Graphic Classics-The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo, Retold by Michael Ford

Length: 48 Pages, Graphic Novel

This graphic novel takes Victor Hugo's favorite story and retells it using pictures and in a graphic format. Unlike the other graphic novels each picture has writing underneath it to fully explain each graphic. The story has several main characters but centers around the beautiful gypsy Esmeralda and the men who fall in love with her. It is set in the Renaissance time period. Esmeralda is wrongfully convicted of a murder she didn't commit. She is rescued by the Hunchback who takes her to Notre Dame Cathedral. Unlike the Disney version this one is true to the original novel and doesn't have a happy ending. The story is grim but still very interesting. The last several pages of the book are filled with information about the author and about the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France.

Encounter by Jane Yolen

Length: 30 Pages, Picture Book

This book is about the Taino people who came into contact with Christopher Columbus when he landed on their shores. It's told from a young boy's point of view and how he tries to warn the people around him that bad things will happen to them as a result of their contact with the Europeans. It is beautifully illustrated and explains how the age of exploration impacted the natives.

Starry Messenger by Peter Sis

Length: 33 Pages, Picture Book

This book describes Galileo Galilei's interest in the stars and his theory's from a child to an adult. The book describes what Italy was like in illustrations during the time period. There are some large pictures that take some time to locate where Galileo is in the picture. It is a good children's book that describes Galileo's life and the trouble he faced against the Church.

Johann Gutenberg and the Amazing Printing Press by Bruce Koscielniak

Length: 29 Pages, Picture Book

This book does a good job explaining how books came into being and who was responsible for creating the printing press. It explains how the Chinese and Koreans had a similar process to the one created by Gutenberg. It also explains how books were copied during the Renaissance and Middle Ages by Monks in monasteries. This picture book explains in kid friendly terms how the process of book making began and the different types of methods that were used.

Columbus's Chart by Gerry Bailey & Karen Foster

Length: 39 Pages, Picture Book, Stories of Great People Series

I read this book after Shakespeare's Quill. In this book the brother and sister visit Mr. Rummage at the Knicknack Market. This week Digby buys a chart that belonged to the explorer Columbus. The book again switches between the story and actual facts and information about the time period. It makes the time period relevant and interesting for students learning about the Renaissance and Medieval time period. It has lots of color illustrations and narration. At the end it also includes some facts and fiction and glossary to help students out with the difficult words.

Shakespeare's Quill by Gerry Bailey & Karen Foster

Length: 39 Pages, Picture Book, Stories of Great People Series

I read this book after Marco Polo's Purse and found the same characters are used in this series. Each story begins with a brother and sister that like to visit Mr. Rummage at the Knicknack Market every week. This week Digby buys a feather which is called a quill and holds great significance because it supposedly belonged to the famous playwright Shakespeare. The book again switches between the story and actual facts and information about the time period. It makes the time period relevant and interesting for students learning about the Renaissance and Medieval time period. It has lots of color illustrations and narration. At the end it also includes some facts and fiction and glossary to help students out with the difficult words.

Marco Polo's Silk Purse by Gerry Bailey & Karen Foster

Length: 39 Pages, Picture book, Stories of Great People Series

This book has several main characters that are used in this series. Each story begins with a brother and sister that like to visit Mr. Rummage at the Knicknack Market every week. Mr. Rummage sells the boy who is named Digby Platt a different object each week that has some historical significance. This book is about Marco Polo, an early explorer that recorded his travels throughout the early Asia. The book switches between the story and actual facts and information about the time period. It makes the time period relevant and interesting for students learning about the Renaissance and Medieval time period. It has lots of color illustrations and narration.

The Paint Box by Maxine Trottier

Length: 27 Pages, Picture Book

This is a beautifully illustrated picture book that tells of a famous artist's daughter and how she dresses like a boy so she can go around Venice with her father. She meets a servant boy from a far away country and hear's how his family sold him for food to eat. He has come to Venice and his master is being painted by the artist. The story follows the relationship between the two children and what happens to the two of them. The last page of the book has a description of the artist and the Renaissance time period.

The Second Mrs. Gioconda by E.L. Konigsburg

Length: 138 Pages, 22 Chapters

This book centers around Leonardo da Vinci's work in
Milan and the boy that he comes into contact with and offers him work as an apprentice. The boy's name is Salai and he is the direct opposite of Leonardo's character. Salai is a petty thief and is good at entertaining people around him especially Leonardo. One of the characters in the story is the Duke of Milan and the girl that he marries who he is not in love with because she is plain looking. Through Leonardo's and Salai's help the girl named Beatrice gets the Duke to fall in love with her by showing him her inner self and her appreciation for beauty and art around her. The book ends with the explanation of why da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa also known as The Second Mrs. Gioconda.

Elizabeth I- The Life of England's Renaissance Queen by Rob Shone & Anita Ganeri

Length: 48 pages, 8 sections, Graphic Novel

Like the previous graphic novel of the same topic it is similar but is more of an in depth look at Elizabeth I's life. The beginning is full of explanations of the Elizabethan time period, who the Tudors were and what their clothing was like. The book explains the Reign of the Queen and the murder attempts that were made on her life. It is very factual and true to the time period.