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Louis’s reasons for joining include wages and the Union’s fight to end slavery. The story follows his experience in the Irish Brigade and brings together the perspectives of an Abenaki teenager and the Civil War.

Meet women who served as nurses, pilots, engineers and soldiers, among other roles. The biographies span US military history and show how duties and responsibilities changed over time.

This is a basketball-centred mystery about bereavement, a murder trial and Brian’s decision whether to share information that could affect the case. Historical injustice and racial prejudice also enter the story.

Dit and Emma’s friendship develops amid racial prejudice in 1917 Alabama. When a Black barber is condemned after a trial, they make a daring plan to save him.

Billie’s hope for change gives way to a harder choice about whether to stand up for what she believes. The story centres on her changing understanding of racism and the people around her.

A murder accusation drives this family-centred story, with Dovey trying to clear her name while her sister’s future and her brother’s safety are caught up in the conflict.

A lively historical mystery rooted in theatre life, with a resourceful young heroine and a web of uncertain loyalties. Expect adventure alongside glimpses of Georgian social divisions and political ideas.

A historical story about a girl’s attachment to a Japanese doll during wartime, and the pressure to choose between that personal bond and national loyalty.

A puzzle-led fantasy adventure, with riddles readers can try alongside the characters. The appeal is the unfolding quest and imaginative mix of worlds; the story is part of a continuing series.

A historical family story about wartime change, German-American prejudice and Carl’s first summer living away from home.

This is a coming-of-age story about Andy’s first relationships as a gay man, set alongside memories of a painful family life and his attempt to make a new start at college.

A historical story about Marnie and Raver’s friendship, communication and the villagers’ response. Their misjudgement of Raver and suspicion of Marnie set up the central conflict.

This verse novel follows a teenage artist through wrongful imprisonment and his effort to preserve his humanity and pursue the truth.

A historically grounded adventure that also asks who receives credit for exploration and what costs expeditions impose on the people they encounter.

This story brings together a wetland ecosystem, a newcomer’s view of town divisions and a friendship that opens onto Blackfoot culture and stories.

A fast-moving paranormal adventure about public exposure, hostility towards shapeshifters and a group of companions caught up in a wider conflict.

A family’s response to wartime bereavement is entwined with an extraordinary cloning premise and a community’s prejudice towards a Japanese man.

This is a coming-of-age story about Nick's emerging romance with Bobby and the gap between his private self and a public image shaped by others.

This is a wartime story centred on service, family separation and friendship, with the Pacific setting bringing military danger into Hank's life.

This is a multi-character story about young people in a Brooklyn neighbourhood. Gingerbread’s claim that “life is funny” sits beside the difficulties described in the outline.

This is a fantasy romance built around a reimagined fairy tale, with competing survival needs and a relationship that challenges Isra’s inherited beliefs.

A bilingual life story linking Cris Plata’s Mexican American family background and migrant farmwork with his development as a musician and his eventual home in Wisconsin.

This is a wartime family story centred on Ada’s changing sense of identity and the tensions that follow Ruth’s arrival. Its focus is on belonging and moral choices under threat.

The book brings a close friendship into conflict with the changing treatment of Jewish people in pre-war Austria, using a teenager’s journal to tell the story.

A teen story that brings together debating, a first crush and a disagreement at home, with Phoebe facing the challenge of speaking up for herself as well as in competition.

A family’s car journey becomes a story about how racial prejudice changes the sisters’ experience of a trip they had anticipated with pride and excitement.

A layered teen mystery combines the search for truth about Roberta’s mother with questions about racism, media, politics and standing up for oneself.

This story centres on a teenager negotiating faith, attraction and the beliefs expressed around him at a Bible camp.

Expect a brisk adventure alongside questions of identity and belonging. Henry’s bisexuality is presented without making it a personal flaw, while the society around him creates risks and consequences.

Expect a supernatural mystery with a strong historical strand, rather than a baseball-centred story. Boston history and events from different periods are woven into Tony’s investigation.

A cross-generational mystery unfolds through Henni’s investigation and emails with Leo. Alongside puzzles and friendship, the book examines migration, prejudice, belonging and the pressure placed on people whose home is questioned.

A reflective coming-of-age novel centred on a teenager waiting for her fisherman father, with family strain, friendship, first love, self-image and prejudice among its stated concerns.

A witty, humane fantasy about growing into responsibility while facing fear, prejudice and loss. Tiffany’s work as a witch centres on caring for people, while the story also brings darker threats and emotionally difficult relationships.

This is a child-centred historical story about family work, community strain and changing social relationships. Its central challenge is how a small act of welcome might matter when prejudice and hardship affect a whole town.

This is an intense, visually symbolic story about shame, identity and survival. Its painful experiences are balanced by friendship and a hopeful possibility of acceptance, without suggesting that every difficulty has been resolved.

A portrait of Chanel’s rise in fashion sits alongside discussion of poverty, prejudice, self-invention and wartime controversy. The book offers achievements and faults together rather than presenting an uncomplicated style icon.

A fantasy novel with an unusual time-based world and a forbidden romance at its heart. It may particularly appeal to readers interested in steampunk-like settings and LGBT protagonists, while its darker content merits advance discussion.

A culturally grounded vampire story pairs supernatural suspense with a teenager’s struggles over home, family, trust and belonging. Its unusual perspective may invite thoughtful discussion as well as emotional preparation.

This is a historical diary about a family trying to remain together amid Gold Rush hardship. It offers domestic perspective as well as danger, grief and ethical choices, with a generally bleak atmosphere and attention to friendship over sudden wealth.

This is a dystopian fantasy about an oppressed community, social hierarchy and a girl resisting injustice. Its strongest appeal may be Elsha’s determined challenge to prejudice and sexism, alongside a stark, sunless setting.

This is a lively historical novel about sisters navigating an emotionally distant mother while encountering Black Panther community work and racial injustice. Its strongest offering is the combination of distinct girl characters, family complexity and a child’s perspective on a changing society.

This is a serious verse novel about friendship under pressure. It offers a close view of BJ’s insecurity, the pull of social acceptance, and how rumours and prejudice can intensify a painful situation.

Expect an unusual war fantasy where friendship and chosen family matter amid occupation, bodily vulnerability and shifting loyalties. Its experimental form may reward patient readers, but the story’s violence and sexual exploitation are substantial.

This is a determined sibling-rescue adventure rooted in a little-known historical episode. It combines family loyalty and questions about adoption with travel, danger and prejudice, while inviting readers to notice how institutions and communities treat vulnerable children.

This is a personal account of rejecting inherited hatred and choosing peace. It offers a way into questions about responsibility, identity and prejudice, while engaging with terrorism and family history rather than treating them as abstract subjects.