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Historical Picture Books

Some of the best illustrations aren't realistic, at least not in the way the Digital Age generation has come to define realism (i.e., as perfect photographic replication). And we're not promoting Modern Art, either: far be if from us to prefer squiggles or big shapeless color patches to depictions of actual landscapes and people. What we are promoting is the exercise of the artist's art and skills, not simply as an imitator, but as a revelator and interpreter of facts.

This emphasis on artistic creativity has largely informed our selection of historical picture books. Do all of the d'Aulaire illustrations perfectly resemble key figures and events of the past? Not at all, but they do consistently capture the spirit of American history and historical figures, portraying each as they were perceived and not necessarily how they actually were. Purists may balk at this approach, but rest assured that the textual content of these books is accurate and trustworthy.

Which brings us to one of the essential aspects of history study: interpretation. If it's pure authenticity you want, photographs will do just fine, whether of individuals, places, artifacts, or buildings. But facts are only one side of history, and as far as one's worldview goes, probably not even the most important part. Not that you can do without them, but learning to read the facts and interpret them is the only reason learning about the past is a worthwhile endeavor.

Good historical picture books can help you cultivate this skill, especially when teaching younger students who aren't ready to make abstract connections between seemingly disparate facts. For instance, a picture book about the American Civil War could simply depict images of battle....or, the artist could use dark colors and heavy strokes to show both the evils of warfare as well as the deep racial themes and animosities shared by both sides throughout the War Between the States.

Some of our favorite books of the latter kind are those by Ingri and Edgar d'Aulaire. Each of these volumes is dedicated to an important American historical figure like Abraham Lincoln, Buffalo Bill Cody, and Leif Erickson, and each is well-known for its lovely lithograph prints. The accompanying text is poetic and accessible, offering a child's-eye view of people history has generally turned into mythic characters.

In a similar vein, though with cartoon-y illustrations, the Jean Fritz books are perennially popular, and justly so. These are a little more fact- and text-heavy, though still written in story form, and often focus on the more eccentric elements of famous peoples' personalities. Many of the figures covered in this series are heroes of the American War for Independence, and make excellent supplements to a study of the Colonial and New Nation eras.

A newer series from Banner of Truth Trust is destined to be among our favorites: the Heroes of the Faith books by Sinclair B. Ferguson, a Presbyterian pastor and theologian. Each book covers a covers an important church father (Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp, Irenaeus) and is illustrated with somewhat stylized full-color pictures. Kids are introduced to famous saints, as well as to their basic ideas and significance, all in a format they'll welcome.

There are so many other excellent historical picture books we'd like to introduce you to, but it's probably easier for us and you to just let you browse our collection. For the most part, only narrative histories (history in story form) have made their way into this category, though there are a few exceptions. The important thing to remember is that it's never too early to introduce kids to the study of the past, and when they're particularly interested in pictures is as good a time as any to start.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur.Read more of his reviews here.

 

