Families who loved Private Captain: A Story of Gettysburg by Marty Crisp often look for books with a similar feel. These 20 recommendations were selected for their similarity in style, theme, and reading level.
Reach for this book when your child is beginning to ask deeper questions about history, duty, and the human cost of conflict. This story is perfect for the pre-teen who is moving away from sanitized history and toward a more nuanced understanding of courage. It follows twelve-year-old Ben and his loyal dog, Captain, as they journey into the aftermath of the Battle of Gettysburg to find Ben's missing older brother. While the setting is the Civil War, the emotional core is the unbreakable bond between siblings and the resilience of a child facing overwhelming odds. It offers a realistic but age-appropriate look at the devastation of war through the eyes of a young boy who refuses to give up on his family. It is an excellent choice for sparking conversations about perseverance, the ethics of war, and the quiet bravery found in everyday people.
