Annotated Bibliography book list- Nonfiction

Bascomb, N. (2013). The Nazi Hunters: How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World's Most Notorious Nazi. New York, NY: Levine Books (Scholastic, Inc.)

Reading level: Grades 9-12

Themes: Abuse of Power, Manipulation, Revenge, Secrecy, Heritage, Justice. 

Summary: Bascomb details the search, capture, and trial of Nazi and Holocaust figure Adolf Eichmann by Israeli spies in 1961. Bascomb includes pictures, original documents, travel logs, and perspectives from the spies, as well as Holocaust survivors to portray the downfall of Eichmann and the harsh realities of the German plan to systematically wipe the Jewish people from the face of the earth. At age 38, in 1944, Eichmann is the director of "Department IVB," the code name for the genocidal operation by Hitler's Nazis. In 1947, survivors Zeev Sapir and Simon Wiesenthal work with Manus Diamant in hopes of tracking down former SS officers that fled to Argentina after the war. Nine years later, Sylvia Hermann meets Nick Eichmann in Buenos Aires, and he says his deceased father was involved in the war. She does some digging and finds out a man is with the Eichmann family. The man tells her he is Nick's uncle, but he addresses him as "father." She writes to war crimes prosecutor Fritz Bauer. It eventually results in Israeli agents tracking Eichmann who is living under an alias. The Israel government organizes a mission to bring him down, Eichmann is captured and interrogated, saying, "'I did nothing wrong. All I did was follow orders" (p. 144). Eichmann, however is found guilty in 1961, then executed the following year. The book bounces between years and perspectives, highlighting a moment of justice for the Jewish people. 

Campbell Bartoletti, S. (2010). They Called Themselves The K.K.K.: The Birth of An American Terrorist Group. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

Reading level: Grades 7-12.

Themes: Hate, Racism, Prejudice, Violence, Power. 

Summary: Bartoletti chronicles the rise of the Ku Klux Klan in the United States. Starting with the Civil War, and the post-war formation of the K.K.K. in Pulaski, Tennessee, the book details the Klan and its racist ideologies and practices up until modern day. Former Confederate officers, John Lester, Calvin Jones, Richard Reed, James Crowe, Frank McCord, and John Kennedy, founded the K.K.K. when during one of their weekly meetings where they'd chat at a law office in town at night, Lester said, "'Boys, let us get up a club or society'" (p. 25). Stemming from the Greek word "Kuklos," a name was formed the following week that's literally translate to "circle circle," and the Klan began doing patrols in the Tennessee countryside. The Klan would go on to spread hate throughout the South, employing fear, intimidation, violence, and murder through beatings, shootings, and lynchings that were allowed by the governments and authorities in the region. The book goes on to include accounts of black families terrorized by the Klan throughout the Southern states, as well as information on the politics of the time. Chapters include topics like black voting rights, oppressive laws against freed slaves, and President Andrew Johnson's racial views with reprints of documents, articles, pictures, cartoons and drawings from the era. A Civil Rights Timeline is included in the back. 

Pelzer, D. (1995). A Child Called "It." Omaha, Neb.: Omaha Press Pub.

Reading level: Grades 4-12.

Themes: Beating the odds, Perseverance, Parent-child relationships, Loss of innocence, Coming of Age, Child Abuse, Abuse of Power.

