Didn't we all read Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe in high school? But let's face it, a lot of us were too busy (or careless) to take the time to comprehend this difficult but beautiful book. Uncle Tom's Cabin is, beyond the obstacles of length and dialect, a touchingly heroic story of the tireless endurance of a slave in America. The tragic but inspirational ending proves that the lowest of society can emerge as the highest of humanity. This story is all the more moving when you realize that it is based on real events.
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, a story set in the French Revolution, is not a read-in-one-sitting type of book, I'll admit. In fact, it took all my fortitude to wade through hundreds of pages to the last few chapters. But in those final chapters lies one of the most inspiringly poignant plot developments that I have ever had the privilege of reading. It made me cry buckets, but the ending of this book isn't actually a heartbreaker. It's almost peaceful, and my main feeling upon finishing this book was utter amazement and admiration for the beauty of that last scene.
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes is, unlike my other two suggestions, fun to read from the very beginning. It's the story of a teenage boy at the dawn of the American Revolution, and his search for the right side in which to place his allegiance. The book is very well written, pretty easy to read, and quite enjoyable, but the ending is quite the tearjerker. Again, the historical basis of this book makes the ending all the more touching.
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