History Literature / DearAmerica

* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: The protagonist of ''Hear My Sorrow'' witnesses the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, in which dozens of workers trapped on the blazing factory floor jump to their deaths rather than face the more painful death that awaits them in the fire. (This is very much TruthInTelevision: the Triangle fire was a real event, and the book's depiction is remarkably accurate.)

* TraumaticHaircut: In ''The Winter of Red Snow'', Lucy has her hair cut short in order to sell her hair to a wigmaker (only for the money to [[AllForNothing end up being stolen]]), and when her parents find out, they shave off what's left of her hair and also forbid her from wearing a cap, meaning she has to choose between never going outside or showing her shaved head for the world to see. Lucy is so upset and humiliated that she runs away from home, [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone much to her parents' distress]]. Abby, the only person who knows where Lucy is, is torn about whether she should tell or not; she eventually decides that she won't tell Lucy's parents ''where'' she is, but will tell them that she knows Lucy is safe and will come home once her hair has grown back to a respectable length. Near the end of the story, Lucy finally tells her family where she's been staying -- with a family friend in the same town where she initially sold her hair.

* TraumaticHaircut: In ''The Winter of Red Snow'', Lucy has her hair cut short in order to sell her hair to a wigmaker (only for the money to [[AllForNothing end up being stolen]]), and when her parents find out, they shave off what's left of her hair and also forbid her from wearing a cap, meaning she has to choose between never going outside or showing her shaved head for the world to see. Lucy is so upset and humiliated that she runs away from home, [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone much to her parents' distress]]. Abby, the only person who knows where Lucy is, is torn about whether she should tell or not; she eventually decides that she won't tell Lucy's parents ''where'' she is, but will tell them that she knows Lucy is safe and will come home once her hair has grown back to a respectable length. Near the end of the story, Lucy finally tells her family where she's been staying.

* TraumaticHaircut: In ''The Winter of Red Snow'', Lucy has her hair cut short in order to sell her hair to a wigmaker (only for the money to [[AllForNothing end up being stolen]]), and when her parents find out, they shave off what's left of her hair and also forbid her from wearing a cap, meaning she has to choose between never going outside or showing her shaved head for the world to see. Lucy is so upset and humiliated that she runs away from home, [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone much to her parents' distress]]. Abby, the only person who knows where Lucy is, is torn about whether she should tell or not; she eventually decides that she won't tell Lucy's parents ''where'' she is, but will tell them that she knows Lucy is safe and that she plans to come home once her hair has grown back to a respectable length. Near the end of the story, Lucy finally tells her family where she's been staying.

** In ''A Picture of Freedom'', the otherwise cruel Miz Lilly has occasional kind moments. She attends Uncle Heb's funeral and even cries at it, gives Clotee her daughter's old dress and shoes to wear (though it's implied this was a bribe so Clotee wouldn't reveal that she tried to warn Miz Lilly about William's intention to ride their racing horse without permission), and when Clotee tells her how cold the field slaves' cabins are in winter, she gives her blankets from the attic.

** In ''A Picture of Freedom'', the otherwise cruel Miz Lilly has occasional kind moments. She attends Uncle Heb's funeral and even cries at it, gives Clotee her daughter's old dress and shoes to wear (though it's implied this was a bribe to try to get Clotee to tattle on the other slaves), and when Clotee tells her how cold the field slaves' cabins are in winter, she gives her blankets from the attic.

** Miz Lilly in ''A Picture of Freedom'' invokes this when talking to Clotee, telling her that Clotee's mother, Rissa, was her best friend and made her so many beautiful dresses and she'd be more than happy to have Clotee as a favorite (meaning she'd get some nice things and a few extra privileges) if Clotee would just tattle on the slaves. Clotee doesn't bite, though she uses this a couple of times to her advantage (i.e. after Aunt Tee is sent out to the slave cabins, Clotee convinces Miz Lilly to let her go too by saying she wants to live with the other slaves in order to spy on them, rather than the truth that she just wants to stay with Tee).

* ChosenConceptionPartner: In ''A Picture of Freedom'', Clotee's friend Wook is forced to marry Lee, a man nearly twice her age from another plantation, because Master Henley ordered it out of the belief they'd make strong children. She's miserable about being married to a stranger she doesn't love, especially when he later tells her he wants to marry someone else. Henley also did this in the past for Clotee's Aunt Tee and Uncle Heb, who grew to genuinely love each other afterwards in contrast.

