Young Adult Historical Fiction

Born with a gift for music, Nannerl Mozart has just one wish - to be remembered forever. But even as she delights audiences with her masterful playing, she has little hope she'll ever become the acclaimed composer she longs to be. She is a young woman in 18th century Europe, and that means composing is forbidden to her. She will perform only until she reaches a marriageable age - her tyrannical father has made that much clear. And as Nannerl's hope grows dimmer with each passing year, the talents of her beloved younger brother, Wolfgang, only seem to shine brighter.

When a powerful viceroy arrives with a fleet of mechanical dragons and stops an attack on Anlei's village, the villagers see him as a godsend. They agree to give him their sacred, enchanted River Pearl in exchange for permanent protection - if he'll marry one of the village girls to solidify the alliance. Anlei is appalled when the viceroy selects her as a bride, but with the fate of her people at stake, she sees no choice but to consent. Anlei's noble plans are sent into a tailspin, however, when a young thief steals the River Pearl for himself.

Laura Amy Schlitz delivers this Horn Book Fanfare and Laura Amy Schlitz delivers this Horn Book Fanfare and Cybils Award-winning best-seller that whisks 11-year-old Maud Flynn from a cold New England orphanage and into the stately mansion of three wealthy spinsters. After the Hawthorne sisters adopt her in 1909, they tell her she's their secret child. She must remain indoors at all times and must never stand in front of windows. Maud doesn't mind their restrictions. But she does wonder what could possibly require such secrecy.

A wedding turning into a battle, a feast converted to a slaughter, a Viking band on the run. Free is the third book in the trilogy Viking Ventures. Follow Ulv, Marcus, Julia and the whole band of Viking misfits as they change the course of history. In the epic story of Viking Ventures, you will meet real historical figures like Ragnar Lothbrok and Charles the Bald. You will bear witness to the occupation of Dublin and the siege of Paris. You will visit Hedeby and Rouen, and take part in battles, sieges and duels.

With just one touch, bread turns into roses. With just one bite, cheese turns into lilies. There’s a famine plaguing the land, and Princess Yzabel is wasting food simply by trying to eat. Before she can even swallow, her magic - her curse - has turned her meal into a bouquet. She’s on the verge of starving, which only reminds her that the people of Portugal have been enduring the same pain for years. If only it were possible to reverse her magic. Fatyan, a beautiful Enchanted Moura, is the only one who can help. But she is trapped by magical binds.

Etta's happy with her simple life in the mill, but when her aunt passes and leaves her a very peculiar cat, everything goes awry. Now, determined to find her place in the world, Etta's learning to hunt, having audiences with a king, and falling for a man who's keeping something from her. Beau's happy at sea until his father passes and leaves him with an odd last request. Now he's setting up shop in a small town, searching for ogres, and, inconveniently, falling for the miller's sister - who just happens to be taken with someone else.

In the world in which Lizbet Lenz lives, the sun still goes around the earth, God speaks directly to his worshippers, goblins haunt every cellar, and witches lurk in the forests. Disaster strikes when Lizbet's father Gerhard, a charming scoundrel, is thrown into a dungeon by the tyrant Hengest Wolftrow. To free him, Lizbet must cross the Montagnes du Monde, globe-girdling mountains that reach to the sky, a journey no one has ever survived, and retrieve a mysterious book. Lizbet is desperate, and the only one who can help her is the unpleasant and sarcastic witch girl Strix.

When her brother is kidnapped, Cassie Goodlight is determined to save him - even if it means learning the magic that nearly destroyed her mother. But how can she beat a shape-shifting sea goblin that taunts her at every turn? Cassie must find a way before a year is up, or her brother will be lost forever. And who, or what, is the handsome stranger who keeps turning up in her life?

Olivia Mead is a headstrong, independent girl - a suffragist - in an age that prefers its girls to be docile. It’s 1900 in Oregon, and Olivia’s father, concerned that she’s headed for trouble, convinces a stage mesmerist to try to hypnotize the rebellion out of her. But the hypnotist, an intriguing young man named Henri Reverie, gives her a terrible gift instead: She’s able to see people’s true natures, manifesting as visions of darkness and goodness, while also unable to speak her true thoughts out loud.

