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Historical Fiction

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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Active Filters: 4th grade (Ages 9-10), Used Books & Materials
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Stepping Stone: Totally True Adventures!
by Lori Haskins Houran
from Random House
for 2nd-5th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Abandoned on the Wild Frontier
Trailblazer Books
by Dave and Neta Jackson
from Bethany House
for 3rd-7th grade
in Trailblazer Books (Location: SER-TRAIL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Abandoned on the Wild Frontier
Trailblazer Books
by Dave and Neta Jackson
from Castle Rock Creative
for 3rd-7th grade
in Trailblazer Books (Location: SER-TRAIL)
$9.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Adara
by Beatrice Gormley
from Eerdmans
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.74 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Africa Is My Home
by Monica Edinger, illustrated by Robert Byrd
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Slavery & the Underground Railroad (Location: HISA-19SL)
$2.80 (1 in stock)
Alamo All Stars
Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales #6
by Nathan Hale
from Amulet Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$13.59 $8.95 (1 in stock)
All Sail Set
by Armstrong Sperry
from David R. Godine
Nautical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1936 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.71 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Almost Home
Daughters of the Faith
by Wendy G. Lawton
from Moody Press
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Daughters of the Faith (Location: SER-DAU)
$7.64 $4.00 (3 in stock)
Ambush in the Wilderness
by Kris Hemphill
from Geography Matters
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Amethyst Ring
by Scott O'Dell
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Andie's Moon
Historical House: 1969
by Linda Newbery
from Educational Development Corporation
for 3rd-6th grade
in Series Books (Location: SER-MISC)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Angel on the Square
by Gloria Whelan
from HarperCollins
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.49 $4.40 (2 in stock)
Annie Henry and the Secret Mission
Adventures of the American Revolution
by Susan Olasky
from Crossway Books
for 3rd-5th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Anson's Way
by Gary D. Schmidt
from Clarion Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Apprentice
by Pilar Molina Llorente
Reprint from Sunburst Book
for 2nd-4th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.79 $4.00 (2 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)
Ballad of Lucy Whipple
by Karen Cushman
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$5.09 $2.40 (1 in stock)
Bandit of Ashley Downs
TrailBlazer Book
by Dave & Neta Jackson
from Bethany House
for 3rd-7th grade
in Trailblazer Books (Location: SER-TRAIL)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
Bears, Pirates and Silver Lace
by Anne B. Fisher; illustrated by Phil Nesbitt
from Binford & Mort Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$5.60 (1 in stock)
Beggars' Victory
Struggle for Freedom Series #3
by Piet Prins
from Inheritance Publications
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$11.01 $5.60 (1 in stock)
Betsy and the Emperor
by Staton Rabin
from Simon and Schuster
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.64 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Betsy and the Emperor
by Staton Rabin
1st edition from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.20 (1 in stock)
Birchbark House
by Louise Erdrich
from Hyperion/Madison Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
National Book Award Finalist
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Birchbark House
by Louise Erdrich
from Hyperion/Madison Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
National Book Award Finalist
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Bite of the Gold Bug
by Barthe DeClements
from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Gilded Age & Progressive Era (1877-1918) (Location: HISA-19GI)
$4.99 $2.00 (2 in stock)
Black Pearl
by Scott O'Dell
Reprint from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.49 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Blackthorn Winter
Monroe Family Chronicles #1
by Doug Wilson
from Veritas Press
Nautical fiction for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.00 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Blackthorn Winter
Veritas Maritime Series #1
by Doug Wilson
from Veritas Press
Nautical fiction for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Blazing West: The Journal of Augustus Pelletier
by Kathryn Lasky
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$2.80 (1 in stock)
Book of Golden Deeds
by Charlotte M. Yonge
from Living Book Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$11.89 $7.60 (1 in stock)
Born in the Year of Courage
by Emily Crofford
