It's so nice to see that two of the Newbery Honor medals awarded this year went to historical fiction titles again. PENNY FROM HEAVEN, by Jennifer L. Holm, takes place in 1953 Brooklyn, while HATTIE BIG SKY by Kirby Larson is set in 1918 Iowa and Montana. I haven't read these books yet, but they are definitely on my list (and in that taller than the Empire State Building pile of books beside my bed.)
After hearing that historical fiction just wasn't selling well at quite a few SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) conferences, I began to question my love for writing them. Should I continue? Or should I try to write something that I think will "sell" easier? Contemporary chick lit? High Fantasy trilogies? Edgy YA? But I've been sticking with what I love the most, hoping that my passion will carry over into my writing and woo an editor to publish it even if the genre isn't on the "it" list (and if my story is good, of course).
Looking back at the 2006 and 2005 winners, one title with historical fiction tendencies (really a fantasy, though) won the honor medal last year (WHITTINGTON by Alan Armstrong, set in medieval era) and two actual historical fiction titles won honors the year before (AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS by Gennifer Choldenko, set in 1935 on Alcatraz Island, and LIZZIE BRIGHT AND THE BUCKMINSTER BOY by Gary D. Schmidt, set in 1912 in Maine.) So, it goes to show that a writer should not really take those talks about what is selling and what isn't too seriously. Historical Fiction is alive and well, as far as I can tell.
Now if only I can find the time between playing "puppet show" and "playdough time" with Little Scribe to read all these books! (I have read AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS, and I highly recommend it. Very funny and clever story, one of those ideas that I wished I had thought of.)
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