Historical fiction is one of the most popular genres. According to the National Council of Teachers of English, it is defined as:
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.
The explosion of digitized primary source information available on the internet and the myriad of opportunities to connect researchers, both scholarly and avocational, has made it possible for authors to research in ways never before possible. These changes have enriched the backdrops to include accurate information on foods and drink, on how homes were heated (or not), material from merchant ledgers, and personal journals and letters. Concomitant is the tendency of readers to Google information they may find suspect. Some authors routinely receive emails questioning the veracity of historical events included in their fictional stories.
Just over two weeks ago, I spent a morning discussing modern historical fiction with an audience of 20 plus adults on Hilton Head Island, SC. It was a lively conversation and everyone had their favorite to share. Here is the list I handed out that day. In preparation, I reached out to my Facebook friends to find their favorite historical fiction titles. After collecting them and filling in additional information, here is the crowdsourced list.
As I was pouring through this huge potential source of titles, what did I specifically exclude? The easiest are books that really are narrative nonfiction. The author has carefully researched many primary and secondary sources, putting together a narration of real events. those I was asked to include were often about less known people or historical events. Also omitted were fictions about biblical or religious figures whose stories cannot be positioned in a specific time period with surrounding outside historical elements. Several people asked to have Anita Diamant’s The Red Tent included but it can’t be specified.
What do I look for in a novel to move it to the historical fiction category? For me, it must be more than a broad brush setting. Jane Austen’s novels are classics, providing a contemporaneous view of domestic life. She adds little information about the historical events of her time or details about the economic structures. What I would include is 1930s era book if there is a party line in an apartment building. I would like to see a character try to use it and be rebuffed so that a reader could understand what it really means in the context of daily life. Misplacing major historical events and inserting technological advances before their time moves a title into basic fiction or fantasy on my list depending on the situation.
In recent fiction, there have been a number of authors who have purposefully set their stories prior to the mid-1990s. That sets the story in the time before cell phones became ubiquitous and allows the author the opportunity for characters to be out of touch with others and ill-informed about breaking news. Technology can be an asset or detriment to the telling of a story.
Wherever possible I include information about the historical context and the author’s research in reviews as I write them. If I miss the mark I hope you will call me on it. The reviews are a resource and should be accurate. If the lists of titles aren’t enough to keep you going, please look through blog archives (on the rose colored bar) or on the Books page where all past reviews are listed.
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