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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121 Items found Print
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Across So Many Seas
by Ruth Behar
from Nancy Paulsen Books
for 4th-8th grade
2025 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
Album of Horses
by Marguerite Henry
from Aladdin Books
Realistic Animal Stories for 3rd-7th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$21.24
All the Blues in the Sky
by Renee Watson
from Bloomsbury Publishing
for 6th-9th grade
2026 Newbery Award Winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
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)
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 of Avonlea
Anne #2
by L. M. Montgomery
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
Anne of Green Gables
Anne #1
by L. M. Montgomery
from Tundra Books (NY)
Orphan Stories for 5th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.74
Anne of Green Gables
by L. M. Montgomery, illustrated by Sybil Tawse
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Orphan Stories for 5th-9th grade
$17.00
Anne of the Island
Anne #3
by L.M. Montgomery
from Tundra Books (NY)
Orphan Stories for
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
Anne's House of Dreams
Anne #5
by L. M. Montgomery
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 5th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
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
Bambi
by Felix Salten, illustrated by Steve Johnson & Lou Fancher
from Charles Scribner's Sons
Animal Stories: Fantasy for 4th-6th grade
in Scribner Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SCRIB)
$25.49
Berliners
by Vesper Stamper
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 7th-12th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$18.69
Big Red
by Jim Kjelgaard
from Holiday House
Realistic Animal Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$15.29
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
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
Bright April
by Marguerite de Angeli
from Purple House Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$19.55
By the Shores of Silver Lake
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.99
Caddie Woodlawn
by Carol Ryrie Brink
from Simon and Schuster
Realistic Family Fiction for 3rd-7th grade
1936 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
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
Complete Novels of Jane Austen
by Jane Austen
from Canterbury Classics
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$25.00
Copper-Toed Boots
by Marguerite de Angeli
from Purple House Press
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$22.94
Courage of Sarah Noble
by Alice Dalgliesh
from Atheneum
for 3rd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
Echo
by Pam Muñoz Ryan
First Ed from Scholastic Press
for 7th-10th grade
2016 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
Escape Artist
by Thor Hanson, illustrated by Galia Bernstein
from Greenwillow Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
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)
$16.99
Farmhouse
by Sophie Blackall
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.14
Ferris
by Kate DiCamillo
from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Humor & Comedy (Location: FIC-COM)
$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
Fire Engine Book
by Tibor Gergely
1st edition from Golden Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in Little Golden Books (Location: PIC-GOLD)
$5.09
First Four Years
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.14
Freewater
by Amina Luqman Dawson
from Little, Brown & Company
for 5th-8th grade
2023 Newbery Medal Winner, Coretta Scott King Award
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.44
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
Heavenly Tenants
by William Maxwell, illustrated by Ilanka Karasz
Reprint from Dover Publications
for 3rd-6th grade
1947 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.41
Heidi
by Johanna Spyri, translated by Helen B. Dole and illustrated by William Sharp
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
$17.00
Home in the Woods
by Eliza Wheeler
from Nancy Paulsen Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.14
Hope in the Valley
by Mitali Perkins
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
Hotel Balzaar
by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Julia Sarda
from Candlewick Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
How the Heather Looks
by Joan Bodger
Reprint from Living Book Press
for 7th-Adult
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$21.24
If Jesus Came to My House
by Joan Gale Thomas
from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.76
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
Iveliz Explains it All
by Andrea Beatriz Arango
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for 6th-9th grade
2023 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.44
James Herriot's Treasury for Children
by James Herriot, illustrated by Ruth Brown & Peter Barrett
Unabridged from Macmillan
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$22.95
King of the Wind
by Marguerite Henry; illustrated by Wesley Dennis
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Realistic Animal Stories for 3rd-7th grade
1949 Newbery Medal winner
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$21.24
Kitchen Madonna
by Rumer Godden
from Bethlehem Books
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.71
Knuffle Bunny Free
by Mo Willems
from Balzer & Bray
2008 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.14
Knuffle Bunny Too
by Mo Willems
from Hyperion Press
2008 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$15.29 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Kyra, Just for Today
by Sara Zarr
from Balzer & Bray
for 5th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
Labors of Hercules Beal
by Gary D. Schmidt
from Clarion Books
for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99 $6.40 (1 in stock)
Little Britches
Little Britches Series #1
by Ralph Moody
from Purple House Press
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$24.99
Little House in the Big Woods
Little House Series #1
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.14
