World War II, an annotated bibliography

        World War II is a significant part of our history in the 20th Century.  In this bibliography, attempts have been made to present a wide variety of literature and informational sources to be used by teachers in today's multicultural upper elementary and middle school classroom.  Each book was carefully selected to show that all people were affected by this tragedy in American history.

FICTION

Bennett, C. & Gottesfeld, J. (2001 ).  Anne Frank and Me.  G. P. Putnam’s Sons.
Nicole Burns is knocked unconscious while visiting an Anne Frank exhibit and is transported back in time to World War II Paris, France.

Kerr, J. (1972).  When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit.  Coward-McCann.
When Hitler comes to power and her family has to flee Berlin, Anna must quickly decide which stuffed animal to take with her.

Lisle, J. T. (2000).  The Art of Keeping Cool.  Aladdin Paperbacks.
In 1942, Robert and his cousin Elliot uncover long-hidden family secrets while staying in their grandparents’ Rhode Island town, where they also become involved with a German artist who is suspected of being a spy.

Lowry, L. (1989).  Number the Stars.  Houghton Mifflin.
During the German occupation of Denmark, Annemarie learns to be brave and courageous as she and her family risks their lives by hiding a Jewish girl from the Nazis.

Matas, C. (1998).  Greater than Angels.  Simon & Schuster.
Anna, a teenage German refugee, relates how she and other Jewish children were cared for by the citizens of LeChambon-Sur-Lignon, France, during the German occupation.

Schnur, S. (1994 ).  The Shadow Children.  William Morrow & Company.
        While spending the summer on his grandfather’s farm in the French countryside, eleven-year-old Etienne discovers a secret dating back to World War II and encounters the ghosts of Jewish children who suffered a dreadful fate under the Nazis.

BIOGRAPHIES AND PERSONAL STORIES

Aaseng, N. (1992).  Navajo Code Talkers.  Walker Publishing Company.
Describes how the American military in World War II used a group of Navajo Indians to create an indecipherable code based on their native language.

George, L., George, C.  (2001).  Cornerstones of Freedom, The Tuskegee Airmen.  Children's Press.
        During World War II the military was segregated.  This is the story of a group of African American pilots that help dispel the myth that African Americans were not as smart as whites, and helped in the desegregation of the military with their courage and fortitude.

Pfeifer, K. B. (1994).  The 761st Tank Battalion.  Henry Holt and Company, Inc.
        This is a true story of how an African American army battalion served during World War II, just as the Tuskegee Airmen served as pilots.  Their indomitable spirit helped break down barriers that had previously existed for minorities.

Rubin Goldman S. (2000).  Fireflies in the Dark, The Story of Friedl Dicker-Brandeis and the Children of Terezin.  Holiday House.
Covers the years during which Friedl Dicker, a Jewish woman from Czechoslovakia, taught art to children at the Terezin Concentration Camp.  Includes art created by the teacher and her students, and excerpts from diaries, and interviews with camp survivors.

Tunnell, M. O. & Chilcoat, G. W. (1996).  The Children of Topaz, The Story of a Japanese-American Internment Camp.  Based on a Classroom Diary.  Holiday House.
        The diary of a third-grade class of Japanese-American children held, along with their families, in an internment camp during World War II.

INFORMATIONAL BOOKS

Ambrose, S. E. (2001).  The Good Fight, How World War II Was Won.  Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division.
Well-known historian Stephen E. Ambrose’s account of major events during the war, personal anecdotes from soldiers who were fighting on the battlefields, and includes photos, key campaigns and battlefield maps.

Steins, R. (1993).  The Allies Against the Axis, World War II (1940-1950).  Henry Holt.
       A first person America series book which focuses on the leaders of World War II.

Wright, D. K. (1994).  Perspectives: A Multicultural Portrait of World War II.  Marshall Cavendish Corporation.
        Perspectives looks at not only the effect that World War II had on white European-Americans, but looks at it from people of color’s perspective, including Native Americans, Hispanic, African Americans, and Asian Americans.

PICTURE BOOKS

Coerr, E. & E. Young, illustrations.  (1993).  Sadako.  G. P. Putnam’s Sons.
Based on the novel, Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, this illustrated version of the story is a great picture accompaniment to the novel.  In the story, Sadako is a young Japanese girl who dies from leukemia as a result of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima during World War II.

Gallaz, C. & Innocenti, R. (1985).  Rose Blanche.  Harcourt Brace & Company.
        During World War II, a young German girl’s curiosity leads her to discover something far more terrible than the day-to-day hardships and privations that she and her neighbors have experienced.

Morimoto, J. (1987).  My Hiroshima.  Viking Children’s Books.
        Junko Morimoto remembers her childhood in Hiroshima, growing up in a society at war, and witnessing the devastation of the first nuclear attack.  Her remarkable, deeply moving experiences unfold in a collage of words and pictures showing this tragedy.

PROFESSIONAL RESOURCES

Huck, C. S., Hepler, S., Hickman, J. & Kiefer, B. Z. (2001).  Children’s Literature in the Elementary School, Seventh Edition.  McGraw-Hill Companies.

The Eisenhower Center for American Studies

Simon Wiesenthal Center Multimedia Learning Center Online

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Created by Denise Bouquet, December 2002.