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For some people, history class is the bane of their existence. For some people, it’s just another class to pass. While for others, it’s a series of dates and facts to memorize. Either way, for the majority of people, it’s hard to relate to these basic concepts.
That’s where historical ictions come in. Authors that write historical fiction do so much research, that not only are they getting the concepts, dates and events correctly, but they’re immersing readers into the past with every accurate detail and feeling.
The one thing history class lacks sometimes is engagement, which is exactly what historical fictions give you. So let’s get into some reasons that historical fiction will boost your history grade and help you be more engaged in class. Make sure to read until the end for some great historical fiction recommendations (from someone who reads way too many…)
1. Strengthening the timeline
History is everything that happened in the past, and that’s a lot to remember. It’s easy to forget which war happened when, and what happened in between. We may have the factual information that the revolutionary war happened before the civil war, but when we read about someone living through it and their experiences, we create a mental image in our head, tying these timelines with the age or emotion of the characters we read about, making history easier to remember.
2. Relatability
As much as we try to relate to history, it can be hard. What we learn in textbooks primarily consists of numbers, dates, and names. When I hear that 500 people died in an event a century ago, I feel sad, as I'm sure we all do. But that’s about it. Sometimes, it feels like a field of lost grey people.. But when we read historical fiction, these grey people get colour. Whilst we know these people had hopes and dreams too, it’s hard to see them when it was so long ago. By being immersed into a story, we see how devastating it is for this to have happened to them and also understand the characters and life that defines them. Coming back to history class, this helps us think of more creative ideas, projects and presentations when we can put ourselves into the shoes of the past.
3. Avoids Bias
Whether we like to admit it or not, sometimes history classes and resources can be biased. And most of that time, the bias is not intentional. History is not one-sided, one country wasn’t only good, and the other wasn’t only bad. But historical fiction prevents the danger of a single story. These books tell the stories of the minority, of the third-world areas and the low-income regions. For example, in the eyes of many, we see Germans during the second world war as completely evil. We see the countless they killed, and the pain they planted into the world. But upon reading historical fiction, we see the lost German girl who is being punished for her country's actions. Or, we see the Muslim boys whose family is getting hated on because of something they didn’t do. We see the other side of the conflict, and that is eye-opening. And as a result, allows us to surpass the bias and become more well-rounded and objective in history class.
4. Raises voices
This one not only applies to history class, but to everything. When we’re able to read about these different stories, awareness rises. We now decide what’s our view on the matter, which side we’re on, or if there even is a right side. knowing our stance on something, gets us more passionate to talk about these historical events and to share our reasoning for what we think.
Conclusion
I hope I’ve convinced you to go pick up historical fiction and see how your view of the world changes. Immerse yourself into the complexity of the human race, and also the beauties that lie in history. Feel free to share some of your favourite historical fiction novels and how they’ve helped you down below.
Don’t know where to start? Click the button below to download a list of my FAVOURITE YA and middle-grade historical books!
Happy reading!
Edited by Gwen P. _____________________________________________________________________ Sumal Ashfaq is a ninth-grade student residing in southern Ontario. She finds inspiration in nature and capturing her surroundings in her sketchbook.
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