Literature By Time Period

The First Four Years is the last book in the series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. It tells the story of the first years of marriage for Laura and Almanzo, and how they establish their own little farm. Another delightful story, full of drama and interesting details. If you are doing "Prairie Primer," you'll need this book in order to complete the ninth unit.

Long Way to a New Land is an "I Can Read" book (level 3) for grades 2-4. It follows the story of a young Swedish boy and his family as the emigrate from Sweden during a time of starvation. The book depicts what it would have been like to leave behind everything you know and love, to travel in unsanitary, cramped conditions on a ship, and to arrive in a land where you don't even know the language. This book would make an excellent addition to any study of immigration and American history. Set in the post-Civil War era.

This Newbery Award winning story follows the lives of 2 families - the one is Jewish, and the other is the Danish family that hides them from the Nazis that have invaded their land. The two daughters of the families are best friends. Your young reader (grades 5-7) will see the horror of World War II through the eyes of these 2 young girls as they face deprivation, danger, and death. An excellent addition to any study of World War II.

When a Roman ship is wrecked off the coast of Britain, an infant, Beric, is the only survivor. He is rescued by a British tribe who raise him as their own until they can no longer ignore his Roman ancestry. Fifteen-year-old Beric feels increasingly bitter isolation when, because of his Roman birth, he is cast out by the Celtic tribe that raised him and, after reaching a Roman settlement, he is sold into slavery and sentenced to serve in a galley for the rest of his life.

Peter the Great, crowned tsar of Russia at the age of ten, believed that whatever he wanted he should have -- and the sooner the better. What he wanted most was to bring his beloved country into the modem world. He traveled to the West to learn European ways -- the first tsar ever to leave Russia -- disguised as a common soldier.

Here's another one of those 'They could make it into a movie!' books that keeps you always wanting to read just one more chapter. Red Hugh was a true champion for Irish liberty from Queen Elizabeth's constricting reign in the late 1580's and beyond. Hugh's capture, imprisonment, and escape from the Dublin Castle; his triumph over a blizzard and frostbite; his dramatic rescue of his family's castle; his conflict with the evil Captain Leeds; and his inexhaustible love for Ireland make this a wonderful read-aloud book for the entire family. You learn an astonishing amount of Irish geography and culture while relishing this true adventure, as well.

Skylark is the sequel to Sarah, Plain and Tall. Drought - a prairie farmer's worst nightmare. Crops die, cattle have no more water, and one by one, the prairie families, destitute, pack up and head back East. But, Jacob refuses to leave. As the leaves turn brown and the river runs dry on the prairie, Sarah dreams of the lush green grasses and the blue ocean of her native Maine. When fires and drought threaten to devastate their farm, Sarah takes the children to Maine where they will be safe. A moving story, masterfully combining a moving tale with historical facts. Great living books for your homeschool. Read all the books in this series.

The year is A.D. 781. King Charles of the Franks is crossing the Alps with his family and court on a journey to meet with Pope Hadrian. One frosty night he speaks to his young son Carl: "When we come to Rome you will know that I am naming you my heir. One day you will rule over all my lands. . . ." But the King already had an heir, Pepin the Hunchback, mockingly called Gobbo. Was he to be dispossessed? Yet Carl sees that Charlemagne is determined to do what he feels is best to serve God and Europe.

The story of Sundiata, son of the king of Mali in the time of the great trading empires of Africa some eight hundred years ago, is a powerful tale of courage and determination. As a boy, Sundiata was unable to speak or walk. He overcame these obstacles, but was driven into exile by a rival queen. When Mali was overrun by intruders, 18-year-old Sundiata returned to defeat them and reclaim the throne. Full color.

Amidst great mystery, Hugh is left in the care of Glastonbury Abbey by his father who must flee England too swiftly to be burdened by a crippled son. Ashamed of his physical weakness, yet possessed of a stout heart, Hugh finds that life at the abbey is surprisingly full in this year 1171, in the turbulent days of King Henry II. Hugh, his friend Dickon and their strange friend, the mad Bleheris, uncover a treasure trove and with it a deeper mystery of the sort that could only occur in Glastonbury where Joseph of Arimithea was said to have lived out his last years. Before all is done, more is resolved than Hugh could ever have hoped. A Newbery Honor winner.

Hylas is a young Greek slave in the household of Caius Pomponius, a Roman Senator involved in political schemes. When the senator is found mysteriously murdered, the household slaves (including Hylas and his mother) fall under suspicion. Hylas escapes capture long enough to enlist the aid of a young tribune, Camillus Rufus. The desperate attempt to unravel the threads of the political intrigue carries Camillus into the very presence of Nero and brings Hylas into contact with the new secret sect of Christians

In 1558, while exiled by Queen Mary Tudor to a remote castle known as Perilous Gard, young Kate Sutton becomes involved in a series of mysterious events that lead her to an underground world peopled by Fairy Folk--whose customs are even older than the Druids' and include human sacrifice.