Thematic+Book+List

Below is a list of some novels to consider in choosing a book for your thematic book reports. These are not the only options but whatever book you choose needs to be approved by me! If you have others that you think would be good additions to the list, bring them in and I'll have a look at them.

The Breadwinner, by Deborah Ellis[| The Breadwinner] Parvana's father is arrested and taken away by the Taliban soldiers. Under Taliban law, women and girls are not allowed to leave the house on their own. Parvana, her mother, and sisters must stay inside. Four days later, the food runs out. They face starvation.So Parvana must pretend to be a boy to save her family. It is a dangerous plan, but their only chance. In fear she goes out - and witnesses the horror of landmines, and the bruality of the Taliban. She suffers beatings and the desperation of trying to survive. But even in despair lies hope

Calico Captive, by [|Elizabeth George Speare] In the year 1754, the stillness of Charlestown, New Hampshire, is shattered by the terrifying cries of an Indian raid. Young Miriam Willard, on a day that had promised new happiness, finds herself instead a captive on a forest trail, caught up in the ebb and flow of the French and Indian War.

[|The Sign of the Chrysanthemum] by [|Katherine Paterson] His desperate search for the father he has never seen leads thirteen-year-old Muna to danger and adventure in the crowded, colorful capital city of twelfth-century Japan. But where should he look for him? And how will he recognize him? His father left before Muna was born-and his mother is now dead. All that the boy knows of hiss father is that he is a great warrior, a samurai ... and that he bears on his shoulder a chrysanthemum tattoo.

// **[|The Examination]** By Malcolm Bosse Fifteen-year-old Hong and his older brother Chen face famine, flood, pirates, and jealous rivals on their journey through fifteenth century China.

**[|Tusk and Stone (1995)]** by [|Malcolm Bosse] // "You're a soldier, bought and paid for."// So his captors tell Arjun, a boy approaching manhood and a member of the priestly and scholarly Brahmin class. The caravan taking him to begin his formal studies was attacked, his uncle killed, and his beloved sister kidnapped. Arjun was spared, only to be drugged by a nefarious old man, shorn of his identifying topknot, and put in shackles, the mark of a foot soldier and slave. Desperate to find his sister but resigned to the inevitable, Arjun accepts his new life and trains to be a mahout, an elephant driver in the army. His valor makes him famous, and his quest to find his sister is spread throughout the land in ballads written about his exploits. But fame is perilous: Arjun is struck down once again, and he must try to make the best of what fate has dealt him. //

//**Ganesh** by// //[|Malcolm J. Bosse]//

**Shiva’s Fire** by [|Suzanne Fisher Staples] A girl in India learns to use her magical powers wisely

= = **Shabanu **  by Suzanne Fisher Staples Shabanu has learned that it is not for her to determine the direction of her life. It is her father who will decide. For countless generations that has been the law of her people. But Shabanu's willingness to submit is tested when the marriage plans are wrecked and in a hastily arranged attempt to uphold the family's honor Shabanu is pledged to the brother of a wealthy but despised landowner.

** Under the Persimmon Tree ** by Suzanne Fisher Staples In this touching story of Afghanistan and Pakistan in 2001-2002 an Afghan refugee and an American teacher follow their stars and find each other.

//** [|Beneath My Mother's Feet] ,** by Amjed Qamar When her father is injured, fourteen-year-old Nazia is pulled away from school, her friends, and her preparations for an arranged marriage, to help her mother clean houses in a wealthy part of Karachi, Pakistan, where she finally rebels against the destiny that is planned for her.

[|La L] [|ínea] by Ann Jaramillo Miguel is set to leave his Mexican village to join his parents in California but his little sister is determined to join him.

[|Revolution is Not a Dinner Party] by Ying Chang Compestine During the Cultural Revolution, Ling is accused of being bourgeois.

[|Kampung Boy] by Lat Recounts the life of Mat, a Muslim boy growing up in rural Malaysia in the 50s.//

The samurai code meets baseball in 1890s Japan.
 * Samurai Shortstop ** //[|Alan Gratz] (2006)

[|Before We Were Free] by Julia Alvarez (2004) Anita discovers her family is part of the movement to overthrow the Dominican Republic government.

