Regional History

Once upon a time, schoolchildren could be expected to know the name of the mountains separating France from Spain, the location of the Nile River, the capitals of all fifty states, and what and where the Pampas could be found. Now, even adults have a hard time naming the most populous city in the U.S. or the countries of Asia. These are, indeed, sad times, and doomed to become sadder if this geographic ignorance is not turned to knowledge.

Without a firm grasp on geography, how can we expect to know anything about history? History is rooted in a sense of place. Why did the Union troops lose the Battle of Cold Harbor? Because they were attacking Confederate fortifications uphill. And if you don't know anything about the Alps, the fact that Hannibal's army crossed them with elephants won't surprise you near as much as it should. Understanding the physical terrain and the demographics of an area are essential to understanding the history of that region.

Which is why studying history by place is such a good idea. There are cultural considerations, of course, and these can be immensely helpful guides in their own right, but simply looking at the lay of the land so to speak will provide a sense of context more abstract boundaries never can. African history, for instance, makes so much more sense if you know what the continent is like.

Even cultures are influenced by geography. Take the United States: some of the most important advances in transportation technology happened within her borders largely due to necessity. The steam engine train was perfected here, automobiles and airplanes were invented here, and in the last few decades we've led the world in space exploration.

It's not that no one traveled before the 19th and 20th century, or outside the North American continent—it's just that because the new nation was so vast, and there were so many natural barriers (the Mississippi River, the Grand Tetons and Great Smokey Mountains, the Mojave Desert), new forms of getting from here to there were not only a good idea, they were a necessity.

There probably isn't one instance in the history of the world in which geography and events weren't directly tied. Certainly this is true for military history, and exploration, and agriculture, but it's also true of ideas and ideologies. Part of the reason slavery was such an important part of Southern culture in the U.S. was that cotton was an immensely growable crop and only armies of slaves could be counted on to get all the work done; in order to justify the use of forced labor, however, a philosophical ethos was developed.

Other instances may be more obscure, but no less true. In France, the mild climate and fertile country led to a series of approaches to thought that emphasized experience and the pursuit of pleasure for its own sake (particularly existentialism); in ancient Greece, the geographical isolation enforced by mountains and seas allowed democratic polity to emerge among the city states.

