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Recommended Historical Fiction Titles for
“Freedom in America: Some Assembly Required”
Chapter Books
Anderson, Laurie Halse. Fever, 1793. c2000
During the summer of 1793, Mattie Cook lives above the family coffee shop with
her mother and grandfather. Mattie spends her days avoiding chores and making
plans to turn the family business into the finest in Philadelphia. But then the fever
breaks out and spreads citywide, destroying lives and changing Mattie’s world
forever.
251 p. (RL 5.4 IL 5-8)
Anderson, Marcella Fisher. Young Patriots: Inspiring Stories of the
American Revolution. c2004.
Collection of short stories describing boys and girls in the events of the
Revolution, involving the Constitution, the Liberty Bell, Ben Franklin, George
Washington’s inauguration, and more. 141 p. (RL 6.7 IL 3-6)
Avi. The Fighting Ground. c1984
Thirteen-year-old Jonathan knows he's ready to go to the war against the British.
He can handle a gun. He yearns to battle for glory, just like his family members.
So when Jonathan hears the bell calling for men to fight, he hurries to join, not
knowing that in twenty-four hours, his life will be forever altered. 157 p. (RL 6.4 IL
5-8)
Banim, Lisa. Drums at Saratoga. c1993
Nathaniel Philips ran away from home so that he could join the British army in the
Revolutionary War, but when he is taken prisoner by the American army, he
learns what the war is really about. 95 p. (RL 5.1 IL 3-6)
Banim, Lisa. A Spy in the King’s Colony. c1994
In British occupied Boston; eleven-year-old Emily Parker takes personal risks to
find out if a family friend is betraying the cause of the patriots. 76 p. (RL 5.3 IL 36)
Blackwood, Gary L. The Year of the Hangman. c2002
In 1777, having been kidnapped and taken forcibly from England to the American
colonies, fifteen-year-old Creighton becomes part of the political unrest there.
Interesting alternative fictional account written as if the rebellion was being
crushed. Excellent for classroom discussion on changing the course of history.
261p. (RL 6.2 IL: Young Adult)
Brady, Esther Wood. Toliver’s Secret. c1976, 1997
When her grandfather is injured, ten-year-old Ellen Toliver replaces him on a topsecret Patriot mission. She crosses enemy lines to deliver a loaf of bread
containing a message for the patriots. 166 p. (RL 5.5 IL 3-6)
Bruchac, Joseph. The Arrow Over the Door. c1998
In the year 1777, a group of Quakers and a party of Indians have a memorable
meeting, told through the eyes of a Quaker boy and an Abeneki boy. Raises
questions about why Indians would be expected to fight in a “white man’s war.”
89 p. (RL 5.5 IL 3-6)
Clapp, Patricia. I’m Deborah Sampson. c1977
Fictional account of the experiences of the woman who disguised herself as a
man in order to enlist and fight in the American Revolution. 176 p. (RL 6.8 IL 5-8)
Collier, James Lincoln. Bloody Country. c1976
In the mid-eighteenth century a family moves from Connecticut to Pennsylvania
and becomes involved in the property conflict between the two states. 183 p.
(RL 5.2 IL Young Adult)
Collier, James Lincoln. My Brother Sam is Dead. c1984
Award-winning recount of the tragedy that strikes the Meeker family during the
Revolution when one son joins the rebel forces while the rest of the family tries to
stay neutral in a Tory town. 216 p. (RL 5.8 IL 5-8)
Collier, James Lincoln. War Comes to Willy Freeman. c1983, 1987
A free thirteen-year-old black girl in Connecticut is caught up in the horror of the
Revolutionary War and the danger of being returned to slavery when her patriot
father is killed by the British and her mother disappears. 178 p. (RL 4.8 IL 5-8)
Collier, James Lincoln. The Winter Hero. c1978
Anxious to be a hero, a young boy relates how he becomes involved in Shays’
Rebellion begun by farmers in western Massachusetts against unfair taxation
levied on them by the Boston government. 152 p. (RL 7.0 IL Young Adult)
Durrant, Lynda. Betsy Zane, the Rose of Fort Henry. c2000
In 1781, twelve-year-old Elizabeth Zane, great-great aunt of novelist Zane Grey,
leaves Philadelphia to return to her brother’s homestead near Fort Henry in what
is now West Virginia, where she plays an important role in the final battle of the
American Revolution. Lends itself to discussion of the prejudices of the time
period toward women and indigenous peoples. 198 p. (RL 5.7 IL 5.8)
Forbes, Esther. Johnny Tremain. c1971
An award-winning story filled with danger and excitement, Johnny Tremain tells
of the turbulent, passionate times in Boston just before the Revolutionary War.
After injuring his hand, a silversmith’s apprentice in Boston becomes a
messenger for the Sons of Liberty in the days before the American Revolution.
293 p. (RL 5.2 IL 5-8)
Goodman, Joan Elizabeth. Hope’s Crossing. c1998
When kidnapped by English Loyalists during the Revolutionary War, thirteenyear-old Hope draws on every ounce of courage within her to respond to the
ordeal.
