Historical Fiction – WWII

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

Number the Stars
by Lois Lowry

In 1943, during the German occupation of Denmark, ten-year-old Annemarie learns how to be brave and courageous when she helps shelter her Jewish friend from the Nazis.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak

Death relates the story of Liesel – a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors.

The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

The War that Saved my Life (Book 1)
by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

A young disabled girl and her brother are evacuated from London to the English countryside during World War II, where they find life to be much sweeter away from their abusive mother.

The War I Finally Won by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

The War I Finally Won (Book 2)
by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

As the frightening impact of World War II creeps closer and closer to her door, eleven-year-old Ada learns to manage life on the home front.

Prisoner B-3087 by Alan Gratz

Prisoner B-3087
by Alan Gratz

Based on the life of Jack Gruener, this book relates his story of survival from the Nazi occupation of Krakow, when he was eleven, through a succession of concentration camps, to the final liberation of Dachau.

Grenade by Alan Gratz

Grenade
by Alan Gratz

When Hideki is drafted into the Blood and Iron Student Corps, he does not want to kill anyone, he just wants to find his family. His struggle across the island of Okinawa will finally bring him face-to-face with Ray, a marine in his very first battle – and the choice that will change his life forever.

Allie by Alan Gratz

Allies
by Alan Gratz

The story of two children, Dee and Samira, meet on one of the most important days of the 20th Century, June 6, 1944, D-Day, who are both trying to fight and survive.

Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli

Milkweed
by Jerry Spinelli

Set in Nazi-occupied Poland just before the Warsaw ghetto uprising, this novel tells a tale of heartbreak, hope, and survival though the eyes of a young orphan.

The Secret Horses of Briar Hill by Megan Shepherd

A girl living in a children’s hospital during WWII discovers that a winged horse has entered her world and needs her help.

Village of Scoundrels by Margi Preus

Village of Scoundrels
by Margi Preus

In the 1940s, remote Les Lauzes, France, houses Jews, unregistered foreigners, forgers, and others who take great risks to shelter refugees and smuggle them to safety in Switzerland.

How I Became a Spy by Deborah Hopkinson

How I Became a Spy
by Deborah Hopkinson

Bertie Bradshaw never set out to become a spy. With the help of Eleanor and his friend David, a Jewish refugee, Bertie must decipher a notebook in time to stop a double agent from spilling the biggest secret of all to the Nazis.

White Bird by RJ Palacio

White Bird: A Wonder Story
by R.J. Palacio

Tells the story of Julian’s Grandmère’s childhood as she, a Jewish girl, was hidden by a family in a Nazi-occupied French village during World War II and how the boy she once shunned became her savior and best friend.

Hidden: A Child's Story of the Holocaust by Loïc Dauvillier

A grandmother shares the story of her experiences in WWII with her grandchild in this graphic novel for young readers.