Young Readers

Young Readers Book List

The Freethinker’s Daughter
A Novel
By Jenny O'Neill

Set in 1833 Lexington, Kentucky, this historical coming-of-age novel for young readers features resonant themes and topics—slavery, abolition, racism, prejudice, class consciousness, a devastating epidemic, and deep personal loss—as its thirteen-year-old white female narrator fights injustice and uncertainty with integrity, love, and hope.

The Freethinker’s Daughter
A Novel
By Jenny O'Neill

Cover of 'The Many Lives of Eddie Rickenbacker'

The Many Lives of Eddie Rickenbacker
By Andrew Speno

Eddie Rickenbacker survived personal tragedies and dozens of close calls as a mechanic, a race car driver, a fighter pilot, and airline executive. This biography invites young readers to consider the difference between recklessness and courage, even if both present dangers, and the enduring value of hard work and personal responsibility.

Eye to Eye
Sports Journalist Christine Brennan
By Julie K. Rubini

From knocking down barriers in NFL locker rooms to covering every Olympics since 1984, Christine Brennan has done it all, while knocking barriers of her own as a female sports journalist. Eye to Eye invites young readers to learn more and nurture their own dreams of investigating and telling important stories.

Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Sports & Recreation · Biography & Autobiography | Women · Biography, Journalists · Young Readers

Cover of 'Smoky, the Dog That Saved My Life'

Smoky, the Dog That Saved My Life
The Bill Wynne Story
By Nancy Roe Pimm

World War II soldier Bill Wynne met Smoky while serving in New Guinea, where the dog, who was smaller than Wynne’s army boot, was found trying to scratch her way out of a foxhole. After he adopted her, she served as the squadron mascot and is credited as being the first therapy dog for the emotional support she provided the soldiers. When they weren’t fighting, Bill taught Smoky hundreds of tricks to entertain the troops.

Juvenile Nonfiction | History | Military & Wars · Juvenile Nonfiction | Animals | Dogs · Young Readers

Aminah’s World
An Activity Book and Children’s Guide about Artist Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson
By Carole Miller Genshaft

Children explore the life and art of Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson by interpreting her work and conceptualizing their own world in a fun and entertaining way.

Biography, Artists (Juvenile Nonfiction) · Art (Juvenile Nonfiction) · Ohio · Young Readers · Art

Little Otter Learns to Swim
By Artie Knapp and Guy Hobbs

In this endearing picture book, a baby river otter learns to swim, dive, and play in her natural habitat. From children’s author Artie Knapp and wildlife artist Guy Hobbs, Little Otter Learns to Swim is an entertaining and colorful tale for ages four and up. The book includes fun facts and information from the River Otter Ecology Project.

Animal Storybook (Juvenile Fiction) · Nature (Juvenile Fiction) · Ohio · Young Readers

Dolores Huerta Stands Strong
The Woman Who Demanded Justice
By Marlene Targ Brill

Dolores Huerta Stands Strong follows Huerta’s life from the mining communities of the Southwest where her father toiled, to the fields of California, to the present day. As she advocated for farmworkers, Mexican American immigrants, women, and LGBTQ population rights, Dolores earned the nation’s highest honors and found her voice.

Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Social Activists · Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Women · Young Readers

Count the Wings
The Life and Art of Charley Harper
By Michelle Houts

When you look at a bird, do you see feathers and a beak? Or do you see circles and triangles? Artist Charley Harper spent his life reducing subjects to their simplest forms, their basic lines and shapes. This resulted in what he called minimal realism and the style that would become easily recognized as Charley Harper’s. Art fans and nature lovers around the world fell in love with Harper’s paintings, which often featured bright colors and intriguing nature subjects.Harper’s

Biography, Artists (Juvenile Nonfiction) · Ohio · Young Readers · West Virginia

Virginia Hamilton
America’s Storyteller
By Julie K. Rubini

Long before she wrote The House of Dies Drear, M. C. Higgins, the Great, and many other children’s classics, Virginia Hamilton grew up among her extended family near Yellow Springs, Ohio, where her grandfather had been brought as a baby through the Underground Railroad. The family stories she heard as a child fueled her imagination, and the freedom to roam the farms and woods nearby trained her to be a great observer.

Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Women · Young Readers · Ohio · Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Literary

Cover of 'When Grandma Gatewood Took a Hike'

When Grandma Gatewood Took a Hike
By Michelle Houts and Erica Magnus

In 1955, sixty-seven-year-old Emma “Grandma” Gatewood became the first woman to solo hike the entire length of the Appalachian Trail in one through hike. Michelle Houts and Erica Magnus bring us the first children’s book about her feat and the unexpected challenges she encountered on the journey she initially called a “lark.”

Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Women · Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Sports & Recreation · Ohio · Appalachia · Young Readers

The Jerrie Mock Story
The First Woman to Fly Solo around the World
By Nancy Roe Pimm

In the third installment of our series Biographies for Young Readers, Nancy Roe Pimm gives us the life of Jerrie Mock, who in 1964 became the first woman to fly solo around the world. Mock, born in Newark, Ohio, received little attention for her feat, despite accomplishing what her childhood heroine Amelia Earhart died trying. Meticulously researched, Mock’s story as presented by Pimm is engaging, accessible, and packed with inspiration for middle-grade readers aspiring to adventure.

Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Women · Juvenile Nonfiction | Transportation | Aviation · Young Readers · Ohio

Under Ohio
The Story of Ohio’s Rocks and Fossils
By Charles Ferguson Barker

A geologist takes young readers underground to reveal the fascinating story of Ohio’s geology.

Earth Sciences (Juvenile Nonfiction) · Ohio · Young Readers · Ohio and Regional

Missing Millie Benson
The Secret Case of the Nancy Drew Ghostwriter and Journalist
By Julie K. Rubini

Growing up in Ladora, Iowa, Mildred “Millie” Benson had ample time to develop her imagination, sense of adventure, and independence. Millie left her small hometown to attend the University of Iowa, where she became the first person to earn a master’s degree from the school of journalism. While still a graduate student, Millie began writing for the Stratemeyer Syndicate, which published the phenomenally popular Hardy Boys series, among many others.

Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Women · Young Readers · Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Literary · Ohio

Kammie on First
Baseball’s Dottie Kamenshek
By Michelle Houts

Dorothy Mary Kamenshek was born to immigrant parents in Norwood, Ohio. As a young girl, she played pickup games of sandlot baseball with neighborhood children; no one, however, would have suspected that at the age of seventeen she would become a star athlete at the national level. The outbreak of World War II and the ensuing draft of able-bodied young men severely depleted the ranks of professional baseball players.

Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Women · Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography | Sports & Recreation · Ohio · Young Readers