4th to 6th grade books set in Alaska and in the North
Diamond Willow
Helen Frost
2008
ISBN: 9780374317768
In a remote area of Alaska, twelve-year-old Willow helps her father with their sled dogs when she is not at school, wishing she were more popular, all the while unaware that the animals surrounding her carry the spirits of dead ancestors and friends who care for her.
Williwaw!
by Tom Bodett
1999
ISBN: 9780679890300
In their father's absence, thirteen-year-old September and her younger brother Ivan disobey his orders by taking the boat out on their Alaska bay, where they are caught in a terrifying storm called a williwaw.
Toughboy and Sister
Kirkpatrick Hill
1990
ISBN: 9780689505065
The death of their drunken father strands ten-year-old Toughboy and his younger sister at a remote fishing cabin on the Yukon River near Ruby, Alaska, where they spend a summer trying to cope with dwindling food supplies and hostile wildlife.
Neeluk : an Eskimo boy in the days of the whaling ships
stories by Frances Kittredge ; illustrations by Howard "Weyahok" Rock
2001
ISBN: 9780882405452
Traces the life of Neeluk and his family through one year in the 1800s in the Arctic land that would later become the state of Alaska.
Ordinary dogs, extraordinary friendships : stories of loyalty, courage, and compassion
Pam Flowers ; illustrations, Jason Baskin
2013
ISBN: 9780882409160
Collects eleven stories that showcase dogs exemplifying positive character traits such as wisdom, loyalty, courage, and good judgment.
Balto and the great race
by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel ; illustrated by Nora Koerber
2014
ISBN: 9780679891987
Recounts how the sled dog Balto saved Nome, Alaska, in 1925 from a diphtheria epidemic by delivering medicine through a raging snowstorm. Balto lives a quiet existence as a sled dog--until tragedy strikes. Dozens of children in the remote town of Nome become sick with diphtheria. Without an antitoxin serum, they will perish--and the closest supply is 650 miles away! No roads exist in the icy wilderness. The only way to get the serum to Nome is by sled. But can the sled dogs deliver the serum in time? Heading bravely into a brutal blizzard, Balto leads the race for life.
The great serum race : blazing the Iditarod Trail
Debbie S. Miller ; illustrations by Jon Van Zyle
2006
ISBN: 9780802777232
The story of the heroic role played by sled dogs, including the Siberian husky Togo, in the delivery of antitoxin serum to those stricken with diphtheria in 1925 Nome. Includes historical notes about the event as well as about the Iditarod Sled Dog Race which commemorates it.
Bristol Bay summer
Annie Boochever
2014
ISBN: 9780882409948
"Against the backdrop of the great Bristol Bay salmon fishery, thirteen-year-old Zoey Morley struggles with her parents' divorce, her mom's bush-pilot boyfriend, and the pangs of growing up during her summer in the 'real' Alaska"-- Provided by publisher.
The barren grounds
David A. Robertson ; [interior illustration, Natasha Donovan]
2020
ISBN: 9780735266100
"Morgan and Eli, two Indigenous children forced away from their families and communities, are brought together in a foster home in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They each feel disconnected, from their culture and each other, and struggle to fit in at school and at their new home -- until they find a secret place, walled off in an unfinished attic bedroom. A portal opens to another reality, Askí, bringing them onto frozen, barren grounds, where they meet Ochek (Fisher). The only hunter supporting his starving community, Misewa, Ochek welcomes the human children, teaching them traditional ways to survive. But as the need for food becomes desperate, they embark on a dangerous mission. Accompanied by Arik, a sassy Squirrel they catch stealing from the trapline, they try to save Misewa before the icy grip of winter freezes everything--including them".--Page [2] of cover.