By Laura Tarshis

Published: 2010 – 2019

AR level: 3.8 – 5.1

I suggest 2nd through 6th grade.

I was very excited when I first spied these books at Barnes & Noble (I do a lot of bookshelf stalking at that store). What a great way to introduce history to readers through some of the most intense events. My son has consumed a number of these with me, and I imagine he’ll continue to read them on his own as he gains more confidence.

The stories follow a young character through a natural or man-made disaster, but the good part is found right in the title: “I Survived.” Tarshis has a knack for making the books very accessible, even with characters from various time periods.

My favorite is the Pompei story, so I’ll include that B&N description here:

No one in the bustling city of Pompeii worries when the ground trembles beneath their feet. The beast under the mountain Vesuvius, high above the city, wakes up angry sometimes — and always goes back to sleep.

But Marcus is afraid. He knows something is terribly wrong — and his father, who trusts science more than mythical beasts, agrees. When Vesuvius explodes into a cloud of fiery ash and rocks fall from the sky like rain, will they have time to escape — and survive the epic destruction of Pompeii?