**Fever, 1793** by //[|Laurie Halse Anderson]//. Mattie Cook is a witty fourteen-year-old living in Philadelphia when yellow fever strikes the city. When her mother falls ill, they become separated and Mattie must fight for her survival. //**Hush: An Irish Princess' Tale** //by Donna Jo Napoli// //This tale is based on a line from an Icelandic saga in which the slave of an Icelandic lord remarks that she was once an Irish princess. The resulting story of princess Melorka is vividly imagined, well-researched, and beautifully written. Set in early medieval times, it follows an Irish princess as she is captured by wandering slave traders.//

The gods grant immortality to the mermaid Sirena when she rescues a human man from the sea and they fall in love, but his mortality creates great conflict between love and honor when he is called to defend Greece in the Trojan War.
 * Sirena** by Donna Jo Napoli

**Endymion Spring** by //Matthew Skelton What harm can come from opening a book? While Blake, a young boy spending time at Oxford with his mother and sister, is in the library he stumbles across a blank book. Now why would a library have a blank book on its shelf? As Blake is pondering this, the book starts to shake, as if alive and words appear that only he can see. Thus begins the mystery of// Endymion Spring//. A story that transports the reader between the 15th century and the 21st century, it is a must read for those that love mysteries, history and magic. // //In Mumbai, India Jeeta's mother drives her crazy.//
 * Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet ** //by// //[|Kashmira Sheth]//

Leela was married when she was nine years old. Now she waits for the day of her anu when she will go to live in the home of her husband. She will wear a bright sari with bangles of glass on her wrists, her hair will be oiled and perfumed and everyone will celebrate. But the day does not come. Her husband Ramanlal is killed and Leela is a widow at the age of twelve. Her head must be shaved; she can wear only a coarse cloth known as a chidri and is shunned by all. And for one whole year she must stay inside her home “keeping corner.” Around her the world changes but will Leela ever have a life beyond being a widow?
 * Keeping Corner//** by Kashmira Sheth

Stricken by the injustice of his father's death, Jimmu is left to care for his family. He decides to train as a samurai warrior and vows to one day avenge his father's death by killing Lord Ankan. A young orphan boy is ordered by his master to infiltrate Shakespeare's acting troupe in order to steal the script of "Hamlet," but he discovers instead the meaning of friendship and loyalty. 14 year old Mitra, of royal Persian lineage, and her 5yearold brother Babak, whose dreams foretell the future, flee for their lives traveling through Persia as they follow star signs leading to a newly born king in Bethlehem.
 * The Way of the Warrior ** by Andrew Matthews
 * The Shakespeare Stealer ** by [|Gary Blackwood]
 * Alphabet of Dreams ** by Susan Fletcher

Nicholas stows away on Captain Cook's first voyage around the world.
 * Stowaway** by Karen Hesse

In 12th-century Korea, a homeless orphan usually has no future - but young Tree-Ear dreams of becoming a master potter.
 * A Single Shard** by Linda Sue Park

Esperanza and her mother face many difficulties when they are forced to flee their comfortable rancho in Mexico and become farm laborers in California.
 * Esperanza Rising** by [|Pam Munoz Ryan]


 * The Samurai's Tale** by [|Erik C. Haugaard] "A riveting tale for teens who like adventure infused with an ancient historical flavor." Booklist, ALA


**The Beduins' Gazelle** by [|Frances Temple]In this sequel to The Ramsay Scallop, a pair of star-crossed lovers challenge a wicked uncle in the 14th-century in the Middle East.

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[|Hittite Warrior]by Joanne Williamson "Hittite Warrior is an outstanding work of historical fiction for youth. Well written and fast paced, "Hittite Warrior is also worthy of note because the story is set in an unusual period for historical fiction--the nonclassical ancient world of the Middle East." In ca. 1200 B.C., Uriah the Hittite leaves his conquered homeland and, following his father's instruction, seeks refuge with an old family friend, eventually finding himself in a great battle between the Canaanite forces of Sisera and the Hebrew forces of Barak. ======

**The God King** (set in the days of King Hezekiah) by Joanne Williamson
= =  = = **The Golden Goblet** by Eloise Jarvis McGraw = = = = **Black Horses for the King ** <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; font-weight: normal;"> by Anne McCaffrey A retelling of the Arthurian legend-minus the Round Table, Guinevere and Merlin-through the eyes of Galwyn Varianus. A Roman Celtic youth, Galwyn helps the future king of Britain, known here as Lord Artos, acquire the legendary Black Horses of his legions. = =
 * Mara, Daughter of the Nile** by [|Eloise Jarvis McGraw]<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> The adventures of an ingenious Egyptian slave girl who undertakes a dangerous assignment as a spy in the royal palace of Thebes, in the days when Queen Hatshepsut ruled.
 * Aphrodite's blessings: love stories from the Greek myths** by [|Clemence McLaren]<span class="wiki_link_ext">

Hermes, Prince of Thieves and son of Zeus, relates why the se<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">asonal change, the history of the Trojan War, his friendship with Pegasus, and many more adventures.
 * Quicksilver** by [|Stephanie Spinner]

When her father commands that she produce an heir, the huntress Atalanta gives her suitors a seemingly impossible task in order to uphold her pledge of chastity, as the gods of ancient Greece look on.
 * Quiver** by Stephanie Spinner

In two parallel stories, an intelligent female member of a prehistoric tribe becomes instrumental in advancing the lot of her people, and the daughter of a paleontologist is visiting him on a dig in Africa when important fossil remains are discovered.
 * A Bone From a Dry Sea** by Peter Dickinson