* TokenBlackFriend: In ''Look to the Hills'' the main character Zettie is a slave purchased and kept by a young woman's wealthy family to be a companion to her. While Zettie and her mistress have a genuinely close bond and care deeply for each other, it's clearly not a friendship between equals (which Zettie realizes, but her mistress does not).
** Miz Lilly in ''A Picture of Freedom'' invokes this when talking to Clotee, telling her that Clotee's mother, Rissa, was her best friend and made her so many beautiful dresses and she'd be more than happy to have Clotee as a favorite if Clotee would just tattle on the slaves. Clotee isn't fooled, though she uses this a couple of times to her advantage (convincing Miz Lilly to let her live in the slave cabins rather than in the house by saying she wants to spy on the other slaves).

* AbusiveParents: Though not common in the early books, some later protagonists have these or [[AbusiveParents abusive guardians.]] Deliverance Trembley has her uncle, and Pringle Rose has her aunt and uncle.

** Although they are not guardians per se, the slave owners in Clotee and Patsy's stories are this by default.
*** The Henleys of Clotee's book don't beat ''her'', but "Mas' Henley" did sell Clotee's mother to another plantation purely to spite his wife. He later murders Clotee's Uncle Heb, who cared for her like a daughter in her stead (he swears it wasn't intentional, but he was still unnecessarily rough with the man over an incident that wasn't his fault), and then banishes Heb's wife Tee, who had been the cook, to the fields because he's afraid she'll poison him. "Miz Lilly", Henley's aforementioned wife, tries to emotionally manipulate Clotee by reminding her of how she and her mother were 'best friends' and get her to tattle on the field slaves.
*** The Davises, Patsy's owners, are not at all loved by Patsy, but after Sir's death, she figures that he wasn't the worst slave owner. He never said a kind word to her, but he didn't whip her, either. Ma'am, on the other hand, complimented her once.

!! The books, in order by era are:

* ''A Journey To The New World: The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple'' (Mayflower, 1620)

Compare to ''[[Literature/AmericanGirlsCollection American Girl]]'', another series of historical fiction books starring younger protagonists.

The books, in order by era are:

** In ''My Heart is on the Ground'', about Nannie Little Rose, a Lakota Indian girl who is sent to [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlisle_Indian_Industrial_School Carlisle Indian Industrial School]], an [[https://web.archive.org/web/20010423053053/http://www.oyate.org/books-to-avoid/indianSchool.html institution (run like a prison)]] meant to teach Indians to be "white". Firstly, Nannie probably would not have been given a diary in the first place, which discounts the whole book. But, let's say she was. She would not refer to herself as "Sioux", instead she would use her area or band. Rinaldi also gets many Lakota customs wrong, mainly by using American descriptions of them rather than finding out what actually happened. She even makes up the more "Indian" sounding [[YouNoTakeCandle words]] for Lakota words that already exist, such as "night-middle-made" and "friend-to-go-between-us", in addition to giving Carlisle and its staff a major HistoricalVillainDowngrade. Needless to say, actual Lakota [[http://americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.com/2011/03/review-of-ann-rinaldis-my-heart-is-on.html were less than pleased]].
** Likewise with ''[[https://web.archive.org/web/20010423134009/http://www.oyate.org/books-to-avoid/theChased.html The Girl Who Chased Away Sorrow: The Diary of Sarah Nita, a Navajo Girl]]''.

* AllNaturalFireExtinguisher: A close variant in ''The Journal of Patrick Seamus Flaherty: United States Marine Corps''. At a couple of points a neighboring platoon comes under heavy attack by the Vietcong, and Patrick's unit provides support fire. In both cases the fight goes on so long that the Marines resort to urinating on their machine guns to cool them off.

** ''Voyage on the Great Titanic'' begins with the protagonist, Margaret, living in an orphanage. While Margaret notes that the situation isn't always ideal -- the orphanage is often overcrowded, and money is limited -- the orphans are never truly made to do without (i.e. they may have basic, boring food and donated used clothes, but they never go hungry or lack clothing), and Margaret describes the nuns who run the place as caring, compassionate women who look out for the girls and even take the time to form personal relationships with each of them.

** ''Voyage on the Great Titanic'' begins with the protagonist, Margaret, living in an orphanage. While Margaret notes that the situation isn't always ideal -- the orphanage is often overcrowded, and money is limited -- the orphans are never truly made to do without (i.e. they may have very basic food and clothes, but they never go hungry or lack clothing), and Margaret describes the nuns who run the place as caring, compassionate women who look out for the girls and even take the time to form personal relationships with each of them.