212 p. (RL 5.0 IL 5-8)
Guzman, Lila and Rick. Lorenzo’s Secret Mission. c2001
In 1776, when fifteen-year-old Lorenzo Bannister leaves Texas and his father’s
new grave to carry a letter to the Virginia grandfather he has never known, he
becomes involved with the struggle of the American Continental Army and its
Spanish supporters.. One of the book's strengths is its depiction of the cultural
diversity (French, Spanish, Choctaw, etc.) that was vital to the Revolutionary
cause, and which is the foundation of New Orleans heritage. 144 p. (RL 7.3 IL
5-8)
Guzman, Lila and Rick. Lorenzo’s Revolutionary Quest. c2003
Sequel to Lorenzo’s Secret Mission. In 1777, under orders from George
Washington, sixteen-year-old Captain Lorenzo Banister drives 500 head of cattle
east from San Antonio, Texas to feed the Continental Army while enemies plot
against him. 192 p.
(RL 7.3 IL 5-8)
Jensen, Dorothea. Riddle of Penncroft Farm. c1989
Lars Olafson’s move to a farm near Valley Forge brings him friendship with the
ghost of an eighteenth-century ancestor who recounts his adventures during the
American Revolution. Interesting combination of history and mystery. 192 p. (RL
6.5 IL 5-8)
Lavender, William. Just Jane: A Daughter of England Caught in the
Struggle of the American Revolution. c2002
When Lady Jane, orphaned daughter of an English earl, arrives in South
Carolina, in 1776, she finds herself in the middle of a heated war-- not only
between her former country and her new home but one between the members of
her own family, whose loyalties are divided in America's fight for freedom. 277 p.
(RL 6.8 IL Young Adult)
Lawson, Robert. Ben and Me. c1998 (reprint)
Benjamin Franklin's companion, Amos the mouse, recounts how he was the one
responsible for Franklin's inventions and discoveries. 113 p. (RL 7.3 IL 3-6)
Myers, Anna. The Keeping Room. c1997, 1999
Left in charge of the family by his father who joins the Revolutionary War effort,
thirteen-year-old Joey undergoes such great changes that he fears he may be
betraying his beloved parent. 135 p. (RL 5.9 IL 3-6)
Osborne, Mary Pope. Revolutionary War on Wednesday. (Magic Tree
House) c2000
Jack and Annie travel back to the time of the American Revolution and help
General George Washington during his famous crossing of the Delaware River.
69 p. (RL 3.8 IL 3-6)
Pryor, Bonnie. Thomas: 1778--Patriots on the Run. (American Adventures)
c1998
In the early years of the Revolutionary War, eleven-year-old Thomas and his
family escape a bloody massacre at Wyoming Valley and endure innumerable
hardships as they try to make their way to Philadelphia. 150 p. (RL 4.8 IL 3-5)
Pryor, Bonnie. Thomas in Danger: 1779. (American Adventures) c1999
Sequel to Thomas. Having lost their home when the Revolutionary War reached
their part of rural Pennsylvania, Thomas and his family starts a new life running
an inn in Philadelphia, where Thomas becomes involved in a dangerous
kidnapping incident.
170 p. (RL 3.7 IL 3-5)
Reit, Seymour. Guns for General Washington. c1990
In the bitter winter of 1775-76, Colonel Henry Knox and his younger brother Will,
both of the Continental Army, become frustrated with the British blockade of
Boston and attempt to move 183 cannons over 300 miles of rough terrain in order
to defend the city. 98 p. (RL 5.8 IL 5-8)
Rinaldi, Ann. Cast Two Shadows: the American Revolution in the South.
c1998. Caroline, a 14-year old South Carolina girl of mixed race, must travel to
her brother’s side when he is injured while fighting for the Loyalists. Because her
white father has been imprisoned for refusing to pledge allegiance to the king,
Caroline is accompanied by her grandmother, a plantation slave. A suspenseful
story showing the effect of the Revolution on those in the South. (RL 7.9 IL 5-8)
Rinaldi, Ann. Finishing Becca: A Story about Peggy Shippen and Benedict
Arnold. c1994
Fourteen-year-old Becca takes a position as a maid in a wealthy Philadelphia
Quaker home and witnesses the events that lead to General Benedict Arnold’s
betrayal of the American forces during the Revolutionary War. 362 p. (RL 6.9 IL
5-8)
Rinaldi, Ann. The Secret of Sarah Revere. c1995
Paul Revere’s daughter describes her father’s “rides” and the intelligence
network of the patriot community prior to the American Revolution. 320 p. (RL
4.8 IL 5-8)
Rinaldi, Ann. Taking Liberty: the Story of Oney Judge, George
Washington’s Runaway Slave. c2002
After serving Martha Washington for twenty years, Oney Judge considers the
worth of personal freedom. Includes much historical context including:
Washington’s inconsistent views of slavery, life in New York City and
Philadelphia, the yellow fever outbreak of 1793, abolitionism, and the free Negro
community of Philadelphia. 267 p. (RL 6.1 IL Young Adult)