Books for Young Readers: The 18th Century
Last updated: Jan 5, 2024
I compiled this list for a webpage of suggestions for librarians who wished to feature books on the 18th century in conjunction with events & activities on related themes, including colonial America and the Revolutionary War. These would also be good choices for parents who want to provide their children with interesting books on the 18th century.
This list mixes non-fiction with historical fiction; read the descriptions on Amazon for details. This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.
A list of children’s books on life in the Middle Ages and Renaissance is available elsewhere on this site.
Ages 4-8
- Heroes of the Revolution by David A. Adler
- Revolutionary Prudence Wright: Leading the Minute Women in the Fight for Independence by Beth Anderson
- Independent Dames: What You Never Knew About the Women and Girls of the American Revolution by Laurie Halse Anderson
- From a Small Seed: The Story of Eliza Hamilton by Camille Andros
- George the Drummer Boy and Sam the Minuteman by Nathaniel Benchley
- The History of the American Revolution by Emma Carlson Berne
- If You Lived In Williamsburg in Colonial Days by Barbara Brenner
- Did It All Start With a Snowball Fight? (Good Question!) by Mary Kay Carson
- Revolutionary Friends: General George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette by Selene Castrovilla
- D is for Drums: A Colonial Williamsburg ABC by Ka Chorao
- The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh
- The Fourth of July Story by Alice Dalgliesh
- Let It Begin Here!: Lexington & Concord: First Battles of the American Revolution by Dennis Brindell Fradin
- George Washington's Breakfast by Jean Fritz
- More books about 18th century historical figures & events by Jean Fritz: Where Was Patrick Henry on the 29th of May?, What's the Big Idea, Ben Franklin?, Can't You Make Them Behave, King George? Will You Sign Here, John Hancock?, And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?, Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams?, and Shh! We're Writing the Constitution
- Our Colonial Year by Cheryl Harness
- Colonial Life by Brendan January
- A Fine Dessert: Four Centuries, Four Families, One Delicious Treat by Emily Jenkins
- Homespun Sarah by Verla Kay
- Hornbooks and Inkwells by Verla Kay
- Redcoats and Petticoats by Katherine Kirkpatrick
- Paul Revere’s Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- A More Perfect Union: The Story of Our Constitution by Betsy Maestro
- Eliza: The Story of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton by Margaret McNamara
- The Scarlet Stockings Spy by Trinka Hakes Noble
- Dear Benjamin Banneker by Andrea Davis Pinkney
- The Boston Coffee Party by Doreen Rappaport
- Mesmerized: How Ben Franklin Solved a Mystery that Baffled All of France by Mara Rockliff
- A Spy Called James: The True Story of James Lafayette, Revolutionary War Double Agent by Anne Rockwell
- They Called Her Molly Pitcher by Anne Rockwell
- Her Name Was Mary Katharine: The Only Woman Whose Name Is on the Declaration of Independence by Ella Schwartz
- John, Paul, George & Ben by Lane Smith
- Postcards from Daniel, 1755-1784: Daniel Boone Writes from the Kentucky Wilderness and Postcards from George, 1763-1781: George Rogers Clark Writes to Virginia from the Kentucky Wilderness by Betty Southard Stokes
- Katie's Trunk by Ann Turner
- Hogsheads to Blockheads: The Kids' Guide to Colonial Williamsburg's Historic Area by Barry Varela
- The 18 Penny Goose by Sally M. Walker
- The Listeners by Gloria Whelan
- The Founding Fathers!: Those Horse-Ridin', Fiddle-Playin', Book-Readin', Gun-Totin' Gentlemen Who Started America by Jonah Winter
- Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence by Gretchen Woelfle
Ages 9-12
- The Fighting Ground by Avi
- Sophia's War: A Tale of the Revolution by Avi
- Toliver's Secret by Esther Wood Brady
- Boys of Wartime: Daniel at the Siege of Boston, 1776 by Laurie Calkhoven
- The Matchlock Gun by Walter D. Edmonds
- The Kidnapped Prince by Ann Cameron
