Realistic Fiction

Realistic fiction is kind of a newcomer to the long list of literary genres. Primarily aimed at children and adolescents (the corresponding genre in adult literature is usually just called "literary fiction"), realistic fiction is recognizable by its relatable characters and situations. What sets it apart from historical fiction is that the stories do not center around an actual historical event or person, though they may be set in a very real time period.

Characters deal with the things everyone else deals with—death, friendship, loneliness, embarrassment, first love—and they don't get transported to a make-believe island as a solution to their problems. They have to work it out, which is one of the main appeals of this genre; kids like to read about other kids (real or imaginary) going through the typical young person's trials and how they deal with it.

Not that all realistic fiction is sad and gloomy. It's just what it sounds like—stories about real-life from a fresh perspective. Also, we aren't suggesting there are no realistic elements to a fantasy like The Voyage of the Dawn Treader: there are, which is precisely what makes reading that book so rewarding. It's just that real kids don't fight literal dragons, they fight bullies, or their own insecurities, or ferocious acne.

A lot of the best and most-loved stories fall squarely within the limits of realistic fiction. Huckleberry Finn wasn't a real pirate, but he really rafted the Mississippi; Anne Shirley wasn't a Medieval princess, but she really became Matthew and Marilla's daughter; Anna and Caleb Witting aren't big on imagination, but they are big on really accepting Sarah into their family (at least, eventually).

The full range of human experience is explored in these stories, its darkness, its light, its sorrow, its joy. This is the purpose of literature, after all: to show us true life, and in showing us, to better prepare us for it. These books are some of the best at doing just that.