from Lerner Publishing Group
Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Born in the Year of Courage
by Emily Crofford
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.80 (3 in stock)
Bound for Oregon
by Jean Van Leeuwen
from Puffin Books
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.79 $3.20 (1 in stock)
Brady
by Jean Fritz
from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.64 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Breaking Stalin's Nose
by Eugene Yelchin
from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-7th grade
2012 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.64 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Buffalo Chief
by Jane and Paul Annixter
from Hale-Cadmus
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Bull Run
by Paul Fleischman
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$5.09 $2.80 (2 in stock)
Bull Run
by Paul Fleischman, David Frampton (Woodcuts)
2nd edition from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in American Civil War Era (1850-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Bull Run
by Paul Fleischman
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Carolina's Courage
by Elizabeth Yates
from Bob Jones University Press
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.64 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Cecily's Portrait
Historical House: 1895
by Adele Geras
from Educational Development Corporation
for 3rd-6th grade
in Series Books (Location: SER-MISC)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Cheaper By the Dozen
by Frank Gilbreth & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
from HarperCollins
Family Stories for 4th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.40 (6 in stock)
Child Star
by Lydia Weaver
from Viking Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Great Depression (1929-1939) (Location: HISA-20GD)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Chimney Sweep's Ransom
by Dave & Neta Jackson
from Bethany House
for 3rd-7th grade
in Trailblazer Books (Location: SER-TRAIL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Colonial America: An Interactive History Adventure
You Choose Books
by Allison Lassieur
from Capstone Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Series Books (Location: SER-MISC)
$4.40 (1 in stock)
Cry From Egypt
by Hope Auer
from Great Waters Press
for 4th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.80 (1 in stock)
Daniel's Story
by Carol Matas
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Clearance: Fiction (Location: ZCLE-FIC)
$2.00 (2 in stock)
Day It Rained Forever
Once Upon America
by Virginia T. Gross, illustrated by Ronald Himler
from Viking Press
for 3rd-5th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Day of Glory
by Philip Spencer
for 4th-6th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Defeat of the Ghost Riders
Trailblazer Books
by Dave Jackson, Neta Jackson
from Bethany House
for 3rd-7th grade
in Trailblazer Books (Location: SER-TRAIL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Deirdre
by David Guard; illustrated by Gretchen Guard
2nd edition from Celestial Arts
for 4th-6th grade
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Dispelling the Tyranny
Struggle for Freedom Series #2
by Piet Prins
from Inheritance Publications
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$11.01 $5.60 (2 in stock)
Down Ryton Water
by E.R. Gaggin
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
for 4th-6th grade
1942 Newbery Honor
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$3.60 (2 in stock)
Drinking Gourd OSI
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by F. N. Monjo
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$2.00 (2 in stock)
Early Thunder
by Jean Fritz
from Puffin Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.79 $3.20 (3 in stock)
Earthquake!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski
from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Titanic & 20th Century Disasters (Location: HISW-20DIS)
$3.00 (3 in stock)
Earthquake!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski
from Scholastic Inc.
for 2nd-5th grade
in Titanic & 20th Century Disasters (Location: HISW-20DIS)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Earthquake!
by Kate Wilson
from Steck-Vaughn Company
for 3rd-5th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Elijah Of Buxton
by Christopher Paul Curtis
from Scholastic Inc.
Nursery Rhymes for 4th-6th grade
2008 Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner, 2008 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.20 (2 in stock)
Escape from the Slave Traders
TrailBlazer Books
from Bethany House
for 3rd-7th grade
in Trailblazer Books (Location: SER-TRAIL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Escape from the Slave Traders
TrailBlazer Books
by Dave and Neta Jackson
from Castle Rock Creative
for 3rd-7th grade
in Trailblazer Books (Location: SER-TRAIL)
$9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Escape From Warsaw
by Ian Serraillier, illustrated by Irwin Hoffman
from Scholastic Inc.
