Historical Fiction

(font enlarged for teaching purposes)
In historical fiction, setting is the most important literary element. Because the author is writing about a particular time in history, the information about the time period must be accurate, authentic, or both. To create accurate and authentic settings in their books, authors must research the time period thoroughly. They must know how people lived, what they ate, what kinds of homes they had, and what artifacts were a common part of their lives.  Usually, historical fiction is set at least 30 years in the past.

Historical fiction may have characters who are either imaginary or who actually lived during the time period. Settings also may be real or imaginary. The plot events may be documented historical events or they may be fictional. If they are fictional, it means that the author created the events for the telling of the story. The fictional characters, settings, and plot events must be portrayed authentically, as if they actually could have happened.

All of our school's fabulous reading teachers read at least one historical fiction novel with their students each year.  Shown in this post are some of those novels read in the past.

Some of my favorite historical fiction includes Crispin: the cross of lead by Avi.  It was my all-time favorite young adult novel until I became the library media specialist and became exposed to so many more authors.  Now, I count it among my favorites.  I also adore Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis, Penny from Heaven by Jennifer L. Holm, and Number the Stars by Lois Lowry.  I have an interest in the Tudor History of England, so when I choose adult historical fiction, I look for books that are set in that time period and include characters like King Henry VIII or Queen Elizabeth.  I do not enjoy reading about US History, so when I'm asked to read historical fiction that is set in America, I preview very closely.  I especially loved Coal Black Horse, by Robert Olmstead, which depicts life of soldiers during the Civil War, especially on the Gettysburg battlefield.  I was pleasantly surprised by the story, which took several plot turns and twists.  However, could it be I was more entertained by the gruesome details of the battlefield?  Who knows.  This book is so vivid in it's description of death and despair that I was probably shocked by the bluntness.  I keep this book on the restricted shelf of our library due to the graphic violent content.  The story is amazing. The book Leaving Gee's Bend by Irene Latham looks like one of those historical novels that will surprise me.  I'm not completely blown away by the blurb or the synopsis, but because my peers chose it as the historical fiction nominee for this year's Kentucky Bluegrass List, I have a feeling this book will blow me away.  I'll definitely let you know!

We have many historical fiction novels available for checkout in our general collection.  Something for everyone.  I hope that as our students read about previous times in our world's history, they'll come to understand just how fortunate they are to have many of the modern conveniences, like clean water and medicine.  Our ancestors struggled to survive.  I'm thrilled that our reading teachers are using historical fiction to help our students connect with a character they probably have very little in common with...

Happy (Historical) Reading!
RC