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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203 Items found Print
Active Filters: 2nd grade (Ages 7-8), Hardcover
Adèle & Simon in America
by Barbara McClintock
1st edition from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Adventures of Tim
by Edward Ardizzone
from Chancellor Press
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Book Treasuries (Location: PIC-TRE)
Alexi's Secret Mission
by Anita Deyneka
from School of Tomorrow
for 1st-4th grade
in Clearance: Fiction (Location: ZCLE-FIC)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
All-of-a-Kind Family Hanukkah
by Emily Jenkins
from Schwartz & Wade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.14
Anak, the Eskimo Boy
by Piet Prins
from Inheritance Publications
Realistic Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
$10.16
Andrew Henry's Meadow
by Doris Burn
from Philomel Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
Exodus Books 5-Star Rating
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.14 $8.40 (1 in stock)
Animal Heroes
by Ernest Lloyd
from Pacific Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC)
Anne Arrives #1
Inspired by Anne of Green Gables #1
by L.M. Montgomery, original story, adapted by Kallie George, illustrated by Abigail Halpin
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.04
Anne Dares #5
Inspired by Anne of Green Gables #5
by L.M. Montgomery, original story, adapted by Kallie George, illustrated by Abigail Halpin
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.04
Anne Dreams #6
Inspired by Anne of Green Gables #6
by L.M. Montgomery (original story), adapted by Kallie George, illustrated by Abigail Halpin
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.04
Anne Readers Hardcover Set
by L. M. Montgomery; adapted by Kallie George, illustrated by Abigail Halpin
for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Anne's Kindred Spirits #2
Inspired by Anne of Green Gables #1
by L.M. Montgomery, original story, adapted by Kallie George, illustrated by Abigail Halpin
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.04
Anne's School Days #3
Inspired by Anne of Green Gables #3
by L.M. Montgomery, original story, adapted by Kallie George, illustrated by Abigail Halpin
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.04
Anne's Tragical Tea Party #4
Inspired by Anne of Green Gables #4
by L.M. Montgomery, original story, adapted by Kallie George, illustrated by Abigail Halpin
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.04
Annie and the Old One
by Miska Miles; illustrated by Peter Parnall
Reprint from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Annie and the Old One
by Miska Miles; illustrated by Peter Parnall
from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
April's Kittens
by Clare Turlay Newberry
from Harper & Brothers
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1941 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Armadillo's Orange
by Jim Arnosky
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Babushka
by Charles Mikolaycak
1st edition from Holiday House
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Bambi's Children
by Felix Salten, adapted by Allen Chaffee and illustrated by Phoebe Erickson
from Bobbs-Merril Co
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Beans on the Roof
by Betsy Byars, illustrated by Melodye Rosales
1st edition from Delacorte Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$2.40 (1 in stock)
Beaver Pond
by Alvin Tresselt, illustrated by Roger Duvoisin
from Unknown Publisher
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Best Beekeeper of Lalibela
by Cristina Kessler
from Holiday House
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Betsy and the Boys
by Carolyn Haywood
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Betsy's Play School
by Carolyn Haywood, illustrated by James Griffin
from William Morrow & Company
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Betsy's Winterhouse
by Carolyn Haywood
7th printing, 1969 from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Big Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook
by Joyce Lankester Brisley, illustrated by Clara Vulliamy
from Kingfisher
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Big Tree
by Mary Buff, Conrad Buff
1st Edition from Viking Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
1947 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Blossom Comes Home
by James Herriot
from St. Martin's Press
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-3rd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Blueberries for Sal
by Robert McCloskey
from Viking Press
Realistic Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1949 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.84
Bluewater Journal
by Loretta Krupinski
1st edition from HarperCollins
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Bobbsey Twins #08
by Laura Lee Hope
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 1st-4th grade
in Bobbsey Twins (Location: VIN-SER)
Bobbsey Twins #08 (tweed)
by Laura Lee Hope
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 1st-4th grade
in Bobbsey Twins (Location: VIN-SER)
Bobbsey Twins in the Country
by Laura Lee Hope
Undated from Grosset & Dunlap
for 1st-4th grade
in Bobbsey Twins (Location: VIN-SER)
$3.60 (1 in stock)
Bonny's Big Day
by James Herriot
from St. Martin's Press
for 1st-6th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Boxcar Children
by Gertrude Chandler Warner
from Albert Whitman & Company
for 2nd-6th grade
in Boxcar Children (Location: SER-BOX)
Boxcar Children
by Gertrude Chandler Warner
100th Anniversary Edition from Albert Whitman & Company
for 2nd-6th grade
in Mystery & Suspense (Location: FIC-MYS)
$12.74
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
by Bill Martin Jr.; illustrated by Eric Carle
Second Edition, 25th Anniversary Edition from Henry Holt and Company
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue at Sky Top
Bunny Brown
by Laura Lee Hope, illustrated by Walter S. Rogers
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 1st-5th grade
in Bobbsey Twins (Location: VIN-SER)
$5.20 (1 in stock)
Calico Bush
by Rachel Field, illustrated by Allen Lewis
from Macmillan
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$5.60 (1 in stock)
Child's Calendar
by John Updike
from Holiday House
for Preschool-2nd grade
2000 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Children of the Northlights
by Edgar Parin d'Aulaire, Ingri d'Aulaire
Reprint from University of Minnesota
for Preschool-4th grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$14.41
Children of the Northlights
by Edgar Parin d'Aulaire, Ingri d'Aulaire
1962 Reprint from Viking Press
for Preschool-4th grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
Christmas Cat
by Efner Tudor Holmes, Tasha Tudor (Illustrator)
from HarperCollins
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Christmas Day Kitten
by James Herriot
2nd edition from St. Martin's Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Christmas in Noisy Village OSI
by Astrid Lindgren, illustrated by Ilon Wikland
from Puffin Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Clementine
by Sara Pennypacker & Marla Frazee
from Hyperion Books for Children