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$3.20 (2 in stock)
Esperanza Rising
by Pam Munoz Ryan
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.79 $4.00 (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)
Falcon of Eric the Red
by Catherine Coblentz; illustrated by Henry C. Pitz
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 4th-6th grade
in GATB Language Arts & Reading (Location: CUR-GABELA)
$5.50 (1 in stock)
Farmer Boy
Little House Series #3
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$11.89 $4.80 (1 in stock)
Farrier of Buda
by P. de Zeeuw
from Pro Ecclesia
Historical Fiction for
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
$8.46 $4.80 (1 in stock)
Fever 1793
by Laurie Halse Anderson
from Simon and Schuster
for 4th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.64 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Fire at the Triangle Factory
by Holly Littlefield, illustrated by Mary O'Keefe Young
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for 2nd-5th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
First Four Years
Little House Series #9
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Reprint from HarperCollins
for 3rd-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$11.04 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Flame Over Tara
by Madeleine Polland, illustrated by Omar Davis
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Flaming Arrows
by William O. Steele, Illustrated by Paul Galdone
1st edition from Harcourt
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
For the Heart of Holland
Struggle for Freedom Series #4
by Piet Prins
from Inheritance Publications
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$11.01 $7.20 (1 in stock)
Forbidden Gates
by Denise J. Williamson
from Bob Jones University Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.64 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Freedom Crossing
by Margaret Goff Clark
Reissue from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
Gabriel and the Hour Book
by Evaleen Stein
from Unknown Publisher
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$3.20 (2 in stock)
Gathering of Days
by Joan Blos
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
1980 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.64 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Gathering of Days
by Joan Blos
from Atheneum
Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
1980 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Ghost in the Tokaido Inn
by Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler
from Puffin Books
for 4th-7th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.79 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Going West
by Jean Van Leeuwen, illustrated by Thomas Allen
from Dial Books for Young Readers
Historical fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$3.20 (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)
$8.49 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Grand Papa and Ellen Aroon
by F. N. Monjo, illustrated by Richard Cuffari
1st edition from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
for 3rd-7th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Great and Terrible Quest
by Margaret Lovett
from Avyx, Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.20 (2 in stock)
Great Wheel
by Robert Lawson
from Walker and Company
Realistic fiction for 4th-8th grade
1958 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.49 $4.80 (2 in stock)
Guests
by Michael Dorris
from Hyperion/Madison Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$2.79 (1 in stock)
Guns for General Washington
by Seymour Reit
from Harcourt
Historical fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.49 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Hawk That Dare Not Hunt By Day
by Scott O'Dell
from Bob Jones University Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.64 $4.80 (1 in stock)
Hill of Fire
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Thomas Lewis & Joan Sandin
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$5.09 $2.40 (2 in stock)
Hiroshima
by Laurence Yep
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$5.09 $2.40 (1 in stock)
Homeless Bird
by Gloria Whelan
from HarperCollins
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.49 $3.60 (1 in stock)
House of Dies Drear
by Virginia Hamilton
Reissue from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.79 $3.20 (3 in stock)
Huguenot Garden
by Douglas Jones
from Canon Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
I Sailed with Columbus
by Susan Martin
Xlibrary Copy. from Overlook Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912 - Graphic Novel
by Lauren Tarshis, art by Haus Studio
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-5th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$4.40 (1 in stock)
In Grandma's Attic
In Grandma's Attic
by Arleta Richardson
from Cook Communications
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.50 (2 in stock)
In the Hands of the Senecas
by Walter D. Edmonds
from Little, Brown & Company
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$3.20 (2 in stock)
In the Land of the Big Red Apple
Rocky Ridge Years Book 3
by Roger Lea Macbride
from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$10.19 $4.80 (1 in stock)
Innocent Voyage
by Richard Hughes, illustrated by Lynd Ward
from Heritage Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$7.00 (2 in stock)
Jack Plank Tells Tales
by Natalie Babbitt
First Edition (first thus) from MDC Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Jazz Man
by Mary Hays Weik
2nd edition from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 3rd-6th grade
Newbery Honor Book 1967
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$5.94 $3.20 (1 in stock)
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