27 Best 19th Century, Juvenile Fiction Books

It’s the dawn of an important new day in America. Young readers, grab the reins and join Rush Revere, Liberty the horse, and the whole time-traveling crew in this patriotic historical adventure that takes you on an exciting trip to the past to see our remarkable nation’s most iconic symbols up close and personal!

“Rush Revere here, along with my chatty horse, Liberty! Wait a minute…Liberty? Where did he go?”

“Reporting for duty, Captain Revere!”

“Liberty, where did you get that spinach smoothie?”

*Slurp*

Well, he certainly didn’t get it from 1787–that’s where we’re rush, rush, rushing off to next with our enthusiastic young friends in the Time-Traveling Crew (but not before causing a major security incident at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.!) A funny case of mistaken identity and a wild chase through the busy streets of Philadelphia will lead us to the famously introverted Father of our Constitution, James Madison, and the heated secret debates over the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Fast-forward a few years, and we’ll help his brave wife, Dolley, risk her life to save an important portrait from the White House as the British set Washington afire!

What greater symbol of our exceptional nation’s hard-won freedoms than the Star-Spangled Banner, sewn by American icon Betsy Ross? Perhaps Francis Scott Key can explain what inspired him to pay tribute to our glorious flag by writing our beautiful national anthem. But watch out for the bombs bursting in air, because when we reach 1814, we’ll be front and center at a major battle to defend our liberty.

Jump back in the saddle with me, Rush Revere, and the Time-Traveling Crew, as my trusty horse, Liberty, takes us on another flying leap through American history into a past teeming with heroes and extraordinary citizens who have so much to teach us about patriotism. All you need to bring is your curiosity about the birth of our democracy–I’ve got plenty of tricornered hats for everyone!

Join Rush Revere on another action-packed journey! Rush and his friends head back in time to the early days of our independent nation to watch the early American presidents George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson in action!

Hey there, young readers! Rush Revere here. I can’t wait to rush, rush, rush to history with our next adventure: a trip back in time to the first days of our country on its own two legs, free from British rule–

What’s that, Liberty?

Liberty wants me to say on its own four legs.

Anyway, as I was saying–free from British rule and creating a new government for the people, by the people. When one of the time-traveling crew from Manchester Middle School decides to run for student-body president, I take them back to meet our first three presidents and first ladies.

So, join us as we head back to those amazing and important first years, when we got to make all the decisions. Turns out, it’s pretty hard to lead a whole new country! We had to make new rules for America and set the path for the country we would grow up to be. And who better to be our first-ever leader than the general who won the war–George Washington!

He was the father of our country and made some incredible decisions that still affect how we live our lives today! But even so, President Washington knew that he couldn’t stay president forever or we might end up with a king, just like England.

We’ll watch as he makes his tough decision to step down to spend more time with Martha Washington and his adopted grandchildren, Nelly and Wash.

Then we’ll saddle up and ride into the presidency of John Adams, who followed in some very big footsteps with the help of his accomplished wife, Abigail. Then we’ll rush, rush, rush to the year 1803, when Thomas Jefferson continues the mission of creating America by making a risky decision to buy a lot of land from the French in the Louisiana Purchase, which more than doubles our size!

Using advice from the early presidents, first ladies, and a former U.S. congressman, the crew works to defeat an old nemesis. The question is– will it be enough?

What are you waiting for? Bring your curiosity and let’s giddyup!

Debut author Amina Luqman-Dawson pens a lyrical, accessible historical middle-grade novel about two enslaved children’s escape from a plantation and the many ways they find freedom.

Under the cover of night, twelve-year-old Homer flees Southerland Plantation with his little sister Ada, unwillingly leaving their beloved mother behind. Much as he adores her and fears for her life, Homer knows there’s no turning back, not with the overseer on their trail. Through tangled vines, secret doorways, and over a sky bridge, the two find a secret community called Freewater, deep in the swamp.

In this society created by formerly enslaved people and some freeborn children, Homer finds new friends, almost forgetting where he came from. But when he learns of a threat that could destroy Freewater, he crafts a plan to find his mother and help his new home.

Deeply inspiring and loosely based on the history of maroon communities in the South, this is a striking tale of survival, adventure, friendship, and courage.

