Historical Fiction - Exodus Books

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The best way to learn history is not always in a textbook. (That's probably the worst way, really, but more on that elsewhere.) While learning history through novels can be taken too far (it is fiction after all), there's much to be said for getting a feel for the Civil War through books like The Red Badge of Courage or Across Five Aprils, or learning about the deep rifts between Saxons and Normans in Medieval England through Scott's Ivanhoe.

A well-researched historical novel imparts something no list of names and dates can—a picture of life among a particular people at a particular time, the way they thought, the way they ate, who they admired, how they traveled. Sometimes readers are introduced to real historical figures and events from an intimate perspective, not the stale cardboard presentations common in schools.

There's plenty of nonsense available, of course, and just because the cover says a book takes place in Renaissance Italy or ancient Egypt doesn't mean it's a good book, or even that it's historical fiction in the true sense. A writer who simply transposes stories on different time periods isn't really saying anything about that time period, they're just trying to inflate sales with an appeal to the exotic and unfamiliar.

Such bogus historical fiction is really just fantasy. The good stuff is real and bright and dusty and loud, just like an old Roman city or a battle between Roundheads and Cavaliers. It reflects the religious sentiments of the characters as they would have been, such as in Lilli Thal's brilliant Medieval epic Mimus. It shows how one small action can lead to many much larger events, as happens frequently in C.S. Forester's Hornblower series.

Whether you're into the technical descriptions of battles found in Henty's boy-versus-the-world stories, or prefer the romance of The Scarlet Pimpernel, or like to break your heart over and over with books like Amos Fortune, Free Man, historical fiction is above all fiction of the present—not to be kept in the annals of the past, it shows us that the people of long ago (or not so long ago) are not so different than the people of today.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

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Fiction & Literature

Fiction by Genre

Historical Fiction

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4th grade (Ages 9-10)

5th grade (Ages 10-11)

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7th grade (Ages 12-13)

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G. A. Henty Books

- Henty Audio Books

Louise Vernon Historical Fiction

Nautical Fiction

We Were There Series

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Used Books & Materials

	Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt from Berkley Books Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade 1965 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $9.99 $4.50 (3 in stock)
	Adam of the Road Puffin Newbery Library by Elizabeth Gray from Puffin Books Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1943 Newbery Medal winner in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Adventures of Robin Hood Puffin Classics by Roger Green, illustrated by Arthur Hall from Puffin Books Legends and Folklore for 5th-9th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $8.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
	After the Dancing Days by Margaret I. Rostkowski from HarperTrophy for 7th-9th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $5.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Art of Keeping Cool by Janet Taylor Lisle from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-8th grade 2001 Scott O'Dell Award in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $2.50 (2 in stock)
	Aunt Jane's Hero Portrait of a Christ-Centered Home by Elizabeth Prentiss from Calvary Press for 7th-10th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Bonanza Girl by Patricia Beatty from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd. for 6th-10th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.00 (4 in stock)
	Cheaper By the Dozen by Frank Gilbreth & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey from Yearling Family Stories for 4th-9th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Dragon's Gate Golden Mountain Chronicles: 1867 by Laurence Yep from HarperCollins for 6th-10th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
	Dragonwings Golden Mountain Chronicles: 1903 by Laurence Yep from HarperCollins Historical fiction for 5th-8th grade 1976 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
	Dragonwings Golden Mountain Chronicles: 1903 by Laurence Yep from Scholastic Inc. Historical fiction for 5th-8th grade 1976 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Earthquake at Dawn by Kristiana Gregory from Gulliver Books Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Endless Steppe Growing Up in Siberia by Esther Hautzig from HarperCollins Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $9.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Escape From Warsaw Originally titled The Silver Sword by Ian Serraillier, illustrated by Irwin Hoffman from Scholastic Inc. Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Eyes of the Emperor by Graham Salisbury from Laurel-Leaf Books for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	For Freedom The Story of a French Spy by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley from Laurel-Leaf Books for 6th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Golden Goblet by Eloise J. McGraw from Puffin Books Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1962 Newbery Honor Book in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Guns for General Washington A Story of the American Revolution by Seymour Reit from Harcourt Historical fiction for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $9.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell Anv from Sandpiper Books Realistic Fiction for 5th-8th grade 1961 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $9.99 $5.00 (2 in stock)
	Kite Rider by Geraldine McCaughrean from HarperTeen for 6th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $15.99 $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Letter to Mrs. Roosevelt by C. Coco De Young from Yearling Historical fiction for 3rd-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.99 $4.00 (2 in stock)
	Little Riders by Margaretha Shemin from HarperCollins Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Martyr of the Catacombs A Tale of Ancient Rome by Anonymous Christian from Kregel Publications Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05) $7.00 (1 in stock)
	Moccasin Trail Puffin Newbery Library by Eloise J. McGraw from Puffin Books Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1953 Newbery Honor Book in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $8.99 $5.00 (3 in stock)
	Moonshiner's Son by Carolyn Reeder from Aladdin Paperbacks in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Mr. Tucket Tucket Adventures #1 by Gary Paulsen from Yearling Adventure for 5th-8th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $2.80 (1 in stock)
	Night Journeys by Avi from Avon Books for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	No Promises in the Wind by Irene Hunt from Berkley Books Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	On the Banks of the Bayou Rocky Ridge Years / Rose Years Book 7 by Roger Lea MacBride from HarperCollins for 3rd-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $5.50 (1 in stock)
	Or Give Me Death A Novel of Patrick Henry's Family by Ann Rinaldi from Harcourt for 5th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse from Scholastic Inc. Realistic Fiction for 6th-8th grade 1998 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Perilous Road by William O. Steele from Harcourt for 5th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $9.99 $3.50 (2 in stock)
	Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver by E. L. Konigsburg from Aladdin Paperbacks for 7th-9th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Red Badge of Courage Puffin Classics by Stephen Crane from Puffin Books for 7th-10th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Road from Home by David Kherdian from Greenwillow Books for 7th-9th grade 1980 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.99 $6.00 (2 in stock)
	Sarah Bishop by Scott O'Dell from Scholastic Inc. Historical Fiction for 6th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Shakespeare's Spy Shakespeare Stealer #3 by Gary Blackwood from Puffin Books for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Slave Dancer by Paula Fox from Laurel-Leaf Books Historical Fiction for 6th-8th grade 1974 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $6.50 $3.00 (1 in stock)
	So Far From the Bamboo Grove by Yoko Kawashima Watkins from Beech Tree Books Historical fiction for 4th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $5.99 $4.00 (2 in stock)
	Stowaway by Karen Hesse from Aladdin Paperbacks Historical Fiction for 6th-8th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.99 $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Swallows and Amazons for Ever! containing abridged editions of Coot Club and The Big Six by Arthur Ransome from Red Fox Family stories/boating for 7th-9th grade in Clearance: Fiction (Location: ZCLE-FIC) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Tale of Two Cities (abridged) Puffin Classics by Charles Dickens from Puffin Books Historical Fiction for 8th-10th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	To Be a Slave Puffin Modern Classics by Julius Lester, illustrated by Tom Feelings from Puffin Books Historical Non-fiction for 6th-10th grade 1969 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Foreman Lewis, illustrated by William Low from Square Fish Publishing Realistic Fiction for 5th-8th grade 1933 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)

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