THE BOXCAR CHILDREN by Gertrude Chandler Warner
Book One of the series. Four homeless, orphaned siblings discover they have a grandfather, and go live with him.

MANHUNT: The 12-DAY CHASE FOR LINCOLN’S KILLER by James L. Swanson — Suspense at its best.

UP FROM SLAVERY by Booker T. Washington – his autobiography.

THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER by Carson McCullers; amid an impoverished Southern setting, the teenager, Mick Kelly, tries to find her place.