Based on the real-life adventures of Laura Ingalls Wilder, On the Banks of Plum Creek is the fourth book in the award-winning Little House series, which has captivated generations of readers.

The adventures of Laura Ingalls and her family continue as they leave their little house on the prairie and travel in their covered wagon to Minnesota. They settle into a house made of sod on the banks of beautiful Plum Creek. Soon Pa builds them a sturdier house, with real glass windows and a hinged door. Laura and Mary go to school, help with the chores around the house, and fish in the creek. Pa’s fiddle lulls them all to sleep at the end of the day. But then disaster strikes–on top of a terrible blizzard, a grasshopper infestation devours their wheat crop. Now the family must work harder than ever to overcome these challenges.

The nine books in the timeless Little House series tell the story of Laura’s real childhood as an American pioneer, and are cherished by readers of all generations. They offer a unique glimpse into life on the American frontier, and tell the heartwarming, unforgettable story of a loving family sticking together through thick and thin.

The eighth book in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s treasured Little House series, and the recipient of a Newbery Honor.

Fifteen-year-old Laura lives apart from her family for the first time, teaching school in a claim shanty twelve miles from home. She is very homesick, but she knows that her earnings can help pay for her sister Mary’s tuition at the college for the blind. Only one thing gets her through the lonely weeks–every weekend, Almanzo Wilder arrives at the school to take Laura home for a visit. Friendship soon turns to love for Laura and Almanzo.

The nine Little House books are inspired by Laura’s own childhood and have been cherished by generations of readers as both a unique glimpse into America’s frontier history and as heartwarming, unforgettable stories.

Based on the real-life adventures of Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little Town on the Prairie is the seventh book in the award-winning Little House series, which has captivated generations of readers.

In Little Town on the Prairie, the young town of De Smet has survived the long, harsh winter of 1880-1881. With the arrival of spring comes invitations to socials, parties, and “literaries.” Laura, who is now fifteen years old, attends her first evening social.

In her spare time, she sews shirts to help earn money to send Mary to a college for the blind. Laura also receives her teaching certificate and can work at a school. And, best of all, Almanzo Wilder asks permission to being walking her home from church. Life in the little town certainly is exciting!

The nine books in the timeless Little House series tell the story of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s real childhood as an American pioneer and are cherished by readers of all generations. They offer a unique glimpse into life on the American frontier and tell the heartwarming, unforgettable story of a loving family.

Charlotte Parkhurst was raised in an orphanage for boys, which suited her just fine. She didn’t like playing with dolls, she could hold her own in a fight, and she loved to work in the stable. Charlotte had a special way with horses and wanted to spend her life training and riding them on a ranch of her own. The problem was, as a girl in the mid-1800s, Charlotte was expected to live a much different life–one without the freedoms she dreamed of. But Charlotte was smart and determined, and she figured out a way to live her life the way she wanted. Charlotte became an expert horse rider, a legendary stagecoach driver, and the first woman ever to vote. And she did these things at a time when they were outlawed for women. How? With a plan so clever and so secret–almost no one figured it out.

It’s 1898 in New York City, and ghosts live among humans. Though most are harmless, some are capable of murder. . . .

After an unusual spirit takes up residence at the Roosevelt house, thirteen-year-old
Eleanor and her cousin Alice grow suspicious. The girls don’t get along, but they know
something is not right. This ghost is more than a pesky nuisance. It’s almost like he wants
to scare the Roosevelts out of their home–and no one seems to care.

Meanwhile, the girls discover a dangerous ghost in the house where Alice was born.
Is someone else haunting the family? Introverted Eleanor and boisterous Alice develop
an unlikely friendship as they explore their family’s dark, complicated history. It’s up to
them to unearth buried secrets and destroy both ghosts.

Told from dual perspectives, thrills and chills abound in Dianne K. Salerni’s imaginative
novel that puts a supernatural spin on alternate history.

Immerse yourself in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s beloved Little House series!

The Ingalls family has seen both joy and hardship since the end of On the Banks of Plum Creek. Mary has been left blind from a battle with scarlet fever, and a new sister, Grace, has been born. Pa decides to move to a railroad camp in the unsettled Dakota Territory to work as a bookkeeper to earn money. Eventually, Laura, her sisters, and Ma travel by train to join Pa at the spot he’s claimed for their new home. They spend a long winter in the surveyor’s house, and in the spring, Pa begins to build a store. It’s the first building in what will become the town of De Smet. Finally, the Ingalls family’s travels by covered wagon are over.

