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.
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420 Items found Print
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Abigail Adams
by Natalie S. Bober
from Simon Pulse
Biography for 4th-7th grade
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$13.95
Abraham Lincoln
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
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$11.99
Abraham Lincoln
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
75th Anniversary Edition from Beautiful Feet Books
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Caldecott Medal winner
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Adara
by Beatrice Gormley
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Africa For Kids
by Harvey Croze
from Chicago Review Press
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Almost Home
Daughters of the Faith
by Wendy G. Lawton
from Moody Press
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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Amazing Impossible Erie Canal
by Cheryl Harness
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Historical Non-Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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Amelia to Zora
1st edition from Charlesbridge
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$7.95
America's Paul Revere
by Esther Forbes
from Sandpiper Books
Biography for 2nd-6th grade
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$12.99
America's War Heroes
by Marilyn Boyer
from Master Books
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$10.39
American History in Verse
by Burton Stevenson
from Bob Jones University Press
Poetry for 3rd-Adult
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$11.00
American Revolution
America at War Series
by Alden Carter
from Grolier Publishing
Historical Non-fiction for 4th-6th grade
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Angel Knew Papa and the Dog
by Douglas Kaine McKelvey
from Rabbit Room Press
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$12.99
Anna Hibiscus
by Atinuke
Reprint from Candlewick Press
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Anno's Italy PB
by Mitsumasa Anno
from Beautiful Feet Books
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Anno's Journey
by Mitsumasa Anno
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Anno's Spain
by Mitsumasa Anno
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Ashanti to Zulu
by Margaret Musgrove, Leo & Diane Dillon
from Puffin Books
Word Books for 2nd-5th grade
1977 Caldecott Medal winner
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$8.99
Astrid the Unstoppable
by Maria Parr, translated from the Norwegian by Guy Puzey
from Candlewick Press
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$7.99
Attack in the Rye Grass
Trailblazer Series
by Dave and Neta Jackson
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$8.99
Bard of Avon
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
from William Morrow & Company
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Baseball Saved Us
by Ken Mochizuki
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$9.95
Battle of Seattle
by Douglas Bond
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$11.99
Beat the Story-Drum, Pum-Pum
by Ashley Bryan
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 3rd-7th grade
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Benjamin Franklin
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
from Beautiful Feet Books
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Benjamin Franklin
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
Biography for 4th-7th grade
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$11.99
Benjamin West and His Cat Grimalkin
by Marguerite Henry & Wesley Dennis
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
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$7.99
Bite of the Gold Bug
by Barthe DeClements
from Puffin Books
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Black Island
Adventures of Tintin
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
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$14.99
Blackthorn Winter
Monroe Family Chronicles #1
by Doug Wilson
from Veritas Press
Nautical fiction for 4th-6th grade
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Blood on the River: James Town, 1607
by Elisa Carbone
Reprint from Puffin Books
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Blue Birds
by Caroline Starr Rose
Dgs from Puffin Books
Narrative Poetry / Novel-In-Verse for 4th-7th grade
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$10.99
Blue Lotus
Adventures of Tintin
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
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Bobby’s Friends
by Phia van den Berg
from Inheritance Publications
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$9.95
Boris
by Jaap Ter Haar
from Inheritance Publications
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$11.95
Boy in the Alamo
by Margaret Cousins
from Veritas Press
Historical fiction for 4th-9th grade
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$19.00
Boy on the Wooden Box
by Leon Leyson
Reprint from Atheneum
for 4th-8th grade
Christopher Award
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Boys and Girls of Colonial Days
by Carolyn Bailey
2nd edition from Christian Liberty Press
for 4th grade
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Brady
by Jean Fritz
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Breaking Stalin's Nose
by Eugene Yelchin
from Square Fish Publishing
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2012 Newbery Honor Book
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Broken Blade
by William Durbin
Reprint from Lake Vermillion Press
for 3rd-6th grade
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$9.99
Broken Ear
Adventures of Tintin
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
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$13.99
Brother's Keeper
by Julie Lee
from Holiday House
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$9.99
Bud, Not Buddy
by Christopher Paul Curtis
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2000 Newbery Medal winner
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Buffalo Bill
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
from Beautiful Feet Books
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$17.95
By the Shores of Silver Lake
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
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$9.99
Canada and the Canadian Provinces Map Coloring Book
by J. Bruce Jones
from CreateSpace
for 3rd-8th grade
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$7.95
Canadian Summer
Mitchells Series #2
by Hilda Van Stockum
from Bethlehem Books
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
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$16.95
Candy Bomber
by Michael O. Tunnell
from Charlesbridge
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in WWII: European Theater (Location: HISA-20WW2E)
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Captain's Dog
by Roland Smith
from Harcourt
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$8.99
Captive Treasure
by Milly Howard
from Bob Jones University Press
Realistic Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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$6.99
Carolina's Courage
by Elizabeth Yates
from Bob Jones University Press
