North Attleborough
High School 
Media Center

Historical Fiction

What is Historical Fiction?  

It seems like an oxymoron, doesn’t it?  How can a novel be history (based on fact) and fiction (a product of imagination.)  Remember those distinctions you learned in grade school about fiction and non-fiction?  Now, here we go mixing the two together.  But, that’s exactly what the author of historical fiction does.  The author chooses a time period with all its authentic history and verifiable historical events and creates a story from his/her imagination.  There are several qualities of good historical fiction.

• It is historically accurate.  The author has done in depth of research and knows  the time period intimately.

• The events of the historical period are vital to the story.

• The author creates a strong sense of time and place.

• The author uses good dialogue.

• The author creates realistic characters.

• The plot is exciting.

Historical fiction provides information about the past to show actual historical periods and to get the reader to think about the individual and social problems in an historical context.  

Click Here
 to read about some of the historical fiction books
 currently on display in the Media Center!

Book Talking Historical Fiction

Historical Fiction Links

   Updated on January 11, 2006