Books like Bluestem by Frances Arrington

*My mother, Sarah, doesn't love the prairie. She tries, but she can't help remembering what she knew first.* Sarah came to the prairie from Maine to marry Papa. But that summer, a drought turned the land dry and brown. Fires swept across the fields and coyotes came to the well in search of water. So Sarah took Anna and Caleb back east, where they would be safe. Papa stayed behind. He would not leave his land. Maine was beautiful, but Anna missed home, and Papa. And as the weeks went by, she began to wonder what would happen if the rains never came. Would she and Caleb and Sarah and Papa ever be a family again? 2nd in the Sarah, Plain and Tall series.

Laura Ingalls and her sisters share many adventures while growing up on the American frontier.

Twelve-year-old Kasienka and her mother have immigrated to Coventry, England from Poland, searching for Kasienka's father, but everyone is unfriendly except for an African neighbor and a boy Kasienka meets at the swimming pool, which is her only refuge from an alien society.

Told in their separate voices, sixteen-year-old Prince Oliver, who wants to break free of his fairy tale existence, and fifteen-year-old Delilah, a loner obsessed with Prince Oliver and the book in which he exists, work together to seek his freedom.

May-May and Rose, the singing, dancing Golly sisters, travel west by covered wagon, entertaining people along the way.

In 1878, twelve-year-old Ida Kate and her widowed father welcome a mail-order bride and her baby to their Kansas homestead, but Ida Kate soon suspects that the bride is not the woman with whom Papa has corresponded.

Eleven-year-old Harriet "Duck" Scott, who isn't nearly as ladylike as her older sisters, finds many opportunities for adventure during an 1852 wagon train trip from Illinois to Oregon Territory, as her family deals with the loss of loved ones, quicksand, and a horse thief.

On the nineteenth-century Utah prairie, Mary Ann is heartbroken when her doll Betty is lost during a fierce storm and her sadness lasts all winter long, until spring brings a wonderful surprise.

Step into the rich tapestry of American history as one family's destiny intertwines with the blues of heartbreak and the blessings of joy… Inspired by the timeless words of Genesis 8:22, 'While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease,' The Fortunes of Blues and Blessing unfolds as a sweeping historical saga that illuminates the journey of an extraordinary black family in America. Spanning over a century and five generations, this captivating novel takes root in 1849, tracing the family's roots from Sierra Leone to the rice plantations of Georgia. At the heart of this gripping tale is Hercules, a young African enslaved and renamed upon arrival in Charleston. His bond with Rachel, a fellow captive, forms the foundation of a remarkable legacy. As their daughter Maia grows up amidst the privilege of the Bailey Plantation, her path intersects with the turbulent backdrop of the Civil War. Fleeing the plantation, Maia returns to Ossabaw Island, where she finds solace and love in Aaron, a skilled tradesman seeking refuge. As the years unfold, the family flourishes and migrates inland, overcoming adversity with resilience and determination. Maia embraces her passion for writing, while Aaron becomes a trailblazer in the construction industry. Their daughter Diana, a talented singer and Fisk Jubilee Singer, grapples with her dreams of fame and the complexities of identity. Meanwhile, Maia's grief for lost children and Aaron's burning desire to empower his people shape their destinies. Through the fortunes and misfortunes they encounter, this family bears witness to the profound impact of chance and choice on their lives. Blending the depth of 'Roots' with the captivating journey of 'Forrest Gump,' this enthralling narrative introduces readers to real-life black individuals who have left an indelible mark on African-American history. Immerse yourself in a tale where the extraordinary becomes ordinary, where the struggles and triumphs of one family mirror the collective experience of a resilient community. In the depths of struggle and the heights of triumph, discover the extraordinary journey of a black family across generations and continents…

A young boy ponders a variety of emotions and how different members of his family experience them, from his own blues to his father's grays and his grandmother's yellows.

Sutton Mercer watches from the afterlife as her long-lost twin, Emma Paxton, takes over her identity to solve her murder. But after ruling out her early leads, Emma still hasn’t found Sutton’s killer. A lot of people wanted her dead—but one name keeps popping up: Thayer Vega. When the gorgeous and mysterious Thayer returns to town, Emma has to move fast to figure out whether he’s back for revenge…or if he already got it. Set in a town where friends can turn into dangerous enemies and everyone harbors dark secrets, The Lying Game is a juicy new series that fans of the #1 New York Times bestselling Pretty Little Liars series—and the hit ABC Family show—will love

Lacy Gallatin, the youngest of the Gallatin sisters, is a woman with a mission: to find her father's killer. Haunted by the belief that she's failed him, Lacy is also battling a desire to have something more than just revenge, something she can't quite figure out.Enter Dave Shepard, deputy sheriff for the area. Dave has been fervently trying to find the man who killed George Gallatin, but he always feels inadequate when it comes to the beautiful Lacy. When they are together, the tension crackles between them--both when they argue and when they kiss. Lacy finds him frustratingly irresistible...but is it truly love?

Orphans Sallie, 12, and Maude, 16, continue their adventures, again traveling west in search of their Uncle Arlen and a place they can call home. Maude is unjustly accused of being a horse thief, bank robber, and murderer, and the two girls and their companion, Joe Harden, barely manage to stay one step ahead of the law as they dash across desert and prairie. Joe is a charmingly hapless con man, and the interaction among these three characters provides lots of humor, especially when Maude's fame produces a bunch of copycat outlaws. Sallie's voice as the "wise innocent" with plenty of colorful language is just right as she sees through the hypocrisy of a delicious array of eccentric characters and repeatedly saves the day for her companions. Descriptive details about medical practices, terrain, railroads, food, towns, forts, etc., are woven seamlessly into the lively story and provide a real feel for the flavor of the Old West and life on the trail.

In continued adventures, May-May and Rose take their traveling road show to more audiences.

The first humorous book in the Dear America series follows an Italian girl's immigrant family as they move from New York City to a utopian community in the frontier West. While traveling in 1883 with her Italian American family (including a meddlesome little sister) and other immigrant pioneers to a utopian community in Idaho, fourteen-year-old Teresa keeps a diary of her experiences along the way.

Six-year-old Caroline and her older sister Martha share wash-day chores, playing in the snow, and the first day of school in their home on the Wisconsin frontier.

The Golly Sisters, May-May and Rose, share further adventures as they take their traveling show through the West.