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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Chameleon, A Boy, and A Quest
from New Growth Press
for 3rd-8th grade
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$13.00
Chasing Space for Young Readers
by Leland Melvin
from Amistad Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Space Race & Exploration (Location: HISA-20SPR)
$7.99
Child's First Book of American History
by Earl Schenck Miers, James Daugherty
from Beautiful Feet Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Beautiful Feet Books (Location: HISCUR-BFB)
$32.95 $21.00 (1 in stock)
Children of the Covered Wagon
by Mary Jane Carr
2nd edition from Christian Liberty Press
Historical Fiction for 3rd-5th grade
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$16.75
Children of the Dust Bowl
by Jerry Stanley
from Crown Publishers
for 2nd-5th grade
1993 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award
in Great Depression (1929-1939) (Location: HISA-20GD)
$10.99
Children of the Great Depression
by Russell Freedman
from Sandpiper Books
for 4th-6th grade
2006 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award
in Great Depression (1929-1939) (Location: HISA-20GD)
$10.99
Children of the Longhouse
by Joseph Bruchac
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
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$7.99
Christopher Columbus
Sowers Series
by Bennie Rhodes
from Mott Media
for 4th-6th grade
in Sowers Biographies (Location: BIO-SOW)
$8.99 $5.00 (3 in stock)
City
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$14.99 $7.50 (2 in stock)
Civil War Days
American Kids in History
by David C. King
1st edition from John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
for 3rd-6th Grade
in American Civil War (1860-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$16.95 $8.50 (1 in stock)
Civil War for Kids
by Janis Herbert
from Chicago Review Press
Activity Guide for 4th-7th grade
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$16.95
Clara Barton
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Heroes of History (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
Clearing Weather
by Cornelia Meigs
Repint from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
1929 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Cleopatra
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
from William Morrow & Company
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Colonial Wars
America at War Series
by Alden Carter
from Grolier Publishing
Historical Non-fiction for 4th-6th grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$6.95
Columbus Discovers America - Coloring Book
by Peter F. Copeland
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in History of America Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISA)
$4.99 $3.00 (2 in stock)
Coming Evil
by Vivian Vande Velde
from Sandpiper Books
Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$13.95
Commodore Perry in the Land of the Shogun
by Rhoda Blumberg
from HarperCollins
Historical Non-Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1986 Newbery Honor Book
in Japan (Location: HISMC-JAP)
$9.99 $7.00 (2 in stock)
Copper-Toed Boots
by Marguerite de Angeli
from Wayne State University
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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$18.95
Courage to Run
Daughters of the Faith
by Wendy G. Lawton
from Moody Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Daughters of the Faith (Location: SER-DAU)
$8.99
Crab With the Golden Claws
Adventures of Tintin
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
in Adventures of Tintin (Location: COM-TIN)
$13.99
Crossing Bok Chitto
by Tim Tingle
from Cinco Puntos Pres
for 1st-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$12.95
Curious World of Calpurnia Tate
by Jacqueline Kelly
Reprint from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
2010 Newbery Honor
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
D-Day Landings
DK Readers Level 4
by Richard Platt
from DK Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in DK Readers (Location: EAR-DK)
$4.99
Daily Life in a Covered Wagon
by Paul Erickson
from Puffin Books
Historical Reference for 3rd-5th Grade
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$9.99
Daniel Boone
by Daniel Boone
from Applewood Books
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$14.95 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Daniel Boone
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Heroes of History (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
Dark-Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural
by Patricia C. McKissack, illustrated by Brian Pinkney
from Yearling
for 4th-7th grade
1993 Newbery Honor Book
$7.99
Davy Crockett
by David Crockett
from Applewood Books
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$14.95 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Davy Crockett
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Heroes of History (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
Detectives in Togas
by Henry Winterfeld
from Harcourt
Humorous Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.99
Diary of an Early American Boy
by Eric Sloane
from Dover Publications
American History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$14.95
Did You Invent The Phone All Alone, Alexander Graham Bell?
by Gilda Berger, Melvin Berger
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.99
Discovery of the Americas
by Betsy & Giulio Maestro
from HarperTrophy
for 3rd-6th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$9.99
Don't You Know There's a War On?
by Avi
Reprint from HarperCollins
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99
Douglas MacArthur
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Heroes of History (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
Down the Big River
Purple House Living History Library
by Stephen W. Meader, illustrated by Edward Shenton
from Purple House Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$10.99
Draw 50 Boats, Ships, Trucks, and Trains
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Dutch Color
by Doug Jones
from Canon Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.00
Early Thunder
by Jean Fritz
from Puffin Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.99
Echo Mountain
by Lauren Wolk
from Dutton Children's Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Echoes of the White Giraffe
by Sook Nyul Choi
Reprint from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$10.95
Elephant Run
by Roland Smith
Reprint from Disney-Hyperion
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.99
Elijah Of Buxton
by Christopher Paul Curtis
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
2008 Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner, 2008 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Elisabeth Elliot
by Geoff Benge, Janet Benge
from YWAM Publishing
Biography for 4th-6th grade
in Christian Heroes: Then and Now (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
Encounter
by Jane Yolen
1st edition from Voyager Paperbacks
for 1st-6th grade
in Age of Exploration (1450-1700) (Location: HISA-16EXP)
$8.99
Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
by Jacqueline Kelly
Reprint from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
2010 Newbery Honor
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Exiled to the Red River
Trailblazer Books
by Dave and Neta Jackson
from Castle Rock Creative
for 3rd-7th grade
in Trailblazer Books (Location: SER-TRAIL)
$8.99
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