How did ordinary people experience and shape United States history? Help kids and teens understand the stories of people who the powerful have tried to silence with my ebook, From the Margins to the Center: A People’s History of the United States Told Through Children’s Books.
Inside, you’ll find reviews of 240 engaging books for ages 5 to 14 that tell history from the perspective of People of Color, poor people, immigrants, women of all races, disabled people, LGBTQ folks, and religious minorities.
Ready to move beyond the whitewashed American history you were taught in school?
You know that sanitized history lessons about topics like the “founding fathers” aren’t accurate, and aren’t engaging for most kids either. But what stories can you share with young people instead?
Looking for living books that will pull young people into history instead of making their eyes glaze over?
Just because a child finds their history textbook boring doesn’t mean they “hate history.” Historical fiction that tells stories through the eyes of young people, along with non-fiction people’s history that’s written in a relatable style, can make all the difference.
Struggling to find history books that center People of Color, immigrants, women, disabled people, and other groups marginalized by society?
There are so many wonderful history books out there that center the history of these groups of people. But that doesn’t mean they’re easy to find! Books like these often don’t a lot of publicity. I’ve done all the hard work of combing through titles in From the Margins to the Center, so that you can get right down to reading with the children you cherish.
Here’s how From the Margins to the Center can help you:
Families: Find historical fiction that will sweep your child into another time period, without having to resort to some of the “classic” titles that reinforce racism.
Have a child who’s fascinated by what frontier life was like in the 1800’s? Skip Little House on the Prairie and read one of the recommended novels by Indigenous, Asian, Black, and Jewish authors.
If your family has been talking about the struggles of immigrant families today for justice and dignity, read one of the many recommended titles about immigrant experiences in the 19th, 20th, or 21st centuries.
Teachers: While you may not have control over the main texts used in your school, From the Margins to the Center will give you lots of picture book, novel, and non-fiction ideas for supplementary activities, readings, or projects. The guide is broken down by historical period so that you can easily find what you need, whether you’re in an elementary or middle school setting.
Home educators: I think you’ll love this guide because I created it as I pieced together an entire year of U.S. history for my own homeschool kid. Whether you’re looking for books for a particular period of history or want books for all of U.S. history, there are plenty of what Charlotte Mason called “living books” inside this guide that are so much better than learning from a dry textbook.
What’s inside From the Margins to the Center: A People’s History of the United States Told Through Children’s Books:
Book reviews that are broken down by historical period (for example Abolitionism and the Civil War, Progressive Era movements, and the Great Depression.) There are book recommendations as far back as Indigenous history before colonization and as recent as the COVID-19 pandemic.
In-depth book descriptions that help you understand the plot, historical connections, and other details to help you decide whether the book is one your kids will enjoy.
Bibliographical information including recommended ages, page numbers for chapter books, dates the book takes place in, whether an audio book is available, and the identities of main character and author.
Reading checklists for each time period: As you read through the guide, use these printable checklists for each historical era to note which titles are interesting to you. Then take your checklist to the library or bookstore.
Click on the yellow button above to download a free sample!
Frequently Asked Questions
Is From the Margins to the Center a history curriculum?
No, this is not a full curriculum. It is a set of in-depth book reviews broken down by periods of U.S. history and age groups (with books for kids as young as age 5 and as old as age 14).
What format is this resource? Can I order a printed copy?
This is a digital PDF, not a physical resource. Because it’s in PDF format, you can print it out yourself if you prefer a physical copy. There are 86 pages of book reviews, with an additional 14 pages of reading checklists.
Are all the recommended books written by People of Color?
I have worked hard to find #ownvoices books (where the author of the book shares ethnic or other identities with the characters they are writing about) whenever possible. While most of the 240 books in the guide meet this standard, some of the non-fiction books do not. I have labelled each book with as much information about the author’s identities as I could find.
What do you mean by “peoples’ history?”
“People’s history” is a term coined by historian Howard Zinn. Zinn believed that attempting to be distant and “objective” when presenting history simply favors the viewpoint of people in power.
As the Zinn Education Project describes:
“Zinn begins from the premise that the lives of ordinary people matter — that history ought to focus on those who too often receive only token attention (workers, women, people of color), and also on how people’s actions, individually and collectively, shaped our society. And it’s a people’s history in that it’s a perspective on the past that is usable today, that can instruct and inspire and caution as we try to make the world a better place.”
Zinn’s approach has been expanded on by historians who have dived even deeper to particular groups have shaped history, such as Indigenous people, LGBTQ people, and Black women.
In From the Margins to the Center, I’ve included books that tell history from the perspective of:
- Black, Indigenous, and People of Color
- women of all races
- immigrants
- religious minorities
- LGBTQ people
- Disabled people
Many of the books share stories of resistance, protest, and organizing for justice that these groups have carried out throughout U.S. history.
Have another question?
Email me at info[at]rebekahgienapp[dot]com and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.