When My Name Was Keoko


Linda Sue Park - 2002
    Yet they live their lives under Japanese occupation. All students must read and write in Japanese and no one can fly the Korean flag. Hardest of all is when the Japanese Emperor forces all Koreans to take Japanese names. Sun-hee and Tae-yul become Keoko and Nobuo. Korea is torn apart by their Japanese invaders during World War II. Everyone must help with war preparations, but it doesn’t mean they are willing to defend Japan. Tae-yul is about to risk his life to help his family, while Sun-hee stays home guarding life-and-death secrets.

Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad


M.T. Anderson - 2015
    T. Anderson delivers an account of the Siege of Leningrad and the role played by Russian composer Shostakovich and his Leningrad Symphony.In September 1941, Adolf Hitler’s Wehrmacht surrounded Leningrad in what was to become one of the longest and most destructive sieges in Western history—almost three years of bombardment and starvation that culminated in the harsh winter of 1943–1944. More than a million citizens perished. Survivors recall corpses littering the frozen streets, their relatives having neither the means nor the strength to bury them. Residents burned books, furniture, and floorboards to keep warm; they ate family pets and—eventually—one another to stay alive. Trapped between the Nazi invading force and the Soviet government itself was composer Dmitri Shostakovich, who would write a symphony that roused, rallied, eulogized, and commemorated his fellow citizens—the Leningrad Symphony, which came to occupy a surprising place of prominence in the eventual Allied victory.This is the true story of a city under siege: the triumph of bravery and defiance in the face of terrifying odds. It is also a look at the power—and layered meaning—of music in beleaguered lives.

Soul Lanterns


Shaw Kuzki - 2021
    She wasn't even born when the bombing of Hiroshima took place. Every year Nozomi joins her family at the lantern-floating ceremony to honor those lost in the bombing. People write the names of their deceased loved ones along with messages of peace, on paper lanterns and set them afloat on the river. This year Nozomi realizes that her mother always releases one lantern with no name. She begins to ask questions, and when complicated stories of loss and loneliness unfold, Nozomi and her friends come up with a creative way to share their loved ones' experiences. By opening people's eyes to the struggles they all keep hidden, the project teaches the entire community new ways to show compassion.Soul Lanterns is an honest exploration of what happened on August 6, 1945, and offers readers a glimpse not only into the rich cultural history of Japan but also into the intimate lives of those who recognize--better than most--the urgent need for peace.

Illegal


Eoin Colfer - 2017
    From Eoin Colfer, previously Irish Children's Laureate, and the team behind his bestselling Artemis Fowl graphic novels. Ebo: alone.His sister left months ago. Now his brother has disappeared too, and Ebo knows it can only be to make the hazardous journey to Europe. Ebo's epic journey takes him across the Sahara Desert to the dangerous streets of Tripoli, and finally out to the merciless sea. But with every step he holds on to his hope for a new life, and a reunion with his sister. *Winner of the Judges' Special Award at the Children's Books Ireland Book of the Year Awards* 'Beautifully realised and punchily told.' Alex O'Connell, The Times Children's Book of the Week 'A powerful, compelling work, evocatively illustrated ... It would take a hard heart not to be moved by this book.' Financial Times

Torn Thread


Anne Isaacs - 2000
    There they must spin thread on treacherous machinery to make clothing and blankets for the German Army. As Eva struggles amid ever worsening dangers to save her life and that of her sick sister, readers witness how two teenagers strive to create home and family amidst inhumanity and chaos. Written in exquisite prose, this story of heartbreak and hope that is rich in detail and symbolism will deeply move readers of all ages.

Inside Out & Back Again


Thanhha Lai - 2011
    But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Hà and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope. In America, Hà discovers the foreign world of Alabama: the coldness of its strangers, the dullness of its food . . . and the strength of her very own family.

Meet Molly: An American Girl


Valerie Tripp - 1986
    While her father is away fighting in World War II, Molly finds her life full of change as she eats terrible vegetables from the victory garden and plans revenge on her brother for ruining her Halloween.

The Night Garden


Polly Horvath - 2017
    Franny writes, Sina sculpts, and Old Tom tends to their many gardens--including the ancient, mysterious night garden. Their peaceful life is interrupted when their neighbor, Crying Alice, begs Sina to watch her children while she goes to visit her husband at the military base because she suspects he's up to no good. Soon after the children move in, letters arrive from their father that suggest he's about to do something to change their lives; and appearances from a stubborn young cook, UFOs, hermits, and ghosts only make life stranger. Can the forbidden night garden that supposedly grants everyone one wish help them all out of trouble? And if so, at what cost?

