Historical Fiction

Historical fiction books are probably one of my favorite kind of books. I think that it is beneficial to know what has happened in the past. Author's create historical stories and use factual information, but have with a twist of imagination. Sometimes it isn't fun to read historical facts out of a text book, but when they are in a form of a story the reader ends up learning more about the historical fact rather than reading a text book and writing down the definition. The benefits that historical fiction has are that it conveys a sense of life as it was lived, happens to ordinary people, it broadens perspectives, and it helps children understand that the present and future are linked to actions of the past. There are several categories of historical fiction, they are:

• Ancient times: These are stories which take place in ancient civilizations including Ancient Greece, Rome, and Egypt.
• Themes: survival, courage, honor.
• Example: The Bronze Bow by: Elizabeth George Speare
• Medieval times: These are stories that take place during the middle ages. It begins after the fall of the Roman Empire.
• Themes: loyalty, overcoming handicaps.
• Example: Matilda Bone by: Karen Cushman
• Colonial times: These are stories about the settlements of Jamestown, Plymouth, and Boston. This also includes stories about the move westward, American Indians, and the Salem witch trials.
• Themes: courage, survival, and persecution.
• Example: The Courage of Sarah Noble by: Alice Dalgliesh
• Revolutionary Era: These stories are about the events that surround the Revolutionary War.
• Themes: family, freedom, commitment to a cause, injustice.
• Example: Woods Runner by: Gary Paulsen
• Early Frontier Era: Stories about the move westward before the Civil War.
• Themes: friendship, faith, longing for ownership of land.
• Example: Lyddie by Katherine Paterson
• Civil War: These are books that describe the time during the Civil War. They are about slavery, and the war between the states.
• Themes: tragedy of war, and freedom.
• Example: Shades of Grey by: Carolyn Reeder
• Post-Civil War: Stories about the Industrial Revolution, and immigrants.
• Themes: looking for a better life, family bonds, hardship.
• Example: Little House on the Prairie by: Laura Ingalls Wilder
• World War I: Stories about the events of World War I and after.
• Themes: destructive nature of war, survival, prejudice, and discrimination.
• Example: Letters from Rifka by: Karen Hesse
• Great Depression: Stories about the events around the Great Depression and in the 1930's.
• Themes: survival, effects of poverty, and homelessness.
• Example: The Song of the Trees by: Mildred D. Taylor
• World War II: Stories about the events of World War II, Hitler's rise and fall, and Japanese military activity.
• Themes: hatred, prejudice, survival, and suffering caused by war.
• Example: Number the Stars by: Lois Lowry
• Post-World War II: These are stories about the continued problems in Korea, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
• Themes: social change, and humanity.
• Example: The Wall by Eve Bunting
• Civil Rights Movement: These stories are ones about the fight for civil rights that took place from the late 1800's-mid 1960's.
• Themes: human suffering, injustice, and tolerance.
• Example: Role of Thunder Hear My Cry by: Mildred Taylor