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Welcome to History Book By Book, Reading your way through history... one book at a time... > We are currently recommending a total of (1,100) books, divided into (65) specific booklists on this website.

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General Outline Prehistory Booklist (4,500,000,000-6000 BCE) Stone Age (2,600,000-3300 BCE) Early Civilization Booklist (6000-3000 BCE) Ancient China (6000-220 CE) Mesopotamian Civilization (3500–500 BCE) Indus Valley Civilization (3300–1900 BCE) Bronze Age (3300-1200 BCE) Ancient Egypt (3100-30 BCE) Classical Age Booklist (3000 BCE-400 CE) Mythology Ancient Greece (Athens and Sparta) (2700 BCE-600 CE) Maya Civilization (2600 BCE–900 CE) Ancient India (1500-500 BCE) Iron Age (1200-600 BCE) Ancient Rome (800 BCE-500 CE) Persian Civilization (550–331 BCE) Early Medieval Booklist (400–699 CE) High Middle Ages Booklist (700-1399 CE) Vikings (790–1100) Aztec Civilization (1345–1521) Renaissance Booklist (1400-1599 CE) Incan Civilization (1438-1532) Tudors (1485-1603) Shakespeare Enlightenment Booklist (1600-1699 CE) Age of Revolutions Booklist (1700-1839 CE) American Revolution (1775-1783) Industrial Age Booklist (1840-1899 CE) American Civil War (1860-1865) Modern Age Booklist (1900 CE - present) World War I (1914-1918) World War II (1939-1945) Holocaust (1939-1945) See also: American History | African American History | Indigenous American History | Jewish History List of All Booklists Other Booklists List of All Books (1,100) List of All Biographical Books List of All Graphic Novels List of All Historical Fantasy Books List of All Historical Fiction Books List of All Non Fiction Books Check out our Blog (5) Why is HBBB a thing? I am a list maker. I love organizing booklists, to-do lists, checklists of all kinds. I spend a great deal of my time researching books for my job and I’ve often found it frustrating that there isn’t one reliable resource where I can find an organized timeline of literature. So I’ve created one. I’ve set out to create a resource that will guide you on a literary adventure through history. You can find books here on just about every time period or historical topic and for any age level. I’ve done my best to research and vet each title to ensure that this list is filled with living books. I’ve noted content warnings when necessary and my daughters and I have reviewed many of the titles recommended. This has been and will continue to be a labor of love, as we continue to build this website and update these book suggestions. I hope you find it helpful! Thanks and Happy Reading, Emily Emily's Favorites

Book Suggestions Published in 2024 Safiyyah's War (2024, by: Noor Khan, Hiba, MG, UMG, WWII, Nazi Occupation, Muslim Resistance) The Night War (2024, by: Brubaker Bradley, Kimberly, MG, UMG, WWII, Resistance) Max in the House of Spies: A Tale of World War II (2024, by: Gidwitz, Adam, MG, UMG, WWII, Kindertransport, Espionage) The Girl Who Sang (2024, by: Nadel, Estelle, Savos, Sammy, Strout, Bethany, MG, UMG, Holocaust, Nazi Occupation) Across So Many Seas (2024, by: Behar, Ruth, UMG, YA, Spanish Inquisition, Sephardic Jews, Diaspora) The Luminous Life of Lucy Landry (2024, by: Johnson, Anna Rose, UMG, Ojibwe Nation, Indigenous Americans) The Songbird and the Rambutan Tree (2024, by: Abendanon, Lucille, UMG, YA, WWII) Amil and the After (2024, by: Hiranandani, Veera, UMG, Partition of India) The Bletchley Riddle (2024, by: Sepetys, Ruta and Sheinkin, Steve, UMG, WWII, Code Breakers, Spies) Three Summers (2024, by: Sabic-El-Rayess, Amra, UMG, YA, Bosnian War) When We Flew Away (2024, by: Hoffman, Alice, UMG, YA, Holocaust) Heroes: A Novel of Pearl Harbor (2024, by: Gratz, Alan, UMG, YA, WWII, Pearl Harbor) One Big Open Sky (2024, by: Cline-Ransome, Lesa, UMG, YA, Westward Expansion) Code Name Kingfisher (2024, by: Kessler, Liz, UMG, YA, WWII, Jewish Resistance) Most Ardently: A Pride & Prejudice Remix (2024, by: Novoa, Gabe Cole, YA, A, Regency Era, Retelling, LGBTQ+) Eleanore of Avignon (2024, by: DeLozier, Elizabeth, A, Plagues, Medieval Life, Bubonic Plague, Women in Science) The Berlin Letters (2024, by: Reay, Katherine, A, Berlin Wall, Spies, Cold War) The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern (2024, by: Cohen Loigman, Lynda, A, Jewish Life) King Nyx (2024, by: Bakis, Kirsten, A, gothic, Feminism) The Boy with the Star Tattoo (2024, by: Carner, Talia, A, Jewish Life, kibbutz, Youth Aliyah) The Underground Library (2024, by: Ryan, Jennifer, A, WWII) Songs for the Brokenhearted (2024, by: Tsabari, Ayelet, A, Jewish Life, Yemeni Jews, Mizrahi Jews) Maria: A Novel of Maria von Trapp (2024, by: Moran, Michelle, A, WWII, musical theater) The Familiar (2024, by: Bardugo, Leigh, A, Spanish Inquisition, Jewish Persecution, Sephardic Jews) James (2024, by: Everett, Percival, A, Antebellum South, Slavery, Escaped