Younger Son Likes Historical Fiction Now

My eleven year old son has discovered that he enjoys historical fiction. I can't tell you how happy this makes me.

For years I have bookhunted and scouted and taken suggestions from other homeschoolers about the best books to read. Many are historical fiction. In the past my sons have both resisted this genre which has been an area that I felt sad about. I wanted my kids to love those books.

While going through books in the moving process I decided to let go of thousands that we were finished with or never got around to using. I saved some picture books from the time period we are studying right now and figured I'd have my eleven year old read them now, quickly and easily then I'd let go of them.

One book I held onto was a journal style book written by Marissa Moss, "Hannah's Journal" which was historical fiction about a Jewish girl from Lithuania immigrating to the United States. He enjoyed the book (although he hated the abrupt ending) and asked for more. He now says he never knew this thing we call historial fiction existed.

Now he is moving on to books that are longer in text, the chapter books.



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He is also finishing up a narrative nonfiction trilogy series published in the late 1950s to 1960 by Gerald Johnson. The series is called "A History for Peter" and the titles are America is Born, America Grows Up and America Moves Forward. Both of my kids enjoy narrative nonfiction (a writing style popular a hundred years ago but which has become pretty rare).