A vivid portrayal of the Civil War, and a look at the reasons behind the conflict. Johnny Heller, 14, convinces his mother to let him join a wagon train carrying food to Confederate soldiers. Along the way he’s captured by Blue Coats, and a black Union soldier insists that Johnny teach him to read. Brought up to believe that black people are inferior, Johnny deliberately tricks him. But as they get to know each other an uneasy alliance develops, followed by a friendship that surprises them both.

A finalist for the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Award, Sue Macy’s Wheels of Change offers young listeners an ear-opening account of how, beginning in the late 19th century, the bicycle helped change the course of women’s history. Macy meticulously documents how women used the freedom of their newfound mobility to effect social change, even in the face of constant challenges.

In 1790, during the summer of her 16th year, Rosemary makes a new friend. Mrs. DiAngeli and her husband have moved into the village in North Carolina where Rosemary lives. When the girl visits, Mrs. DiAngeli talks and laughs with Rosemary as she would with another adult. Immediately, Rosemary treasures their relationship. But Rosemary knows that her friend is different from the rest of her neighbors.

Iain Lawrence is the best-selling author of such heralded books for young readers as Lord of the Nutcracker Men, which broached the complicated subject of human experience in war. His novels have been chosen as Best Book of the Year by

Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal on more than one occasion. Lawrence again contemplates war in this novel, set in 1943, England. Sixteen-year-old Kak escaped his abusive family in Canada to join the Canadian Air Force. Now a crewman aboard a night-flying bomber bound for Germany, Kak learns of the terror and violence of war firsthand.

When the Marquis de Lafayette ran off to join the American Revolution against the explicit orders of the king of France, he was a strong-willed 19-year-old who had never set foot on a battlefield. Although the U.S. Congress granted him an honorary commission only out of respect for his title and wealth, Lafayette quickly earned the respect of his fellow officers with his bravery, devotion to the cause of liberty, and incredible drive. Playing a pivotal role in the Revolution, he led his men to victory at Yorktown.

George Rogers Clark was a famous general in the Revolutionary War, and his explorations served as the inspiration for his younger brother William, the leader of the famous Lewis and Clark expedition. Now you can read about the boyhood of Roger and share in the first adventures of this lifelong hero.

In early 1968 the grisly on-the-job deaths of two African-American sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee, prompted an extended strike by that city's segregated force of trash collectors. Workers sought union protection, higher wages, improved safety, and the integration of their work force. Their work stoppage became a part of the larger civil rights movement and drew an impressive array of national movement leaders to Memphis, including, on more than one occasion, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. King added his voice to the struggle in what became the final speech of his life.

Bull Run was the site of the first battle of the Civil War. This book creates an intimate tapestry of stories from blacks and whites, adults and children, leaders and families from the North and South. Broken dreams and bloodshed take you back to the front lines of the Battle of Bull Run.

In 1911, three men were in the final round of the famed Pendleton Round-Up. One was white, one was Indian, and one was black. When the judges declared the white man the winner, the audience was outraged. They named black cowboy George Fletcher the "people's champion" and took up a collection, ultimately giving Fletcher far more than the value of the prize that went to the official winner. Award-winning author Vaunda Micheaux Nelson tells the story of Fletcher's triumph with a western flair that will delight kids - and adults - who love true stories, unlikely heroes, and cowboy tales.

If Gemma's parents find out she brought Harrison back into existence, she's dead. But she refuses to give up everything for which she's fought. Harrison is worth the risk. But her parents have other plans - dark plans that will unravel Gemma's world. She must watch her every step as she waits for the inevitable nightmare to catch up to her. As the danger mounts, will she have the courage to make the ultimate sacrifice and save the ones she loves?

Sally Hobart Alexander continues the story of her journey into blindness in this uplifting tale of a life rebuilt and love renewed. Suzanne Toren’s perceptive narration perfectly expresses the emotions of Sally’s sometimes fun, often arduous, and always interesting journey. Also available is Taking Hold, My Journey Into Blindness, which tells the first half of Sally’s story.