The Explorer


Katherine Rundell - 2017
    For days they survive alone, until Fred finds a map that leads them to a ruined city, and to a secret.

Women Who Dared: 52 Stories of Fearless Daredevils, Adventurers, and Rebels


Linda Skeers - 2017
    This new compilation of brief biographies features women throughout history who have risked their lives for adventure—many of whom you may not know, but all of whom you’ll WANT to know, such as: • Annie Edson Taylor, the first person who dared to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel• Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman who dared to fly in space• Helen Gibson, the first woman who dared to be a professional stunt person• And many more!This is the perfect read for anyone who wants to know what it means to explore, discover, play, climb, and fight like a girl!

How Did I Get Here?: Finding Your Way Back to God When Everything is Pulling You Away


Christine Caine - 2021
    His hope offers an anchor for the soul and a way to get back on track. His faithfulness declares that wherever you are now, he is always ready to bring you home.As a respected Bible teacher, author, and activist, Christine Caine knew that Jesus was her only anchor. But after an especially difficult season, she found herself drifting, unsure if she wanted to keep going the way she always had and asking, “How did I get here?” as she struggled to return to the steadiness of God’s purpose for her. Where she once wanted to take ground, she now just wanted to take cover. It was a bewildering and disorienting place to be—one you may also have found yourself in before.With refreshing candor and relatable humor, Christine offers biblical insights helping youidentify nine signs you are drifting off course and realign with God’s purpose;ask the right questions about your relationships with God, others, and your own heart so you can stay anchored in truth despite the world’s shifting currents;move from a what-if faith to an even-if faith as you discover how to trust God more deeply; andwrestle honestly with your soul’s longings so we can respond to all the ways God answers—even when it feels like he doesn’t.Writing for all who feel empty of the spiritual passion they once knew, Christine vulnerably shares her journey of turning her eyes back to Jesus in her thoughts, prayers, actions, and the hard questions she asked along the way.

Two Rings: A Story of Love and War


Millie Werber - 2012
    Born in central Poland in the town of Radom, she found herself trapped in the ghetto at the age of fourteen, a slave laborer in an armaments factory in the summer of 1942, transported to Auschwitz in the summer of 1944, before being marched to a second armaments factory. She faced death many times; indeed she was certain that she would not survive. But she did. Many years later, when she began to share her past with Eve Keller, the two women rediscovered the world of the teenage girl Millie had been during the war. Most important, Millie revealed her most precious private memory: of a man to whom she was married for a few brief months. He was -- if not the love of her life -- her first great unconditional passion. He died, leaving Millie with a single photograph taken on their wedding day, and two rings of gold that affirm the presence of a great passion in the bleakest imaginable time.

Out of Hiding: A Holocaust Survivor’s Journey to America (With a Foreword by Alan Gratz)


Ruth Gruener - 2020
    At the end of the war, she and her parents were overjoyed to be free. But their struggles as displaced people had just begun.In war-ravaged Europe, they waited for paperwork for a chance to come to America. Once they arrived in Brooklyn, they began to build a new life, but spoke little English. Ruth started at a new school and tried to make friends -- but continued to fight nightmares and flashbacks of her time during World War II.The family's perseverance is a classic story of the American dream, but also illustrates the difficulties that millions of immigrants face in the aftermath of trauma.

Seeking Refuge


Irene N. Watts - 2017
    The poignant story is relatable to the terrible situation facing refugees in Europe and around the world today.

I Will Plant You a Lilac Tree: A Memoir of a Schindler's List Survivor


Laura Hillman - 2003
    Six weeks later he was sent home; ashes in an urn. Soon another letter arrived. "The Gestapo has notified your brothers and me that we are to be deported to the East--whatever that means." Hannelore knew: labor camps, starvation, beatings...How could Mama and her two younger brothers bear that? She made a decision: She would go home and be deported with her family. Despite the horrors she faced in eight labor and concentration camps, Hannelore met and fell in love with a Polish POW named Dick Hillman. Oskar Schindler was their one hope to survive. Schindler had a plan to take eleven hundred Jews to the safety of his new factory in Czechoslovakia. Incredibly both she and Dick were added to his list. But survival was not that simple. Weeks later Hannelore found herself, alone, outside the gates of Auschwitz, pushed toward the smoking crematoria. I Will Plant You a Lilac Tree is the remarkable true story of one young woman's nightmarish coming-of-age. But it is also a story about the surprising possibilities for hope and love in one of history's most brutal times.