When you think of historical fiction, what comes to mind? Heaving bosoms? Anachronisms? Ill-fated romance? Thinking that “Hey, I can really see the educational applications of historical fiction for middle and high school students” is probably lower on the list. That is exactly why Experiencing America’s Story Through Fiction by Hilary Susan Crew is such a useful resource. This book provides great insight into utilizing the extensive historical fiction genre to connect students to American history in schools and libraries.
Hilary Susan Crew is well prepared to author this text, as she has written extensively about children’s and young adult literature. She provides a detailed introduction outlining the contents of the book. Over 150 books are listed, the majority having been published in the past 15 years and all are appropriate for 7th to 12th graders. Each entry includes a clear plot summary, the appropriate grade levels for that text, and a list of awards won by that text.
For me, the most valuable portion of each entry comes at the end, where the author offers two to three prompts to enable further investigation. For example, the prompts for Katherine Paterson’s Bread and Roses, Too (2007), which tells the story of a 1912 Mississippi mill workers’ strike, include the following: “Discuss examples of the living and working conditions of immigrant laborers in Lawrence’s textile mills” and “Discuss the role of women in the strike and the strike’s effect on children”. It also lists the Bread and Roses Centennial Committee’s online Web site (www.exhibit.breadandrosescentennial.org). These suggestions are helpful to educators looking to integrate the genre into their lesson planning as well as to librarians creating programming for young patrons.
Ms Crew also explains the rationale used when selecting the included books. As I alluded to earlier, the phrase “historical fiction” is fairly broad and some members of the genre may place drama and intrigue over authenticity. For this book, the author specifically chose titles that were “well researched and well written”. Many of the selected books are award winners or have received starred reviews in various publications, including Booklist. Either way, when utilizing historical fiction with teens, it may be advisable to incorporate a conversation about the meaning of fiction and how it differs from a strictly informational text.
The bibliography is split into chapters based on the organization of the national standards for the teaching of US history. This is helpful for teachers trying to implement Common Core while incorporating materials beyond classroom textbooks. The standards are broken into eras of US History such as Era 3: Revolution and the New Nation and Era 8: The Great Depression and WWII. Even if you do not have prior knowledge of the social studies standards, browsing is intuitive, as the time periods are generally chronological. Each era or time period is further split into subject areas. For example, when discussing The Emergence of Modern America and WWI, the books selected for the time period are organized according to significant historical themes which include Industrialization, The American West, Science and Religion, Racial Prejudice and World War I. Ronald Kidd’s Monkey Town: The Summer of the Scopes Trial (2006) is featured in the Science and Religion section. It tells the story of the famous evolution debate as witnessed through the eyes of a 15-year-old boy. There is also a clear subject/author/title index to assist in searching.
One aspect of Experiencing America’s Story Through Fiction that I appreciate is that the author includes books for adults. You do not always see books for adults in a teen bibliography, but I find it helpful not only because it acknowledges the varied reading levels and maturity of high school students, but also because it allows for more opportunities to engage gifted students. Even though a publisher may market a book to a certain audience or even if the book features adult characters, it can still be valuable to teen readers. For example, in the Institution of Slavery section of the Expansion and Reform era, you can find books intended for teens such as Day of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue (2005) by Julius Lester, but you can also find The Invention of Wings (2014) by popular adult fiction author Sue Monk Kidd.
A major strength of this resource is its success in representing diverse perspectives. For example, the Postwar USA era deals with events from 1945-1979, which includes the Vietnam War. Tatjana Soli’s The Lotus Eaters (2010) tells the story of Vietnam through the experiences of a female photojournalist. Ann Burg’s All The Broken Pieces: A Novel in Verse (2009) relates the experiences of a boy airlifted out of Saigon and relocated to the USA, leaving his family behind. Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried (1990) shares stories of the enlisted soldiers, and lastly, The Road Home (1995) by Ellen Emerson White, shares what it was like for a nurse during the war who later experienced how people treated Vietnam veterans. Each of the entries for the section provide a different viewpoint on that tumultuous time in US History, representing diversity of gender, ethnicity, social position, age and race.
The stated objective of this text is “ […] to provide a guide for school librarians, history teachers, and public librarians working with youth to historical novels about the United States from the colonial period to the era of the Iraq War”. Academic librarians working with teacher preparation programs as well as library schools could also find this to be a useful resource. Overall, I would highly recommend this resource to anyone looking to utilize historical fiction with teens.
