Collection: Historical Fiction

National Bestseller

A Historical Novels Review Editors' Choice - A Jewish Book Award Finalist

"An absolutely fascinating, beautifully rendered story of love, loss, and heroism in the dark days leading up to World War II. . . . A glowing portrait of women rising up against impossible odds to save children." --Kristin Hannah, New York Times bestselling author of The Great Alone and The Nightingale

The New York Times bestselling author of Beautiful Exiles conjures her best novel yet, a pre-World War II-era story with the emotional resonance of Orphan Train and All the Light We Cannot See, centering on the Kindertransports that carried thousands of children out of Nazi-occupied Europe--and one brave woman who helped them escape to safety.

In 1936, the Nazi are little more than loud, brutish bores to fifteen-year old Stephan Neuman, the son of a wealthy and influential Jewish family and budding playwright whose playground extends from Vienna's streets to its intricate underground tunnels. Stephan's best friend and companion is the brilliant Zofie-Helene, a Christian girl whose mother edits a progressive, anti-Nazi newspaper. But the two adolescents' carefree innocence is shattered when the Nazis' take control.

There is hope in the darkness, though. Truus Wijsmuller, a member of the Dutch resistance, risks her life smuggling Jewish children out of Nazi Germany to the nations that will take them. It is a mission that becomes even more dangerous after the Anschluss--Hitler's annexation of Austria--as, across Europe, countries close their borders to the growing number of refugees desperate to escape.

Tante Truus, as she is known, is determined to save as many children as she can. After Britain passes a measure to take in at-risk child refugees from the German Reich, she dares to approach Adolf Eichmann, the man who would later help devise the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question," in a race against time to bring children like Stephan, his young brother Walter, and Zofie-Helene on a perilous journey to an uncertain future abroad.

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICK - NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST - NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER - A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK

"Marilynne Robinson's LILA is an enthralling meditation on belief, suffering and grace." --O, the Oprah Magazine

"Writing in lovely, angular prose that has the high loneliness of an old bluegrass tune, Ms. Robinson has created a balladlike story . . . The novel is powerful and deeply affecting . . . Ms. Robinson renders [Lila's] tale with the stark poetry of Edward Hopper or Andrew Wyeth. -- The New York Times

Grade: A Emotionally and intellectually challenging, it's an exploration of faith in God, love, and whatever else it takes to survive." --Entertainment Weekly

A new American classic from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Gilead, Marilynne Robinson returns to the town of Gilead in an unforgettable story of a girlhood lived on the fringes of society in fear, awe, and wonder.

Marilynne Robinson, one of the greatest novelists of our time, returns to the town of Gilead in an unforgettable story of a girlhood lived on the fringes of society in fear, awe, and wonder.

Lila, homeless and alone after years of roaming the countryside, steps inside a small-town Iowa church-the only available shelter from the rain-and ignites a romance and a debate that will reshape her life. She becomes the wife of a minister, John Ames, and begins a new existence while trying to make sense of the life that preceded her newfound security.

Neglected as a toddler, Lila was rescued by Doll, a canny young drifter, and brought up by her in a hardscrabble childhood. Together they crafted a life on the run, living hand to mouth with nothing but their sisterly bond and a ragged blade to protect them. Despite bouts of petty violence and moments of desperation, their shared life was laced with moments of joy and love. When Lila arrives in Gilead, she struggles to reconcile the life of her makeshift family and their days of hardship with the gentle Christian worldview of her husband which paradoxically judges those she loves.

Revisiting the beloved characters and setting of Robinson's Pulitzer Prize-winning Gilead and Home, a National Book Award finalist, Lila is a moving expression of the mysteries of existence that is destined to become an American classic.

Based on a true story about Franz Kafka

Inspired by a true story, Kafka and the Doll recounts a remarkable gesture of kindness from one of the world's most bewildering and iconic writers. In the fall of 1923, Franz Kafka encountered a distraught little girl on a walk in the park. She'd lost her doll and was inconsolable. Kafka told her the doll wasn't lost, but instead, traveling the world and having grand adventures! And to reassure her, Kafka began delivering letters from the doll to the girl for weeks.

The legend of Kafka and the doll has captivated imaginations for decades as it reveals the playful and compassionate side of a man known for his dark and brooding tales. Kafka and the Doll is a testament to living life to the fullest and to the life-changing power of storytelling.

The Milagro Beanfield War is the first book in John Nichols's New Mexico trilogy ("Gentle, funny, transcendent." --The New York Times Book Review), later adapted to film by Robert Redford.