Slaves) See also: 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 Featured Weekly Book Suggestion - 01/22/2024 Modern Age The Songbird and the Rambutan Tree Author: Abendanon, Lucille Buy at Amazon | BookShop.org Time Period: Modern Age Time Frame: 1942-1945 Geographic Area: Asia Country: Indonesia Topics: World War II Genre: Fiction Reading Age: Upper Middle Grade, Young Adult Format: Novel Published: 2024 World History > Modern Age > WWII Batavia, Dutch East Indies, 1942. Emmy has the voice of an angel but hasn’t sung a note since a family tragedy. With war looming, her father plans to ship her off to a singing school in England for safety. But all Emmy wants to do is stay in Batavia with her best friend, Bakti, even if it means putting up with her snooty classmate, Violet. Then the Japanese army invades―and as war erupts in the Dutch East Indies, Emmy’s world falls apart. When her own actions sabotage her chance to evacuate the island, Emmy is captured and confined in the Tjideng prisoner-of-war camp with other women and children. Separated from her family and friends, and silenced by her grief, Emmy will need all her strength to survive the war, find her voice, and reclaim her freedom. Emily's Review I was initially drawn to this story because I don't think I've ever read a book set in Indonesia during World War II. I was hooked from the beginning. This is excellent historical fiction. The author based this book on her grandmother's experiences during the war, and you could feel the love and admiration she holds for her throughout the story. Emmy is an amazing protagonist. So strong and courageous. This book is a great example of how we can become our best selves when everything is stripped away from us. She goes through so much in this book, but it never breaks her. I loved the relationships in this story. The found family in the concentration camp is one of the best things about this book. The way they all help each other was beautiful. I also adore Bakti and Emmy's friendship, and the frenemies to best friends relationship between Emily and Violet. They were all incredibly inspiring and gave me hope that most people are good and that the good can shine through in the darkest of places. I think this is why I'm so drawn to stories written in this period - I need to see that goodness, courage, and bravery. This is one of those books that you will not be able to put down. The writing is lush and compelling, and you're going to want to read "just one more chapter" until suddenly you look up and you are not in Batavia, but your own home, and oops, you read the whole book in one sitting. This is a middle-grade story, but it has universal appeal. I think it would make an excellent read-aloud. Because there are some very harrowing moments, I'd recommend this one for ages 10+ Other Similar Books Other suggestions on the subject of World War II (Asian Front). Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes (by: Coerr, Eleanor, Japan, WWII, Hiroshima, MG) Island War (by: Reilly Giff, Patricia, United States, WWII, MG) On the Horizon: World War II Reflections (by: Lowry, Lois, United States, Japan, WWII, MG, UMG) The Attack on Pearl Harbor: An Interactive History Adventure (by: Lassieur, Allison, United States, Japan, WWII, Pearl Harbor, MG) Raid of No Return (by: Hale, Nathan, United States, WWII, Doolittle Raid, Pearl Harbor, MG, UMG) History Smashers: Pearl Harbor (by: Messner, Kate, United States, Japan, WWII, Pearl Harbor, MG, UMG) The House of Sixty Fathers (by: DeJong, Meindert, China, WWII, MG) Under the Broken Sky (by: Nagai, Mariko, Japan, China, Manchuria, WWII, UMG) The Songbird and the Rambutan Tree (by: Abendanon, Lucille, Indonesia, WWII, UMG, YA) When My Name Was Keoko (by: Park, Linda Sue, Korea, WWII, UMG) A Place to Belong (by: Kadohata, Cynthia, Japan, WWII, Hiroshima, Japanese Internment, UMG, YA) The Blossom and the Firefly (by: Smith, Sherri L., Japan, WWII, YA, A) Women Heroes of World War II―the Pacific Theater: 15 Stories of Resistance, Rescue, Sabotage, and Survival (by: Atwood, Kathryn J., Various, WWII, YA, A) Barefoot Gen 1 (by: Nakazawa, Keiji, Japan, WWII, Hiroshima, YA, A) Anya's War (by: Alban, Andrea, China, WWII, Jewish Immigration, YA) Barefoot Gen 2 (by: Nakazawa, Keiji, Japan, WWII, Hiroshima, YA, A) In Harm's Way: The Sinking of the U.S.S. Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors (by: Stanton, Doug, Japan, United States, WWII, USS Indianapolis, YA, A) Barefoot Gen 3 (by: Nakazawa, Keiji, Japan, WWII, Hiroshima, YA, A) The Library of Legends (by: Chang, Janie, China, WWII, YA, A) The Last Rose of Shanghai: A Novel (by: Dai Randel, Weina, China, WWII, Jewish Immigration, A) What's New: Books. Lots of Books. Other Links: HistoryBookByBook on Facebook History_BookByBook on Instagram History_BookByBook on Twitter Arrrghschooling on YouTube BuildYourLibrary.com BuildYourLibrary on Facebook