Subject Tag: historical fiction

Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather

Filed under: Fiction, Reviews

Willa Cather’s Death Comes for the Archbishop profoundly moved me.
Perhaps it was Cather’s perfect capture of New Mexico: while I have never been to New Mexico, I feel I now can perfectly imagine the place, the pain, and the joy that the setting evokes. Also, while there are religious elements in the book (after all, [...]

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

Filed under: Fiction, Reviews

The first 100 pages of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See in one word: Painful. We followed Lily through her own feet-binding process, and I felt my own feet squirm as I read of it.
I think there’s something about reading historical fiction that occurs in nineteenth century China that is always painful [...]

The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck

Filed under: Fiction, Reviews

In my reading journal a few weeks ago, I mentioned that I may want to reread The Good Earth many times. I may need to amend that.
The writing was beautiful. I loved Pearl Buck’s almost Biblical prose that just flowed like poetry. And yet, probably a dozen times, I almost stopped listening to the audiobook. [...]

The Midwife’s Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Filed under: Child/Young Adult, Reviews

I enjoyed The Midwife’s Apprentice by Karen Cushman, a Newbery-winning novel. Cushman believably created a 1300s scene, and I liked learning about midwifery and superstition in the middle ages. While modern girls won’t face trials as extreme as the girl’s in the novel, they still must develop self-confidence and determine what their own dreams are. [...]

Death and War in Children’s Literature: Two Newberys about the Revolution

Filed under: Child/Young Adult, Reviews

There was no doubt that John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress (reviewed here) was written to teach both children and adults lesson about Christianity and life; there was little attempt to veil the message behind the story.
While the message in modern children’s literature may not be so thinly veiled, to me it seems obvious that authors still [...]

Possession by A.S. Byatt

Filed under: Fiction, Reviews

In Possession, A.S. Byatt powerfully creates characters so believable that I found myself assuming that the events she writes of really happened, that the feelings described were truly felt, and that the characters actually lived.
For me, Possession’s strength lies in this powerful creation. While I enjoyed the developing action (it is a literary mystery) and [...]

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

Filed under: Child/Young Adult, Fiction, Reviews

Betty Smith expertly recreates the 1912 Brooklyn of 11-year-old Francie Nolan in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Through Betty Smith’s words, I learned of the awfulness of enduring agonizing hunger and dire poverty in the tenements of Brooklyn in a volatile time.
But Francie’s poverty is only part of Francie’s story. As Francie grows from age [...]

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Filed under: Fiction, Reviews

Harper Lee wrote one novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, and it won the Pulitzer prize in 1961. Its themes still resonate with readers and her novel has become a part of our culture. That, I believe, is success.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee almost perfectly captures the main challenge of growing up: realizing [...]

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

Filed under: Child/Young Adult, Picture Books, Reviews

While I loved the gorgeous illustrations in Brian Selznick’s Caldecott-winning novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret and I was entertained by the story, I found the writing amateur and the developing plot overdramatic. In the end, however, I liked this children’s novel, as “unbalanced” as it felt.

Suggested by: Thisisnotabookclub
What is reading, anyway? Novels, comics, graphic novels, manga, e-books, audiobooks — which of these is reading these days? Are they all reading? Only some of them? What are your personal qualifications for something to be “reading” — why? If something isn’t reading, why not? Does it matter? Does it impact your desire [...]

About this blog

This blog is a collection of my thoughts about books and reading and reviews of books I've read. I'd love to hear your thoughts, too. Please share!

For more information about my current challenges and projects, visit my Reading Lists page.

This month in the Circuit:

Books I’m Currently Reading

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog

Books Recently Finished

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog

Archives

Creative Commons License.

RSSrebeccarreid on Twitter