The Worst Witch and Isadora Moon When she's not trying to take over the world or fighting sock-stealing monsters, Laura Ellen Anderson is a professional children's book author & illustrator, with an increasing addiction to coffee. She spends every waking hour creating and drawing, and would quite like to live on the moon when humans finally make it possible. Laura is the creator of EVIL EMPEROR PENGUIN and illustrator of WITCH WARS, as well as many other children’s books. AMELIA FANG is her first series as author-illustrator.