The nine books in the timeless Little House series tell the story of Laura’s real childhood as an American pioneer, and are cherished by readers of all generations. They offer a unique glimpse into life on the American frontier and tell the heartwarming, unforgettable story of a loving family.

Inspired by a true story, this is the riveting novel of a young slave girl’s harrowing escape to freedom on the Underground Railroad.

The moment Ann Maria Weems was born, her freedom was stolen from her. Like her family and the other slaves on the farm, Ann works from sunup to sundown and obeys the orders of her master. Then one day, Ann’s family–the only joy she knows–is gone. Just twelve years old, Ann is overcome by grief, struggling to get through each day. And her only hope of stealing back her freedom and finding her family lies in a perilous journey: the Underground Railroad.

Ann Maria Weems was an actual slave who lived in the mid-1800s near the author’s home in Maryland.

The second book in the treasured Little House series, Farmer Boy is Laura Ingalls Wilder’s beloved story of how her husband, Almanzo, grew up as a farmer boy far from the little house where Laura lived.

The nine Little House books have been cherished by generations of readers as both a unique glimpse into America’s frontier history and as heartwarming, unforgettable stories. The Little House series has captivated millions of readers with its depiction of life on the American frontier.

While Laura Ingalls grows up on the prairie, Almanzo Wilder is living on a big farm in New York State. Here Almanzo and his brother and sisters help with the summer planting and fall harvest. In winter there is wood to be chopped and great slabs of ice to be cut from the river and stored. Time for fun comes when the jolly tin peddler visits, or best of all, when the fair comes to town.

Almanzo wishes for just one thing–his very own horse–and he must prove that he is ready for such a big responsibility.

The stars of the Big Dipper have led a runaway slave family to Deacon Fuller’s house, a stop on the underground railroad. Will Tommy Fuller be able to hide the runaways from a search party — or will the secret passengers be discovered and their hope for freedom destroyed?

Omakayas and her family live on the land her people call the Island of the Golden-Breasted Woodpecker. Although the “chimookoman,” white people, encroach more and more on their land, life continues much as it always has.

Every summer they build a new birchbark house; every fall they go to ricing camp to harvest and feast; they move to the cedar log house before the first snows arrive; and they celebrate the end of the long, cold winters at maple-sugaring camp. In between, Omakayas fights with her annoying little brother, Pinch; plays with the adorable baby, Neewo; and tries to be grown-up like her big sister, Angeline.

But the satisfying rhythms of their life are shattered when a visitor comes to their lodge one winter night, bringing with him an invisible enemy that will change things forever–but that will eventually lead Omakayas to discover her calling.

In a frightening incident, Elsie’s husband, Edward Travilla, narrowly survives an accidental shooting when friends tease son Edward, Jr., into firing a loaded pistol. The shot grazes Edward’s head, and he survives with only minor damage. Soon life in the Travilla household returns to its calm routine. In the meantime, Elsie welcomes a cousin from Scotland who brings a very special talent with him as well as news of her mother’s ancestral family.

Elsie and Edward take great delight in their burgeoning family. The aftermath of the Civil War provides them with many opportunities to uphold their heritage and faith in practical ways, but they are caught up in a campaign against a powerful adversary—the Ku Klux Klan—as they fight to protect the innocent from unjust persecution.

A gripping historical fiction friendship story that will grab everyone by the heartstrings and never let go.

A giant, a dwarf, and three doomed circus animals . . .

By her fourteenth birthday, Babe Killingsworth measures 6’9″ and weighs 342 pounds. In 1896, what other options does a giant have but to join a carnival?

Her only real talent is handling animals: “Critters is folks to me.” The cheap outfit her feckless father sells her off to offers critters galore; an escape from Neal, Idaho; and a bit of fame. It also opens the doorway to exploitation and neglect.

But Babe’s love for Euclid (a chimp) and Jupiter (a bear) keeps her anchored, and in Professor Renoir’s Collection of Oddities, Curiosities, and Delights, she is among her own kind.