Little House on the Prairie
Little House Series #2
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.99
Little House on the Prairie - 75th Anniversary Edition
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
75 Anv Rev from HarperCollins
for 3rd-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.99
Little Lord Fauntleroy
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Illustrated by C. E. Brock
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
$14.45
Little Town on the Prairie
Little House Series #7
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
1942 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.99
Little Women
by Louisa May Alcott, illustrated by M.E. Gray
Unabridged from Everyman's Library
Realistic Romantic Fiction for 5th-8th grade
$14.41
Little Women
by Louisa May Alcott, illustrated by Clara M. Burd
from Abbeville Press
Realistic Romantic Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$29.75
Long Winter
Little House Series #6
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
1941 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$18.69
Love and Other Great Expectations
by Becky Dean
from Delacorte Press
for 8th-12th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
Magnolia Wu Unfolds it All
by Chanel Miller
from Philomel Books
for 3rd-6th grade
2025 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
Maizy Chen's Last Chance
by Lisa Yee
from Yearling
for 4th-8th grade
2023 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.44
Make Way for Ducklings
by Robert McCloskey
from Viking Press
Realistic Animal Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1942 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$16.99
Make Way for McCloskey
by Robert McCloskey
from Viking Press
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Picture Book Treasuries (Location: PIC-TRE)
$25.49
Man of the Family
Little Britches Series #2
by Ralph Moody
from Purple House Press
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$19.51
Mary Emma and Company
Little Britches Series #4
by Ralph Moody
from Purple House Press
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$22.94
Mary Poppins
by P. L. Travers
from Harcourt Children's Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$14.44
Mary Poppins from A to Z
by P. L. Travers
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-7th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$14.44
Mighty Jackie
by Marissa Moss
1st edition from Simon & Schuster Macmillan
in Clearance: Picture Books (Location: ZCLE-PIC)
$15.29 $6.40 (1 in stock)
Mikis and the Donkey
by Bibi Dumon Tak, illustrated by Philip Hopman
from Eerdmans
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.05
Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook
by Joyce Lankester Brisley
from Kingfisher
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$13.59
Minna's Patchwork Coat
by Lauren Mills
from Little, Brown & Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$21.24
Miracle on 34th Street
by Valentine Davies
from Harcourt
Realistic Fairy Tale for 6th-9th Grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$16.99
Mishka
by Edward Van de Vendel and Anoush Elman; translated by Nancy Forest-Flier
from Levine Querido
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$13.59
Moment Comes
by Jennifer Bradbury
from Atheneum
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
Most Perfect Thing in the Universe
by Tricia Springstubb
from Margaret Ferguson Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.29
My Favorite Songs
by Maria Trapp
from Veritas Press
for Kindergarten-Adult
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$17.00
Old Town in the Green Groves
by Cynthia Rylant
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.49
On the Banks of Plum Creek
Little House Series #4
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1938 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.14
One Big Open Sky
by Lesa Cline-Ransome
from Holiday House
for 6th-Adult
2025 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.14
One Morning in Maine
by Robert McCloskey
from Viking Press
Realistic Family Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1953 Caldecott Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$16.99
Place to Hang the Moon
by Kate Albus
from Margaret Ferguson Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.14
Prairie Lotus
by Linda Sue Park
from Clarion Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.44
Racketty-Packetty House
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin
100th Anniversary Edition from Simon and Schuster
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$18.69
Rainbow Valley
Anne #7
by L. M. Montgomery
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 5th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
Red, White and Whole
by Rajani LaRocca
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-6th grade
2022 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$14.44
Rfaud Tastes Wisdom
Plain Proverbs Book #1
by Martin D. Carlson
1st edition from BoCook Publishing
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$14.41
Rilla of Ingleside
Anne #8
by L. M. Montgomery
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 5th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
Robinson Crusoe
by Daniel Defoe, illustrated by N.C. Wyeth
from Atheneum
for 6th-10th grade
in Scribner Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SCRIB)
$21.24
Robinson Crusoe Written Anew for Children
by James Baldwin
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-4th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$10.16
Rowan Farm
by Margot Benary-Isbert
from Purple House Press
for 3rd-10th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$19.55
Secret Garden
by Frances Hodgson Burnett; illustrated by Graham Rust
from David R. Godine
Realistic Fiction for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.96
Secret Garden
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, foreword by E. L. Konigsburg
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Realistic Fiction for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$5.94
Secret Garden
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Tasha Tudor
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99
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