Joe Mondragon, a feisty hustler with a talent for trouble, slammed his battered pickup to a stop, tugged on his gumboots, and marched into the arid patch of ground. Carefully (and also illegally), he tapped into the main irrigation channel. And so began-though few knew it at the time-the Milagro beanfield war. But like everything else in the dirt-poor town of Milagro, it would be a patchwork war, fought more by tactical retreats than by battlefield victories. Gradually, the small farmers and sheepmen begin to rally to Joe's beanfield as the symbol of their lost rights and their lost lands. And downstate in the capital, the Anglo water barons and power brokers huddle in urgent conference, intent on destroying that symbol before it destroys their multimillion-dollar land-development schemes.

The tale of Milagro's rising is wildly comic and lovingly tender, a vivid portrayal of a town that, half-stumbling and partly prodded, gropes its way toward its own stubborn salvation.

"In 1945 the war ended. The Germans surrendered, and the ghetto was liberated. Out of over a quarter of a million people, about 800 walked out of the ghetto. Of those who survived, only twelve were children. I was one of the twelve." For more than fifty years after the war, Syvia, like many Holocaust survivors, did not talk about her experiences in the Lodz ghetto in Poland. She buried her past in order to move forward. But finally she decided it was time to share her story, and so she told it to her niece, who has re-told it here using free verse inspired by her aunt. This is the true story of Syvia Perlmutter--a story of courage, heartbreak, and finally survival despite the terrible circumstances in which she grew up. A timeline, historical notes, and an author's note are included.

In war-torn medieval Japan, a young samurai lord struggles to retake his throne, but not by fighting. Hojo Tokiyuki will reclaim his birthright by running away!

In medieval Japan, eight-year-old Hojo Tokiyuki is the heir to the Kamakura shogunate. But the Hojo clan is in decline, and Tokiyuki's peaceful days of playing hide-and-seek with his teachers come to an abrupt end when his clan is betrayed from within. The lone survivor of his family, Tokiyuki is the rightful heir to the throne, but to take it back, he'll have to do what he does best--run away!

Tokiyuki and his loyal retainers, the Elusive Warriors, take on the members of the Kanto Hisashiban, Takauji Ashikaga's stewards in charge of the defense of Kamakura. The members of the Hisashiban possess almost superhuman skills and abilities, as well as...unique personalities. Kojiro faces off against Shibukawa, the most formidable of the Hisashiban warriors, in a duel he must win--for if he loses, Tokiyuki's head will be forfeit! Tokiyuki himself must face the mad warrior Imagawa in a desperate contest of horsemanship to raise the morale of his entire army!

Based on a true story, only some members of a family escape the Armenian genocide and one of them, just a boy during the flight, must return to find a sister who was left behind.

"Fantastic reading, well covered, and beautifully presented."--Varoujan Der Simonian, President, Board of Trustees, Armenian Museum of Fresno

In 1920, eight-year-old Bedros fled Armenia with his young sisters, grandmother, and uncle to escape the Turkish soldiers invading their town. But in the confusion, Bedros lost sight of the adults and was left alone to protect his siblings. Hungry, cold, and overwhelmed with responsibility, Bedros failed to remember his promise to his mother...

Told in verse, suspenseful and heart-rending, The Honey Jar depicts a journey from desperation to freedom, anchored in Bedros' promise to return to his native land and to find the one he left behind. His story will touch the hearts of families everywhere, especially those who have experienced the longing for a new life.

More accolades:

"My grandfather's letting go of his sister is a pain still felt by many of us today. I often imagine the interchange and the feelings he experienced; the pain of loss and the hope in finding. I carry these feelings of great sadness and joy, as my father has before me. They are treasured possessions that we will always have, like a gold cross and a honey jar."--Kalem Kazarian, the grandson of Peter Kazarian

"I had the honor to read an ARC for this, and oh-my-God! Such a heartrending story of family love, loss, and an unbreakable will to carry on against all odds. I can't wait till THE HONEY JAR hits the shelves!"--Astrid Kamalyan, author of Babo: A Tale of Armeninan Rug-Washing Day

"YOUR BOOK IS AMAZING! Thank you for publishing my nation's tragedy and raising awareness. I read it yesterday with one breath. Very touching and poetic."--Tamar Tufenkdjian, Board of Regents of Prelacy Armenian Schools

"To truly understand history, events must be tied to the individual stories of those involved. All too often this standard is not met, leading to misinterpretation and misrepresentation. Joan Schoettler's, The Honey Jar, reaches this high standard. Her concise, stark, and captivating writing style, renders this story unforgettable. Genocide's generational effects can never ever be forgotten. This book should be recommended reading for all ages."--Andrew G Kumpuris M.D., F.A.C.C., Chairman, Arkansas Center for Health Improvement

