Explore this curated list of books about the Oregon Trail and find your next read. From books about firsthand accounts of the Oregon Trail, to historical fiction about the Oregon trail, and even a modern travel memoir about the Oregon Trail, you’ll find recommendations for reading a book about the Oregon Trail here.

Oregon Trail Stories: True Accounts Of Life In A Covered Wagon
by David Klausmeyer
IN A NUTSHELL. Collection of firsthand accounts of life on the Oregon Trail
SHORT & SIMPLE. Selected memoirs, diaries, and letters about the Oregon Trail tell the firsthand story of life on the Oregon Trail.
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want a book about the Oregon Trail with multiple firsthand accounts.
Learn about the Oregon Trail from those who travelled it with this book about the Oregon Trail comprised of the firsthand accounts of pioneers. This collection of true Oregon Trail stories is made up of selected diaries, memoirs, and letters of those who travelled the Oregon Trail along with brief introductory materials that provide context on the writers’ life.
nonfiction + history
To the Wild Horizon
by Imogen Martin
IN A NUTSHELL. Woman travels the Oregon Trial while running from the law
SHORT & SIMPLE. Historical fiction romance about a woman who travels the Oregon Trail because she’s afraid she’s wanted for murder after acting in self-defense.
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you’re looking for a historical fiction book about the Oregon Trail.
When Grace kills her landlord, she knows that no one will believe that she acted in self-defense. To escape the law, Grace and her little brother set out on the Oregon Trail. To the Wild Horizon follows the hardships, friendships, and love that Grace experiences on her journey.
fiction + romance + historical fiction
Exploring the Oregon Trail: America's Historic Road Trip
by Kathy W. Scott & David L. Scott
IN A NUTSHELL. Tips for taking a road trip down the Oregon Trail
SHORT & SIMPLE. A guidebook for taking a road trip down the Oregon Trail with information on landmarks and other attractions.
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want a travel guidebook for the Oregon Trail.
Road trip down The Oregon Trail with this travel guidebook. Exploring the Oregon Trail provides photos and information on landmarks, towns, and activities along the modern-day route of the Oregon Trail from Missouri to Oregon.
nonfiction
The Oregon Trail
by Francis Parkman
IN A NUTSHELL. Personal story of traveling the Oregon Trail
SHORT & SIMPLE. One man’s firsthand account of traveling the Oregon Trail.
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you’re looking for a book about the Oregon Trail with an individual personal account.
Originally published in 1849, this recounting of life on the Oregon Trail has since become a classic. Parkman’s The Oregon Trail is a 23-year-old man’s firsthand account of two months of travelling on the Oregon Trail in 1846.
nonfiction + history + classics
The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey
by Rinker Buck
IN A NUTSHELL. Modern brothers travel the Oregon Trail the old-fashioned way
SHORT & SIMPLE. The modern author tells the story of journeying the Oregon Trail in a covered wagon with this brother.
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a modern travel memoir about the Oregon Trail.
Released in 2015, The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey is the story of how the author and his brother traveled the Oregon Trail the old-fashioned way, in a covered wagon. This travel memoir from author Rinker Bunk filled with moving descriptions of the landscape was a New York Times Bestseller.
nonfiction + biographies & memoirs
Westward Courage
by A.T. Butler
IN A NUTSHELL. Historical fiction about women on the Oregon Trail
SHORT & SIMPLE. A twenty-something New York socialite adapts to life on the Oregon Trail.
GO FOR THIS BOOK IF…you want to read a historical fiction book about the Oregon Trail from a Christian author.
Travel the Oregon Trail with 20-year-old Caroline as she leaves her upper-class New York lifestyle and adapts to the harsh realities of life on the trail. Westward Courage is the first book in the Courage on the Oregon Trail series; each book in the series tells the story of different woman travelling the Oregon Trail in the same wagon company.
fiction + historical fiction