My father’s stories of our family’s early days in America sparked my childhood fascination with history. Sadly, that spark was nearly snuffed out by my dreary social studies textbooks.
Thank goodness for school libraries!
Books like “Anne of Green Gables,” “Johnny Tremain” and “The Witch of Blackbird Pond” showed me that history is much more than dates and battles. To understand the past, we must feel the impact that historical events had on the families who experienced them.
Writers of historical fiction for children bear a special responsibility. We are called to balance our duty to reflect the past accurately with our obligation to write developmentally appropriate stories for our readers. The wonderful books below fulfill that mission with artistry and craft.
Kin: Rooted in Hope
by Carole Boston Weatherford; illustrated by Jeffery Boston Weatherford
Recently honored with the American Library Association’s Children’s Literature Legacy Award, Carole Boston Weatherford collaborated with her son, Jeffery, on this masterpiece, weaving together her poetry with his art. Drawing from their family history in enslaved communities in Maryland, the Weatherfords have created a powerful arc of resistance, resilience and reckoning that spans the years 1770 to 1920. (Ages 10 and up)
The post Laurie Halse Anderson’s Favorite Historical Fiction for Young Readers appeared first on New York Times.