Summary: In this memoir, Pelzer details a childhood filled with abuse. The story starts with Dave being taken by police from school in 1973 following the discovery of abuse by his mother. While growing up in California, Dave's father is a fireman who works long hours. Dave talks about the beginning of a pleasant childhood with his mother that "drastically changed from discipline to punishment that grew out of control" (p. 29). As his mother's drinking increases, so does the physical and mental abuse. When not in the presence of his father or siblings, Dave suffers through beatings, verbal abuse, and incidents that range from being denied food or Christmas gifts to having his younger brother's feces smeared on his face by his mother. She also stops using his name. Forced to go hungry and wear the same clothes every day, Dave grows desperate and starts stealing food, but his mother throws it away. One day, she forces Dave to throw up a meal he ate then eat his own vomit. He is forced to sleep under a table or in the garage. At times, Dave isn't given food for days, even up to as many as 10 days, and is forced to clean while inhaling ammonia. Another night, after drinking, his mother stabs Dave in the chest with a knife and he is forced to treat himself. His father and siblings don't help him at all. In fourth grade, Dave suffers through beatings, forced vomiting, and ammonia inhalation, while having to tell curious teachers that his bruises are because of an "accident." After his fourth brother is born, his mother's treatment changes in time for Dave to reconsider telling a questioning police office about his mother's abuse. By fifth grade, he questions his own existence, the existence of God, and is tormented by fellow classmates in school and his mother and brothers at home. His father abandons the family, and Dave is left with his abusive mother and siblings. As an adult, he reflects how his life improved after leaving his mother, and that he has a child of his own. The book goes on to examine the world of child abuse at large, and bring attention to a cyclical issue that is often overlooked.  

Uschan, M.V. (2004). The 1960s Life of the Front Lines: The Fight for Civil Rights. Farmington Hills, MI: Lucent Books (The Gale Group). 

Reading Level: 6-12

Themes: Freedom, Oppression, Manipulation, Abuse of Power, Perseverance, Courage, Survival, Racism, Hate, Prejudice, Violence, Power. 

Summary: Uschan details this historic, yet turbulent, era by chronicling the Civil Rights Movement. He highlights the many aspects and layers of the fight for civil rights including the revolt against racism and how black ministers, especially Martin Luther King Jr., had the power to lead the fight. The book details sit-ins and other means of protest by young people including the Freedom Riders. The fight for African Americans to have the right to vote, the Black Power movement, with information on The Black Panther Party as well as Malcolm X, are highlighted. White Backlash, the resistance to the Civil Rights Movement, and Black Pride are also chapters.

Yousafzai, M. with Lamb, C. (2013). I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education And Was Shot By The Taliban. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company (Hachette Book Group). 

Reading level: Gades 5-12

Themes: Fear, Freedom, Oppression, Manipulation, Perseverance, Abuse of Power, Coming of Age, Religion, Survival, Courage, Gender Roles, Role of Religion: virtue of hypocrisy. 

Summary: In this memoir, Malala starts her story at age 15 when she is shot in the head by the Taliban on a school bus ride home on October 9, 2012 in Pakistan. She goes on to chronicle her life from her birth, and how in her Pashtun community it is seen as shameful or a failure to give birth to a daughter. Malala's father founded schools for both boys and girls following Pakistan's fundamentalist revolution. Malala was not a perfect child, but after getting caught stealing she vowed to follow her parent's direction to never sin again. A devout Muslim, Malala details the struggle of being a woman within the Islamic world. Malala formed her own interpretation of her religion after witnessing extremists use Islam as a device to demean women. She details the Taliban's rise in Mingora, her hometown in the Swat Valley, following 9/11 and their use of extreme means including blowing up a Buddha statue. At age 10, Pakistan's former female prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, is assassinated by the Taliban, spearheading efforts by extremists to destroy schools and halt women's education. At age 12, Malala writes diary entries for BBC under a pen name that tells of her life as a girl growing up under Taliban rule. Malala begins her life of activism, even appearing on documentaries and giving interviews condemning the Taliban's practices. As her popularity grows, and she's nominated for humanitarian awards, Malala's life is threatened by the Taliban. Following her attack at the hands of the Taliban, Malala recovers from life-saving surgeries and is transported to Birmingham, England where he fame reaches a new level and she is able to continue her life's work. Malala and her family settle in England. Remaining religious, Malala believes responsibilities from Allah include, "Peace in every home...Education for every boy and every girl in the world" (p. 313).