Nonfiction Books for Teens
Information, humor, history, biography, art and how-to, all here. GN = graphic novels
MS=Books for middle school readers. (Updated May 2026)
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White Lies
An examination of racism in America and the U.S. Civil War, including the lead-up to the war and the Lost Cause mythology that took hold in its aftermath.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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This Indian Kid
Switching back and forth between his mom’s and his grandma’s houses and attending 14 schools in nine years made for a challenging childhood, but Eddie found ways to thrive.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Defying China
Tibetan activist Dolma faced pressure to conform, behave like a girl, and live compliantly under Chinese rule, but joining protests for Tibetan independence changed her life forever.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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How to Survive the End of the World
Experts chime in on our chances of surviving everything from pandemics and plagues to climate catastrophe and cosmic collapse. (It might not be as bad as you think!)
Format: Graphic Novel
Availability: Available
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Represent
Dyson tells how average citizens worked all their lives to make voting accessible to all citizens, making voting rights more equal for all people in America.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Death in the Jungle
Jim Jones rose from a charismatic preacher in the 1950s and ‘60s to become the leader of a notorious cult in the 1970s and convinced nearly 1000 people to commit suicide.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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A Most Perilous World
Follow the lives and impact of four teens who grew up in well-known abolitionist families before and during the Civil War, and the ways they each carried on the torch of resistance and activism.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Hurdles in the Dark
Gonzalez tells how she strove to leave behind poverty and violence by training to become the greatest track star of her time, but when her new coach began abusing her, she faced even greater obstacles.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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The Mythmakers
Middle Earth and Narnia, two of the most famous fantasy worlds in literature, may never have been created if not for the friendship of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, depicted here as a lion and a wizard. GN
Format: Graphic Novel
Availability: Available
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A Deathly Compendium of Poisonous Plants
Learn about dozens of plants that sicken and kill, along with their actual uses in history, literature, and movies. MS
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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