Enter Carlotta Jones, billed as the world’s smallest girl, whose elephant act leaves much to be desired. At thirty inches tall, Carlotta is beautiful, spoiled, and demanding and has very little talent–Egypt, her elephant, dances better than she does.

How can a giant like Babe and a dwarf like Carlotta ever see eye to eye? They don’t at first, but soon they understand that a common enemy can bring anyone together–even a giant and a dwarf.

“Platt proves again she is unafraid to tackle intensely emotional issues for young readers in this beautifully written piece. Like its title, it inspires both curiosity and delight.” —Booklist

The War That Saved My Life meets Coraline in this “deliciously creepy” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) middle grade historical novel following an anxious young girl learning to face her fears–and her ghosts–against the backdrop of the typhoid epidemic.

Essie O’Neill is afraid of everything. She’s afraid of cats and electric lights. She’s afraid of the silver sick bell, a family heirloom that brings up frightening memories. Most of all, she’s afraid of the red door in her nightmares.

But soon Essie discovers so much more to fear. Her mother has remarried, and they must move from their dilapidated tenement in the Bronx to North Brother Island, a dreary place in the East River. That’s where Essie’s new stepfather runs a quarantine hospital for the incurable sick, including the infamous Typhoid Mary. Essie knows the island is plagued with tragedy. Years ago, she watched in horror as the ship General Slocum caught fire and sank near its shores, plummeting one thousand women and children to their deaths.

Now, something on the island is haunting Essie. And the red door from her dreams has become a reality, just down the hall from her bedroom in her terrifying new house. Convinced her stepfather is up to no good, Essie investigates. Yet to uncover the truth, she will have to face her own painful history–and what lies behind the red door.

Laura Ingalls Wilder is beginning life with her new husband, Almanzo, in their own little house. Laura is a young pioneer wife now, and must work hard with Almanzo, farming the land around their home on the South Dakota prairie. Soon their baby daughter, Rose, is born, and the young family must face the hardships and triumphs encountered by so many American pioneers.

And so Laura Ingalls Wilder’s adventure as a little pioneer girl ends, and her new life as a pioneer wife and mother begins. The nine Little House books have been cherished by generations of readers as both a unique glimpse into America’s frontier past and a heartwarming, unforgettable story.

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts.

Lucy Darrington has no choice but to run away from boarding school. Her father, an expert on the supernatural, has been away for “too” long while doing research in Saarthe, a remote territory in the Pacific Northwest populated by towering redwoods, timber barons, and the Lupine people. But upon arriving, she learns her father is missing: Rumor has it he’s gone in search of dreamwood, a rare tree with magical properties that just might hold the cure for the blight that’s ravaging the forests of Saarthe. Determined to find her father (and possibly save Saarthe), Lucy and her vexingly stubborn friend Pete follow William Darrington’s trail to the deadly woods on Devil’s Thumb. As they encounter Lupine princesses, giant sea serpents, and all manner of terrifying creatures, Lucy hasn’t reckoned that the dreamwood itself might be the greatest threat of all.

History is dramatic–and the renowned, award-winning authors Christopher Collier and James Lincoln Collier demonstrate this in a compelling series aimed at young readers. Covering American history from the founding of Jamestown through present day, these volumes explore far beyond the dates and events of a historical chronicle to present a moving illumination of the ideas, opinions, attitudes and tribulations that led to the birth of this great nation.

The Jeffersonian Republicans examines various events between 1800 and 1823 that helped to shape the United States. The Louisiana Purchase, the War of 1812, and important Supreme Court decisions are among the discussed events.

A vivid portrayal of the Civil War. Johnny, fourteen, convinces his mother to let him join a wagon train carrying food to Confederate soldiers. He has been brought up to believe that all blacks are stupid; thus, when captured by a black Union soldier who insists that Johnny teach him to read, he deliberately tricks him. The boy is surprised the soldier saves him from imprisonment and their relationship grows throughout the book.