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Historical Picture Books
Historical Picture Books
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258 Items found Print
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Active Filters: 4th grade (Ages 9-10), Hardcover
5,000-Year-Old Puzzle
by Claudia Logan, illustrated by Melissa Sweet
1st edition from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 3rd-6th grade
in Ancient Egypt (Location: HISW-ANEG)
$18.69
Abraham Lincoln (hardcover)
by Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire; edited by Rea Berg
75th Anniversary from Beautiful Feet Books
Biography for 1st-6th grade
1940 Caldecott Medal winner
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.66
Abraham Lincoln: A Man for All the People
by Myra Cohn Livingston, illustrated by Samuel Byrd
from Holiday House
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$5.60 (1 in stock)
Adoniram Judson: A Grand Purpose
by Renee Meloche
from YWAM Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Heroes for Young Readers (Location: BIO-HERO)
America's Ethan Allen
by Stewart H. Holbrook; illustrated by Lynd Ward
9th printing from Houghton Mifflin
Picture Book Biography for 4th-6th grade
1950 Caldecott Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
America's Lost Dream
by Tom Dooley
from Master Books
American History for 4th-6th grade
in America's Christian Heritage (Location: HISA-CH)
$13.59 $6.40 (2 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)
Amy Carmichael: Rescuing the Children
Heroes for Young Readers
by Renee Taft Meloche
from YWAM Publishing
Biography for 2nd-4th grade
in Heroes for Young Readers (Location: BIO-HERO)
Anselm of Canterbury
Christian Biographies for Young Readers
by Simonetta Carr
from Reformation Heritage Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
Athanasius
Christian Biographies for Young Readers
by Simonetta Carr
from Reformation Heritage Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
Augustine of Hippo
Christian Biographies for Young Readers
by Simonetta Carr
from Reformation Heritage Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
Bach's Goldberg Variations
Once Upon a Masterpiece
by Anna Harwell Celenza & JoAnn E. Kitchel
from Charlesbridge
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$14.41
Beethoven
by Reba Paeff Mirsky
from Follett
for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Benjamin Franklin and His Friends
by Robert M. Quackenbush
First Printing from Pippin Press
Picture Book Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Between the Lines
by Sandra Neil Wallace; illustrated by Bryan Collier
from Simon and Schuster
for 2nd-6th grade
in Oversized Biographies (Location: BIO-OVER)
Black Elk's Vision
by S. D. Nelson
from Abrams Books for Young Readers
for 3rd-6th grade
in Native American History (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Blizzard!
by Jim Murphy
from Scholastic Press
for 4th-6th grade
2001 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
in 19th Century America (Location: HISA-19C)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom
by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Michele Wood
from Candlewick Press
for 4th-6th grade
2021 Newbery Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$15.29
Boy Whose Head was Filled With Stars
by Isabelle Marinov; illustrated by Deborah Marcero
from Enchanted Lion Books
for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.14
Building on Nature
by Rachel Rodriguez, illustrated by Julie Paschkis
from Henry Holt and Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Captain Cook: Pacific Explorer
by Ronald Syme
from William Morrow & Company
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Cats in Krasinski Square
by Karen Hesse
1st edition from Scholastic Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Charles Dickens
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
from William Morrow & Company
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Charlotte Bronte and Jane Eyre
by Robert Van Nutt, Stewart Ross
1st edition from Viking Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Choosing Brave
by Angela Joy, illustrated by Janelle Washington
from Roaring Brook Press
for 1st-4th grade
2023 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.99
Columbia River
Rivers of America for Young People
by Stewart H. Holbrook
from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
for 4th-8th grade
in Pacific States (Location: HISV-PNW)
Columbia, The
Rivers of America
by Stewart H. Holbrook
from Rinehart & Company, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Pacific States (Location: HISV-PNW)
Columbus: The Triumphant Failure
by Oliver Postgate & Naomi Linnell
from Franklin Watts
for 2nd-5th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
David Livingstone: Courageous Explorer
by Renee Meloche, illustrated by Bryan Pollard
from YWAM Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Heroes for Young Readers (Location: BIO-HERO)
Duke Ellington
by Andrea Davis Pinkney, illustrated by Brian Pinkney
1st edition from Hyperion/Madison Press
for 3rd-6th grade
1999 Caldecott Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
El Cid
by Maria De Vivanco, illustrated by Laszlo Gal
from Golden Press
Biography for 3rd-7th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Encounter