for 2nd-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Cody and the Fountain of Happiness
Cody series #1
by Tricia Springstubb, Illustrated by Eliza Wheeler
from Candlewick Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Cow Who Fell in the Canal
by Phyllis Krasilovsky
from Doubleday & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Cowboy Sam and the Indians
by Edna Walker Chandler
from Benefic Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Coyote Raid in Cactus Canyon
by Jim Arnosky
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Cranberry Christmas
by Wende & Harry Devlin
First Edition from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Cranberry Halloween
by Wende & Harry Devlin
from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Cranberry Thanksgiving
by Wende & Harry Devlin
from Purple House Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Daddles
by Ruth Sawyer
from Little, Brown & Company
for 1st-4th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Dick King-Smith's Animal Friends
by Dick King-Smith, Anita Jeram (Illustrator)
from Candlewick Press
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Double Birthday Present
by Mabel Leigh Hunt, illustrated by Elinore Blaisdell
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Eddie and his Big Deals
by Carolyn Haywood
10th printing, 1968 from William Morrow & Company
Realistic Fiction for 1st-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Eddie and Louella
by Carolyn Haywood
7th printing, 1968 from William Morrow & Company
Realistic Fiction for 1st-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Eddie's Green Thumb
by Carolyn Haywood
from William Morrow & Company
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Eddie's Menagerie
by Carolyn Haywood
1st edition from Troll Associates
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Eddie's Pay Dirt
by Carolyn Haywood
11th printing from William Morrow & Company
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Elf Owl
by Mary & Conrad Buff
3rd Printing from Viking Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
Everett Anderson's Goodbye
by Lucille Clifton, illustrated by Ann Grifalconi
from Henry Holt and Company
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
1984 Coretta Scott King Award
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Farmhouse
by Sophie Blackall
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.14
Finders Keepers
by Will and Nicholas
Reissue from Houghton Mifflin
for Kindergarten-4th grade
1952 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.95
Five O'Clock Charlie
by Marguerite Henry, illustrated by Wesley Dennis
from Rand McNally
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Flip / I'm Tired of Lions
by Wesley Dennis & Zhenya Gay
from Viking Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
Flip and the Cows
by Wesley Dennis
from Viking Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
Flip and the Morning
by Wesley Dennis
from Viking Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
Forest Folk
by Mary & Conrad Buff
Fifth Printing, 1967 from Viking Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Fox Eyes
by Margaret Wise Brown
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Fry Bread
by Kevin Noble Maillard, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal
from Roaring Brook Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
2020 Robert F. Sibert Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Gift from the Mikado
by Elizabeth P. Fleming
from Westminster John Knox Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Gift of the Magi: Collectors Edition
by O. Henry, illustrated by Robert Sauber
from Unicorn Publishing House
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
Giraffe Trouble
by Jean Craighead George
1st edition
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Giraffes Aren't Half As Fat
by Miriam Aroner
from Millbrook Press
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Gorilla Baby
by Pearl Wolf
from Scholastic Book Services
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$2.40 (1 in stock)
Grandfather's Journey
by Allen Say
Reprint from Sandpiper Books
Realistic Fiction for Kindergarten-2nd grade
1994 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$8.49 $4.80 (2 in stock)
Grandfather's Journey
by Allen Say
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$15.29
Greg's Microscope
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Millicent Selsam & Arnold Lobel
from HarperCollins
Non-Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
Hans Brinker
Illustrated Junior Library Series 2
by Mary Mapes Dodge, illustrated by Cyrus Le Roy Baldridge
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Hans Brinker
Illustrated Junior Library Series 1
by Mary Mapes Dodge, illustrated by Cyrus Le Roy Baldridge
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 2nd-6th grade
in Illustrated Junior Library (Location: VIN-FIC)
Hans Brinker
Illustrated Junior Library Series 3
by Mary Mapes Dodge, illustrated by Cyrus Le Roy Baldridge
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Hans Brinker
Illustrated Junior Library Series 2
by Mary Mapes Dodge, illustrated by Cyrus Le Roy Baldridge
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Happy Little Family
Fairchild Family Series #1
by Rebecca Caudill
1st edition from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Henrietta and the Day of the Iguana
by Winifred Rosen, illustrated by Kay Chorao
from Four Winds Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Henry Explores the Jungle
by Mark Taylor, illustrated by Graham Booth
Anniversary from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Henry Explores the Mountains
by Mark Taylor, illustrated by Graham Booth
Anniversary from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Henry the Explorer
by Mark Taylor, illustrated by Graham Booth
45th Anniversary Edition from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Home in the Woods
by Eliza Wheeler
from Nancy Paulsen Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.14
Hooray, A Pinata!
by Elisa Kleven
from Dutton Children's Books
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Hotel Balzaar
by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Julia Sarda
from Candlewick Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
I, Christopher Columbus
by Lisl Weil
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Clearance: Picture Books (Location: ZCLE-PIC)
If It Weren't For You
by Charlotte Zolotow, illustrated by Ben Shecter
from Harper & Row
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
In Plain Sight
by Richard Jackson, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$15.29
Indian Hill
by Clyde Robert Bulla, illustrated by James Spanfeller
from Thomas Y. Crowell & Co.
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Indian Summer
by F. N. Monjo
from HarperTrophy
for 2nd-5th grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
James Herriot's Animal Stories
by James Herriot
from St. Martin's Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Josie Smith and Eileen
by Magdalen Nabb, illustrated by Pirkko Vainio
from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for 2nd-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
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