- Black Heroes of the American Revolution by Burke Davis
- Johnny Tremain by Esther Hoskins Forbes
- The Signers: The 56 Stories Behind the Declaration of Independence by Dennis Brindell Fradin
- Lafayette and the American Revolution by Russell Freedman
- The Complete Bostock and Harris: The Strange Affair of Adelaide Harris and The Night of the Comet by Leon Garfield
- Smith: The Story of a Pickpocket by Leon Garfield
- Phoebe the Spy by Judith Griffin
- Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison by Lois Lenski
- Yankee Doodle Boy: A Young Soldier's Adventures in the American Revolution by Joseph Plumb Martin
- Spies in the American Revolution for Kids: A History Book by Carla Killough McClafferty
- An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 by Jim Murphy
- DK Eyewitness Books: American Revolution by Stuart Murray
- The Keeping Room by Anna Myers
- Divided Loyalties: The Barton Family During the American Revolution by National Geographic Learning
- The Dreadful, Smelly Colonies: The Disgusting Details About Life in Colonial America by Elizabeth Raum
- Guns for General Washington: A Story of the American Revolution by Seymour Reit
- Founding Mothers: Remembering the Ladies by Cokie Roberts
- George vs. George: The American Revolution As Seen from Both Sides by Rosalyn Schanzer
- Anson's Way by Gary D. Schmidt
- The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery by Steve Sheinkin
- Calico Captive by Elizabeth George Speare
- Diary of Anna Green Winslow, a Boston School Girl of 1771 (also available online)
- Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak by Kay Winters
- Answering the Cry for Freedom: Stories of African Americans and the American Revolution by Gretchen Woelfle
- Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates
- American Diary books:
- Summer MacCleary, Virginia, 1749 by Kathleen Duey
- Mary Alice Peale, Philadelphia, 1777 by Kathleen Duey
- Dear America books:
- Standing in the Light: The Diary of Catharine Carey Logan, Delaware Valley, Pennsylvania, 1763 by Mary Pope Osborne
- My Name Is America: The Journal of William Thomas Emerson, A Revolutionary War Patriot, Boston, Massachusetts, 1774 by Barry Denenberg
- Hope's Revolutionary War Diary: Five Smooth Stones, We Are Patriots, and When Freedom Comes by Kristiana Gregory
- The Winter of Red Snow: The Diary of Abigail Jane Stewart, Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, 1777 and Cannons at Dawn: The Second Diary of Abigail Jane Stewart, Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, 1779 by Kristiana Gregory
- You Wouldn't Want To series: You Wouldn't Want to Be an American Colonist You Wouldn't Want to Be at the Boston Tea Party, etc.
Young Adult
- The Seeds of America Trilogy: Chains, Forge, and Ashes by Laurie Halse Anderson
- Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
- The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation: The Pox Party and The Kingdom on the Waves by M.T. Anderson
- 1789: Twelve Authors Explore a Year of Rebellion, Revolution, and Change edited by Marc Aronson and Susan Campbell Bartoletti
- My Brother Sam Is Dead by James Lincoln Collier
- A Stolen Life by Jane Louise Curry
- A True Patriot: The Journal of William Thomas Emerson, a Revolutionary War Patriot by Barry Denenberg
- Copper Sun by Sharon M. Draper
- Duel in the Wilderness by Karin Clafford Farley
- April Morning by Howard Fast
- I Am Regina by Sally M. Keehn
- Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham
- Jockey Hollow: Where a Forgotten Army Persevered to Win America's Freedom by Rosalie Lauerman
- 1776 by David McCullough
- Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen
- Colonial Comics: New England, 1620-1750 and Colonial Comics, Volume II: New England, 1750-1775 by Jason Rodriguez
- King George: What Was His Problem?: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn't Tell You About the American Revolution by Steve Sheinkin
- The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare
- National Geographic's Voices from Colonial America series
