Brad Kessler Books in Order

When Boss Lion threatens the animals of Brer Village, Brer Rabbit must protect his neighbors from the hungry bully. Relying on wit rather than strength, the rabbit devises a way to turn the lion’s confidence against him.

John Henry becomes a legendary railroad worker whose strength and skill seem beyond any ordinary man’s. When a new steam drill threatens the workers’ place, he accepts a contest that tests human endurance against the power of machinery.

An archer named Ivan presents a golden feather to the Tsar and is ordered to capture the Firebird or die. With help from the Horse of Power, he faces increasingly dangerous demands and an unexpected love.

Raised in Pharaoh’s court, Moses is called to lead the enslaved Israelites out of Egypt. This retelling follows his confrontation with Pharaoh, the plagues, and the events that bring his people to the threshold of freedom.

After a coal-mine explosion devastates her family in 1920s West Virginia, Emily Jenkins struggles to survive with her mother. An injured power-company worker brings an unexpected connection, while Emily’s desire for revenge threatens the future they might build.

A Manhattan family marks the start of Christmas by the arrival of a Vermont tree seller, until one year he fails to appear. His story connects city celebrations with the slower life of the forest and the meaning of the holiday.

After a plane crashes off a Nova Scotia island, bereaved families gather at a local inn to await news. Among them, an ornithologist grieving her husband finds connections between bird migration, shared sorrow and the fragile possibility of renewal.

After leaving Manhattan for a Vermont farm, Brad Kessler and his wife learn to raise goats and make cheese. Following the seasons, he connects the practical demands of herding with the pastoral roots of food, language, religion and culture.

No bigger than his father’s thumb, Tom sets out on adventures that eventually bring him to King Arthur’s court. His courage is tested when an evil sorcerer threatens the king, giving the tiny boy a chance to prove his worth.

A spring blizzard brings a Somali refugee seeking safety in Canada to a Vermont monastery. Her arrival entwines the lives of a questioning monk and an Afghan war veteran, each confronting the past and the difficult meaning of sanctuary.

Three Somali survivors recount the journeys that eventually brought them to Vermont after war and displacement. Their accounts describe the losses, challenges, and possibilities of rebuilding family and community in an unfamiliar corner of the United States.