* BitchInSheepsClothing: In ''Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie'', Mrs. Kenker pretends to be a gentle old lady while being a selfish, opportunistic thief who regularly steals other people's belongings behind their backs. [[spoiler:She becomes sympathetic when Hattie finds out from Mrs. Kenker's former neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Big, that her two sons were killed in a house fire that destroyed everything she and her husband owned before they joined the wagon train, and her husband later drowns in the wagons' river crossing. In the end in Oregon, Hattie makes peace with her.]]

* TinyGuyHugeGirl: Mr. and Mrs. Big from ''Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie'' are described as this (Mr. Big is a small, disabled man with two amputated legs; Mrs. Big is a massive and stout woman).

* BitchInSheepsClothing: In ''Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie'', Mrs. Kanker pretends to be a gentle old lady while being a selfish, opportunistic thief who regularly steals other people's belongings behind their backs. [[spoiler:She becomes sympathetic when Hattie finds out from her former neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Big, that her two sons were killed in a house fire that destroyed everything she and her husband owned before they joined the wagon train, and her husband later drowns in the wagons' river crossing. In the end in Oregon, Hattie makes peace with her.]]

* CassandraTruth: Hattie in ''Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie'' tries to tell her aunt and mom that Mrs. Kanker, the outwardly sweet old lady in their wagon train, is a thief, but out of stress and deference, they don't listen.

* EvilOldFolks: Mrs. Kanker in ''Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie'' is the closest thing to an antagonist in the book, as she constantly steals belongings from the other wagon train members while pretending to be a sweet and harmless old lady, which Hattie despises her for. [[spoiler:She has a FreudianExcuse: her sons died in a fire that burned down her and her husband's house and everything they owned.]]

** ''One Eye Laughing, the Other Weeping'' features a baby dying in his Mother's suicide (she took him with her) and a little boy trying to keep his father from being taken by the Nazis.

** ''A Picture of Freedom'' mentioned that Wook, Clotee's best friend, drowned along with her parents and her infant son when their boat overturned during an attempt to escape. When Clotee learns that the owners sometimes lie about slaves dying while escaping to discourage other escapes, she hopes Wook and her family are one such case, but Mr. Harms tells her they are not.

* My Name Is America: ''Dear America's'' [[DistaffCounterpart Spear Counterpart.]]

Here's the [[http://www.scholastic.com/dearamerica/ official site.]]

Compare to ''[[Literature/AmericanGirlsCollection American Girl]]'', another series of historical fiction books starring young girls, aimed at a younger demographic.

* ButNotTooBlack: Hince of ''A Picture of Freedom'' is described this way, having "grayish-lookin' cat eyes" and "curly, sandy hair", and Spicy uses it to insult him when he teases her for her name by calling him a "half-white dog" (which greatly hurts him). Clotee ponders on this because Hince's father is unknown and rumored to be a white man, and could possibly be their own plantation master Henley. They later take advantage of it, by [[spoiler: forging papers saying Spicy, dressed in mens' clothing, has been sold to "Hince Henley," and running away by passing as a white man and his slave]].

** When there’s news of a factory fire in ''Dreams in the Golden Country'', Zipporah’s mother panics, thinking it’s her older daughter Tovah’s workplace. Luckily, it isn’t. [[spoiler: But it’s Mamie’s....and she doesn’t make it out alive.]] Zipporah's newborn baby brother also dies just a few days after his premature birth, and a neighbor's young son dies too.

** ''Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie'' features three children, a young girl and two boys, dying from sampling hemlock mistaken for root vegetables, along with a few wagons getting lost in the river.

** ''Dreams of a Golden Country'' mentions a neighbor's young son dying and Zippy's baby brother died after his premature birth.

** The ''many'' child deaths in ''Across The Wide And Lonesome Prairie''

** When there’s news of a factory fire in ''Dreams in the Golden Country'', Zipporah’s mother panics, thinking it’s her older daughter Tovah’s workplace. Luckily, it isn’t. [[spoiler: But it’s Mamie’s....and she doesn’t make it out alive.]] Zipporah's newborn baby brother also dies at just a few days old.

** ''One Eye Laughing, The Other Weeping'' and ''Valley of the Moon'' don't specify what language the protagonists are writing in, but Julie (who speaks German) in the former mentions that she is learning English and Rosa (who speaks Spanish) in the latter explicitly says she doesn't know much English.