"What Schoettler has penned for young readers within these pages is nothing short of breathtaking. Her storytelling prowess is laced with love, hope, and resilience of the human spirit. As grandchild of a genocide survivor, I held on tight to every word and moment feeling both the courage and intensity of my own grandparents' journey to freedom. Achingly beautiful and a must read for all Armenian children."--Armen Bacon, author of Griefland: An Intimate Portrait of Love, Loss, and Unlikely Friendship and My Name is Armen

"...you did a great job of touching the reader's emotions and raising awareness of important historical events in an age-appropriate way. It's a wonderful story, and knowing that it is based on real experiences makes the book even more poignant."--Jerry Burger: Author of The Shadows of 1915, an Armenian novel

"In spare but moving blank verse, author Joan Schoettler weaves in danger--the rat-a-tat of gunfire, bullets raining down--with homey thoughts of baba ganoush, honey dipped from a precious jar, and sisters sleeping like grape leaves, rolled and nestled together. These details set a particular scene, but readers anywhere, in any time, will understand dry throats, skin coated in dust, torn feet bandaged in rags, and a feeling of helpless terror."--Angelica Shirley Carpenter, Curator Emerita, Arne Nixon Center for the Study of Children's Literature, California State University, Fresno

A powerful story of racism that's as pertinent today as when the book was first published
This story of a man living every day in fear of his life for simply being black is as powerful today as it was when it was first published in 1947. The novel takes place in the space of four days in the life of Bob Jones, a black man who is constantly plagued by the effects of racism. Living in a society that is drenched in race consciousness has no doubt taken a toll on the way Jones behaves, thinks, and feels, especially when, at the end of his story, he is accused of a brutal crime he did not commit.

"One of the most important American writers of the twentieth century . . . [a] quirky American genius . . ."--Walter Mosley, author of Bad Boy Brawly Brown, Devil in a Blue Dress

"If He Hollers is an austere and concentrated study of black experience, set in southern California in the early forties."--Independent Publisher

"A fascinating story." --LeVar Burton

The thrilling adventures of a slave who became known worldwide for his explorations of Mammoth Cave.

If you toured Mammoth Cave in Kentucky in the year 1838, you would have been led by candlelight through dark, winding tunnels to the edge of a terrifying bottomless pit. Your guide would have been seventeen-year-old Stephen Bishop, an African American slave who became known around the world for his knowledge of Mammoth Cave.

Bishop needed bravery, intelligence, and curiosity to explore the vast cavern. Using only a lantern, rope, and other basic caving equipment, he found a way to cross the bottomless pit and discover many more miles of incredible grottoes and tunnels. For the rest of his life he guided visitors through the cave, showing them how to stoop, bend, and crawl through passageways that were sometimes far from the traditional tour route.

Based on the narratives of those who toured the cave with him, Journey to the Bottomless Pit is the first book for young readers ever written about Stephen Bishop. New to this edition: A free teacher's guide to this book, as well as an interview with current-day Mammoth Cave guide Jerry Bransford, great-great-grandson of Stephen Bishop's fellow guide, Mat Bransford.

A New York Times Best Fantasy of 2022!

"All the Horses of Iceland is a slim and beautiful chronicle in the tradition of Naomi Mitchison and Ursula K. Le Guin. ...The result is a sorcerous journey through hospitality and enchantment." --The New York Times

A hypnotic historical fantasy with gorgeous and unusual literary prose, from the captivating author of The Fourth Island.

Everyone knows of the horses of Iceland, wild, and small, and free, but few have heard their story. Sarah Tolmie's All the Horses of Iceland weaves their mystical origin into a saga for the modern age. Filled with the magic and darkened whispers of a people on the cusp of major cultural change, All the Horses of Iceland tells the tale of a Norse trader, his travels through Central Asia, and the ghostly magic that followed him home to the land of fire, stone, and ice. His search for riches will take him from Helmgard, through Khazaria, to the steppes of Mongolia, where he will barter for horses and return with much, much more.

All the Horses of Iceland is a delve into the secret, imagined history of Iceland's unusual horses, brought to life by an expert storyteller.

The true story of the great Sioux warrior who, as a young boy, defies tradition and seeks a vision on his own in hopes of saving his people.

Crazy Horse is among the best known Native American heroes. Yet many people do not know his boyhood name was Curly, inspired by his curly hair.

Curly was a leader even as a young boy, taming wild horses and hunting powerful buffalo. But all his bravery could not prepare him for the trouble he and the other Lakota Indians would face with the white settlers. Wanting to help his people after a fierce battle that mortally wounded Chief Conquering Bear, Curly defied traditional custom and risked his own life by running away, up to the hills, to seek a vision.