by Jane Yolen, illustrated by David Shannon
from Harcourt Brace Jovanich
for 1st-6th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
Exploration and Conquest
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
1st edition from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
for 3rd-7th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Exploration and Conquest
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
1st edition from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
for 3rd-7th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
First Book of World War II
by Louis L. Snyder
from Franklin Watts
for 4th-6th grade
in World War II (1939-1945) (Location: HISA-20WW2)
Galileo
by Leonard Everett Fisher
from Macmillan
for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue
by Anna Harwell Celenza & JoAnn E. Kitchel
from Charlesbridge
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Music Appreciation (Location: ELE-MUSAP)
Girl From the Tar Paper School
by Teri Kanefield
from Abrams Books for Young Readers
for 1st-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Going West
by Jean Van Leeuwen, illustrated by Thomas Allen
from Dial Books for Young Readers
Historical fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Good Ol' Cowboy Stories
by Jack Terry
from Harvest House
for 4th-7th grade
in Cowboys & Cattlemen (Location: HISA-19CO)
$5.60 (3 in stock)
Good Queen Bess
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
from HarperCollins
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.99
Grandfather Gandhi
by Arun Gandhi
First Edition from Atheneum
for 3rd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Great Little Madison
by Jean Fritz
1st edition from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.20 (1 in stock)
Greek Gods and Goddesses
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
Harvesting Hope
by Kathleen Krull
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 3rd-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Haydn's Farewell Symphony
Once Upon a Masterpiece
by Anna Harwell Celenza & JoAnn E. Kitchel
from Charlesbridge
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$16.95
Heroes
by Rebecca Hazell
from Abbeville Press
for 1st-5th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
Heroes of God
by Katie & Dan Montgomery
from Augsburg Fortress
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
How Ben Franklin Stole the Lightning
by Rosalyn Schanzer
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
How Sweet the Sound
by Carole Boston Weatherford, Illustrated by Frank Morrison
from Atheneum
for 1st-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$15.29
I, Matthew Henson
by Carole Boston Weatherford
1st edition from Walker Books
for 3rd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Ignatius of Antioch
Heroes of the Faith
by Dr. Sinclair Ferguson
from Banner of Truth Trust
for 3rd-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
Irenaeus of Lyons
Heroes of the Faith
by Dr. Sinclair Ferguson
from Banner of Truth Trust
for 3rd-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
$11.90
It Can't Be Done, Nellie Bly!
by Nancy Butcher
1st edition from Peachtree Publishers, Ltd.
for 4th-6th grade
in Clearance: Biographies (Location: ZCLE-BIO)
Joan of Arc
by Josephine Poole
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Biography for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Joan of Arc
by Margaret Hodges, illustrated by Robert Rayevsky
1st edition from Holiday House
Picture Book Biography for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Joan of Arc: Heroine of France
by Ann Tompert
1st edition from Boyds Mill Press
for 1st-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
John Calvin
Christian Biographies for Young Readers
by Simonetta Carr
1st edition from Reformation Heritage Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
$15.30
John Hancock
Weekly Reader Heroes of the Revolution
by Susan & John Lee, illustrated by Chuck Mitchell
from Children's Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$1.60 (1 in stock)
John Owen
Christian Biographies for Young Readers
by Simonetta Carr
from Reformation Heritage Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
Journey to Freedom
by Charles W. Carey Jr.
from Child's World
for 2nd-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Juan Ponce de Leon
by Tamara Green
from World Almanac Library
for 2nd-4th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Karl, Get Out of the Garden!
by Anita Sanchez
from Charlesbridge
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$15.29 $7.20 (1 in stock)
King George's Head Was Made of Lead
by F. N. Monjo
from Coward McCann
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Let's Go to the Battle of Gettysburg
by Judith Spiegelman, Illustrated by Charles Dougherty
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for 1st-5th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Let's Go to the U.S. Mint
by Bernard Rosenfield, illustrated by Gustav Schrotter
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for 1st-5th grade
in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC)
Liberty
by Lynn Curlee
from Atheneum
for 4th-6th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Librarian Who Measured the Earth