Geography and history are pretty much Siamese twins, and academic technology has not advanced to the point where they can be separated without risk of life to both. We've organized the subcategories in this section along pretty standard lines (continents, countries, and the like), but standards arise because they work. Explore a region you're unfamiliar with; you're likely to uncover quite a few surprises.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur.  Read more of his reviews here.
Did you find this review helpful?
298 Items found Print
Active Filters: 1st grade (Ages 6-7), Used Books & Materials
1, 2, 3, Go!
by Huy Voun Lee
from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-3rd grade
in China (Location: HISMC-CHI)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
A Christmas Carol Audio Drama - 2 CD set
by Charles Dickens
from Focus on the Family
for 1st-Adult
in Audio Books & Dramas (Location: CD-AUDIO)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
A is for Abigail
by Lynne Cheney
1st edition from Simon and Schuster
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$19.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Abraham Lincoln
A Rookie Biography
by Carol Greene
from Children's Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Acadia National Park
Road Trip: National Parks
by Kathleen Connors
from Gareth Stevens Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
in Landmarks & Symbols of the United States (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Algonquin
by Natalie M. Rosinsky
from Compass Point Books
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Alvin Ailey
by Andrea Davis Pinkney; illustrated by Brian Pinkney
from Hyperion Books for Children
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Always Room for One More
by Sorche Nic Leodhas
from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-3rd grade
1966 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$10.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
America in the Time of Abraham Lincoln
by Sally Senzell Isaacs
from Heinemann Library
for 1st-4th grade
in American Civil War (1860-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
America is....
by Louise W. Borden, illustrated by Stacey Schuett
from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Landmarks & Symbols of the United States (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
America: A Patriotic Primer
by Lynne Cheney
from Simon and Schuster
for Preschool-2nd grade
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
America: A Patriotic Primer
by Lynne Cheney
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
American Made: The Colonial Child of 1740
by Marcia Fann
from Great American Coloring Book, Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
American Moments
by Robert Burleigh, illustrated by Bruce Strachan
from Henry Holt and Company
for 1st-4th grade
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Angel Child, Dragon Child
by Michele Maria Surat
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Aquila's Drinking Gourd
by Pamela Dell
from Tradition Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
B is for Beaver
by Marie & Roland Smith, illustrated by Michael Roydon
from Sleeping Bear Press
for nursery-3rd grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
$18.99 $8.50 (1 in stock)
Bad River Boys
by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve, illustrated by Bill Farnsworth
from Holiday House
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Lewis & Clark (Location: HISA-19L&C)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Be a King
by Carole Boston Weatherford
from Bloomsbury Publishing
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Beatrice's Goat
by Page McBrier
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Ben Franklin
See and Read: Beginning to Read Biography
by Estelle Friedman, illustrated by James Caraway
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for 1st-3rd grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Benjamin in the Woods
Wonder Books Easy Reader
by Eleanor Clymer, illustrated by William Russell
from Wonder Books
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Vintage Readers & Textbooks (Location: VIN-READ)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Biography of a Rhino
by Alice L. Hopf; illustrated by Kiyo Komoda
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$44.00 (1 in stock)
Birds of Killingworth
by Robert D. San Souci, illustrated by Kimberly Bulcken Root
1st edition from Sun Dial Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Book About Christopher Columbus
by Ruth Belov Gross, Illustrated by Syd Hoff
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Brave Harriet
by Marissa Moss
from Harcourt Children's Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Bringing in the New Year
by Grace Lin
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Preschool-3rd grade
in China (Location: HISMC-CHI)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Brothers in Hope
by Mary Williams, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
from Lee & Low Books
for 1st-4th grade
2006 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award
in Africa (Location: HISMC-AFR)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Canada Geese Quilt
by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock
from Cobblehill Books
Realistic Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Cassie's Journey
by Brett Harvey; illustrated by Deborah Kogan Ray
from Holiday House
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Oregon Trail (Location: HISA-19OR)
$6.50 (2 in stock)
Chang's Paper Pony
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Eleanor Coerr
from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$4.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Child's Geography Volume IV (old)
by Terry Johnson
from Knowledge Quest
for 1st-8th grade
in Old Edition History & Geography (Location: OHIS)
$16.00 (1 in stock)
Child's Geography Volume V
by Terry Johnson
from Knowledge Quest
for 1st-8th grade
in Geography Curriculum (Location: GEO-CUR)
$36.99 $26.00 (1 in stock)
Children from Australia to Zimbabwe
by Anna Rhesa Versola, Maya Ajmera
Revised ed. from Charlesbridge
for 1st-3rd grade
in Diversity & Multicultural Books (Location: HISMC-MUL)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Children Just Like Me
by Anabel Kindersley, Barnabas Kindersley
from DK Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
in Diversity & Multicultural Books (Location: HISMC-MUL)
$19.99 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Children of the Earth and Sky
by Stephen Krensky, Illustrated by James Watling
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$1.50 (2 in stock)
Children's Color Book of Jamestown in Virginia
by Priscilla Hunt
from The Dietz Pres, Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Jamestown Colony (Location: HISA-17JA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Children's Illustrated Jewish Bible
by Laaren Brown & Lenny Hort
Revised Edition from DK Children
for 1st-6th grade
in World Religions, Cults and Sects (Location: XAP-WRCS)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Chin Chiang and the Dragon's Dance
by Ian Wallace
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Chinese Mother Goose Rhymes
by Selected and Edited by Robert Wyndham, Illustrated by Ed Young
from Philomel Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Mother Goose & Nursery Rhymes (Location: PIC-MG)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Christopher Columbus
by Elaine Murray Stone
500 Anv from Tyndale House
Biography for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Civil War Artist
by Taylor Morrison
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in American Civil War (1860-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Cliff Dwellers of Walnut Canyon
by Carroll Lane Fenton and Alice Epstein, illustrated by Albert Orbaan and Carroll Lane Fenton
from The John Day Company
for 1st-3rd grade
in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Colonial America
by Donald M. Silver, Patricia J. Wynne
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Colonial America Cooperative Learning Activities
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-4th grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Colonial Town: Williamsburg
by Bobbie Kalman
Revised from Crabtree Publishing
for 1st-8th grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$4.50 (2 in stock)
Color and Learn: Native America
Color & Learn
by Elizabeth Adams
from Educators Press
for Preschool-1st grade
