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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...and now Miguel
by Joseph Krumgold
from Thomas Crowell
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1954 Newbery Medal winner
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1, 2, 3, Go!
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1,001 Things Everyone Should Know About American History
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13 Colonies: Georgia
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1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving
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1776
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1776
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1846 - Portrait of the Nation
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1861: The Civil War Awakening
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20th Century Wars
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3,650 of the World's Finest Proverbs
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50 States Flipper
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500 Nations
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501 Must-Visit Cities
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7 Continents: Africa
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7 Continents: Asia
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A Christmas Carol Audio Drama - 2 CD set
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A is for Abigail
by Lynne Cheney
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ABC Book of Early Americana - Coloring Book
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2012 Dover from Dover Publications
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Abe Lincoln
Landmark Series
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Biography for 5th-8th grade
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Abe Lincoln Gets His Chance
by Frances Cavanah
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Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Abe Lincoln Grows Up
by Carl Sandburg
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Abe Lincoln Grows Up
by Carl Sandburg, illustrated by James Daugherty
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Abigail Adams
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Biography for 4th-7th grade
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Above the Trenches
by Nathan Hale
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Abraham Lincoln
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
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Biography for 4th-7th grade
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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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Abraham Lincoln
A Rookie Biography
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Abraham Lincoln & His Family - Paper Dolls
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Abraham Lincoln - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
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Abraham Lincoln's World
by Genevieve Foster, expanded by Joanna Foster
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Historical Non-fiction for 7th-10th grade
1945 Newbery Honor Book
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Abraham Lincoln: Great Speeches
Dover Thrift Editions
by Abraham Lincoln & John Grafton, editor
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Political Philosophy for 10th-Adult
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Abraham Lincoln: The Man & His Faith
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Acadia National Park
Road Trip: National Parks
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Accidental Voyage
Mr. Pipes Series #4
by Doug Bond
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Across America
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Across America on an Emigrant Train
by Jim Murphy
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1994 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award
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Across Five Aprils
by Irene Hunt
from Berkley Books
Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade
1965 Newbery Honor Book
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Across Five Aprils
by Irene Hunt
from Berkley Books
Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade
1965 Newbery Honor Book
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Adam of the Road
Puffin Newbery Library
by Elizabeth Gray
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Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1943 Newbery Medal winner
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$8.99
Adara
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Adelita
by Tomie DePaola
Reprint from Puffin Books
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Admiral of the Ocean Sea
by Samuel E. Morison
from Atlantic Monthly Press
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Adoniram Judson
Christian Heroes: Then & Now
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from YWAM Publishing
Biography for 4th-7th grade
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$11.99
Adopted by Indians
by Thomas Jefferson Mayfield
from Heyday Books
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$18.00
Adventures of Buffalo Bill
by Col. William F. Cody
from Harper & Brothers
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Adventures of Captain Bonneville
by Washington Irving, illustrated by Robert Reynolds
Klickitat from Binford & Mort Publishing
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Adventures of Davy Crockett
by David Crockett, illustrated by John W. Thomason
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$18.00 (1 in stock)
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Puffin Classics
by Mark Twain
from Puffin Books
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$8.99
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Sterling Classics
by Mark Twain, illustrated by Scott McKowen
from Sterling Publishing Co.
for 6th-10th grade
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$14.95
Adventures of King Arthur - Coloring Book
by Arkady Roytman
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Adventures of Lewis and Clark
North Star Books #29
by John Bakeless
from Dover Publications
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Adventures of Munford: Munford Meets Lewis & Clark
by Jamie Aramini
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Adventures of Perrine
Windermere Readers #10
by Hector Malot, translated by Gil Meynier, adapted by Edith Heal
1954 edition from Rand McNally
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$10.00 (1 in stock)
Adventures of the American Revolution
by Susan Olasky
from P&R Publishing
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Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Puffin Classics
by Mark Twain
from Penguin Classics
Realistic Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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$10.00
Adventures with the Santa Fe Trail
by Dave Webb, illustrated by Phillip R. Buntin
Revised from Kansas Heritage Center
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Adventurous Life of Myles Standish
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Aeneid
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Ancient Literature/Epic Poetry for 10th-Adult
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Aeneid
by Virgil, translated by Robert Fagles
from Penguin Putnam
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$19.00
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$11.95
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$6.99
Aeneid Of Virgil
by Virgil, translated by Allan Mandelbaum
from Bantam Books
for 10th-Adult
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$5.95
Africa For Kids
by Harvey Croze
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Africa's Vanishing Wildlife
by Chris & Tilde Stuart
1st edition from Smithsonian Books
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$8.00 (1 in stock)
African Plains - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Diane Gaspas-Ettl
from Dover Publications
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Africans and Their History
by Joseph E. Harris
Revised
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After the Dancing Days
by Margaret I. Rostkowski
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After the War
by Carol Matas
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Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
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Age of Fighting Sail
by C. S. Forester
1st edition from Doubleday & Company
American Naval History for 8th-Adult
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Age of Religious Wars
by Richard S. Dunn
2nd edition from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 11th-Adult
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
AIO Imagination Station Book #02
by Marianne Hering & Paul McCusker
from Focus on the Family
for 1st-3rd grade
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$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #03
by Marianne Hering & Paul McCusker
from Focus on the Family
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$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #04
by Marianne Hering & Paul McCusker
from Focus on the Family
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$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #05
by Brock Eastman & Marianne Hering
from Focus on the Family
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$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #06
by Marianne Hering & Marshal Younger
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$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #09
by Marianne Hering, Marshal Younger
from Focus on the Family
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$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #10
by Marianne Hering, Wayne Thomas Batson
from Focus on the Family
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$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #11
by Marianne Hering, Wayne Thomas Batson
from Focus on the Family
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AIO Imagination Station Book #12
by Marianne Hering, Nancy I. Sanders
from Focus on the Family
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AIO Imagination Station Book #13
by Marianne Hering, Nancy I. Sanders
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by Marianne Hering, Nancy I. Sanders
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by Marianne Hering, Nancy I. Sanders
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by Marianne Hering, Paul McCusker
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AIO Imagination Station Book #17
by Marianne Hering
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by Marianne Hering & Sheila Seifert
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$5.99
Air Forces of the World
by Sue Butterworth, editor
from Chartwell Books
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$18.00 (1 in stock)
Air Raid - Pearl Harbor!
by Theodore Taylor
from Harcourt
Historical Non-Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in WWII: Pacific Theater (Location: HISA-20WW2P)
$8.99
Air Raid - Pearl Harbor!
by Theodore Taylor
1st Gulliver Books pbk. ed from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-6th grade
in WWII: Pacific Theater (Location: HISA-20WW2P)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Aircraft - Coloring Book
Educational Read & Color Books
by Peter & Linda Spizzirri
from Spizzirri Press
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in Transportation Coloring Books (Location: COL-TRANS)
$3.95
Airplanes of the Second World War - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Carlo Demand
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
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$5.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Airplanes of World War I - Coloring Book
by Carlo Demand
from Dover Publications
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$5.99
Akavak
by James Houston
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$12.00 (1 in stock)
Al Capone Does My Shirts
by Gennifer Choldenko
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 7th-10th grade
2005 Newbery Honor Book
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$8.99
Alamo All Stars
Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales #6
by Nathan Hale
from Amulet Books
for 3rd-8th grade
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$14.99
Alamo!
by George Sullivan
from Scholastic Inc.
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in Mexican-American War (Location: HISA-19TEX)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
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