Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales

Graphic History Lessons

• What: Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales
• When: 8 to 12 years
• Why: Historical, entertaining, affordable
• Where: Amazon, Nathan Hale

Looking to supplement the boring history lessons with a little fun? Look no further than Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales, which bring history to life in the form of graphic novels.

Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales One Dead Spy book on Amazon

These graphic novels come from real stories of some of the biggest conflicts and sagas from the last two hundred years of history. From the American Revolution to World War II, each selection in the ten book series focuses on a specific time in American history. Told from the perspective of Hale, the Provost, and the Hangman as narrators, each book features short action-packed chapters with lots of commentary bursting with historical facts. Want a run down of all the wars the nation of Japan fought and won? That’s covered in two pages as background during Raid of No Return. Have trouble explaining in kid terms how World War I began? No problem. Cue a few animal representatives for each country involved, and the story is off and running in true graphic novel fashion thanks to Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood.

No matter which installment you pick, kids learn the facts in a way that not only appeals to them, but will leave them asking for more. My ten year old reads them faster than I can get them, and not just once, either. He’s read them several times and gets so engrossed he can’t hear anyone calling him. All that attention goes to what boils down to a history book. History may never be the same. 

You can read the books in any order, though it all started with One Dead Spy. Move from one century to the next or start with whatever interests your child. No matter which one you choose, with a serious injection of humor into the facts and figures, these graphic novels are bound to deliver some serious thrills to readers.