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Coloring Book of Incas, Aztecs & Mayas
from Bellerophon Books
for 1st-5th grade
in Ancient America (Location: HISW-ANAM)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Coming On Home Soon
by Jacqueline Woodson
1st edition from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Coming to America
by Betsy Maestro
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Coming to America
by Betsy Maestro
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Immigration & Emigration (Location: HISA-20IM)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Cornstalks and Cannonballs
by Barbara Mitchell
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Crow Boy
by Taro Yashima
1972 Printing from Viking Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Cuba
Countries of the World
by William P. Mara
from Bridgestone Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Latin & South America (Location: HISMC-LAT)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Daniel Boone
by Carol Greene
from Children's Press
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Drum Dream Girl
by Margarita Engle, illustrated by Rafael Lopez
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Early Settler Storybook
from Crabtree Publishing
for 1st-4th grade
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Elizabeth Leads the Way
by Tanya Lee Stone, illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon
from Square Fish Publishing
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Enemies of Slavery
from Holiday House
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Everybody Cooks Rice
from First Avenue Editions
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Explore Native American Cultures!
by Anita Yasuda, illustrated by Jennifer K. Keller
from Nomad Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Extraordinary Mark Twain (According to Susy)
by Barbara Kerley, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
F is for Freedom
by Roni Schotter
from Scholastic Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Families Around the World
by Jo E. Moore
from Evan-Moor Educational Publishers
for Preschool-1st grade
in Diversity & Multicultural Books (Location: HISMC-MUL)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Famous Figures of the American Revolution
from Figures in Motion
for Kindergarten-6th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$12.00 (3 in stock)
Fire Stealer
by William Toye; illustrated by Elizabeth Cleaver
from Oxford University
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Firebird and Other Russian Fairy Tales
by Jacqueline Onassis, illustrated by Boris Zvorykin
from Viking Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Short Story Anthologies for Kids (Location: FIC-ANTH)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
First Book Edition of the Star-Spangled Banner
by Francis Scott Key, Richard B. Morris, illustrated by Henry S. Gillette
First Printing from Franklin Watts
for 1st-3rd grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
First Book of America
by L. Somerville
from Usborne
for 1st-5th grade
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$2.25 (1 in stock)
Five Cent, Five Cent
by Edna Walker Chandler, illustrated Betty Stull
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Flight
by Robert Burleigh; illustrated by Mike Wimmer
from Philomel Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1992 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award
in Aviation History (Location: HISV-AVIA)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Follow the Dream
by Peter Sís
from Dragonfly Books
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Food and Recipes of Westward Expansion
Cooking Throughout American History
by George Erdosh
1st edition from PowerKids Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Western Expansion (1800-1898) (Location: HISA-19WES)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Fool of the World and the Flying Ship
by Arthur Ransome, illustrated by Uri Shulevitz
from Sunburst Book
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-4th grade
1969 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Forever Forest
by Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini, Rachel Crandell
from Dawn Publications
for 1st-3rd grade
in Ecology (Location: SCI-ECO)
$4.50 (4 in stock)
Four Feet, Two Sandals
by Karen Lynn Williams, Khadra Mohammed, illustrated by Doug Chayka
1st edition from Eerdmans
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Fry Bread
by Kevin Noble Maillard, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal
from Roaring Brook Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
2020 Robert F. Sibert Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
George Washington Carver
by Carol Greene
from Children's Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
George Washington's Breakfast
by Jean Fritz
from PaperStar Books
Biography for 1st-4th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$6.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Gift of the Sacred Dog
by Paul Goble
from Macmillan/McGraw-Hill
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Glorious Flight
by Martin & Alice Provensen
from Puffin Books
Historical Non-Fiction/Picture Books for 1st-3rd grade
1984 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Going to Town
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from Scholastic Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Going West
by Martin Waddell, illustratred by Philippe Dupasquier
from Harper & Row
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Western Expansion (1800-1898) (Location: HISA-19WES)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Going West!
Kalideoscope Kids Book
by Carol A. Johmann, Elizabeth J. Rieth
from Williamson Publishing Company
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Golden City
by Neil Waldman
from Atheneum
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Near & Middle East (Location: HISMC-NME)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Gonna Sing My Head Off
by Kathleen Krull
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Music Education & Reference (Location: ELE-MUSREF)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Gonna Sing My Head Off
by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Allen Garns
First Printing from Scholastic Reference
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Music Education & Reference (Location: ELE-MUSREF)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami
from kahoku Shimpo Publishing Co
for 1st-Adult
in Japan (Location: HISMC-JAP)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
by Santana Hunt
from Gareth Stevens Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
in Landmarks & Symbols of the United States (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Guide to Argentina
by Marion Morrison
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Latin & South America (Location: HISMC-LAT)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Guide to Australia
by Michael March
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Australia & Oceania (Location: HISMC-AU)
$1.50 (3 in stock)
Guide to Brazil
by Marion Morrison
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Latin & South America (Location: HISMC-LAT)
$1.50 (4 in stock)
Guide to Costa Rica
by Marion Morrison
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Latin & South America (Location: HISMC-LAT)
$1.50 (2 in stock)
Guide to Egypt
by Michael March
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Near & Middle East (Location: HISMC-NME)
$1.50 (2 in stock)
Guide to Great Britain
by Brian Williams
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Great Britain / England (Location: HISMC-BRIT)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Guide to Italy
by Brian Williams
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Europe (Location: HISMC-EUR)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Guide to Kenya
by David Marshall
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Africa (Location: HISMC-AFR)
$1.50 (3 in stock)
Guide to Mexico
by Brian Williams
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Latin & South America (Location: HISMC-LAT)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Guide to South Africa
by Michael March
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Africa (Location: HISMC-AFR)
$1.50 (3 in stock)
Guide to South Korea
by Michael March
from Highlights for Children
for 1st-6th grade
in Asia (Location: HISMC-ASIA)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
123