It is washday. ‘Are you ready for work, Lizzie girl?’ Grandma asks. ‘I am,’ Lizzie replies. It’s hard for her to set aside her plans for a tea party, but she rolls up her sleeves. Together, Lizzie and Grandma haul the steaming washtub to the workbench and shave lye soap into the boiling water. They rub, rub, rub the clothes over the washboard, pull them through the wringer, and hang them out to dry. In the end, the satisfaction of a job well done, an unexpected guest, and a loving gesture make Lizzie’s washday just about perfect.

Elsie Dinsmore is an endearing eight-year-old girl with several bewildering problems. She has never known her mother, who died when Elsie was a baby, and she longs for a close, loving relationship with her father. He, however, has sent her off to be raised at Roselands, his brothers’ Southern plantation, where her teacher, Miss Day, harshly criticizes her and her cousins tease her relentlessly.

As Elsie learns to handle her problems, she begins to learn more about herself. And as her faith in her heavenly father grows, she learns what it means to be child of God. The result is a story that inspires and challenges, and readers will take delight in how Elsie comes to depend completely upon faith in God for the peace and happiness she seeks.

Willful and high-spirited, exerting his independence at every turn, 10-year-old Robert “Robbie” Burns Hewitt plans to live life to the fullest–because the world is going to end at the turn of the century anyway! The year 1900 is fast approaching. Robbie decides that living by The Ten Commandments, which have been drilled into his head by his preacher father, is not meant for him–since he “ain’t got the knack for holiness.” On his quest to be his own person, he stirs up trouble daily. Before long, he must choose between the truth and a lie while a man’s life hangs in the balance. Newbery Award-winning author Katherine Paterson brings to life Robbie’s honest emotions of anger, jealousy and fear, leading him to make a number of disturbing choices. Despite the challenges, Robbie emerges as an engaging character with a good heart.

Author Irene Hunt, who won the Newbery Medal for her novel Up a Road Slowly, went to live at her grandfather’s farm in Illinois after her father’s death in 1914. Her grandfather’s stories of his boyhood during the Civil War became the basis for this compelling novel, Across Five Aprils. Although young Jethro Creighton never witnessed a battle, his life on the family farm in southern Illinois was shattered by the Civil War. He was nine years old in 1861 and over the next five years, he would learn that war deeply affects lives well beyond its gruesome battlefields. Join with narrator Terry Bregy as he brings to life one boy’s story–how Jethro grows from a sensitive, carefree child to a man before his time, learning to face each day with courage and finally, hope.

Sixteen voices–not the heroes, not those who would become eulogized in history books and synonymous with the glory of war. No, these are the voices of the common soldiers and their leaders, their families, their comrades. North/South, white/black, adult/child–a disparate and compelling choir of voices. Newbery Medal winner Paul Fleischman has written a tour de force that lends itself perfectly to multivoiced narration. From eager eleven-year-old Toby Boyce to Colonel Oliver Brattle, who has seen it all and knows the true face of war, these many voices are skillfully woven together–creating an intimate tapestry of naivete, broken dreams, and carnage that transports the listener to the front lines of the Battle of Bull Run. Paul Fleischman makes an appearance as the voice of James Dacy and concludes this unique production with a personal author’s note–allowing us to glimpse into his beginnings as a writer, as well as how Bull Run came to be written.

Eight-year-old Elsie Dinsmore is enjoying a blissful Christmas holiday season with her family when a crisis arises that threatens to change her life as she knows it. Her father has made a request of her that she believes would violate her conscience, and Elsie feels she must refuse him. But he fails to see her refusal as a matter of her deep faith in God, believing that Elsie is merely being willful and disobedient.

Elsie clings to the promise that her heavenly father will not forsake her as, one by one, everything she holds dear is taken from her. When the turmoil brought on by this conflict brings life-threatening illness for Elsie and a life-changing crisis for her father, Elsie’s faith is tested to the limits.

In Alexandria, Virginia, in the mid-19th century, a slave-owning family is facing financial trouble. The eldest son, Jason, thinks going to California to mine for gold might be the best way to protect his father’s legacy. He’ll need a cook, a laundress, and a hostler for the journey, and one of them is twelve-year-old Clementine, whose mother calls her Hope. From Independence, Missouri–the “Gateway to the West”–she and the others join a wagon train on the Emigrant Overland Trail. But what Jason didn’t consider is that taking the three enslaved people west will give them an opportunity to free themselves–manifesting their destiny.