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.
Did you find this review helpful?
144 Items found Print
Active Filters: Preschool (Ages 4-5)
Adèle & Simon
by Barbara McClintock
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
by Judith Viorst
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Alfie and the Big Boys
by Shirley Hughes
Reprint from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$13.99
Alfie and the Birthday Surprise
by Shirley Hughes
Reissue from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alfie Gets in First
by Shirley Hughes
Reprint from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alfie Gets in First
by Shirley Hughes
Reprint from Trumpet Club
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alfie Gives a Hand
by Shirley Hughes
Reprint from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$13.99
Alfie Weather
by Shirley Hughes
New from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alfie Wins a Prize
by Shirley Hughes
Reissue from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$12.99
Alfie's Alphabet
by Shirley Hughes
from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alfie's Christmas
by Shirley Hughes
from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alfie's Feet
by Shirley Hughes
Reprint from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alfie's Numbers
by Shirley Hughes
from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
All Those Secrets of the World
by Jane Yolen
1st edition from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Angel in the Waters
by Regina Doman; illustrated by Ben Hatke
from Sophia Institute Press
Realistic Fiction for Preschool-Kindergarten
in Pregnancy & Infant Care (Location: PRE-INF)
$9.95
Annie and the Old One
by Miska Miles, Peter Parnall
Reprint from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-1st grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
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)
$7.50 (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)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Apple Picking Time
from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Babushka
by Charles Mikolaycak
1st edition from Holiday House
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)
Before I Was Born
by Harriet Ziefert, Illustrated by Rufus Coes
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Benjy and the Barking Bird
by Margaret Bloy Graham
from Harper & Row
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Big Alfie and Annie Rose Storybook
by Shirley Hughes
from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$14.99
Big Frank's Fire Truck
by Leslie McGuire
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
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)
Bracelet, The
by Yoshika Uchida
from PaperStar Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Carrot Seed
by Ruth Krauss & Crockett Johnson
from HarperCollins
Humorous Book on Botany for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.50 (5 in stock)
Carrot Seed
by Ruth Krauss & Crockett Johnson
from HarperFestival
Humorous Book on Botany for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Board Books (Location: PIC-BOARD)
$9.99
Child's Calendar
by John Updike
from Holiday House
for Preschool-2nd grade
2000 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
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)
$16.95
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)
$28.00 (1 in stock)
Christmas in Noisy Village
by Astrid Lindgren, illustrated by Ilon Wikland
from Puffin Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Cranberry Christmas
by Wende & Harry Devlin
First Edition from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.95
Cranberry Halloween
by Wende & Harry Devlin
from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.95
Desert Is Theirs
by Byrd Baylor, illustrated by Peter Parnall
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-2nd grade
1976 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Down, Down the Mountain
by Ellis Credle
from Purple House Press
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$14.99
Eddie's Menagerie
by Carolyn Haywood
1st edition from Troll Associates
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Egg Tree
by Katherine Milhous
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-2nd grade
1951 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Evening at Alfie's
by Shirley Hughes
Reprint from Red Fox
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$12.99
Everybody Cooks Rice
from First Avenue Editions
for Nursery-1st grade
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)
$18.99
Feast for 10
by Cathryn Falwell
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Fire Engine Book
by Tibor Gergely
1st edition from Golden Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in Little Golden Books (Location: PIC-GOLD)
$5.99
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and the Big Red Hen
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and the Little Dog
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and the Little Dog
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and the New Dotted Dresses
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and the Strawberries
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and the Three Kittens
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and the Three Kittens
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and Their New Friend
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and Their New Friend
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and Their New Skates
by Maj Lindman
Updated from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka Bake a Cake
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flicka, Ricka, Dicka Bake a Cake
by Maj Lindman
from Albert Whitman & Company
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flower Garden
by Eve Bunting
from Sandpiper Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.00
Fox Eyes
by Margaret Wise Brown
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Fritz and the Beautiful Horses
by Jan Brett
Reprint from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Gods Must Be Angry
by Sheila Miller and Ian Murray
from OMF
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$2.00 (2 in stock)
Going to Town
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from Scholastic Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Hattie and the Wild Waves
by Barbara Cooney
from Puffin Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
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)
$8.00 (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)
$18.95
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)
$18.95
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)
$18.95
Henry the Explorer
by Mark Taylor, illustrated by Graham Booth
from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Home in the Woods
by Eliza Wheeler
from Nancy Paulsen Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
I Go With My Family to Grandma's
by Riki Levinson, illustrated by Diane Goode
from Trumpet Club
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
I Know a Lady
by Charlotte Zolotow & James Stevenson
1st edition from Greenwillow Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
I'll Always Love You
by Hans Wilhelm
from Scholastic Inc.
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Ian and the Gigantic Leafy Obstacle
by Sheila Miller
from OMF
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.00 (2 in stock)
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)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
If You're Not from the Prairie . . .
by David Bouchard
from Aladdin Paperbacks
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)
$17.99
Ira Says Goodbye
by Bernard Waber
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Journey Cake, Ho!
by Ruth Sawyer, illustrated by Robert McCloskey
from Viking Press
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1954 Caldecott Honor Book
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$8.00 (3 in stock)
Just Plain Fancy
by Patricia Polacco
1st edition from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Kate Greenaway's Marigold Garden
by Kate Greenaway
from Frederick Warne & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Kid Brother
by Jerrold Beim, illustrated by Tracy Sugarman
from Morrow Eagle
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Knots on a Counting Rope
by Bill Martin Jr., John Archambault
Reprint from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Least of All
by Carol Purdy
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Letting Swift River Go
by Jane Yolen
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Lion in the Box
by Marguerite de Angeli
from Purple House Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.99
Little Donkey Close Your Eyes
by Margaret Wise Brown
1st edition from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Little Princess (adapted)
by Barbara McClintock
from HarperCollins
Orphan Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Long Ago on a Silent Night
by Julie Berry, Illustrated by Annie Won
from Orchard Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$17.99
Lost Lake
by Allen Say
from Houghton Mifflin
Word Books for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Love You Forever
by Robert Munsch
from Firefly Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.95 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Lysbet and the Fire Kittens
by Marietta D. Moskin & Margot Tomes
from Putnam Juvenile
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Madeline and the Bad Hat
by Ludwig Bemelmans
from Puffin Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$9.99
Mama's Way
by Helen Ketteman, illustrated by Mary Whyte
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (2 in stock)
Man Who Walked Between The Towers
by Mordicai Gerstein
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Man Who Walked Between The Towers
by Mordicai Gerstein
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Mary McLean and the St. Patrick's Day Parade
by Steven Kroll
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Molly's Pilgrim
by Barbara Cohen
from William Morrow & Company
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Clearance: Picture Books (Location: ZCLE-PIC)
Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present
by Charlotte Zolotow
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd grade
1963 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.95
Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present
by Charlotte Zolotow, illustrated by Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd grade
1963 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
My Great-Aunt Arizona
by Gloria Houston
Reprint from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
12