Historical fiction is a genre in literature that centers on mixing both fact and fiction ingredients and forming it into a delightful story. The use of this genre is not only limited t literature but also includes other kinds of narratives, such as film, theater, TV, graphic novels, and others. There are a bunch of subgenres that emerged and are being used up to this day, examples are the documentary fiction, historical romance, fictional biographies, children’s historical fiction, and more.
There are various novels of historical fiction that were produced that are being read by readers of all ages up to this day, such as The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory, Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel, The Three Muskateers by Alexandre Dumas, Shanghai Girls by Lisa Lee, etc. Reading these books have a lot of perks, if you are one of the lovers of this genre then you might want to know what are the advantages that these books offer. Listed below are the perks of diving into historical fiction stories:
Provide a glimpse on the different cultural practices in the past
The progress brought by time does not only apply to the physical aspects of a place but also to its culture and people. Most historical fiction books showcases various cultural practices that have been prominent on the story’s timeframe. In Khaled Hosseini’s notable novel, The Kite Runner, Buzkashi and Kite Fight, Marriage, Eid-e-Qorban, and other common customs of Afghanistan are being showcased in a detailed manner using a first-person point of view. Hoesseini’s work is one of the best example of injecting and giving value of a country’s history and culture through literature. Reading these type of books is the best method to collect knowledge on different traditions of every country. It is because some of these ancient customs have been banned, stopped, shifted, altered, or put to an end.
Let you travel back in time
Reading is traveling. It is the fastest means of transportation without any resources needed, only time and effort. Historical novels offer the great trips and journey towards various raw destinations that have never been touched, destroyed, or developed by humans, time, and nature. These books can take you to the 19th century United States, ancient China, mid-17th century England, World War II, the Great Depression, and more. You can experience being a brave soldier, powerful elite, wise merchant, illiterate, slave, or middle class resident. You can be anyone at any time depending on what historical fiction book you pick and read.
Help you understand the roots of war and other conflicts
Aside from history textbooks that you get from school and borrow from your local library, historical fiction books offer a comprehensible narration of the origin of wars, conflicts, events, and other remarkable activities in the history of the world. These works also focus on the before, during, and after happenings of these events. There are various books that tackle these activities, such as Esther and the Revolution by Ray Sobrino, All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, The Book Theif by Markus Zusak, and more. It is important to know the roots of these events because they helped in shaping up the world, country, and society that we are currently living in. Knowing what your country has suffered and conquered brings pride and honor to you and your fellow countrymen. It is not just about the bombs, destruction, or bloodbath, it is more about wisdom, honor, and glory.
Ignite a roller coaster of emotions
How magnificent it to think that a single book can bring out thousands of emotions from a person? Historical fiction novels, for example, can arouse a bunch of feelings from the readers. These feelings include but are not limited to fear, pity, anger, sadness, etc. Reading fictional stories about war, slavery, and other events in the history also develop the sense of sympathy and empathy from readers. It is through books that readers can learn and assess what truly happened and how people lived during those good and unfortunate times. Remember how Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood has tackled justice, religion, social class, gender stereotyping, and other societal issues of the 18th century Canada? The novel evoked thrill, suspense, and fear, especially after knowing that it is based on a true story.
Teach you about history in a new approach
Learning is unending. Reading historical fiction novels count as learning because those books are not a total product of the writers’ imagination. It is also based on facts in order to make the story compelling and successful. Thus, readers who are into this genre gathers more information about diverse happenings from the past in a more exciting way. It is different from the type of teaching method executed in a classroom, it is more free and unexpected. You do not expect to learn something about sexism, slavery, capitalism, abuse of power, or political dynasties in reading because what you are looking forward is the story. However, as you swam deeper into the plot, you can find these keys scattered somewhere that will unlock what the book truly is about. Thus, the reading these types of books also promotes learning.
The Damsel’s Files 