Renowned Abenaki author Joseph Bruchac tells a gripping and compelling story of how the dedicated young boy, Curly, grows into the brave warrior Crazy Horse. Sioux artist S.D. Nelson, with paintings inspired by the ledger book style of the Plains Indians, evokes the drama and tragedy of an important figure in American history.

What's the best way to purge an unfaithful husband? Become a spy for British Intelligence, of course.

Desperate to get out of London, and determined to help the war effort and stop thinking about her philandering husband, Fiona Figg volunteers to go undercover.

At Ravenswick Abbey a charming South African war correspondent has tongues wagging. His friends say he's a crack huntsman. The War Office is convinced he's a traitor. Fiona thinks he's a pompous prig.

What sort of name is Fredrick Fredricks anyway? Too bad Fiona doesn't own a Wolseley pith helmet.

At Ravenswick a murderer is on the prowl, and it's not just the big-game hunter who's ready to pounce.

Upton Sinclair's dramatic and deeply moving story exposed the brutal conditions in the Chicago stockyards at the turn of the nineteenth century and brought into sharp moral focus the apalling odds against which immigrants and other working people struggled for their share of the American dream. Denounced by the conservative press as an un-American libel on the meatpacking industry, the book was championed by more progressive thinkers, including then president Theodore Roosevelt, and was a major catalyst to the passing of the Pure Food and Meat Inspection act, which has tremendous impact to this day.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

WINNER OF THE INTERNATIONAL RUBERY BOOK OF THE YEAR AND RUBERY FICTION AWARD 2021

Within the depths of the Underworld the formidable snake-haired Gorgon has finally had enough. Tired of being eternally and unjustly brandished a villain, Medusa has found the courage to face her tragic past and speak out. Determined to expose the centuries of lies surrounding her name, Medusa gives unparalleled insight into her cursed life, from her earliest memories and abandonment at birth, right through to her tragic and untimely death at the hands of the hero Perseus. Through telling her story, Medusa finally reveals the lost truth behind antiquity's most infamous monster.

Medusa breathes new life into an ancient story and echoes the battle that women throughout millennia have continued to wage - the opportunity to simply be heard.

A "beautifully rendered" novel about war, migration, and the power of telling our stories, Peach Blossom Spring follows three generations of a Chinese family on their search for a place to call home (Georgia Hunter, New York Times bestselling author).

A country at war. A family searching for home.

China, 1938. Meilin and her four-year-old son, Renshu, flee their burning city as Japanese forces advance. On the perilous journey that follows, across a China transformed by war, they find comfort and wisdom in their most treasured possession, a beautifully illustrated hand scroll filled with ancient fables.

Years later, Renshu has settled in America as Henry Dao. Though his daughter, Lily, is desperate to understand her heritage, he refuses to talk about his childhood in China. How can he tell his story when he's left so much behind?

Spanning continents and generations, Peach Blossom Spring is a bold and moving story about the haunting power of our past, the sacrifices we make to protect our children, and one family's search for a place to call home.

A BOOK OF THE MONTH CLUB PICK AND NOMINEE FOR "BOOK OF THE YEAR"
NOMINATED FOR THE GOODREADS CHOICE "BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR"

"An accomplished first novel." --New York Times Book Review

"A stunning achievement . . . I absolutely adored this novel about love and war, migration and belonging." --Christy Lefteri, author of The Beekeeper of Aleppo

"I so enjoyed this book." --Alisa Chang, NPR's All Things Considered

"Magical and powerful, Peach Blossom Spring brings to life the costs of wars and conflicts while illuminating the spirit of human survival."―Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, author of The Mountains Sing

"Expansive, atmospheric, and affecting." --Susie Yang, author of White Ivy

"Has no equal. Evocative and haunting." (School Library Journal starred review)

The bestselling classic set in South Africa during the apartheid era, in which two siblings must face the dangers of their divided country.

Mma lives and works in Johannesburg, far from the village thirteen-year-old Naledi and her younger brother, Tiro, call home. When their baby sister suddenly becomes very sick, Naledi and Tiro know that they need to bring their mother back in order to save their sister's life. Bravely, secretly, they set off on the long journey to the big city to find Mma.

It isn't until they finally reach Jo'burg that they see up close what life is like for black citizens across South Africa--and begin to really question the unfair and dangerous laws of apartheid.

A classic look at prejudice and racism in apartheid South Africa, this short and compelling novel is perfect for independent reading projects and classroom sharing.