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As the American people begin observing the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, the We the People Bookshelf seeks to promote reflection among young people on the idea of the United States as a "union." Our Constitution, the Preamble proclaims, was intended to "form a more perfect union." In 1861, as President Abraham Lincoln considered his response to secessionist states, he declared his "paramount object" to be to "save the Union." What is the nature of the "union" that the Founders formed and Lincoln sought to save? With the ratification of the U.S. Constitution and the Union victory in the Civil War, is the American union complete and perfect? What role have subsequent generations played, and what might we in this century envision, to continue to perfect our union?
Grades 7 to 8
Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson
Warriors Don't Cry by Melba Beals
Lincoln Shot: A President's Life Remembered by Barry Denenberg
Hitch by Jeanette Ingold
Grades 9 to 12
The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. DuBois
American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic by Joseph Ellis
Lincoln in His Own Words by Milton Meltzer
Carver: A Life in Poems by Marilyn Nelson
Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose
Killer Angels by Michael Shaara
The Civil War: An Illustrated History by Geoffrey Ward, Ric Burns, Ken Burns
Declaring Independence: The Origin and Influence of America's Founding Document edited by Christian Y. Dupont
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