Book picks similar to
Marilee by Mary Francis Shura


young-adult
historical-fiction
romance
ya

Kathleen


Candice F. Ransom - 1985
    Ahead was the shining promise of America...and love. There were times she wished she'd never come to America.Pretty, spirited Kathleen O’Connor arrives in Boston on a “coffin” ship from Ireland. She has escaped the devastating famine, but her boyfriend died at home and her parents didn’t survive the voyage to America. Still, the promise of a new life gives her hope. Patrick, a friend from the ship, finds a job for her as a maid with the wealthy Thornley family. They remind Kathleen of the landowners in Ireland who forced her from her home. She wants to despise them, but she can’t hate David Thornley, who is tender and handsome, and obviously attracted to her. Her secret love for David could force Kathleen to go back to Ireland or make her dreams for a new life in America come true.

Rachel


Vivian Schurfranz - 1986
    Can she be true to her heritage and to the boy she loves? It is 1910 and 16-year-old Rachel Roth and her family are immigrants from Poland to America. When Rachel sees the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, she catches her breath. The magnificent statue seems to promise her a better life.While life in bustling New York City turns out to be hard, Rachel is happy with her new country and her job at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. Unaware that a tragedy at the factory is about to happen, Rachel thrives on the admiration of handsome Joshua Fine, who wants a traditional home with her by his side. But when Rachel meets Nathan Meyers, an energetic reporter who loves her and wants her to be as modern, as American, as he is, Rachel is uncertain. To be American, must she give up her past? Will her heritage, or her heart, determine the boy she loves?

Nora


Jeffie Ross Gordon - 1987
    Then the Great Earthquake happens, and Nora rescues a handsome stranger who is arrested for robbery. Even so, she falls in love with him. If only she can prove his innocence.

Elizabeth


Willo Davis Roberts - 1984
    Did she dare follow her heart? When someone points an accusing finger and cries "Witch!" Elizabeth face a choice -- between a lie that could doom a friend, and the truth that would threaten her own life. The truth could also ruin wealthy Troy's love for Elizabeth and reveal her own attraction to a stranger -- a wild and ruthless boy who shares her fear and courage

Roxanne


Jane Claypool Miner - 1985
    Theirs would be the greatest love story Hollywood had ever known.Roxanne has come from a small town to Hollywood with one dream: to become a star. And she will do anything to succeed: change her looks, her name, and her friends.She has to decide if she should succumb to John Randolph, the movie producer's son, who can introduce her to all the right people. Or if she should follow her heart to Gary Marlowe, a glittering star who has eyes for all of the beautiful bit players and extras on the set. But Roxanne knows she is not going to settle for being just another extra - to Gary or to Hollywood ... she's going to have it all!

Standing in the Light: The Captive Diary of Catharine Carey Logan, Delaware Valley, Pennsylvania, 1763


Mary Pope Osborne - 1998
    Recently, however, this friendship has been threatened by violence against the Indians. Then, Catharine and her brother are taken captive by the Lenape in retaliation. At first, Catharine is afraid of her captors. But when a handsome brave begins to teach her about the ways of the Lenape, she comes to see that all people share the same joys, hopes, and fears. Osborne crafts a thrilling story of romance and danger and remarkable courage.

The Luckiest Girl


Beverly Cleary - 1958
    And once she's there, things get even better. In no time, she catches the attention of two boys: one, a good-looking basketball star, the other, an interesting, fun boy who likes journalism. Shelley feels like the luckiest girl in the world. Now she's about to discover the magic of falling in love -- and a whole lot more!

And Both Were Young


Madeleine L'Engle - 1949
    Besides being homesick for her father and Connecticut, she isn't sophisticated like the other girls, and discussions about boys leave her tongue-tied. Her happiest times are spent apart from the others, sketching or wandering in the mountains.But the day she's out walking alone and meets a French boy, Paul, things change for Flip. As their relationship grows, so does her self-confidence. Despite her newfound happiness, there are times when Paul seems a stranger to her. And since dating is forbidden except to seniors, their romance must remain a secret. With so many new feelings and obstacles to overcome in her present, can Flip help Paul to confront his troubled past and find a future?

A Coal Miner's Bride: The Diary of Anetka Kaminska, Lattimer, Pennsylvania, 1896


Susan Campbell Bartoletti - 2000
    A diary account of thirteen-year-old Anetka's life in Poland in 1896, immigration to America, marriage to a coal miner, widowhood, and happiness in finally finding her true love.

Voyage on the Great Titanic: The Diary of Margaret Ann Brady, R.M.S. Titanic, 1912


Ellen Emerson White - 1998
    Titanic 1912 (Dear America Series)

Boston Jane: An Adventure


Jennifer L. Holm - 2001
    But her impeccable training at Miss Hepplewhite's Young Ladies Academy in Philadelphia is hardly preparation for the colorful characters and crude life that await her in Washington Territory.Thrown upon her wits in the wild, Jane must determine for herself whether she is truly proper Miss Jane Peck of Philadelphia, faultless young lady and fiancee, or Boston Jane, as the Chinook dub her, fearless and loyal woman of the frontier.An exciting new novel from Jennifer L. Holm, author of the Newbery Honor Book Our Only May Amelia.

Alanna: The First Adventure


Tamora Pierce - 1983
    I'll be a knight.And so young Alanna of Trebond begins the journey to knighthood. Though a girl, Alanna has always craved the adventure and daring allowed only for boys; her twin brother, Thom, yearns to learn the art of magic. So one day they decide to switch places: Thom heads for the convent to learn magic; Alanna, pretending to be a boy, is on her way to the castle of King Roald to begin her training as a page. But the road to knighthood is not an easy one. As Alanna masters the skills necessary for battle, she must also learn to control her heart and to discern her enemies from her allies.Filled with swords and sorcery, adventure and intrigue, good and evil, Alanna's first adventure begins - one that will lead to the fulfillment of her dreams and the magical destiny that will make her a legend in her land.

I, Coriander


Sally Gardner - 2005
    But her mother's sudden death brings on a dark time for Coriander, and after mourning her beloved mother and dealing with the disappearance of her father and the wrath of her evil stepmother, Coriander finds herself locked in a chest with no hope of escape and no will to survive. But when a bright light beckons to her, it is then that Coriander's journey truly begins. Beautifully written, this magical and luminous story is destined to become a children's classic.

Pirates!


Celia Rees - 2003
    Disgusted by the treatment of the slaves and her brother's willingness to marry her off, she and one of the slaves, Minerva, run away and join a band of pirates. For both girls the pirate life is their only chance for freedom in a society where both are treated like property, rather than individuals. Together they go in search of adventure, love, and a new life that breaks all restrictions of gender, race, and position. Told through Nancy's writings, their adventures will appeal to readers across the spectrum and around the world.

I Walk in Dread: The Diary of Deliverance Trembley, Witness to the Salem Witch Trials, Massachusetts Bay Colony, 1691


Lisa Rowe Fraustino - 2004
    But when four young girls from the village accuse some of the local women of being witches, Deliverance finds herself caught up in the ensuing drama of the trials. And life in Salem is never the same.