History books for 2nd graders

Emi, a 7-­year-­old girl in Berkeley, California, is forced to relocate with her Japanese­-American family to a World War II detention center. Laurie Madison, her Caucasian BFF, gives her a bracelet so she’ll always remember their friendship. Emi loses the gift when she cleans her family’s humiliating new home, a dirty horse stable. Initially sad, she soon realizes shiny objects aren’t necessary to keep loved ones warm in our hearts. Perfect twin ­themes of long­-lasting friendship and social injustice are brought to life with watercolor images.

Perfect for: Kids separated from a good friend or loved one.

Find The Bracelet at your local library.

These 13 strong women and girls changed their world by dreaming big and standing up for what they believed, even when the people around them told them they couldn’t. The stories of Mexican poet and scholar Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, activist and Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai and others will empower girls to push past obstacles and believe that they can make a difference.

Perfect for: Young leaders of the future.

Find She Persisted Around the World: 13 Women Who Changed History at your local library.

In 1960, court-ordered desegregation sends 6-year-old Ruby Bridges to an all-white New Orleans school. Escorted by federal marshals, she walks past angry racist mobs to her classroom, where she’s the only student. Warm watercolors convey the quiet bravery of the tiny heroine in this superb introduction to the civil rights movement.

Perfect for: Kids who like to read about real people.

Find The Story of Ruby Bridges at your local library.

A raging fever leaves baby Helen blind and deaf, but her indomitable spirit survives inside the dark silence. Guidance from a persevering teacher, Anne Sullivan, enables Helen to read Braille, graduate from Radcliffe, and become a world-renowned author. Triumphant chronicle of someone who refuses to be defeated even by enormous challenges.

Perfect for: Kids who like to read about real people.

Find Helen Keller at your local library.

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life — from dealing with segregation in childhood to the Montgomery bus boycott, the March on Washington, his epic “I Have a Dream” speech, and his tragic assassination — is described through the author’s personal dream and illustrated with folk-modern illustrations. The book ends with pictures of everyone in the world fulfilling King’s dream: trading in prejudice, fear, and hate for hope, peace, and love.

Perfect for: Introducing kids to African-American history and societal goals like justice, freedom, and equality.

Find My Dream of Martin Luther King at your local library.

The pro-STEM message of this amusingly illustrated book is delivered when African-American handyman Mr. Mital explains to two youths, “there’s more to our history than slavery, jazz, sports, and civil rights marches.” Subsequent pages praise black inventions ranging from the Super Soaker squirt gun to synthetic cortisone, refrigerated trucks, and blood banks.

Perfect for: Kids who like history.

Find What Color Is My World? at your local library.

Fascinating facts and full-page illustrations bring pilgrim history to life. This highly informative and inspirational story includes religious reasons for fleeing England in 1620, the nine-week Atlantic crossing on the Mayflower, the cold first winter in New Plymouth that killed half of the settlers, and the life-saving friendship with Indians, which they celebrated at the first Thanksgiving: a joyful three-day feast with children’s games and contests.

Perfect for: Helping kids understand and appreciate Thanksgiving.

Find The First Thanksgiving at your local library.

The hook: After their mother dies, Anna and Caleb’s father advertises for a mail order bride. Sarah responds to the ad, and heads out from Maine to join the family on their Midwest farm. The children are apprehensive before she arrives, wondering what she’ll be like. When Sarah arrives, bringing her cat, gifts from the Maine coast, and warmth back to their desolate home, family bonding ensues. Part one of a heartwarming five-part saga.

Want to watch the movie? Check out the 1991 TV movie starring Christopher Walken and Glenn Close, which was nominated for 9 Emmys.

Perfect for: Kids intrigued by pioneer families.

Find Sarah, Plain and Tall at your local library.