When I taught Social Studies, I found one of the best ways to approach historic events was from both fictional and factual angles. If the historic fiction is done well, with considerable thought and empathy, it can be used to invoke students' empathy and critical thinking about otherwise polarizing events.
Ground Zero, by Alan Gratz, is one such piece of historic fiction. It's written from dual POVs, one a young boy, Brandon, who gets suspended from school and has to accompany his father, who works in the restaurant at the top of one of the towers, to work on 9/11. It's a harrowing account of his escape from the building moments before it collapses, of the people who help him along the way, of the horrors he witnesses, and of the other tower collapsing moments after he emerges on the street, seemingly to safety.
The other POV is a young girl, Reshmina, who lives in Afghanistan some 20 years after 9/11. It's the tale of how she loses her twin brother, Pashoon, to the Taliban after she rescues an American soldier injured in a Taliban surprise attack. Her POV will stretch how readers think about the years after 9/11, and how the United States has handled its presence in Afghanistan.
I won't spoil how these two characters' lives come together, just know the tale is gut-wrenching, but totally appropriate for middle school readers in either an English Language Arts or Social Studies class.
I could only find pay-for-teaching-resources on TpT for this book. The publisher, Scholastic, offers nothing for free -- no teaching guide, no discussion questions -- which is par for the course for Alan Gratz's other books, as well, so if you do plan to teach this book, you'll have to shell out not just for the classroom copies, and most likely an audible version, but also for the teaching resources.
Still, it's one of the best 9/11 historical fiction books I've seen, thus far, and written by a master storyteller. Enjoy the read.
