I’m a historical fiction junkie, but I’ve done readers advisory service long enough to know that not everyone is.
However, I can’t help myself. I am going to use this venue to promote two authors that even those who don’t like historical fiction will like.
The first is Geraldine Brooks. Her first novel, Year of Wonders, relates the experience of a 17th century English village during the plague. Sound gruesome? It’s not. It’s wonderful. Then go on to March, the heartbreaking story of Mr. March, absent father of Little Women and his experiences in the Civil War, which won a Pulitzer Prize. Now try her newest, People of the Book, a fictional recreation of the history of the Sarajevo Haggadah, a small, rare, very old illuminated Hebrew manuscript. Ms Brooks writes beautifully and each of these novels has been critically acclaimed.
The second is Robert Harris. After writing a revisionist history in which the Nazi’s won the war (Fatherland), and a fascinating account of the breaking of the Nazi Enigma code (Enigma), he turns his attentions to ancient Rome. Pompeii tells the story of an architect sent to check on a problem with the Aqua Augusta aqueduct and realizes that something mysterious is terribly wrong. Imperium, actually a fascinating political novel, traces the rise of Cicero during the Roman republic. Even though we know ahead of time that Cicero will end up losing his head, and that nothing will prevent Mt. Vesuvius from erupting, we are kept turning the pages until the very end.
Now, if I’ve whetted your appetite for historical fiction, check out Booklist’s Historical Fiction Top 10 to see some other recently published works of the genre.
Submitted by Jane Brown.