by Kathryn Lasky
from Little, Brown & Company
Biography for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.99 $9.60 (2 in stock)
Lights! Camera! Alice!
from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.20 (2 in stock)
Lily's Victory Garden
by Helen L. Wilbur
1st edition from Sleeping Bear Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in World War II (1939-1945) (Location: HISA-20WW2)
Little Ships
by Louise Borden, illustrated by Michael Foreman
from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in WWII: European Theater (Location: HISA-20WW2E)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Lost Colony of Roanoke
by Jean Fritz, illustrated by Hudson Talbott
from Putnam Juvenile
for 2nd-6th grade
in New World Colonization (Location: HISA-17NW)
$16.14
Luba
by Luba Tryszynska-Frederick
from Tricycle Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Holocaust (Location: HISW-20WW2H)
Many Thousand Gone
by Virginia Hamilton
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Slavery & the Underground Railroad (Location: HISA-19SL)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Marguerite Makes a Book
by Bruce Robertson
from J. Paul Getty Museum
Picture Books for 2nd-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.96
Marjory Saves the Everglades
by Sandra Neil Wallace; illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon
from Beach Lane Books
for Preschool-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.99
Mark Twain and the Queens of the Mississippi
by Cheryl Harness
from Simon and Schuster
Biography for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Martin Luther
by May McNeer & Lynd Ward
from Abingdon Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$11.20 (1 in stock)
Mary Slessor: Courage in Africa
Heroes for Young Readers
by Renee Meloche
from YWAM Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Heroes for Young Readers (Location: BIO-HERO)
Moonshot
by Brian Floca
Expanded Edition from Atheneum
for 1st-5th grade
2010 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$16.99
Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition
Once Upon a Masterpiece
by Anna Harwell Celenza & JoAnn E. Kitchel
from Charlesbridge
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$16.95
Mutiny on the Bounty
by Patrick O'Brien
from Walker and Company
for 2nd-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
My Fellow Americans
by Alice Provensen
1st edition from Harcourt Children's Books
for 2nd-5th grade
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$4.00 (3 in stock)
My Secret Camera
by Mendel Grossman
from Harcourt
for 4th-8th grade
in Holocaust (Location: HISW-20WW2H)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Nelson Mandela
by Chris Van Wyk
from Flash Point
for 3rd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Panama Canal
by Elizabeth Mann
from Mikaya Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Gilded Age & Progressive Era (1877-1918) (Location: HISA-19GI)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Pass the Quill, I'll Write a Draft
by Robert Quackenbush
from Pippin Press
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Patrol
by Walter Dean Myers, illustrated by Ann Grifalconi
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vietnam War (1957-1975) (Location: HISA-20VIE)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Peter the Great
by Diane Stanley
from William Morrow & Company
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$15.29 $9.60 (1 in stock)
Picture Book of Davy Crockett
by David Adler
from Holiday House
Picture Book Biography for 2nd-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Pilgrims Plantation
by June Behrens and Pauline Brower
from Children's Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Pilgrims at Plymouth (Location: HISA-17PIL)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Play's the Thing
by Ruth Turk
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Poem for Peter
by Andrea Davis Pinkney, illustrated by Lou Fancher & Steve Johnson
from Penguin Putnam
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.99
Poor Richard in France
by F. N. Monjo, illustrated by Brinton Turkle
from Henry Holt and Company
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Prince Henry the Navigator
by Leonard Everett Fisher
1st edition from Atheneum
for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Real Johnny Appleseed
by Laurie Lawlor
from Albert Whitman & Company
Biography for Ages 9-12
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Right Word
by Jen Bryant
from Eerdmans
for 1st-4th grade
2015 Caldecott Honor Book, 2015 Robert F. Sibert Medal winner
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.14 $7.60 (1 in stock)
River of Words
by Jen Bryant
First Edition from Eerdmans
for 1st-4th grade
2009 Caldecott Honor Book, Sibert Medal
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$15.30
Rutherford B. Who Was He?
by Marilyn Singer, illustrated by John Hendrix
from Disney-Hyperion
for 2nd-5th grade
in American Presidency (Location: HISV-PRE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Seeds of Change
by Jen Cullerton Johnson
1St Edition from Lee & Low Books
for 3rd-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
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