The Book Club for Kids podcast began in the smallest quadrant of Washington DC called Southwest. It was the waterfront for DC, the place where ships would dock bringing everything from building supplies to fresh fish to slaves. This week marks the 178th anniversary of what Washington Post writer Colbert King calls "one of the most courageous acts in antebellum America": the attempted escape of African American slaves on a ship docked at the Southwest waterfront, a ship called the Pearl.

This week, Book Club for Kids honors its roots by reprising our one episode featuring a non fiction book: Passenger on the Pearl by Winifred Conkling, taped before a live audience at Virginia's Fall for the Book Festival. Lolita Marie is our celebrity reader.

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You've been calling us with your favorite books. Here's the latest list:

Keeper of the Lost Cities - Shannon Messenger

House Arrest - K.A.Holt

The Running Dream - Wendelin Van Draanen

Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus - Barbara Park

That Pigeon Needs a Bath - Mo Willems

A Dinosaur in the Toilet - Horace Hughes

Anne of Green Gables - L.M. Montgomery

The Land of Stories - Cris Colfer

Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

Sarafina and the Black Cloak - Robert Beatty

Missing Since Monday- Ann Martin

The Cat I Never Named - Amra Sabic-El-Rayess

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rules -Jeff Kinney

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Diary of Steve the Noob - Steve the Noob

If you have a favorite book, you can be on the show, too! Just give us a call at 424- 209-2285 and tell us your first name, the city where you live, the name of your favorite book, and why you love it.

Witches, monsters, and a brave little thief. Those are the ingredients in Claire Legrand's novel "Foxheart." The book was chosen by Book Club for Kids fan Kailas. She and her two fellow readers Iona and Gabi discussed the novel one sunny Sunday afternoon upstairs at Boulder Bookstore with host Kitty Felde. Our celebrity reader is actor Wesley Mann. And writer Claire Legrand explains how "Foxheart" began as a short story on a website.

What's it like to be adopted? Does your adopted family's history become your history or do you feel the need to find your biological story? Our book this week is "The Length of a String" by Elissa Brent Weissman. It's a Holocaust story about a Jewish family separated by the war. Readers from the Girlfriends Book Club of Baltimore at Hazelwood Elementary Middle School discuss the book and pose lots of questions to our writer. Actor and producer Bari Hochwald is celebrity reader. Kitty Felde is host.

Last week, we heard a bit from writer Jennifer L. Holm when we discussed her book "Turtle in Paradise." In this Bonus Episode, we hear more about Jenni's trilogy of books inspired by family stories.

Got a nickname? Everybody in Key West seems to have one. Including a little girl named Turtle. Readers at the Mamie Doud Eisenhower Public Library in Broomfield, Colorado discuss Jennifer Holm's "Turtle in Paradise" with host Kitty Felde. KQED public radio's Rachel Myrow is celebrity reader.

Wonder - RJ Palacio

A Dog's Purpose - W. Bruce Cameron

Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling

Where the Sidewalk Ends - Shel Silverstein

The Black Cauldron - Lloyd Alexander

Students from Washington DC's Jefferson Academy reflect on desegregation sixty years after the Little Rock Nine. They discuss Kristin Levine's novel The Lions of Little Rock. The author describes how she came to tell the story. Former U.S. Education Secretary of Education John King is celebrity reader. Kitty Felde is host.

Ever wonder what it's like to write one of the American Girl novels? We get the inside scoop from Lisa Yee.

We explore an immigration story: a Chinese immigrant who ends up in Minnesota. It's the Newbery Honor Award winning tale "Maisie Chen's Last Chance." Writer Lisa Yee tells readers at Overland Elementary School that the book is based on her own family's history. Our celebrity reader is public radio journalist Josie Huang from LAist.

Favorite Books from Overland Elementary School:

Rick - Alex Gino

Amulet - Kazu Kibuishi

The City of Ember - Jeanne Duprau

Lisa Yee's Favorite Book:

Honestly Katie John - Mary Calhoun

Josie Huang's Favorite Book:

Anne of Green Gables - L.M. Montgomery

And check out our other podcast The Fina Mendoza Mysteries!